Book Review: Fangs of War – The Blood and Steel Saga book 1 by E.J. DOBLE
Tarrazi forces have killed Provenci’s King, making way for a new and brutal government to take over. New leader Alverez is hell bent on the destruction of Tarraz, building an army bigger than the world has ever seen and sending them to war against the foul creatures and populations of a feral enemy land.
Cavara has been betrayed by her people, left for dead after the discovery of the king far from home. She is rescued by a stranger and taken to a brighter land where she is deemed as an outcast and is suddenly on the run. She must remain hidden while putting together pieces of her past orders and coming to terms with her new life before she faces the great feared Alberdane.
Believed to be dead for the last 25 years the Iron Queen lies in wait, to take revenge on those who put her in her suspected grave. Striking a deal with the All Mother, a God like entity and force to be feared she dreams of revenge against all those who terrorised her land decades before. The Iron Queen will stop at nothing to find her new champion and the All-Mother searches for her successor. As these two forces work against each other, the reader is set up to witness sinister cataclysmic events.
This book was very, very dense but beautifully written. Each time I picked it up, it would take a little while for my brain to catch up to the writing style but once I did it became an addiction. I would just want more. The imagery portrayed in these pages is nothing short of stunning (and terrifying as we are in a world full of God like beasts which I would NOT want to come up against). It took a little brain power to get through, but this author certainly has potential to create one heck of an epic series.
As we follow our multi POV’s it becomes apparent not all in this world is black and white, each side of the brutal forces of the Tarrazi and Provenci being fed information about the other to fuel the feud. We are invited to reflect on humane choices, whether or not it is right and just to kill without question or should we perhaps look deeper into the why of our actions.
Most of the characters in this book were very well done in my opinion. I had a wide range of feelings towards the cast we were introduced to. I think Doble has done a really good job of writing some male characters that don’t necessarily follow the macho nonsense that we often see in fantasy (although there is certainly some of that) but there were two male characters in particular that showcased themselves to have raw emotions, loyalties and were as sweet as they were strong. The differences between these characters and those who followed a familiar formula was a breath of fresh air and I really appreciated having these different outlooks on life within a single book rather than it being a character arc discovered over time.
Another thing that really impressed me in these pages is that this author is NOT afraid to take risks. Some of the twist, turns that occur in this book left me utterly devastated and thinking “No! Wait, what”. Then questioning how that is going to affect other characters and plot lines. They have done a very good job of making me care for certain people only to shock me later, as well as pulling me in to some of the more morally grey plot points to question where my own morals fit in.
Now I mentioned before that this book was dense. The prose is heavy and can be convoluted at times, making it a little hard to get through certain sections. The wording and imagery of these bulkier sections is mesmerising if you let yourself sit with it and visualise the descriptions. These sections may put off some readers, but if you let yourself get accustomed to the writing style there is something quite beautiful here.
Fair warning: If you are a reader who struggles keeping on tops of lots of POV’s and interwoven plot lines that aren’t clear cut this may be a difficult read.
I had a decent time with this book, even though it did take me a while to get through because of the density but I am looking forward to seeing what Doble does next.
