Review – Master of Sorrows (The Silent Gods, Book 1) by Justin Call (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 592 pages
Publisher: Gollancz
Release Date: August 8, 2019
ISBN-13: 978-1473222885
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in The Silent Gods series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley
Rating: 4/5 stars

“You have heard the story before – of a young boy, orphaned through tragic circumstances, raised by a wise old man, who comes to a fuller knowledge of his magic and uses it to fight the great evil that threatens his world.

But what if the boy hero and the malevolent, threatening taint were one and the same?

What if the boy slowly came to realize he was the reincarnation of an evil god? Would he save the world . . . or destroy it?

Among the Academy’s warrior-thieves, Annev de Breth is an outlier. Unlike his classmates who were stolen as infants from the capital city, Annev was born in the small village of Chaenbalu, was believed to be executed, and then unknowingly raised by his parents’ killers.

Seventeen years later, Annev struggles with the burdens of a forbidden magic, a forgotten heritage, and a secret deformity. When he is subsequently caught between the warring ideologies of his priestly mentor and the Academy’s masters, he must choose between forfeiting his promising future at the Academy or betraying his closest friends. Each decision leads to a deeper dilemma, until Annev finds himself pressed into a quest he does not wish to fulfil.

Will he finally embrace the doctrine of his tutors, murder a stranger, and abandon his mentor? Or will he accept the more difficult truth of who he is . . . and the darker truth of what he may become . . .”

Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the Silent Gods series. I got an eGalley for this from NetGalley to review.

Story (4/5): This is a pretty typical type of fantasy story. Our main protagonist, Annev, has been trained by a secret society, the Academy, that “recovers” illegal magical artifacts from people in order to keep people safe from these artifacts. Annev was raised by a priest who has been like a father figure to him. Unfortunately, Annev is one of the few who can also perform the very magic that is forbidden and ends up torn between the severe beliefs of the Academy and the worldly beliefs of the priest who raised him.

The story moved pretty slow, although I liked the idea behind. Annev is destined to be a destroyer but, because of how he was raised, he is much more compassionate than his fellow Academy members. It’s an interesting conundrum.

Characters (5/5): I thought the characters were the high point of this story. All the characters are very well done and likable, even the side characters. The characters meant to be “evil” have enough depth that you can understand where they are coming from as well. I enjoyed the partnerships Annev had both with the priest and with some of his fellow classmates.

Setting (4/5): The secluded village where the Academy is located is a pretty typical setting. I enjoyed when our characters ventured out of the city towards the end of the story and encountered more interesting and deadly terrains.

Writing Style (4/5): This book is well written and easy to read. The writing flows well and the dialogue is witty. My only complaint is how slow things move. When you look back at the story you realize very little actually happened until pretty late in the book. Despite this I did enjoy getting to know Annev and the village he lives in.

Summary (4/5): This is a well done fantasy that I enjoyed. It was a bit of a slow read for me; both in pacing and in how long it took me to read it. However, I enjoyed the characters and story a lot and am curious to see where this story is going. Even though it was slow, I continued to enjoy it and never wanted to set this aside or stop reading it. I plan on continuing with the series.