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willrefuge's review against another edition
5.0
Review of
CHAOSMAGE
by Stephen Aryan
Book 3 of The Age of Darkness
The final novel of The Age of Darkness is most certainly the best. CHAOSMAGE succeeds where the initial two stumbled, capitalizing on Aryan’s earlier successes while distancing itself from their slight missteps. Neither BATTLEMAGE or the followup BLOODMAGE had anything in the way of a deal-breaker. The plots were solid, the characters thoughtful (if not thought out, at least at first), and everything tied together quite nicely in the end. I enjoyed the first two immensely, but the third is most certainly my favorite.
Plus, my favorite POV character of the series has been Balfruss, and once I saw that he was back as a POV for book 3… well, it was a no-brainer.
Joining Balfruss are a cast of minor characters from the previous two Age of Darkness entries—including Kai, the Lord of Disease or whatevs from the first book, and Tammy, the Guardian from the second. Thrown in are a few new POVs from a native of Shael (the locale of a majority of CHAOSMAGE) as well as one of its invaders during the previous war.
Here’s the blurb:
‘ The final book in the epic fantasy trilogy that began with Battlemage - expect fireball-filled battles, otherworldy enemies, and heroically powerful mages
Voechenka is a city under siege. Decimated by the Battlemage War, its dead now walk the city at night, attacking survivors, calling their names and begging the living to join them beyond the grave.Tammy is a watchman sent to the city to investigate, so the ruling powers can decide whether to help Voechenka or leave it to its grisly fate.Zannah is a pariah in Voechenka - making up for her people's war crimes by protecting refugees who fear her far more than they fear their unearthly attackers.Balfruss is a scholar, a traveler . . . and the infamous mage who single-handedly ended the war.No one else may enter or leave the city - so if this ragtag group of survivors can't figure out what is going on, they'll live out their last few, short days within its walls.And night is coming on fast . . . ‘
Oh, did I forget to mention the zombies? While the animated dead featured here are not the walking, brain-dead nightmares you may be used to, they still add an otherworldly horror to the plot, which, combined with an ACTUAL otherworldly horror, make up a good threat to not only the city depicted, but also the world beyond. As you know (or may not) from reading the previous two books of Aryan’s Age of Darkness, something lurks beyond the Veil that separates this world from the next. And now is the time when we will get a bit more than a glimpse into just what that might be. As otherworldly bad-guys go, this quasi-alien being actually succeeds where other villains in the Age of Darkness fell short, striking—well, not fear, so much as uncertainty into me as I read this book. Because, as the conclusion of this storyline, I wasn’t sure how the Age of Darkness would end. Yet, with the announcement of a further trilogy set in the same world (and with the first book due out later this year) I was assured that the Age would end, one way or another.
And its end does not disappoint.
In addition to meeting this new horror from beyond the Veil, we are also greeted by the mysterious figure who has been pulling strings from behind the scenes leading up to this conclusion. And if that was not enough, Aryan has a few further surprises in store—including one twist that I didn’t even catch on to until the chapter was nearly through!
With that said, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of the book itself.
The character development of BLOODMAGE was a vast improvement over the initial book, and this is something CHAOSMAGE expands upon, depicting both the characters’ high moments along with their low, and creating a definite character-arc that showcases their development over the course of not just this book, but the series as a whole. For the character of Balfruss this is comparatively simple (as he was featured as a POV in the series entrant), while the new POVs create more of a challenge. Aryan manages this by introducing brief yet poignant glimpses into their past which further underlines their development up to the present. These glimpses often take place within a piece of an existing chapter—which, unlike greater flashbacks in series like THE SHATTERED SANDS or the EREBUS SEQUENCE or etcetera, do not distract from the story at present—creating a reverie which the character will not have time to fully explore before being forced back into the present. While sometimes frustratingly short, these peeks into the past do help create a vivid profile of the character, which—especially in the case of Tammy and Alyssa—helped me connect deeply with their storylines despite their recent entry. Everything Aryan tries in this book to humanize his characters seems to work, despite the fact that not all of them are necessarily “human”. But, while there is a definite sense of development for characters over the course of the series, that of the book alone is somewhat muted. This didn’t ruin anything for me—particularly since the duration of the story seems to take place over the course of maybe a month—as the characters DO change, though the depth of this is muted in the POVs. Balfruss’s storyline in BATTLEMAGE I felt was one of Aryan’s early triumphs and is expounded upon in CHAOSMAGE, thus heightening the extent to which I related with him (Balfruss). As none of the other POVs are slouches, I didn’t find myself dreading the lag between each of his chapters. Instead, every POV in this book is interesting, and while Balfruss was and still is my favorite, all were engrossing and never did I feel boredom or the urge to skip-over a chapter to get to someone else.
The plot isn’t simple. Uh, I should probably explain that.
In THE BOY WITH THE PORCELAIN BLADE, Den Patrick creates a highly vivid—if, small—world and paints an incredibly vibrant word-picture. The plot, however, is shit. It’s boring and straightforward, with no surprises or twists, containing chapters that alternate between the present and flashbacks—even at the point where the past catches up, making any explanation of events in the present tedious and repetitive. The plot of CHAOSMAGE legitimately kept me guessing. Even when I thought I had everything figured out, Aryan threw a curveball and I was engrossed again, as this new thing had caught me by surprise. While Aryan does not paint such a colorful world as Patrick, his is greater in size and spectrum and even refined in its detail. The words may not be as fancy or thought-provoking, but Aryan gets by, and the story succeeds when he doesn’t try to hard. And while there was evidence of such in the previous two books, Aryan has hit his stride by the third. He knows what he’s doing, and doesn’t try overthink it. (Or maybe he has one great editor—who knows? Maybe both.) Overall, the plot—while not highly detailed in regards to Robert Jordan or Brandon Sanderson—is sufficient while not overpowering and left me wanting to explore more of the world while not needing a greater understanding of the plot. In short, the plot works. It’s not too simple, too complex. It just works.
The cover is somewhat lame by the standards of the first two, but whatever. If you’ve made it to the third, the cover and title probably don’t matter as much as if you’d never heard of Aryan before. Also, it’s probably my only legitimate gripe of the entire review, so…
Recommendation
Read it. For fantasy fans—new and old, grimdark and classic, plus whatever in-between. THE AGE OF DARKNESS is not YA. There is brutal violence and depiction of gore. There isn’t a whole lot of sex or swearing or anything too graphic, but these themes are present. It is a series for adults. Or however old someone would consider things change from YA to Teen to Adult, I dunno. I probably wouldn’t recommend it to my mother, but that doesn’t say much unless you know her. So, pretty much, if I just described a lot of things you aren’t into, maybe pass. Otherwise, read it. You won’t regret it.
I would recommend starting at the beginning as THE AGE OF DARKNESS is a chronological series. While it may be possible to jump in without feeling completely lost, eventually (if you like it) you’re going to want to know what all the things being alluded to are. Plus, starting at the beginning means you get to know the whole story, beginning to end. Plus, with MAGEBORN coming out later this year, you don’t want to be left behind. So pick up BATTLEMAGE if you haven’t read it, and make your way through.
Rating
5 / 5 stars
An excellent book and an excellent conclusion to the series. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
CHAOSMAGE
by Stephen Aryan
Book 3 of The Age of Darkness
The final novel of The Age of Darkness is most certainly the best. CHAOSMAGE succeeds where the initial two stumbled, capitalizing on Aryan’s earlier successes while distancing itself from their slight missteps. Neither BATTLEMAGE or the followup BLOODMAGE had anything in the way of a deal-breaker. The plots were solid, the characters thoughtful (if not thought out, at least at first), and everything tied together quite nicely in the end. I enjoyed the first two immensely, but the third is most certainly my favorite.
Plus, my favorite POV character of the series has been Balfruss, and once I saw that he was back as a POV for book 3… well, it was a no-brainer.
Joining Balfruss are a cast of minor characters from the previous two Age of Darkness entries—including Kai, the Lord of Disease or whatevs from the first book, and Tammy, the Guardian from the second. Thrown in are a few new POVs from a native of Shael (the locale of a majority of CHAOSMAGE) as well as one of its invaders during the previous war.
Here’s the blurb:
‘ The final book in the epic fantasy trilogy that began with Battlemage - expect fireball-filled battles, otherworldy enemies, and heroically powerful mages
Voechenka is a city under siege. Decimated by the Battlemage War, its dead now walk the city at night, attacking survivors, calling their names and begging the living to join them beyond the grave.Tammy is a watchman sent to the city to investigate, so the ruling powers can decide whether to help Voechenka or leave it to its grisly fate.Zannah is a pariah in Voechenka - making up for her people's war crimes by protecting refugees who fear her far more than they fear their unearthly attackers.Balfruss is a scholar, a traveler . . . and the infamous mage who single-handedly ended the war.No one else may enter or leave the city - so if this ragtag group of survivors can't figure out what is going on, they'll live out their last few, short days within its walls.And night is coming on fast . . . ‘
Oh, did I forget to mention the zombies? While the animated dead featured here are not the walking, brain-dead nightmares you may be used to, they still add an otherworldly horror to the plot, which, combined with an ACTUAL otherworldly horror, make up a good threat to not only the city depicted, but also the world beyond. As you know (or may not) from reading the previous two books of Aryan’s Age of Darkness, something lurks beyond the Veil that separates this world from the next. And now is the time when we will get a bit more than a glimpse into just what that might be. As otherworldly bad-guys go, this quasi-alien being actually succeeds where other villains in the Age of Darkness fell short, striking—well, not fear, so much as uncertainty into me as I read this book. Because, as the conclusion of this storyline, I wasn’t sure how the Age of Darkness would end. Yet, with the announcement of a further trilogy set in the same world (and with the first book due out later this year) I was assured that the Age would end, one way or another.
And its end does not disappoint.
In addition to meeting this new horror from beyond the Veil, we are also greeted by the mysterious figure who has been pulling strings from behind the scenes leading up to this conclusion. And if that was not enough, Aryan has a few further surprises in store—including one twist that I didn’t even catch on to until the chapter was nearly through!
With that said, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of the book itself.
The character development of BLOODMAGE was a vast improvement over the initial book, and this is something CHAOSMAGE expands upon, depicting both the characters’ high moments along with their low, and creating a definite character-arc that showcases their development over the course of not just this book, but the series as a whole. For the character of Balfruss this is comparatively simple (as he was featured as a POV in the series entrant), while the new POVs create more of a challenge. Aryan manages this by introducing brief yet poignant glimpses into their past which further underlines their development up to the present. These glimpses often take place within a piece of an existing chapter—which, unlike greater flashbacks in series like THE SHATTERED SANDS or the EREBUS SEQUENCE or etcetera, do not distract from the story at present—creating a reverie which the character will not have time to fully explore before being forced back into the present. While sometimes frustratingly short, these peeks into the past do help create a vivid profile of the character, which—especially in the case of Tammy and Alyssa—helped me connect deeply with their storylines despite their recent entry. Everything Aryan tries in this book to humanize his characters seems to work, despite the fact that not all of them are necessarily “human”. But, while there is a definite sense of development for characters over the course of the series, that of the book alone is somewhat muted. This didn’t ruin anything for me—particularly since the duration of the story seems to take place over the course of maybe a month—as the characters DO change, though the depth of this is muted in the POVs. Balfruss’s storyline in BATTLEMAGE I felt was one of Aryan’s early triumphs and is expounded upon in CHAOSMAGE, thus heightening the extent to which I related with him (Balfruss). As none of the other POVs are slouches, I didn’t find myself dreading the lag between each of his chapters. Instead, every POV in this book is interesting, and while Balfruss was and still is my favorite, all were engrossing and never did I feel boredom or the urge to skip-over a chapter to get to someone else.
The plot isn’t simple. Uh, I should probably explain that.
In THE BOY WITH THE PORCELAIN BLADE, Den Patrick creates a highly vivid—if, small—world and paints an incredibly vibrant word-picture. The plot, however, is shit. It’s boring and straightforward, with no surprises or twists, containing chapters that alternate between the present and flashbacks—even at the point where the past catches up, making any explanation of events in the present tedious and repetitive. The plot of CHAOSMAGE legitimately kept me guessing. Even when I thought I had everything figured out, Aryan threw a curveball and I was engrossed again, as this new thing had caught me by surprise. While Aryan does not paint such a colorful world as Patrick, his is greater in size and spectrum and even refined in its detail. The words may not be as fancy or thought-provoking, but Aryan gets by, and the story succeeds when he doesn’t try to hard. And while there was evidence of such in the previous two books, Aryan has hit his stride by the third. He knows what he’s doing, and doesn’t try overthink it. (Or maybe he has one great editor—who knows? Maybe both.) Overall, the plot—while not highly detailed in regards to Robert Jordan or Brandon Sanderson—is sufficient while not overpowering and left me wanting to explore more of the world while not needing a greater understanding of the plot. In short, the plot works. It’s not too simple, too complex. It just works.
The cover is somewhat lame by the standards of the first two, but whatever. If you’ve made it to the third, the cover and title probably don’t matter as much as if you’d never heard of Aryan before. Also, it’s probably my only legitimate gripe of the entire review, so…
Recommendation
Read it. For fantasy fans—new and old, grimdark and classic, plus whatever in-between. THE AGE OF DARKNESS is not YA. There is brutal violence and depiction of gore. There isn’t a whole lot of sex or swearing or anything too graphic, but these themes are present. It is a series for adults. Or however old someone would consider things change from YA to Teen to Adult, I dunno. I probably wouldn’t recommend it to my mother, but that doesn’t say much unless you know her. So, pretty much, if I just described a lot of things you aren’t into, maybe pass. Otherwise, read it. You won’t regret it.
I would recommend starting at the beginning as THE AGE OF DARKNESS is a chronological series. While it may be possible to jump in without feeling completely lost, eventually (if you like it) you’re going to want to know what all the things being alluded to are. Plus, starting at the beginning means you get to know the whole story, beginning to end. Plus, with MAGEBORN coming out later this year, you don’t want to be left behind. So pick up BATTLEMAGE if you haven’t read it, and make your way through.
Rating
5 / 5 stars
An excellent book and an excellent conclusion to the series. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
amybraunauthor's review against another edition
5.0
One thing I've loved about this series from the beginning is that every book, while set in the same universe and mentioning different characters, is always new. It makes the world seem larger and more detailed. There are new creatures, enemies, and rankings of society that leave me wanting more.
This book is similar to the first one, in that there is a dire situation and our heroes are forced to work around it. CHAOSMAGE's story actually feels like a zombie movie with its creepy enemies, the Forsaken. I actually really liked the whole trapped-in-the-fortress vibe they had going on. It made the scenarios desperate and raised the stakes. The action, as always was stellar and explosive, and left me with a little bit of heartbreak at the end.
While I'm always happy to see Balfruss and wanted to know more about where he had been in previous years, the true scene stealers were the women who took charge, fought, and struggled with their inner demons. This is a hidden gem for anyone looking for strong female characters to follow in an epic fantasy. I loved all of them and am going to miss Tammy, Alyssa, and Zannah.
That said, I did have a couple nitpicks. There were a few characters and storylines that didn't seem to go anywhere, and were likely laying the ground work for a future series. I still would have liked to see them finished. Still, I had a great time reading this trilogy and recommend them to anyone looking for an exciting mashup of horror and fantasy.
This book is similar to the first one, in that there is a dire situation and our heroes are forced to work around it. CHAOSMAGE's story actually feels like a zombie movie with its creepy enemies, the Forsaken. I actually really liked the whole trapped-in-the-fortress vibe they had going on. It made the scenarios desperate and raised the stakes. The action, as always was stellar and explosive, and left me with a little bit of heartbreak at the end.
While I'm always happy to see Balfruss and wanted to know more about where he had been in previous years, the true scene stealers were the women who took charge, fought, and struggled with their inner demons. This is a hidden gem for anyone looking for strong female characters to follow in an epic fantasy. I loved all of them and am going to miss Tammy, Alyssa, and Zannah.
That said, I did have a couple nitpicks. There were a few characters and storylines that didn't seem to go anywhere, and were likely laying the ground work for a future series. I still would have liked to see them finished. Still, I had a great time reading this trilogy and recommend them to anyone looking for an exciting mashup of horror and fantasy.
krisvanc's review against another edition
4.0
Loved the characters, but not my kind of setting. Nothing wrong with it, just personal preference.
blodeuedd's review against another edition
4.0
What a great conclusion to this series! I really enjoyed this series, it was light, haha, oh you know I love that word! It was light of writing, it was not light in tone. Nope, it was dark in tone. Light writing and dark tone equals: great fantasy series that people should read.
They are all set at different times and different people, but it works. Sure peace came in book 1 but true peace takes time.
In this one one of the cities in Shael is in trouble. The country suffered greatly in the war. And now the dead walk and hunt the living. No, not zombies. What is going on in the city?
In the city we have the Of Alyssa, who tries to rally people together. And Zannah who was really fascinating. She was the invading enemy that stayed behind and everyone hates her, but they also know she is keeping them alive.
Balruss, the mighty battlemage who saved everyone during the war. And Tammy, the guardian that travels with him to this haunted city. Tammy was kickass!
It takes place in the city. There is death, dead? people. And just a book that I read so fast and could not put it down. Light in writing, dark in tone. Just perfect.
And that was the end! *sobs* But there is another series that takes place 10 years after. Yay. I want more about the weird gods!
They are all set at different times and different people, but it works. Sure peace came in book 1 but true peace takes time.
In this one one of the cities in Shael is in trouble. The country suffered greatly in the war. And now the dead walk and hunt the living. No, not zombies. What is going on in the city?
In the city we have the Of Alyssa, who tries to rally people together. And Zannah who was really fascinating. She was the invading enemy that stayed behind and everyone hates her, but they also know she is keeping them alive.
Balruss, the mighty battlemage who saved everyone during the war. And Tammy, the guardian that travels with him to this haunted city. Tammy was kickass!
It takes place in the city. There is death, dead? people. And just a book that I read so fast and could not put it down. Light in writing, dark in tone. Just perfect.
And that was the end! *sobs* But there is another series that takes place 10 years after. Yay. I want more about the weird gods!
happycerberus's review against another edition
3.0
This series is a infuriating. I'm totally hooked, looking forward to what happens next and the book just switches to a totally new character having a small side story. Then jumps again, then again, then again, then we get a bit of the main story, another jump, new character, new character, new character, jump, jump, main story....
The conclusion isn't very satisfying.
The conclusion isn't very satisfying.
truthaurdare's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
grmatthews's review against another edition
5.0
I finished the trilogy, all of them via audiobook and enjoyed every single one.
musgrovej's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0