Review by Noda21k -- We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
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Review by Noda21k -- We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko" by Matthew Tysz.]
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko by Matthew Tysz is the second in the We are Voulhire series. It focuses on the industrial city of Virko in Tysz’s fictional kingdom of Voulhire. We follow our protagonist, Galen, as he travels to this city with his friends to secure iron for his new job as a blacksmith. Our main is a man nicknamed “Folcro,” the son and heir of the dying Lord of Virko. Virko is a city in transition politically. With his death, the Lord would like to end the noble rule of the city and turn it over to a citizen-based government. When dark magic gets involved in the affairs of the city, Galen and his friends attempt to stop it before everything goes awry.
My favorite part of the book was the author’s choice to give more time to Galen’s friend Demetrius. I found his character interesting and more likable compared to the third member of the trio, Rowan, who had more of a role in the first book. His investigations into the darkness surrounding his former hometown of Virko were the high points of the book for me.
Characterization was also very good overall in this book. We got to learn a lot about most of the POV characters. While Folcro was mysterious, we did eventually get to know a little more about his inner workings. We also learned a great deal about Kayden, his former friend, who seemed to initially be a “good” character but had some dark secrets.
On the negative side, the plot was very tough to follow at times. When Galen and his friends were on the scene, things flowed smoothly. With the other characters, however, their POV chapters were often confusing due to the author intentionally leaving big chunks of their pasts out for future “reveals.” There were also small sections carved out for the characters from the first book that seemed to be shoehorned in at best. Like small asides, they detracted from the overall arc of the story and, unlike the first novel, all the threads didn’t get tied together at the end. The main antagonist of the series, Meldorath, had seemingly nothing to do with what happened in the majority of this book. He reappeared at the end in another location, closing up a side thread. This thread will likely have huge consequences for future books, but it didn’t affect any of the events in Virko.
There were also some difficult scenes for those who may be sensitive to certain topics. There is more religious discussion in this text and demons are brought into the story. These might disturb a reader of certain religions. There is a depiction of what is almost a rape at the beginning. The end has a great deal of violence as well, with descriptions of demonic attacks. There is, additionally, one scene that involves a pregnant woman and a fetus, which could be disturbing to many readers. I would recommend the book to a reader of epic fantasy who doesn’t mind having disturbing violence in the story.
This book was exceptionally well-edited. While it did progress the overall plot and characters, it simply didn’t live up to the first text though. Due to the unevenness and confusion engendered by the plot, I am giving We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko 3 out of 4 stars. I hope that the next one will be better.
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We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko by Matthew Tysz is the second in the We are Voulhire series. It focuses on the industrial city of Virko in Tysz’s fictional kingdom of Voulhire. We follow our protagonist, Galen, as he travels to this city with his friends to secure iron for his new job as a blacksmith. Our main is a man nicknamed “Folcro,” the son and heir of the dying Lord of Virko. Virko is a city in transition politically. With his death, the Lord would like to end the noble rule of the city and turn it over to a citizen-based government. When dark magic gets involved in the affairs of the city, Galen and his friends attempt to stop it before everything goes awry.
My favorite part of the book was the author’s choice to give more time to Galen’s friend Demetrius. I found his character interesting and more likable compared to the third member of the trio, Rowan, who had more of a role in the first book. His investigations into the darkness surrounding his former hometown of Virko were the high points of the book for me.
Characterization was also very good overall in this book. We got to learn a lot about most of the POV characters. While Folcro was mysterious, we did eventually get to know a little more about his inner workings. We also learned a great deal about Kayden, his former friend, who seemed to initially be a “good” character but had some dark secrets.
On the negative side, the plot was very tough to follow at times. When Galen and his friends were on the scene, things flowed smoothly. With the other characters, however, their POV chapters were often confusing due to the author intentionally leaving big chunks of their pasts out for future “reveals.” There were also small sections carved out for the characters from the first book that seemed to be shoehorned in at best. Like small asides, they detracted from the overall arc of the story and, unlike the first novel, all the threads didn’t get tied together at the end. The main antagonist of the series, Meldorath, had seemingly nothing to do with what happened in the majority of this book. He reappeared at the end in another location, closing up a side thread. This thread will likely have huge consequences for future books, but it didn’t affect any of the events in Virko.
There were also some difficult scenes for those who may be sensitive to certain topics. There is more religious discussion in this text and demons are brought into the story. These might disturb a reader of certain religions. There is a depiction of what is almost a rape at the beginning. The end has a great deal of violence as well, with descriptions of demonic attacks. There is, additionally, one scene that involves a pregnant woman and a fetus, which could be disturbing to many readers. I would recommend the book to a reader of epic fantasy who doesn’t mind having disturbing violence in the story.
This book was exceptionally well-edited. While it did progress the overall plot and characters, it simply didn’t live up to the first text though. Due to the unevenness and confusion engendered by the plot, I am giving We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko 3 out of 4 stars. I hope that the next one will be better.
******
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: The Sylvan Horn by Robert Redinger
