Review of We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies

[Amanda McSweeney]

[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies" by Matthew Tysz.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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If you’re a Game of Thrones fan looking for a new read, you could do far worse than Matthew Tysz’s We Are Voulhire: A New Arrival Under Great Skies. With a far-ranging, mythical setting, engaging characters, and twists and turns that you’ll never be able to predict, this first book in a seven book series will leave you breathless.

Galen Bray is a refugee, arriving in Voulhire filled with gratitude and excitement. But even as he joins his new homeland and prepares to serve it to the best of his ability, he discovers that the land of Voulhire is far more intricate and dangerous than he ever expected. Even his inherited property won’t save him from the struggles the land sees. With wizards, knights, and battling kingdoms, the magic blends with historical fantasy in a way that is familiar, but presented in a new and exciting way.

Many times in fantasy novels, plot will outweigh the characters or vice versa. So you have to decide whether you want a character-based story or a plotty thriller. In the case of We Are Voulhire, you get both. The world presented by Tysz is intricate, with sweeping alliances and betrayals set against a political and magical system whose rules are presented within the narrative. It avoids the pitfall of the “infodump” that many fantasy stories fall into, throwing information at you in a block of boring text. Instead, the information you need is weaved in as the story unfolds.

The characters are fascinating, especially Galen Bray, who really sets the story in motion. Everyone is well-formed and the dialogue is crisp, sounding modern in a way that isn’t forced or awkward in the setting.
For those who love to sink into a long series, We Are Voulhire is a perfect way to do so. It sets the stage for plenty for intrigue to come!

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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
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