Review by Charlyt -- We are Voulhire: A New Arrival unde...

[Charlyn Tuzon]

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

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4 out of 4 stars

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The Kingdom of Voulhire is a land of prosper and change, ruled by King Wilhelm. But while its people are living their lives comfortably, evil lurks in silence, unnoticed by anyone, bidding its time. Galen Bray is a young man from The Land of the Princes, a place that has long been suffering from war. He came to Voulhire as a request from his dying great uncle to take over his forge business. As Galen starts his new life, studying the art of the forge, a series of events take place that might eventually make his new home another battlefield.

We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies is the first book of the We are Voulhire Series written by Matthew Tysz. It is an adventure and fantasy novel filled with lords, warriors, and magic. It is a story of good against evil wherein the evil is felt but it can only be seen in nightmares. The story is told in the third-person perspective of different characters, except for Galen’s perspective which is in the first-person. These include King Wilhelm, who is loved by his people, and Lord Eldus Alderman, a newly appointed lord to oversee Hillport, which is a place whose people have recently experienced unpleasantness from their former lords.

The story starts off as if it is telling a fable long passed-on through generations. It narrates a brief tale that eventually explained the origin of The Land of the Princes. I like that the narrative starts off that way because it sets the mood of the book and the reader is able to figure out immediately what kind of story it is. I also like that it has a medieval theme with its elements of knights, mages, and horse-drawn carriages but its tone is more contemporary as if Voulhire, itself, is gearing towards a more modern kingdom, which makes it easy to read. The book, as a whole, felt like an introduction to the world of Voulhire as if the author wants its readers to familiarize themselves first with the characters and to prepare for the next installment. But, even so, I’m glad that there was a decent and action-filled battle towards the end that opened new questions for the next book.

Because the book was short and was segmented by different perspectives, the development of the characters also seemed little and slow. For example, most of Galen’s adventure throughout the book, aside from moving to Voulhire, was focused only on acquiring a new metal for him to get started learning the forge. I also think that the narrative could use more physical descriptions of the places that were introduced to better imagine the setting. I only found one error in the entire book wherein a name was spelled “DeBorta” first and then “Deborta” for the following mentions. Aside from that, it seems that the book was well-edited.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. The narrative was skillfully written, and I didn’t find a dull moment in the story. The plot is intriguing and it definitely made me want to read the next installment. I would recommend this book to adult readers who like fantasy, adventure, and magic but not to young adults because it contains some curse words.

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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
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Like Charlyt's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Dawud Adaviruku]

I have this book on my wall and I was contemplating whether to read it or not. Your review has however piqued my interest. I won't mind giving it a shot. Great review you have written.

[Charlyn Tuzon]

I have this book on my wall and I was contemplating whether to read it or not. Your review has however piqued my interest. I won't mind giving it a shot. Great review you have written.

It’s definitely worth a try if you like fantasy and adventure in a medieval setting. Thanks for your comment!

[juliusotieno02]

For the love of fantacy and adventure stories, this will be a very nice pick for me. Though your summary is shot, it gives a really nice overview of the events in the book. Thank you.

[Charlyn Tuzon]

For the love of fantacy and adventure stories, this will be a very nice pick for me. Though your summary is shot, it gives a really nice overview of the events in the book. Thank you.

It's a good addition to fantasy-medieval themed stories. Thanks for your comment!

[Sanju Lali]

Nice story with adventure and fantasy, and is filled with lords, warriors, and magic. Nice tale of good against evil. Thanks for a nice review.

[Charlyn Tuzon]

Nice story with adventure and fantasy, and is filled with lords, warriors, and magic. Nice tale of good against evil. Thanks for a nice review.

Thank you for your comment!

[Washboard]

Did you like the story being told in the third person for most of the book and first person for Galen's chapters? I found it rather distracting personally. It seems like you and I had similar observations about the book, but they seemed to bother me a lot more all in all. Haha!

[unamilagra]

This sounds like a very intriguing book and series. I love darker medieval themed stories, so I might have to check this out. Great review!

[Charlyn Tuzon]

Did you like the story being told in the third person for most of the book and first person for Galen's chapters? I found it rather distracting personally. It seems like you and I had similar observations about the book, but they seemed to bother me a lot more all in all. Haha!

I wouldn't say that it bothered me, but I get what you are saying that it could be distracting. I think it's more obvious when it changes from the first-person to the third-person perspective because I think I was more comfortable in the first-person. But as the story went on, I got used to it more. Thanks for the comment!

[Charlyn Tuzon]

This sounds like a very intriguing book and series. I love darker medieval themed stories, so I might have to check this out. Great review!

Happy reading! Thanks for the comment!

[Hiruni Bhagya 81]

Mathew Tysz has a way of using both first person and third person points of view. After reading several books of his I've become accustomed to it. Like all of his other books I've read, I enjoyed this book as well. So, thanks for the lovely review and the great summary.

[Charlyn Tuzon]

Mathew Tysz has a way of using both first person and third person points of view. After reading several books of his I've become accustomed to it. Like all of his other books I've read, I enjoyed this book as well. So, thanks for the lovely review and the great summary.

Yes, it seems he favors his main character to narrate in the first-person, and I've gotten used to it as well. Thanks for the comment!

[Laura Ungureanu]

Fanatsy books are not what I usually go for when picking a book, but I like a fantasy that has a long introduction into its world. Great review!

[Charlyn Tuzon]

Fanatsy books are not what I usually go for when picking a book, but I like a fantasy that has a long introduction into its world. Great review!

This book takes its time with the storytelling which makes it easy to read and understand, and it seems to have more installments to come. Thanks for your comment!