Review by houligan19 -- We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
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houligan19
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Review by houligan19 -- We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko" by Matthew Tysz.]
Galen Bray is just beginning to settle into working the forge, when his source of iron, Hillport, was attacked and devastated. He is forced to embark on a journey to establish a new iron source for his forge and the village of Magnum Caelum. Galen, Rowan, and Demetrius head to the city of Virko where they are able to secure their iron source quickly, but it comes to them with dangerous errand attached.
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko is the second book in the “We are Voulhire” series. Through the travels of Galen and his companions, we are brought to the industrial city of Virko. Demetrius has connections in his hometown, so the trio are able to meet with the lord of Virko, the dying Lord Hrelek. Lord Hrelek agrees to provide them with an iron source if they will promise to rid his house of the evil possessed within. He suspects that his only son, the future lord, may be connected to the evil somehow.
The young Lord Hrelek, know as Folcro to many, does indeed have sinister plans connected to the house. These plans are even more devious than his father could ever have known. The old Lord hopes that his attempts towards capitalism in Virko will prevent his son from having too much power for himself. Then the king sends his men to “protect” the city. The Eiodi has recently sent priests to Virko to attempt to re-establish God in the city. The old lord dies and Virko is left with various establishments all vying for power over Virko's people.
I give this book a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. Matthew Tysz takes us on a tour through more of the world he has created for the “We are Voulhire” series: the city of Virko. Galen and company take us to the heart of a rapidly growing industrial city where they are almost immediately tangled up in its dark chaos. You see Virko from the eyes of its locals and its visitors; from its constantly falling ash in the streets, to the mansions that enclose its borders. As in the first book, the story is told through the eyes of the different characters which effectively gives us more interesting perspectives of Voulhire and the tangled web of the people that live within. The various tales tie together in one shocking event. Though the characters never all actually meet, many of them run screaming for their lives together. I did not find any errors in this book, so it appears to be professionally edited.
The societies created for the “We are Voulhire” series continue to peak my interest. Lord Hrelek built the busiest industrial city in Voulhire in about five years without being a harsh dictator, but rather by helping the people grow. The Eiodi wandered the streets among the people and smiled at them as he passed by. These leaders in Voulhire fit right in with the ideals that have been created for this glorious kingdom. Another interesting aspect of societies in Voulhire is their use of dance. Some dance to celebrate, some dance to heal, and some even dance in a choreographed mass destruction.
Throughout the book, the various characters are spread around the kingdom and don't appear to be connected to each other. It keeps you wondering what is going on around the kingdom and how this will possibly come together. The further you get into the book, the more the characters' connections begin to emerge. I was kept guessing until the very end, and never really saw it coming. While there is plenty left for future books of the series, all the ends of Book 2 were tied together in a very unique and effective way.
I enjoyed reading about different aspects of magic, just like in Book 1. The almost scientific explanations of how magic, spells, and even viruses worked made them sound as though they could be real. This is my favorite aspect of the series so far, and I look forward to reading more about these intriguing styles of magic that exist only in Voulhire.
I would have liked to see more of the characters who fell out of the story at the end of Book 1. Beth from the Caromentis, the son of Lord Eldus who escaped the Hillport attack, and the Riva Rohavi who were the attackers of Hillport, were sadly not mentioned in Book 2.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in mages, the fantasy genre, and discovering new worlds. This book contains its own religion, profane language, sexual conduct, and grotesque scenes, so I would not recommend this book for young readers or anyone sensitive to varied religious views.
******
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Galen Bray is just beginning to settle into working the forge, when his source of iron, Hillport, was attacked and devastated. He is forced to embark on a journey to establish a new iron source for his forge and the village of Magnum Caelum. Galen, Rowan, and Demetrius head to the city of Virko where they are able to secure their iron source quickly, but it comes to them with dangerous errand attached.
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko is the second book in the “We are Voulhire” series. Through the travels of Galen and his companions, we are brought to the industrial city of Virko. Demetrius has connections in his hometown, so the trio are able to meet with the lord of Virko, the dying Lord Hrelek. Lord Hrelek agrees to provide them with an iron source if they will promise to rid his house of the evil possessed within. He suspects that his only son, the future lord, may be connected to the evil somehow.
The young Lord Hrelek, know as Folcro to many, does indeed have sinister plans connected to the house. These plans are even more devious than his father could ever have known. The old Lord hopes that his attempts towards capitalism in Virko will prevent his son from having too much power for himself. Then the king sends his men to “protect” the city. The Eiodi has recently sent priests to Virko to attempt to re-establish God in the city. The old lord dies and Virko is left with various establishments all vying for power over Virko's people.
I give this book a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. Matthew Tysz takes us on a tour through more of the world he has created for the “We are Voulhire” series: the city of Virko. Galen and company take us to the heart of a rapidly growing industrial city where they are almost immediately tangled up in its dark chaos. You see Virko from the eyes of its locals and its visitors; from its constantly falling ash in the streets, to the mansions that enclose its borders. As in the first book, the story is told through the eyes of the different characters which effectively gives us more interesting perspectives of Voulhire and the tangled web of the people that live within. The various tales tie together in one shocking event. Though the characters never all actually meet, many of them run screaming for their lives together. I did not find any errors in this book, so it appears to be professionally edited.
The societies created for the “We are Voulhire” series continue to peak my interest. Lord Hrelek built the busiest industrial city in Voulhire in about five years without being a harsh dictator, but rather by helping the people grow. The Eiodi wandered the streets among the people and smiled at them as he passed by. These leaders in Voulhire fit right in with the ideals that have been created for this glorious kingdom. Another interesting aspect of societies in Voulhire is their use of dance. Some dance to celebrate, some dance to heal, and some even dance in a choreographed mass destruction.
Throughout the book, the various characters are spread around the kingdom and don't appear to be connected to each other. It keeps you wondering what is going on around the kingdom and how this will possibly come together. The further you get into the book, the more the characters' connections begin to emerge. I was kept guessing until the very end, and never really saw it coming. While there is plenty left for future books of the series, all the ends of Book 2 were tied together in a very unique and effective way.
I enjoyed reading about different aspects of magic, just like in Book 1. The almost scientific explanations of how magic, spells, and even viruses worked made them sound as though they could be real. This is my favorite aspect of the series so far, and I look forward to reading more about these intriguing styles of magic that exist only in Voulhire.
I would have liked to see more of the characters who fell out of the story at the end of Book 1. Beth from the Caromentis, the son of Lord Eldus who escaped the Hillport attack, and the Riva Rohavi who were the attackers of Hillport, were sadly not mentioned in Book 2.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in mages, the fantasy genre, and discovering new worlds. This book contains its own religion, profane language, sexual conduct, and grotesque scenes, so I would not recommend this book for young readers or anyone sensitive to varied religious views.
******
We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
