Review by beadeniseroa -- We are Voulhire: The Fires of ...

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beadeniseroa
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Latest Review: We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko by Matthew Tysz

Review by beadeniseroa -- We are Voulhire: The Fires of ...

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[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko" by Matthew Tysz.]
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4 out of 4 stars
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We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko by Mathew Tysz is the second installment in the We Are Voulhire series. Here, we continue to follow the journey of Galen, the main character who fled his home to venture into Voulhire. Through him, we learn more about the history of Virko. We see his growth as he encounters new challenges and finds his fate drastically altered.

Galen Bray travels north with the supporting characters in the first book, Rowan and Demetrius, searching for iron from the Voulhiran industrial hub so Galen can continue to forge metal. They find what they’re looking for with Lord Venden and he agrees to give them their supply, for a price: they must watch over his son and cleanse his house of a malevolent demon. Suddenly, their stay in Virko becomes longer than they originally planned.

This book was just as engaging and fantastical as the previous installment. If anything, the introduction of new types of magic definitely elevated the fantasy atmosphere of the series as a whole. However, it is also significantly darker compared to the first book. Malicious things are at work, and it’s definitely not easy for our protagonists. At the same time, on the far side of Voulhire, a powerful mage and enemy of the city named Dalehei Meldorath bids his time while making sinister plans. This book leans more towards dark fantasy than the first one, rife with greed, corruption, intrigues and betrayals.

Another thing I immensely appreciated in this book was the top-notch characterization. We are introduced to a new batch of characters such as Demi, Folcro, Cornelius and Kayden that felt completely at home to me as a reader. Rather than the new additions confusing me, I felt like they each contributed to the story in their own way, and I really enjoyed their dynamic with our main characters.

Since this is the second book of the series, I highly recommend reading the first book first. It would be quite difficult to follow the established relationships between our characters without reading the first installment. The events between the two books are also directly linked. I recommend this to avid readers of the fantasy genre. The book has profanity but it does not contain sexual content. I do not recommend this book to children.

The book was very well edited and I did not find any errors. The author also vastly improved in terms of plot and technique. With that being said, I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars.

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We are Voulhire: The Fires of Virko
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Here we go mother on the shipless ocean. Pity us, pity the ocean, here we go. — Anne Carson, Decreation
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