Review by Eriny Youssef -- We are Voulhire: A New Arriva...

[Eriny Youssef]

[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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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies is the first book of the series. It is mainly an introductory book where the author sets forth the setting and characters of this new fantasy world. Taking into account the number of characters and the complexity of the world that Matthew Tysz crafted, it is only understandable an entire book should act as an introduction. That being said, it is not void of plot. The storyline is packed with action and suspense.

The story doesn't focus on a specific character, but rather on the world of Voulhire as a whole. It follows the events after a mage takes the lid off the doings of a Lord Orlin. Exposing the lord's unethical acts with children, Meldorath the mage turns into a hero and is assigned to take charge of Hillport. Not a long time passes before Meldorath is put under arrest following the king's orders. Meldorath becomes the main antagonist from then on.

The events unfold as another lord moves to Hillport with his family to take charge of the city. Another character is Galen, a refugee who moves to another Voulharian city, Magnum Caelum, to meet an uncle of his he never knew existed. He finds him to be dead and inherits his savings and the secrets of his trade. A lot of interrelated events take place as the story progresses.

What I liked the most about We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies by Matthew Tysz is the skilful crafting of characters. It is exciting to read about characters that are unrelated to each other knowing that in the future their paths will cross. I liked the characters of Galen, Rowan, and Demetrius in specific. I think the three of them together form a curious combination.

This gripping tale has only one drawback in my opinion. This drawback is the plethora of characters, places, and terminologies the reader gets hit with in the first few chapters. While it is essential for the plot, I believe this might overwhelm the readers or lead them to confusion. Also, the narration took on several points of view that kept alternating throughout the book. Fortunately, in every chapter's title, the author mentions clearly who will be the narrator of it to remove any doubts.

I would recommend this book to those who like fantasy. Anyone who enjoys a long tale that takes place in an imaginary world will love this one. Although this book is relatively short, it has many sequels and should provide a lengthy reading material. The text contains descriptions of brief violent scenes and a few sex slang words, so I wouldn't recommend it to younger readers.

I give We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies 4 out of 4 stars. The text is well written and professionally edited. The writing style is easy to understand, straightforward, and provides engaging dialogues. For its genre, the book succeeds to grip the reader and take him on an adventure into an unknown world.

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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
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[The Holy Grail]

I agree the author's development of characters was very skillful. I read this book too and enjoyed it as well.

[Oreoluwa281]

Thank you for sharing this fantastic and honest review. I have read this book and I can it is worth my time