A nice political fantasy that has a good story - even if sometimes it is a bit slower with the political drama than i personally would have wished it to be- but overall a nice storyline and good characters.

I liked the idea, characters and relationships in this book but i did think that all of those including the world itself could have used a bit of work. It all sounds great, but there was just a bit to little of it throughout the entire book to really hook me into the story and fall in love with it to make me want read on with the series right away.

Overall its a good story, it's a solid fantasy and a good read.

I got this ARC a long time ago, and I'm not sure what happened, but I never read it until now, despite having read and enjoyed the first set of Nightblade books.

I enjoyed the prologue, although I didn't quite understand why the whole village needed to be killed. I felt that this could have been a little clearer at the beginning. However, the action was good, and it was a nice set up for the rest of the book.

The main start of the book was little slow. I enjoyed Asa's chapters, but I found myself a bit bored through the first few political chapters before they began to pick up a bit more. It took about a third of the way through for me to be able to get into the book properly. However, once the story picked up and started to develop, I did really enjoy it.

I will be picking up the rest of the series to continue very soon. A solid effort.

Ryan Kirk has kicked off his latest series with “Nightblade's Vengeance”.

The premise caught my attention but, in the end, it did leave me a burning desire to not put the book down or to immediately go out and get the next installment.

I did love Asa, our protagonist. She is great and a total bad ass. Readers will find her story of revenge captivating in itself but outside of her, the other characters tend to fall short.

As a book that is set in what is essentially feudal Japan, I was hoping for a lot more than what we got, as books based around my home are not as common. It tends to be a difficult world to capture. The worldbuilding is ok but it still left me with a feeling that something was missing.
The book was good in the end but it did take a bit to finish as it was not a major attention grabber.

A copy of the book was provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.

While I enjoyed this book, there was a surprising lack of twists that make reading an adventure. The world building was done well, but at times seemed to slow the pace of the book. There were several spots in this book that had me hooked. I ended up feeling torn about it, But if you've enjoyed the previous books, then I would recommend this one.

Received copy from Netgalley for honest read and review.
This is the first book I have read from Ryan Kirk in his Nightblades series. This was such a good book centering around Asa and the Nightmares and Dayblades.

As a is such a great character that we are drawn in right from the start and it does not let you down until the end.

A really good start to this series,and I am looking forward to reading book 2.

Nightblade's Vengeance is the first installment in author Ryan Kirk's Blades of the Fallen series. Ryan Kirk is also the author of the Nightblade trilogy which I have not read nor do I think it matters if you do or you don't. Set in a world that I am pretty sure is Japan during the Feudal Era, powerful Nightblades (who I am calling Samurai), and Lords (who I am calling Daimyo) play a dangerous game to see who will reign supreme and lead the Kingdom. The story is actually told through the eyes of three very distinct characters, but what happens in the beginning of the book, will stay with readers throughout.

If you ignore the beginning, you will miss the reason for the current state of the Kingdom and the Nightblades. Asa is a Nightblade who is on a mission of vengeance. She has lost her entire family, and now hunts the man who is responsible for killing her father 20 years ago in a place called Two Falls. As a Nightblade, Asa feels what others can't see. We won't call it the force folks. The author calls it Sense. Nightblades tend to be able to sense events at a distance, or they can predict an opponent's next movement, or they can walk into a village without being seen. Blades are almost mystic in their status. Nightblades are supposed to keep the peace, but history has a tendency of repeating itself over and over again because humans never learn from their mistakes and the Kingdom is on the cusp of war.

As for Asa, one could tell her when searching for vengeance, she should dig two graves, but I don't think that would have mattered one bit. Asa is so driven for revenge, that she gets careless at times, and really isn't all that hot when it comes to fighting against much quicker and skilled fighters. Thanks to a directive by the Council of Blades, Asa has unlimited access to records, and has been given the approval to kill the man who was responsible for betraying her father 20 years ago. When Asa finally meets the man who killed her father, will she have the strength to finish the job? And if she does, what's next for her?

But, this isn't only Asa's story as much as I would have preferred it to be. There are two other characters that matter just as much. Minori is a Nightblade who knows that the Blades are being targeted by the Lords. His mission is to regain the power that has been taken from the Nightblades even if that means working with the devil himself. Through some interesting twists and manuevors, Minori finds himself vying to deceive and control those who may become the next King of the Kingdom. Minori is thought to be a brilliant strategist and specialist, but even he finds that he may be in over his head.

The last character to mention is Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi is a Dayblade, which means that he can heal, but he is a whole lot more to him. He wants to ensure that the Nightblades continue to serve the Kingdom, and not go their own way like they tried to do 20 years ago. He happens to be the only person capable of keeping King Masaki alive which also makes him a target of opportunity for the Lords scrambling to take over.

But, there is so much more than meets the eye test. I especially liked his colleague Daisuke who is probably the most interesting Nightblade outside of another Nightblade named Koji. (I won't speak on Koji in this book since he is more of less a tertiary character. You'll see lots more of him in the sequel.) I was happily entrenched in this book because I love the Feudal history of Japan, as well as the Samurai.

There are so many correlations between this book and that era, that you can close your eyes and imagine that you are right there in the muck and the blood and the battles and the power plays. I liked the fact that the Nightblades are no longer considered to be immortal. I know that part of the blame for this lies in politics, and part lies in blackmail, murder, and vindictive Nightblades who take and take till there's nothing left. I dare say that I am hoping for more of Asa and Daisuke. I think there is a whole lot that he can teach her, including patience, and choosing where her path will lead her. While there is a fair amount of mystery and intrigue, I would have like to have the author use Asa's beauty as a crutch. Plus, she is the only Nightblade that a lead character position.

In a feudal land, a Kingdom is at risk. With no heir to the fragile throne, its future rests with the powerful members of the dying king’s Council, including Minori, a nightblade warrior, and Kiyoshi, a dayblade healer. The two men are bound by the sword but divided by two opposing principles: rule the land, or serve it. In their challenge for supremacy, a spark has been lit.

Her name is Asa. Her creed is revenge.

A fierce nightblade warrior, she’s spent a decade in pursuit of the enigmatic general who killed her father in a violent revolt—then mysteriously vanished from all records. Now, her desire for reckoning has led her to the village of Two Falls—and straight into the heart of an impending civil war. Minori and Kiyoshi are vying for her loyalty. And Asa must choose sides.

As fresh betrayals unfold and a new uprising looms, Asa knows that chasing a ghost is no longer just a personal quest for retribution. It’s going to alter the fate of the entire Kingdom. -Goodreads

This could have been a really good book. It started off strong... really strong but there were things that caused your attention to drop.

Firstly, the book is told in different points of view. All the perspectives are connected and they add some much appreciated complexity to the novel. Although the transitions aren't as smooth as I like, I did think the author did a good job of weaving in different stories to form a larger one. But the only issue was it lost focus on Asa. She felt more of a catalyst as opposed to a main character that I should invest into.  She was the boulder rolling down a already shaky hill.

I didn't really care for her character. She wasn't as strong as you initially believe and she is very selfish. She makes decisions and then expects people to forgive and understand to justify what she has done. She doesn't grow and that was another issue for me.

Because the author was trying to add so much to the story, the book was slow. There are a lot of details and I don't believe it was really necessarily to go that deep because it didn't add to world building. It was more of justifying and getting the reader to like the characters and pick a side.

There wasn't enough action or even confrontation with this novel, which left a disappointing taste when you actually finished the book. Then ending when you finally get there was not worth the hours you spend reading for the grand ending. Also the surprising twist? You saw it about half way through the book.

Despite all of this, I strongly believe this book is a good foundation. As this is the first in the series, you can only hope it gets better in book two right?

Overall,

2 Pickles

Unfortunately I did not realise that this book was part of a series so struggled with story. The author however was very good at keeping me gripped as a reader and I will look to read the series some point in the future

This book starts out exciting enough. We are introduced to a world that still depends on feudalism, with a kingdom on the brink of collapse. There are interesting concepts surrounding the nightblades and dayblades, however, it doesn't really pan out into anything. The most interesting character, Asa, has the least amount of time spent on her, to the book's detriment. One hopes that future novels in this series will make the characters less interchangeable, thus making the story more fascinating as well.

Competent but not gripping - this, to me, is a pretty standard piece of fantasy writing once you go beyond the new-ish bells and whistles. Mr. Kirk clearly has an interesting world in mind, and maybe (?) a commentary on women and power, but unfortunately this slogs into these ideas instead of soars. I'd revisit the series next one in, but can't strongly recommend the first entry.

4 stars

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.

This is a really good start to a new fantasy series. This is the first book that I've read by this author, but certainly won't be the last. The story is set in a "Kingdom" that reminds me of feudal China or Japan. The King is sick and dying with no heir. Members from the three ruling families sit on the King's Council. Each family tries to maneuver to take over the throne upon the King's death.

The Kingdom's enforcers are called Nightblades. They are fierce warriors that keep the peace in the Kingdom. In days past, Nightblades were trusted and revered by the people, but their reputations have taken a hit lately and they are falling out of favor. This obviously does not sit well with the Nightblades' leaders. Minori, a nightblade warrior, and Kiyoshi, a dayblade healer, are members of the King's Council, but have opposing views of the role of Nightblades. Minori thinks Nightblades should rule the land, and Kiyoshi feels they should serve it.

Asa, a young Nightblade warrior, is fueled by vengeance. She has spent 10 years trying to track down and kill the man that killed her father. Her search has sent her throughout the Kingdom. Her latest clue has taken her to a small village where she finds herself in the middle of a civil war. Both Minori and Kiyoshi want to use her to serve their goals, but Asa doesn't trust easily. As issues come to a head, Asa will face difficult decisions about the role she is to play in the fate of the Kingdom...

I really enjoyed this book. The worldbuilding is a bit light, but enough information is given for the reader to follow the story without too many problems. The characters were fairly well developed and the reader has plenty of people to cheer for and despise. While some parts of the story line were predictable, there were enough surprises to keep the story fresh. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

This story takes places in a feudal society with kings, lords, dayblades and nightblades. Dayblades and nightblades can both use sense which makes nightblades epic warriors and dayblades renowned healers. Asa is a nightblade who wants vengeance for the death of her father and the destruction of her family. Minori is a nightblade who wants the nobility to give nightblades more rights and freedoms; rights and freedoms that have been stripped from them after one fateful event. Kiyoshi is a dayblade who is doing everything he can to keep the king alive and the kingdom together in peace.

The plot was well written with a good amount of intrigue, mystery, action and suspense. However, there was parts that had too much dialogue and characters thoughts which slowed down some portions horrendously. The world building was fantastic, the reader really felt like they were there with the characters. The background information needed to understand the world or plot was introduced slowly which not only allowed to to sink in but it also didn't make it feel forced or dry. The characters were okay, I found they were given great depth and life to them. But they made some stupid choices that I felt were too harsh. Some of the characters need for vengeance seemed too extreme, especially given all the facts and consequences.

Overall this is a good fantasy novel with an interesting plot and well written characters, even if I thought they were stupid sometimes. The title is a perfect choice for this novel (it wasn't until I finished the novel that I completely understood this). The only addition I would add to this novel would be a map of the world. Although the world isn't complicated I still love looking at maps of the worlds (it adds something extra to fantasy novels). I would suggest this novel to anyone who likes fantasy novels based in a feudal time. I'm looking forward to finishing this series and can't wait for the rest of the series to be finished.

Thanks to Netgalley and 47North for this ARC.

I think what got me the most on this was the lack of character description and the fact that this title is a sequel to an already established series in the same world. I hate when those kinds of series happen. I'll be interested in the sequel because of the summary, but I have to read the first series in order to understand the world better, which also plays a part in how a reader understands the author's writing style and how it has changed, or not.

Anyways. I love this type of world. The old world of old and ancient magic. I love even more when the culture in the story isn't automatically based on the traditional magic from the Arthurian ages. I think Asian culture is not represented enough in young adult fiction/fantasy-adventure. So that was a huge plus for me. It has a magical history all its own from the usual base of Celtic myths. However there was just something about this that kept me from truly diving into the characters and their world. I think it might be a general writing style thing for me because a lot of people seemed to have little issue with that. Still definitely worth a try after you read the first series.

Really the only thing I liked about this book was Asa, and unfortunately we didn't get nearly enough of her. I thought it was going to be more of a revenge quest thing - something to tide me over until the next Nevernight book comes out really - but this was mostly just random people internal monologuing about politics and if there's one thing that kills a book for me it's too much politics and not enough action.

Also I couldn't tell half the characters apart until halfway through the book because they were all just so bland and interchangable. Maybe this could have been slightly remedied if Asa wasn't LITERALLY THE ONLY WOMAN IN THE ENTIRE BOOK. Sigh. And why create a world where women are allowed to be warriors if they have special powers but then keep them out of the regular military and use the same backwards thinking to apply to civilian women / politics. It's just lazy and considering that this book is set in a fantasy world there isn't actually any 'historical' reason for it. One of my biggest pet peeves.

Hey guys! So, I had the great pleasure to read Nightblade's Vengence by Ryan Kirk. I requested it through NetGalley because well, it appeared to be super interesting and highly requested. I got it and was very excited to start it.

I think next time, I will do more research before going into a book like this. My only concern was that I was unaware of another series set in this same world. That was my error so I took a chance into this.

Holy Moly it was powerful and full of adventure. Vengence is in the name of the title and boy do you feel that emotion throughout this whole book. I truly loved how developed characters are in this story. The world building was great, but the characters are what did it for me.

I don't want to give much away because I have no idea what happened in the prior series and so I don't want to ruin this story for a fan of the Nightblade series.

Not going to lie though, Ryan Kirk is an incredibly talented author. Nightblade's Vengence had power to it. There was a slightly dull moment in the book that I saw a lot of other readers had DNF'd this book, but if you got through that small part then this story had real potential.

Again, there was that feeling like I was missing something but that was my error for not realizing there was a series prior to this one which possibly developed Nighblade's Vengence more. I will have to look into them and read them to come back and give this review the praise it deserves.

Two words: Heck Yes!
I haven't read any of the other books related to this one, but found myself completely sucked into a kingdom at war with itself. The protag, Asa, is hunting for answers about a man erased from history. Minori and Kiyoshi join her as she embarks to set the world right again. What I love most is there are no true "heroes" here. Everyone thinks they are on the right path and doing the right thing, but when you get to the end, you wonder if they were truly doing more harm.

The first 50% if this book really struggled to keep my attention, I took me over a month to finish which is a super long time for me! I really enjoyed the last part though, the pace picked up and a few exciting revelations happened. I found the characters really likeable and loved the wide range of people. I will definitely read the second book I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be really good!

So let’s start with my biggest annoyance. On paper this book is everything I would want from a book and the writing let it down so thoroughly and now I don’t get to read an amazing book with this concept because this book exists. All of the elements are there, the intriguing idea of magic the sense and the badass female character with a quest for revenge, the high stakes and the wider picture of political disaster looming. But the writing is so dry and so dull that all these elements fall flat.

I initially found it difficult to put my finger on what was annoying me about the writing, but on reflection I think I have it. This book definitely tells rather than shows. Does that make any sense? Let me elucidate. Where many great books will describe a character’s facial expression and then you as the reader can draw your own conclusion. This book explains to you exactly what the character is feeling. This not only makes every interaction take twice as long as it needs to but it also means you can’t form your own image of the characters which is part of how I connect to characters and is one of the reasons I adore books as a media. If you can’t have your own personal interpretation of a character and it is instead spoonfed to you, it gets a little boring quite quickly.

The other thing that ‘got my goat’ was the fact that the plot reveal was almost as predictable as the one in Blackbird. True I have a tendency to guess the ends of things before they happen, tv shows, books etc. But this felt (again) like it was just given to the reader. Not only is that irritating because it’s always fun to be surprised by plot elements, but it also completely alienated me from Asa (the female lead) because I couldn’t fathom how she didn’t see it coming from a mile away.

What I think this book was missing was the addition of a good old-fashioned red herring. This is one of the narrative techniques used by the best of the best and for some reason it seems to have fallen out of fashion. Give the reader some credit and make it hard for them to work out where your plot is going.

I have to give Ryan Kirk a little credit, there are some great ideas within this story and some resonant moments within the plot. It’s for that reason I’ve given this book the ‘it was ok’ rating, but I was still disappointed by the execution.

My rating: 2/5 stars

By the way, I received a digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Title: Nightblade’s Vengeance
Author: Ryan Kirk
Series: Blades of the Fallen #1
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: 47 North
Pub Date: October 24, 2017
Pages: 333
My Copy: Courtesy of 47 North and NetGalley

Book Summary:

In a thrilling fantasy series from the author of the Nightblade novels, revenge becomes a quest for a young female warrior.
In a feudal land, a Kingdom is at risk. With no heir to the fragile throne, its future rests with the powerful members of the dying king’s Council, including Minori, a nightblade warrior, and Kiyoshi, a dayblade healer. The two men are bound by the sword but divided by two opposing principles: rule the land, or serve it. In their challenge for supremacy, a spark has been lit.
Her name is Asa. Her creed is revenge.
A fierce nightblade warrior, she’s spent a decade in pursuit of the enigmatic general who killed her father in a violent revolt—then mysteriously vanished from all records. Now, her desire for reckoning has led her to the village of Two Falls—and straight into the heart of an impending civil war. Minori and Kiyoshi are vying for her loyalty. And Asa must choose sides.
As fresh betrayals unfold and a new uprising looms, Asa knows that chasing a ghost is no longer just a personal quest for retribution. It’s going to alter the fate of the entire Kingdom.
Book Review:
This was an interesting first book in a series. What I like is that we get to see very dynamic and interesting people living their lives after a great tragedy has occurred and it has affected all of our characters in very interesting and complex ways. Asa is a very strong heroine and so are the other characters in this.
I like the way that the story is set up. We don’t begin with our heroine, but rather with what happened at a place that changed everything for everyone. This massacre is terrible for everyone involved because this affects all the characters in the story in different ways. Two Falls is an absolute disaster. A lot of people who mean a lot die at this conflict. The Prince dies, Asa’s father dies and many others die as well. The Prince’s death means there is no heir for the Kingdom and that has dire consequences for the Kingdom. Asa loses the person who she loves and the man who provides for his family by someone who comes to her home and identifies this girl as having the ability for being a nightblade.
We fast forward to the present somewhat 20 years later and learn that things are not good. There are a lot of lords that want to be King and no one knows who will become King. This causes a lot of uncertainty in the Kingdom. Then there’s Asa who is single minded in finding a Nightblade by the name of Osamu. She blames him for all the problems in her life and the reason her father died. Her father’s death caused her mother to later die, and then her brother working himself so hard to maintain it, and then he would die. So for her, this is about revenge and what her life has become, to find this man. She manages to do things that one would not suspect.
There is a day blade named Kyoshi, who has been healing the King. It’s only a matter of time before the King dies. So of course there are things that have to happen and be dealt with. The Night Blades are also people that have to be dealt with. Some believe them to have too much control, others think that they are needed to help maintain peace. Minori and Kyoshi both have different viewpoints, but realize that when the King dies, without a clear successor that another civil war could start between three lords, all with very big armies. So both of them realize that they need to start to talk to all the lords and things happen that no one sees coming.
Asa also gets some information. Yet, it’s like the man she is hunting, Osamu has vanished. No one has seen him since the massacre. She is very determined to find this man who basically caused her family’s demise. There are also some people that Asa fights in a way that she never expected. She also finds that a lot of people want to try to forget what happened at the massacre, but to Asa it has been her reason.
When she gets attacked, it’s someone unexpected who helps her. She learns from both Kyoshi and Minori things that both challenge her view points on things. I love how all three of these characters interact and give each other a lot of food for thought on life, revenge, and what the future could bring. Also one of the Lords, Lord Shin plans a coup and succeeds at it unfortunately which puts Minori in a very bad position.
The King is very slowly dying and that makes things all the more perilous in a way. Kyoshi is doing everything that he can, but realizes that it’s only a matter of time and is trying to get a message to another lord. When Kyoshi is gone and Asa is left to care for the dying King, something happens. The King reveals a secret to Asa and accidentally calls Kyoshi Osamu and that makes Asa very upset to be lied to. Asa doesn’t like to be lied to. No one would like this. You actually understand her anger and how she has to take matters into her hands.
This book ended in a very unexpected way. I like the fight and how all three of our main characters met their fates in different ways. Like how nothing is going to be the same for Asa or Minor now that things have played out. Also like how the future is now going to be what they make of it and live in a new world.


Rating:
4 Hearts

For some reason I found this novel difficult to identify with and DNF.
Others obviously really enjoyed it especially those who had read Nightblade series.
I would say 'give it a go' and don't be swayed by my response. I will probably pick it up again at a later date and see if at a different moment in time I am more receptive.
(The star rating here is linked to my not finishing the book, not its merits)

A NetGalley ARC
(October 2017)