Received a copy from NetGalley.

DNF at 18%. Just couldn't bring myself to continue. Not bad, just not what I'm wanting to read..

A truly wonderful tale is told in Robert V.S. Redick’s Master Assassins. The Fire Sacraments series starts off with one hell of a bang in a tale which follows two brothers—Kandri and Mektu Hinjuman—in desert world wracked with war that is only urged on by the Prophet, though some claim her to be nothing more than a madwoman.
The pair cannot be more different. While Kandri is skilled at saying the right thing and blending in, Mektu is impulsive, often landing himself into nothing but trouble, and is convinced that he is stalked by a demon spoken of in hushed whispers. Events quickly spiral out of control when holy blood is unwittingly spilled, for no matter how much they may plead their innocence, no one will believe that the brothers are anything less than master assassins, contracted killers with a dastardly end-goal. Armed with secrets, strange allies, and nothing but their own luck and quick thinking, the brothers set off on a journey to a distant land far away from the enraged Prophet and the armies in search of them.

Rather than focus on the epic country- and world-spanning implications of the brother’s unwitting actions, the focus remains exceptionally close. Great emphasis is put on the pair’s longstanding feuding, the bonds of family, love, relationships, the weight and responsibility of the past, and choices we make and don’t make that shape our lives.

The relationship of the two brothers is both beautiful and ugly. The bond, and lack thereof, between siblings is beautifully depicted. The simultaneous and competing emotions of love and hate, the willingness to do anything for your sibling along with the urge pitch them off a cliff, the secrets kept away from one another and secrets held together and taken to the grave are all shown to their fullest potential.

Readers of fantasy are sure to love Redick’s Master Assassins.

The first novel in the Fire Sacraments series.
A new series from the author of the excellent Chathrand Voyage series. And what a start it is! An interesting setting, excellent writing, and engaging characters. Thoroughly enjoyed this, and can't wait to read the next book in the series.

This is a book you have to read for yourself. It is a deep fantasy with even deeper humanity. The characters, plot, magic, and setting weave together in a way that must be experienced to understand fully. Perfect for fans of the genre.

Master Assassins by Robert V.S. Redick is an ambitious introduction to a vast world of empires, intrigue, war, and two half brothers too foolish to ever survive the mess they get themselves into. As servants of the Prophet, Kandri and Mektu are zealots whose loyalty to their cause is unwavering. Except neither is really a zealot, nor is either of them truly devoted to anything but themselves. Certainly not to the Army of Revelation, of which they are a part. The reasons for their current enrollment are revealed over time. First, though, the brothers must get themselves into a mess so horrendous and life-threatening that they must flee or be subjected to torture and death.

I won’t go into the story much more than that because, truth be told, I don’t know where the author takes our two unlikely heroes once they flee from the army. I know they have a death squad hot on their tails and that their intention is to lose their pursuers in a desert known as a bit of a death trap unto itself, but, ultimately, Master Assassins was a DNF for me. From glancing at other reviews I know I’m in the minority here, but I feel I gave the book a fair shake; I didn’t put it down until I was 25% of the way through it.

So what didn’t work for me? The story pacing was the major culprit. The fairly unengaging main characters didn’t help much, either. Some others complained about the excessive language and overly descriptive sex scenes. The language didn’t bother me so much and I didn’t read far enough along to read any of the sex scenes (unless you count sex with children, which is not described in detail but does happen). But, really, when I’m 25% into a story it better have some damn good writing going on, some really engaging and interesting characters, or toss the reader into a vast pit of wonderful storytelling. Master Assassins had none of this. Granted, it’s epic in scope so it may be a book or two before it really gets moving. But that’s far too long a wait for me.

Master Assassins is probably a good first book in what may be a very intriguing series, but I’ll never know for sure since it was a DNF for me. I do offer my thanks to the publisher for a free copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I requested this after Mark Lawrence recommended it and I'm so glad I did. Despite the pulpish cover, this was a magnificent, fully developed fantasy. I loved the fact that we were given something truly unique and epic in scope that was placed in a non Euro-centric setting. The two MCs have a complex and fully involving sibling relationship with all the pushes and pulls you would expect. All the supporting cast are fully developed. This is easily one of my top reads of 2018. Magnificent.

Fantastic book! gGripping and exciting with the best potential going forward.

My first read by this author, but based on this terrific fantasy yarn, it won't be the last.

Full review to come, will update.

I really wanted to love this, and it's possible I would have, but the repetitive swearing and sex scenes were a bit too much. While both are fine, but after reading countless fantasies without, I guess I"m a bit picky about the genre.

Review

I had heard many many great things about this book, people i know with the right sort of taste (my taste) in books were highly praising this book, so needless to say i went into this book with very high expectations.

Once i reached about 50 pages in i had some concerns, the book had lots of quality, but i didn’t see this amazing sparkle that everyone was waxing lyrical about, but … well one of those people was Mark Lawrence, i’m going to trust him and persevere was my thinking.

So night after night i plugged away at this book and very soon i wasn’t looking for the magic i was engrossed in it. A world so very new, so bleak and deadly and yet so captivating that you the reader cannot help but be dragged into the mire with our two very unlucky (or are they really lucky?) brothers.

As with all truly great books its not really the world that is the genius (but it helps), although the author for this book truly goes beyond Epic fantasy in his world building, But its the Characters that define great and in this book they are so flawed so unique, so different to anything i have read before. The rising of the underclass behind popular religion, twisted to a zealotry ideology, yet showing that many of the zealots are just people dragged along, to eat, survive and live in a country ruled in such a way, (not everyone is a terrorist… sorry Zealot). Our brothers have so much mystery surrounding them, their pasts, and their loves and is one of the possessed or just plain crazy, all of this taking place at the same time as a helter skelter escape plan that is just plain insanity personified.

I read this book on ebook format so had no idea what the page count was, and guessed at something around 800, and was shocked to find it was only 460, that’s not it dragged on, but so very much detail and action is packed into a book of this size. (stunned)

So i add my voice to the others that have gone before…… BUY THIS BOOK!! its really really good.

(Parm)

Series
Chathrand Voyage
1. The Red Wolf Conspiracy (2007)
2. The Rats and the Ruling Sea (2009)
aka The Ruling Sea
3. The River of Shadows (2011)
4. The Night of the Swarm (2012)
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Fire Sacraments
1. Master Assassins (2018)


https://parmenionbooks.wordpress.com/2018/04/23/robert-v-s-redick-master-assassins-review/

Well written, but ultimately not for me.

First things first, thanks to the publisher and author for an ARC of Master Assassins in exchange for an honest review. This is no way, shape, or form sways my judgement of the book itself.

*For future reference, listen to Mark Lawrence when he recommends a novel*

A lot of people have stated that the cover does not do the book justice, and I have to agree. I am not saying that the cover isn’t great, because I believe it is wonderful, but it does not fully capture all that is contained in the subsequent 458 pages. I also have to agree with Rothfuss that this book has EVERYTHING: murder, intrigue, monsters, magic, world-building, beautiful landscapes… I could go on and on.

Though it is only April 6th, and there are many books left to read this year, Master Assassins has cemented itself in AT LEAST my top 3 books of the year, maybe even #1. It is that good.

Kandri and Mektu, half-brothers and as different from one another as can be, are the main focus of the story. Although their relationship is convoluted and fraught with controversy, they must rely on one another when holy blood is spilled and they are the ones caught in the cross hairs. They are chased out from their village into the desert known as the ‘Land that Eats Men’, where catching a cold or being bitten by a sun spider are the least of their worries, and must use their wits (along with some interesting allies they meet along the way) in order to survive the Prophet’s death squads that are nipping at their heels. What they aren’t aware of is that they hold a secret that can change the way of life in Urrath forever.

Kandri and Mektu’s relationship is what really shines through in this novel. Not only do we progress with them through their current predicament, and it is a heck of a predicament, but we are given a glimpse into their shared past, including love interests, upbringing, and the interesting relationship they had with their secretive father. Redick does a great job of blending the two timelines together seamlessly, almost to the point where you can’t tell when the timelines switch. Also, Kandri’s ability to take everything thrown at him with gusto, mixed with Mektu’s inability to shut his mouth or follow orders, generally led to some quite humorous moments, as well as some “how do they get out of this pickle” confrontations.

Redick has also given the pair a great support cast, including some strong female characters that tended to, more often then not, put Kandri and Mektu in their respective places. The world-building, including landscapes, cultural practices, and weaponry gives us a fresh take on the genre as a whole and gave me a, though I didn’t know it at the time, palate cleanser from my normal grimdark view of fantasy.

I recommend Master Assassins to everyone. Period. Unless sexual innuendo, language, or a tiny bit of violence make you head for the door, go grab a copy and don’t turn back.

Buckle up and grab some snacks, folks, because this is going to be a long review for a book that has quickly become one of my newest fantasy favorites. Master Assassins is beautiful, dark, raw, jaw-dropping at times, and all-around amazing. Because I run the risk of rambling in a disorganized fashion, I decided that I would organize my review into four main components of the novel that I want to talk about: characters, writing style, setting, and plot. Also, I will be going into depth about what I liked about this book, but I won't go into too much detail regarding any specific characters, plot points, places, etc., simply because I think this book is so enjoyable to go into not really knowing what to expect.

Characters. This is, hands down, one of the best casts of characters in a fantasy series that I've read in a while. I had pretty mixed feelings about each character when they were first introduced, but by the middle of the novel I discovered that I had developed extremely strong feelings to each one and felt incredibly connected to them, more so than I have in quite some time.

Kandri and Mektu are brothers and are our two main protagonists. The two could not be more different, but it becomes apparent that at the end of the day they are still brothers and are still there for one another no matter the consequence. Their entire relationship was so authentic and relatable and really brought life to the story. Kandri is the ever-patient, practical man who has no time for rule-breaking and nonsense, whereas Mektu is this completely unpredictable, semi-mad figure who is always opening his mouth when he shouldn't and getting everyone into trouble. I hated Mektu at times, but I also loved him just as much. I loved both of these brothers, let's be honest. Mektu is the kind of the character that is endearing because he is such an enigma and you can't figure him out, whether he is mad or brilliant or a bit of both (likely the latter), and he was just such a joy to read. The dynamic between him and the other characters is enough in itself to make this book enjoyable.

The other main figures are Chindilan, a sort of uncle to the brothers; Eshett, a victim of human trafficking attempting to find her way home, Talupeke, a warrior who also joins them, and Ariquina, a woman of interest from Mektu and Kandri's past. I worried at first that the female characters would be portrayed in the stereotypical manner of high fantasy novel, usually used as some sort of prop to move the plot forward with little redeeming qualities, the women in this book were none of those things! Each woman brought so much to this story and played such a vital role in a myriad of ways. I was really pleasantly surprised and impressed with how Redick wrote these characters, and I applaud his work. It is always nice to read some well-written female characters in a genre where they aren't always often portrayed so well. I'd love to go into more detail about each one, but this review is already going to be far too long, so I'm holding back for now. Chindilan is a father-figure that I loved. He's blunt, (hard-nosed), and --, but he's also unfailingly loyal and an invaluable person.
(Shout-out to spellcheck for trying to correct Chindilian to 'chinchilla' and Talupeke to 'cantaloupe.')

Writing Style. Many people seem to be describing this as 'literary fantasy,' and I'm pretty much inclined to agree with that statement. Redick's style is, first and foremost, stunning and clearly thoughtfully done. The cover and title of this book does not really match what I expected from the book, but now that I've finished the book there is a certain appeal to them. I actually like how both the title and cover give a somewhat different impression from what this book is, and I think it adds something to the overall brilliance of this book and not being able to really predict anyone's actions.

The narrative has such a strong voice, incredibly mature and meaningful, but also not over the top. It has a certain flow to it that was incredibly compelling and told the story in the most engaging way possible by really pulling the reader into the events and feelings of the characters. I'm partially inclined to describe the style as a raw, almost brutal tone at times, but that doesn't feel quite right because it is also eloquent and affecting. There is a softness intermixed with more jarring aspects, and I think that is part of what makes this book such a masterpiece. Also, there is an abundance of humor that is both obvious and not so obvious, which I appreciated to no end. I was truly never bored with this book, and that isn't always the case.

On a more technical note, Master Assassins is written in present tense with a semi-parallel narrative that splits between the current happenings of our characters and flashbacks of these characters' lives while growing up. Prominent and frequent flashbacks are always hit or miss with me, but in this case they were an absolute hit. The flashbacks added so much depth and intrigue to these characters and what was currently happening, and I loved delving deeper into the backstory of the characters' lives.

Setting. The world-building is fantastic. It's incredibly detailed and realized, but it's not so complex that you become lost or can't figure out what is happening--it's approachable. I haven't seen anything about what might've inspired the world of Urrath, but I would be fascinated to hear what did help to mold this world that is both desolate and also full of so much life and culture.

In addition to the physical world, Redick has also created a fascinating religious component, one that was both mysterious and intimidating, yet also incredibly intriguing. There is this sort dark, tragic element to the religion that made it feel more like something akin to compulsion than anything else. I could read too much into things, but all I have to say is that I was completely hooked by this aspect.

Plot. This book had one of the best plots I've read in a long time, and that is befcause it was completely unpredictable from start to finish. I had only a vague notion of what this book was about going into it--which is my preferred manner of reading, usually--but this time I really didn't expect anything in particular or know much about it other than the fact that Mark Lawrence and Patrick Rothfuss both highly recommended it. I cannot say how much I loved the unpredictability and it's honestly one of the things that made this book so exciting to read. This story starts off with two brothers living as soldiers who don't really have any grand plans to do anything other than that, and by the end of the book the beginning almost feels unrecognizable. There's nothing really stereotypical because it just felt so different from other books I've read and this made the adventure that much more enjoyable. There is so much mystery around everything that happens and everything people say--I just couldn't get enough of it.

Another thing that I loved was how Redick managed to interweave so many different threads of both major plot elements and minor details into something so epic and fluid. If I tried to recount what happened in this book, it would end up sounding so jumbled up and perplexing that you would think I'm crazy (which, let's be honest, that's still questionable) and this book is confusing. But it's not! This book does require careful reading to pick up all the subtext, but the book itself is just so masterfully written that it feels effortless (though I'm sure Redick put a lot of hard work and effort into writing it!).

The last point I want to touch on that is really more theme-oriented than plot-oriented is that of war. There are constant undertones regarding war in this book, and not just one army vs. another army types of war. War within yourself, between yourself and others, between yourself and the elements--it's endless. What I liked about this theme was that it felt as if at times this idea of war was treated with the general serious sentiments people usually have towards war, but there was also a weariness and tiresome quality attributed to it, a less-serious look that brought a lot of interesting thought to the matter.

Overall, I've given Master Assassins five stars (surprise, bet you didn't see that one coming!). I also would like to thank Mark Lawrence once again for turning me onto such a fantastic book. If there is one thing I've learned, it is that I should always take Lawrence's advise when it comes to books because so far I've read three books that he's raved about, and we are at 3/3 brilliant. If you are a fantasy fan or simply a fan of great writing and storytelling, then go pick up this book!

Master Assassins is a new series brought to us by author Robert V.S. Redick, set in a crazy new world. The Prophet, her sons, and their army of zealots, have conquered their little corner of the world and are intent on world domination. A small force of rebels resists, and our heroes inadvertently join the cause, only to find that they are so much deeper than they ever knew.
Sounds interesting, right? Well, don't get too excited. Every time that I would get into the story, something would irritate me. Like the excessive use of the F-word. Language happens, sometimes it's a necessary expressive device, but the use of swear words in this novel is wow, too much. Then, there are the gratuitous sex scenes, which are often not needed to move the story forward. Seriously, you don't need to turn a fantastic fantasy novel into a smutty romance. Don't get me wrong, I've read my fair share of smutty romance novels, but I don't care for it in my fantasy novels.
If you want an interesting read and don't mind the aforementioned issues, you'll really enjoy Master Assassins. However, if you have kids who like to read over your shoulder, pick up your books, or if you don't care for junk mixed with your fantasy, this is not the series for you.
I offer my thanks to Netgalley, for the opportunity to read this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

All the cool kids on the block (Mark, Pat et al.) rave about Master Assassins. As an aspiring kid, I had no choice but to grab a copy. I received one from Netgalley; it didn't influence my review in any way.

The title may suggest that we'll deal with true masters of the art of assassination. Unstoppable and uncanny killers who defy the laws of physics in order to get the job done. This is not the case. The title is ironic and you'll understand why when you'll read the book.

The story follows two brothers - Kandri and Mektu - who serve in the Army of Revelation ruled by a prophet-madwoman whose favorite management tools are terror and force. When one of the brothers commits, "by accident", an unspeakable crime, the brothers must run as fast as they can from the rage of the prophet. They're chased by elite forces and bloodthirsty monsters through barren fields of devastation, towards the great desert called “The Land That Eats Men.”

Oh, one more thing. Cataclysm approaches. Armageddon is an option.

I'm not surprised that readers enjoy this book as it has plenty to offer. I'll start where everyone starts.

Prose. It's fantastic and literary. Redick's writing is very immersive. His vocabulary is rich and he's not afraid to use it in creative ways to convey all sorts of feelings that characters experience. Descriptions are simply stunning; it's easy to see harsh landscapes or terrifying creatures pictured by the author. The story is told mostly in third-person present tense and it's not something you see often in fantasy. As a result, the reader gets the sensation of being right there, following the characters in their adventure. As it's done well it's easy to care deeply and fear for the character's lives as the story unveils. Flashbacks and elements similar to the stream of consciousness are used to good results as well.

Characters are real. All of them. Kandri Hinjuman was never meant to be a soldier. His brother Mektu was never meant for this world. Kandri is good at blending in, but Mektu is impulsive, erratic and certain that a demon is stalking him.

The book focuses strongly on brothers relationship - not an easy one given their past. Kandri and Mektu are actually half-brothers, and they share a complex bond of rivalry and love. Their brotherly love is tainted by mistrust, contempt and old wounds linked to their mutual fascination with a woman who suddenly disappeared. It was fascinating to observe them teeter on the edge of disaster in a harsh world constricted by religious fears, with imminent menace always snapping at their heels. They struggle to survive and in order to do so, they cling to memories of love.

Secondary characters were colorful and intriguing as well. Brothers flee with three outcasts (some by choice, others by necessity). Uncle Chindilan, the Master Smith, is on the run because in time of need he decided to help the brothers. Now he's wanted. Eshett was captured by human traffickers, all she wants to do is to return home. There's also Talupeke - a mad young warrior who's prone to bursts of berserk fury. She's skilled with knives. Their dynamics is great and touching at times.

The worldbuilding is quite rich. The story happens in the non-European setting reminiscent a bit of Asya. We learn about the world through scattered bits. There's a bit of info-dumping but not too much. Enough to learn more about the lore without killing the momentum.

Pacing is uneven. At times I felt glued to the pages but at times I was tired and slightly bored with the story and some repetitiveness. Especially the middle chunk of the story felt too slow for me. I had to push through parts of the book and it decreased my enjoyment of the story as a whole.

We can argue that the book's uneven pace forces the reader to readjust our attention on every page and isn't that bad. Perhaps. But my preference is different. I like strong and consistent pacing.

Overall, it's a good book. It's not perfect. It won't become my favorite book of the month but it's undeniably well structured and memorable. I'm definitely interested in reading the sequel once it's published .

When I started this book I was super excited because the synopsis seems really good and the blurb is by Patrick Rothfuss! No people… hold on a second… the blurb is by Patrick Rothfuss. Have you read it???? So, needless to say, when they approved me for this book I was so so happy and I was dying to start it. And start it I did…

In the beginning, I was really happy, because the world building is good and interesting… the atmosphere is quite on the Arabian note and it was really fascinating. The world that the author creates is original and I was fascinated.
But this is the length of it. It’s not that I found it a bad book, it was an enjoyable reading, most of the time, but I didn’t care for it… I couldn’t click with the characters, and I hoped that it was just a slow start problem, I mean you don’t have to fall in love at first sight with a character to fully appreciate it, you can also learn to know him (or her) slowly and love him/her anyway in the end, so I really hoped it was just a slow burn thing but nope.
I think I liked a little bit more Kan, the more serious and responsible of the two brothers, and that’s strange because Mek was more my kind of character, usually, I like the ones like him, but… just not him. And I wasn’t a fan of Kandri, too, even if he was my favorite between the two of them. It’s not that I didn’t like them at all, it’s just that I really didn’t care. And that’s sad.
Sadder is that I felt the same way with the other characters, they weren’t bad, and maybe I could have liked some of them, the idea behind them was likable, but in the end no one in this book made me feel something, if not some really light feeling.
I can say the same for the story, it wasn’t good, the idea was interesting and there are some twists and turns, yes, but I didn’t care. In some parts, I was quite bored and all in all, I was really happy when I reached the end. It was not so bad, really, but I won’t go on with the series, that’s for sure.
The stronger feeling I had while reading was annoyance, to be honest, because the author throws our way a lot of questions, about the past of the broty0lhbslhers, about their father, about the history of the Prophet, but he gives us few answers… so yes, sometimes I was bored and sometimes I was annoyed, not a lot, but a little yes, because too many questions and no answers!

Okay. Before we get started, I'm going to give a bit of advice on how you might want to approach this book. Lay down some primer.

See, this isn't a book that you'll read the first 80 pages of and go, "Wow, this is a fantastic story!" and start pointing out every part of it that you love. You can't. At least, I couldn't. I had no idea what I felt about it in the beginning.

It's like an interpretive dance. At first you're not quite sure what you're seeing--it all feels so disparate and strange--but there's something about it that urges you to stay and watch. And once you do, you fall into the rhythm of the prose and the characters, and what was strange before becomes a part of the experience, the reality that this world projects. You start to get invested.

So, my advice? Try to stay with it for at least half of the book. It might surprise you.

Now. On with the show.

The title "Master Assassins" is a bit of an inside joke. The story is about two young men-- half-brothers Kandri and Mektu--who blunder into one mistake after another and find themselves inadvertently becoming the most wanted and accomplished assassins in the continent. Our "assassins" reside in Urrath, a land (home of the Chiloto, among many other clans) that has been contested for centuries by various conquering nations. Most recently, it's been taken over by the Vazeks and the Chiloto people have endured centuries of slaughter and subjugation under their rule. Then a young Prophet came into the picture. She's the Joan of Arc of this world; claimed to be chosen by the Gods to lead her people to unity and freedom, she took up the mantle of leader, and under her power, a vast army formed. Present day, this army has retaken a vast a majority of Urrath. But the Vazeks will not bow down easily.

The immediate thing that jumps out is the prose. It's something you don't really see in epic fantasy. For one, much of it is told in third-person present tense. For another, it's very stylized; there are a lot of sentence fragments and bits of stream-of-consciousness. The closest comparison I can make is The Court of Broken Knives mixed with Kai Ashante Wilson--the dialogue resembles the latter more, a distinct mixture of coarse and melodic--and like those book, the style will not appeal to everyone. It played right into my tastes, though.

The story is told from Kandri's point-of-view, alternating from the present to flashbacks that reveal details of his childhood. Kandri is the steadier of the two brothers. He hates fighting and despises killing even more, yet circumstances have landed him as a soldier in the Prophet's army. I quite liked him; he's thoughtful and empathetic--a perfect lead character.

Mektu was my favourite, however. He's coarse and irreverent and oscillates from hyperanxiety to excitement; his interests flit from one shiny thing to the next. He says some bizarre and shitty things but I couldn't really hold it against him because he's so blissfully unaware of how people would react to his words and actions. He reminds me a bit of Michael Scott from The Office (U.S version). He's not mean-spirited, he just has no social filter. You get the sense that he's a child in the body of an adult; there's an innocence to him that I couldn't help but find endearing.

Kandri's relationship with Mektu is the heart of the story and it's one of rivalry and exasperated acceptance. And also love. They bicker constantly but they lean on one another for support and there is little doubt of the strength of their bond. I said before that I wanted more fantasy stories focusing on sibling relationships, and here I got a great one.

The world of Master Assassins isn't built meticulously from the ground up, but through a scattering of details that you have to collect and piece together. This frustrated me quite a bit in the beginning. Everything felt vague and incomplete. I got the idea that something catastrophic has happened to the world--there's talk of a "World Plague," and how the Urrathi are immune to it--but little else was offered beyond that. There was a lot of name-drops but little sense to where these places resided and what they looked like.

Then I got a quarter of the way through and came across this passage:

"History, geography, politics, the classic Urrathi tales: none of these were taught any longer, save by private tutors."

And a switch flipped in my head. I realized that the readers don't have a good grasp of the world and its culture and history because our narrator, Kandri, doesn't have a good grasp of the world. Once I understood this, things started to get less frustrating and a lot more exciting. I no longer cared that these names had little context or texture because now I knew it was the same for Kandri. We were both fumbling along in the dark together. And I think this is a brilliant bit of writing craft by the author--ignorance that doesn't exclude us from the characters, but connects us together. There are mysteries that run through the story and I was stoked to uncover the secrets of this land alongside our heroes.

And the worldbuilding we do get is original and exciting. It's a strange, brutal yet beautiful world--a curious amalgamation of medieval and modern. There are tame riding cats, clockwork contraptions, vultures bigger than elephants, a string of towering islands across an ocean robbed of its water. The images conjured are at once quiet and arresting:

"They are walking on dragonflies, hundreds of thousands strong, black pearl eyes and rainbow wings, dessicated, dead. All of them facing the same direction, which happens to be their own. As if the swarm had set its collective mind on crossing the Yskralem and flown due east, low and purposeful, moving as on. Until strength abandoned them, or the last trace of water in their bodies, or simply their will...For over a mile, they wade in this river of silver corpses. Then the wind starts to blow, and the insects click and clatter over the salt pan like a curtain of beads."

Besides Kanri and Mektu, all the characters are diverse and colourful, not just in terms of race and gender but also in personality. No two people they meet are the same: Uncle Chindilan, the Master Smith, who's not really their uncle (just a family friend); wise Eshett who was captured by human traffickers and is now trying to return home; Talupeke, a hot-headed young soldier seeking revenge for a betrayal, who also happens to be an absolute beast with knives. They are complex characters brought together by happenstance and the author does well to showcase them all equally.

The story wasn't without its problems, the foremost being that it took me a while to get into it. A fair chunk of the middle is spent on Kandri and co. running for their lives across the oceanless ocean, which was a little tedious (the pacing felt VERY slow, and I'm talking as a Robin Hobb fanatic). Worry not, though, because latter part is thrilling and eerie and got me eager for the next installment. The colloquial dialogue also threw me off in the beginning. While I did get used to it, there were still some that I found a little weird and jarring. There is also mention of child prostitution, rape, and human trafficking, which may turn off some readers.

Most interestingly, I think, the author posits questions you don't often see in stories about an oppressed group of people and the rebellion that eventually follows.

What happens when your leader, your savior, the one who has liberated your people from slavery and genocide, begins to exercise the same kind of censorship and brutality as your former subjugators, albeit in a slightly different way?

What happens when you replace one conqueror with another?

What happens when you find that you have become the enemy of your own people and faith?

Master Assassins is a story of a rebellion within a rebellion. A story of the cost of war and the complicated bonds between family. It's not an easy read, but it is a fulfilling one. And I recommend you to give it a shot.

I really enjoyed this book. I was lucky enough to get an ARC from Netgalley, and I'm really glad I did.

I enjoyed the story telling and the intricacies of how the different characters were woven together.

My only real complaint is that I feel as if I still have too many questions. The book doesn't necessarily end on a cliffhanger, but it does leave a lot open to be answered in the next book.

Master Assassins is very much in the Mark Lawrence/Patrick Rothfuss vein: great worldbuilding, strong plot, and, above all, excellent characters. Of the two brothers around whom the plot centres, Mektu is the most original and intriguing. Is he crazy, or just possessed by the "yarta" spirit that he alone seems to be aware of? The image of the dried-up ocean they must cross - complete with former islands towering into the sky, is a vivid one, and the settings generally are well-conceived and serve the plot. There are faint reminders of Dune in the strands of Messianic religion that pervade the action, but Redick is careful to ensure that while there may be signs of influence, there is certainly not emulation. All in all, an original and interesting fantasy and I look forward to the next book in the series.

I got a copy of this because it sounded interesting plot wise and it was. The plot was interesting, the writing was okay. I had issue with the characterizations in this story. They felt rather badly done and detracted from the overall story.

I've pretty much had enough of rape as a tool to make a character look evil, but while I often enough try to look past it, I just didn't feel like reading in this particular case when kids got raped. From the attempted rate of a boy to the actual rape of a small girl, just to make the evil man looks especially bad, I had no desire to keep reading this and decided to DNF.