Buckle up, fantasy fiends, because Tim Facciola's "A Vengeful Realm" will yank you headfirst into a world dripping with magic, betrayal, and gods playing dice with mortals. It's an epic tapestry woven with grit, gut-punches, and a twist that'll make your jaw clench faster than a gladiator facing a hungry lion.

Sure, the initial world-building might feel like navigating a labyrinth blindfolded, but trust me, the payoff is a treasure chest overflowing with intrigue, action, and characters so complex they'll haunt your dreams. We're talking gladiators with hidden destinies, queens cloaked in deceit, and deities with their own twisted agendas.


This is one of those rare books that demands an immediate double-dip. You need one copy to devour in a breathless frenzy, and another to meticulously admire the intricate craftsmanship.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

Took me a bit to get into this as I just couldn't stay focused on the characters. No fault of the narrator, who was great, but I think I would have liked this more as physical copy. Definitely a lot going on and it ends in a way that makes you wanting more. I'll give it a shot another time and see how I like it!

If you are a fan of Game of Thrones and/or Spartacus, you will love A Vengeful Realm! The book starts with the main character losing his memory, but being destined to help fulfill an ancient prophecy. He grapples with his identity and progresses forward through the unknown to become one of these prophetic figures of legend.

There are many factions that are all scheming towards their own outcomes and in many cases, the ends justify the means (similar to the faction dynamic of Game of Thrones). In the society where this is set, the main characters' eventual enslavement and journey toward freedom is reminiscent of Spartacus. But as a fantasy novel, yes there are mystical powers at play! While they start off as lesser known, you gain more exposure and insight into the powers and gods at play as the book goes on.

There is enough mystery to draw you in and hooks at the end of the book to leave you wanting for more. I can't wait for the 2nd book as there is so much more I want to know and see what happens next.

I was delighted to experience A vengeful Realm by Tim Facciola. World building was handled excellently alongside superb character development. The multiple points of view set up made the narrative feel like it was flying by and now I desperately need a book two.

Highly recommend the audiobook, the narrator does a fantastic job

Okay, first up, the foreshadowing in this book? So good. And that ending – WOW. I became a big fan of Phoenix and Zephyr, and by the end, Nallia really grew on me. Super excited to see where the next book takes them! Even with heaps of world-building, I’ve still got so many questions about this universe. It was a fresh take on the whole Roman Empire retelling vibe, and I was all in. Yep, it’s a long one (took me a while to get through), but totally worth the ride. Also, the writing is just plain beautiful. Can't wait for the next one!

A Vengeful Realm (The Scales of Balance #1)
Written by Tim Facciola
Read by Landon Soelberg
Book 208/200
Genre: Fantsy
Format: Digital/Audio, ARC
Pages/Time: 528/16hr 6min
Published: 2023
Rating: 8/10

Roman Empire inspired fantasy series? Sign me up! Facciola's debut novel throws readers into a gladiatorial epic in the tone of A Game of Thrones. I had a really good time reading this one! A Vengeful Ream was exciting and intense with it's non-stop action and inventive magic system.

Facciola does a great job writing action scenes and character development. And Soelberg absolutely kills it in the audiobook! I felt like I was a part of this world, and was hanging on for all the twists and turns. This was the solid start of a series and cannot wait to read more by Facciola.

It is nice when a book both begins and ends with a bang. Author Facciola knows how to spin a yarn and wrap you into it from the very start. With a blend of mystery, fantasy, and political intrigue, “A Vengeful Realm” will keep you interested on several levels. Narrator Soelberg does a good job bringing the characters to life. Thankfully this book is devoid of sound effects (they grate my nerves).

Four and a half stars is my rating. I liked the protagonists and the secondary characters, the plot, and the pacing. I’m looking forward to book 2 of The Scales of Balance series. My thanks to Books Forward via Netgalley. All opinions are mine and offered without recompense.

THE NARRATOR O.M.G
I DONT EVEN HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THE BOOK. RUN! DONT WALK RUN TO GET THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW!
It is so WELL written. So WELL written that you lose yourself and want to read this 24/7.

I CRIED WHEN I SAW THE NAME UNDER CHAPTER 16 !
i really wanted to be a part of this book , but the more i think of it the more i realise i would die in the 3rd second loll.
29391438758974857/5 stars. AMAZING

“A Vengeful Realm” is a fast paced YA novel that follows a war slave named Zephyrus. It begins with Zephyrus waking up with 0 memory of his prior life, finding himself completely alone and forced to fight in the gladiator ring.

“A Vengeful Realm” as lots of good qualities, but unfortunately I am DNF at 26.5%. It has an ensamble cast and I wasn’t able to connect with any of the characters, and therefore felt untethered to the nonstop action. I think this book would be a great fit for lovers of “The Maze Runner.”

I received this audiobook as an ARC in exchange, for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

I had a hard time getting into this book. I did eventually end up enjoying it but the names and places and jumping around really messed with me. It helped that at the time I was reading it, I was also able to listen to the Audiobook. I am looking forward to continuing the story.

As a huge fan of the show Spartacus, this book absolutely worked for me. There were parallels from the shoe that I picked up on in the book. I found a lot of the speech very similar which I thoroughly enjoyed.
The gods and magic aspect were a nice addition and I look forward to seeing the world expand further.

And that epilogue? I didn't see that coming...at all 😅

Actual Rating 1.5

Zephyrus has been enslaved and is forced to become a gladiator. But he has gaps in his memories and knows that he’s missing something important having to do with a prophecy foretelling mass destruction. To find answers, he must survive the dangers of the arena and the dangers of navigating the world of politics and espionage he’s been thrown into. But he’s not only fighting against his fellow humans, but the will of the gods, and they have their own unknown agenda.

I wanted to like this book, but there were too many aspects that didn’t work for me. To start, we’re thrown into immediate action without any introduction to the world or characters. Which wouldn’t be an issue, but as you keep reading, there’s never really any space made to explore the characters or the world in a meaningful way. This left everything feeling ungrounded. The world is a pseudo-Roman fantasy world, except that there are no real fantasy aspects until the very end of the book. I imagine book two might have more magic/traditional fantasy aspects, but I don’t plan to find out.

The characters were bland, and there wasn’t much other than their roles to differentiate them from each other. We were also often told how a character felt, or what their morals were, but then this wasn’t represented by their actions. There was no real personality or uniqueness to distinguish them from each other and it was impossible to connect to them at all. This was especially unfortunate as there are so many POVs to this story.

There were plenty of politics and factions, as is the case with most pseudo-Roman fiction, which were the main focus of the story. That, and plenty of combat. The combat was well written, but that’s not enough to make a compelling read. It felt that the author focused on combat and politics at the expense of the characters and worldbuilding.

Unfortunately, I don’t recommend this read unless you’re solely interested in combat set in a pseudo-Roman world. My thanks to NetGalley and Books Forward for allowing me to read this work, which will be published 24 October 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was a good book for this author debut novel. I found the characters and story interesting. There’s a lot of action scenes which he does an excellent job at writing those scenes. You can easily picture what’s happening and it makes sense. I do think there’s room for character development and world building. But overall a good start! I wasn’t sure about the narrator at first but I ended up really enjoying it. Sometimes you just have to give it a chance. Narration is very good!
Here is a copy of the blurb for you.

Peace bought by blood seldom lasts, for vengeance knows no end. The same is true for mortals and Gods alike. Decades, centuries, eras may pass, but the cycle remains. As war and revolution rise again, Zephyrus finds himself at the center of it all. Chosen by the Gods, hailed as a prophet of liberation, and forged as a weapon to break the kingdom and restore balance to the realm, hope rests squarely on his shoulders.

If only he could remember…

Enslaved as a gladiator and thrust into a prince’s game of espionage, Zephyrus has only two clues to help unlock his shattered past: a prophecy foretelling destruction, and a letter to the enemy king, promising peace. Now Zephyrus must survive the dangers of the gladiatorial arena, the cunning fury of the Prince’s enemies, and the Gods’ torment if he is to find the truth of his identity and fulfill his fate. But to have any hope of breaking the cycle, first he must secure his freedom—and not just from his slavers.

Within this vengeful realm, a queen protecting her kingdom, a prince defending his father, and a gladiator slave haunted by a prophecy each contend for their own brand of freedom. But the Gods have an agenda of their own, and they'll use any vessel—patrician, plebeian, or slave—to see it done.

The scales must be balanced. By peace. Or by blood.

Thank You to publishers and author for this free arc to review. This is my honest opinion.

Edit

A pet peeve of mine is the common practice of advertising a piece of media as "Popular Thing" meets "Other Popular A pet peeve of mine is the common practice of advertising a piece of media as "Popular Thing" meets "Other Popular Thing". This usually leads to unmet expectations and disappointment for the audience. But with A Vengeful Realm, a comparison of A Song of Ice and Fire blended with Starz's Spartacus would be warranted. There are several aspects that seemed to be pulled from each work and melded together into this. My concern is that it might be too derivative of those works, especially as the series continues with Breaker of Chains, is a title earned by ASOIAF heroine Daenerys Targaryen. I hope the series will be able to stand on its own without relying so heavily on those sources of inspiration.

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel. The characters were well drawn and complex. I will absolutely check out the sequel.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and First Torch Books, LLC for the audio ARC of the book provided in exchange for an honest review.

Book 1 and what a start, cannot wait for book 2. Zephryus does not remember his past but knows he has been fated to survive and fight for freedom in a world where many are enslaved and life is cheap.

He must become a Gladiator and fight for freedom. Action packed and great characters. Well written and well narrated (I listened to the audiobook). Be prepared for lots of twists and turns and of course violence. Enjoy.

My Husband is a big fantasy reader, that’s typically not my favorite genre. He read this book and told me I should give it a read for the psychological messages and themes. This book was a rollercoaster of human emotions. Most of the character’s perspectives I could relate to—especially Fenyx with his black and white thinking and Nallia whose strength is overlooked by most people in her life. There were moments I had to stop and just think, moments I needed to pull my husband aside to discuss what I just read, and moments where all I could do was cry. Every character is acting from a place where they believe they are doing what’s best, and that’s not the case. To see the good intentions spiral up and down made this book feel so real. On the days I picked the book up, I couldn’t put it down because I felt so committed to staying in their world. Tim Facciola did a wonderful job at turning a story into a world I could see, feel, and become invested in. I loved reading this book and am thrilled to know it’s just the first in the series. Thank you for the new found hope your story has given me.

I recently finished A Vengeful Realm Book one. the debut novel of BookTok’s own Tim Facciola.

This is the beginning of an epic fantasy series that centers around the question of if you lose all of your memories then what kind of person are you?

The story focuses on a man called Zephyrus who as I said has lost his memories. Yet is told he is the chosen of the old gods, and hailed as a prophet that will liberate the people…

only to be immediately captured by slavers and made into a gladiator, bereft of allies he falls into service of a prince playing a dangerous game. All while hearing the voice of a god but giving vague and confusing advice.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Landon Soelberg who did a phenomenal job of bringing this story to life.
Clocking in at just over 16 hours at regular speed. Despite a bit of info-dumping in the beginning, it kept me engaged the whole time with solid pacing and plot development.

This first book is titled Scales of Balance and it’s appropriately named the author balances tension and intrigue, with an openness to the reader about what schemes are being hatched by various characters.

There was a lot to like about the series, but i’m hoping that the sequels will have a little more world building. Don’t get me wrong I love a character driven story, I just would like to know a little more about certain aspects of the world.

Honestly I just wanted more of this story as I felt things were really picking up towards the end. Luckily it’s only a few months until I can get my hands on book 2!

Big thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a chance to get in on this book early. I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Anyone searching for an epic fantasy combining the worldbuilding of GoT, the complex plots and characters of Stormlight Archives, set in the realm of the 2000 hit film, Gladiator, will find themselves enraptured by A Vengeful Realm: The Scales of Balance, by Tim Facciola. Even upon a second read, everything between these covers continues to give on all fronts.

Many authors would be inclined to use memory loss in their main character as a convenient way to provide worldbuilding and context to the reader. Facciola is never one to be convenient with his storytelling, and instead uses this as a vehicle to convey the struggles of navigating a moral compass when all preconceived teachings and memories have been stripped away.

On the note of characters, Tim is well acquainted with those which he creates and often makes his readers question who they should be rooting for. I’ll admit, there was more than one time that I found myself rooting for characters that I shouldn’t, simply because their motivations were so well defined that they became people living within the pages. The storylines rage widely, making it increasingly difficult to select a favorite character.

Worldbuilding within A Vengeful Realm is beautiful and paints the perfect backdrop for the political intrigue, secrets, and a superb god system the entwines with various characters throughout. These elements serve the character’s plots, and not the other way around. It is clear by the end that there is plenty more developed within this world which doesn’t make it on page.

None of this has even touched on the magic within the story. Only hinted at to start, before unfolding and developing profoundly throughout the story, magic has widespread implications across the board for all of the characters. The climax of the book leaves readers craving more, and it is something that I, personally, cannot wait to see explored in more depth. Don’t be surprised when you find yourself cursing Tim for the way he brings this all together in truly epic fashion.

In short, read this book. It has given me a new outlook on fantasy and I cannot wait for the next installment!

Are you kidding me?
When I saw how long this book was I almost past on it. My last really ling listen was underwhelming and as someone with a little completest in me, I was worried about the time investment. The book started with action out of the gate, so I was hopeful. There were some slower parts but all of it was good. The characters are great. The important ones have depth and very believable. There interpersonal relationships stay true to their overall character. I will say this is a very complex story with a lot of moving parts and Facciola weaves them together brilliantly. I am curious how he does it, with some much going on I image he has some huge white board that look smore like a "murder board" complete with red strings and all. I really liked the concepts and points of view brought out in this book. One example without any spoilers was the question of justice v. vengeance. But the ending, are you kidding me? He better have book two rolling off the press because you can't leave me hanging like that.

I also really liked the narration in this book. He really brought the story to life. Lots of accents and great tone. I also felt he did really well when narrating female characters. I can image it is difficult for any narrator to try and do voices for the opposite gender and I have heard some pretty bad attempts. Clearly not a problem for this guy. I actually might see if I can search for more sorties he has done; he was that good.

I am providing this rive after listening to the audio version as an ARC.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5818989123

If you’re a fan of the STARZ TV show Spartacus or HBO’s Rome, this is definitely the book for you. While this is a fantasy book, there is very little magic or fantasy-type aspects to this book; the ending, without spoilers, definitely leads towards more magical aspects and such in the second book, so if you can hold on until the second, it might get better. There’s a lot of political elements to this story, if you’re knowledgeable of Spartacus, then all of the political elements of that is definitely in this book, so again, if that’s your thing, this is your book. I wanted to enjoy this and like this as I am a fan of Spartacus and fantasy too, but I could not get into this; it was a struggle to finish it and while I think part of that comes from the fact that I listened to this as an audiobook and I’m not a big audiobook fan, I just could not get into this.