My thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group for a free DRC of "A Song of Legends Lost" by M. H Ayinde.
This was my most anticipated Adult Fantasy Debut of 2025.
The African inspired setting and the ability to summon the ancestors in battle were fascinating.
I decided to give it another try in physical format now that I am in a better headspace.
The blend of Epic Fantasy with some SF elements is refreshing.
So glad I decided to purchase a copy and give it a second try. I am taking my time and enjoying the experience. Once I'll finish I'll return and addthe links to my reviews.

EPIC fantasy meets ancestral spirit magic in this ambitious, high-stakes debut. If you loved The Rage of Dragons, The Bone Shard Daughter, or Stormlight Archive, but wanted it in the style of The Poppy War, this book is for you.

A SONG OF LEGENDS LOST is a multi-POV epic set in the Nine Lands, where only nobles are allowed to summon the spirits of their ancestors—until Temi, a slum-born girl, does it by accident and is pulled into a violent war. Temi is clever, stubborn, and loyal, but every POV is great and adds to the overall world.

Meticulously constructed magic system and world building! It’s absolutely brilliant, and no one wonder considering M. H. spent about 10 years developing this world.

The drive of the story is the rebellion, survival, and shifting power. The world-building is rich, the action is fast, and the magic system is one of the most original I’ve read in a while—blending sci-fi relics with ancestral myth. But seriously, the monsters are the best part.

Extremely behind on my reviews, to the point where I'm currently just starting to post about books that I read over Christmas/New Year. Oh well.

The basic premise of A Song of Legends Lost, which is the first book of a trilogy, is that it's set within a very hierarchical system where people from certain clans can summon the spirits of their ancestor to fight for them. This is supposed to be an ability only certain people can do but things start to fall apart when a number of ordinary people start to develop those powers as well. If you're looking for explanations of what and why, or for tidily-wrapped up storylines, please remember this is book 1 of a trilogy and guess what happens...

In general, I enjoyed this book though I found it started to drag towards the back half and I ended up skimming the last couple of chapters. I was also struggling to care about some of the characters whose points of view carry the storyline on, with a degree of flat characterisation for some that meant I wasn't particularly engaged with them - there are a couple of the main characters who either keep making the same mistakes or seem desperately naive compared to what we're told of their back ground. The world-building as a whole was good, with an unusual magic system rather than the same old, same old. Not sure I'll bother with books 2 and 3, to be honest.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, via Netgalley. This is my honest review of the book in question.

I really enjoyed Song of Legends Lost. I liked how ancestors are part of magic system. It's a cool way to introduce magic into the belief.

Pace of the book is good, though I wish it ended a bit more wrapped out. Some characters plot lines were stopped too abruptly, while some other's were wrapped up nicely for a small conclusion to current chapter of their story.

I liked most of mayor characters. Not all get much development, but I found that not to be the issue.

The world is interesting and I really look forward to learn more of it. Early in the book I predicted some developments we see near end of the book and I can't wait to learn more about it.

I can't wait for the next book!

I wasn’t completely caught up in this book straight away, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. I think I should have tried to speculate more on some of the plot points, because it was while things were coming together that I really started to get engaged. So if you’re thinking of reading this, speculate, try to guess what’s going to happen, and think about some of the mysteries involved.

I’m intrigued by the ancient society that left all the technology behind. I loved how the book blended sci fi and fantasy, showing the truth of the old Arthur C. Clarke quote of how advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. I’m looking forward to finding out more about their society.

I think I will be reading on with this series, because it had such interesting ideas. I wonder if I’d read it at another time, when I was more in the mood to try and puzzle things out, whether it would have been more engaging.

A groundbreaking trilogy for the patient reader
—
In a world where power is held only by those of noble families, able to call their powerful ancestors to return to battle the scourge of monsters and horrors beyond the borders of the Nine Lands, seemingly unimportant citizens — a baker, a pot washer, a rebellious priest, an abandoned prince, a mourning soldier — get drawn into a plot that is deeper and vaster than any of them alone or together might fathom, and which will turn the world upside down.

Excellent world-building and truly engaging characters in a plot that hurtles along, full of colour, sensations, and details, the only thing this book suffers from is being the first part of a trilogy. It doesn’t actually end, with very few of the mysteries revealed on the last page, and with even more mysteries lying in wait for the patient reader. Running through five points of view, and inconsistently, there are swathes of story left behind in the run to get so much plot, so many characters and cultures into the first of three books that I can’t see how Ayinde will do it. I’m willing to invest my time in the rest of this groundbreaking trilogy and I suggest that you do too!

Four and a half stars

A thrilling debut novel, A Song of Legends Lost is an epic fantasy-sci-fi about revenge, oppression, rebellion, and the traumas of war. I was invested from the start by the high quality writing, unique worldbuilding, engaging characters, and the deep mysteries surrounding the magic and/or technological systems in play. It's hard to believe this is a first novel.

In the Nine Lands, the noble Nine Families can summon the spirit of their ancestors to continue fighting the cybernetic "Greybloods" who constantly invade and terrorise their lands. "Lowbloods" - everyone not part of the Nine Families - are fodder in the wars between these powerful summoners and the monstrous mechanical enemies. Technology is forbidden due to its ties to the Greyblood enemy forces, and only the secretive nuns and priests can safely wield a few small tech relics from the long-dead Scathed race who once lived in technological splendor. The rules surrounding relics and summoning are set in stone... until Temi, a Lowblood young woman, is implanted with an unknown spirit against her will. The spirit plans to spark a rebellion--and he's not the only one.

In the tradition of epic fantasy, there is a large cast to follow but some appear quite late and some early characters drop out for large sections of the novel. I enjoyed all the point-of-view characters (and many of the side characters, of course), though it was harder to emotionally engage with characters who only appeared past the 50% mark of the book. It's hard for me to tell if that's because one of them is clearly an antagonist (even if they don't know it), or because I had limited care to give and it was already taken by the other characters who'd appeared earlier--even by the end, I couldn't tell the reason for why I disliked this particular character. Their chapters gave necessary information, so I didn't hate their chapters, but I never wanted them to succeed and wouldn't mind if they weren't a POV character again (though I'm sure they will be).

If there's any criticism on the characters, it's that some of them come off as too lacking in intelligence. One POV character who stays throughout the entire novel keeps repeating the same mistakes over and over and over... it starts to defy reason that they never learn or change. Another character seems far too naive for their background to not realise what horrible things are happening around them, and that they themselves are causing. Of course not every character (especially in a story with a huge cast like this) is going to be highly intelligent. But it shouldn't be getting to the point where even a child would have learned or realised certain things by now, but these adults keep failing. I am also still mad that Temi disappears for too much of the book--absent from ch13 until ch42, when she's one of the most engaging and interesting POVs. Naturally Temi is a favourite of mine, as was Elari, and to my surprise I came to care for Jinao and Boleo more than I originally thought I would. I hope Lyela is a main POV character in the next book, though I won't be terribly surprised if she remains more a mystery in-the-background character either.

The worldbuilding is amazing. I'm really into the juxtaposition of African cultures with out-of-control advanced cybertech enemies, the dance-summon magic versus brain implants to talk to the gods/ancestors... There's a lot of sci-fi elements with the technology, but the genre of the book is definitely fantasy. Not only because the people of the Nine Lands view the technology as magic, but in the structure of the world and the plot. The author also doesn't dumb down the worldbuilding and overexplain things that the full audience might not be familiar with. They throw out the native, original words for various items like clothing, decorations, weapons, etc. and you go Google that term if you don't know what it is. I'm completely fine with that because white fantasy writers have been doing it with the precise/exact European words for armour, clothing, food, etc. for decades and readers have never had a problem with it.

Like any good epic fantasy, the plot rockets along with many moving parts and many disjointed threads that slowly start to weave together to form the bigger overall picture. Mostly the novel does well on this front--I was always engaged and eager to know more, and it was exciting when a tiny snippet would drop and I could put the pieces together myself before the author confirmed things on the page. My only complaint for plot would be that by the end of this novel (the first of a trilogy, so 33.33% through the full story) many of the human plans are starting to form into the bigger picture, but the spirit/ancestor side is still very much not. Also, the motivation of the king declaring an invasion that leaves his lands unprotected is an absolute mystery that makes no sense. I will absolutely be buying the next book, but this much confusion left at the end of the first novel frustrates me--I had hoped to see more of the bigger picture by this point.

Overall I enjoyed this immensely. One of the more engaging epic fantasies I've read in a long time with so many unique aspects that leave A Song Of Legends Lost feeling fresh and exciting. I will absolutely be picking up this series. A few minor frustrations keep me from giving it a full 5 stars, but this is so close: a 9 out of 10, or 4.5 stars. If only Goodreads would let us use half-marks.


Rating: 4.5 stars, rounding down as always -- Engaging and unique fantasy with African cultures, summoning spirits to fight for you like your favourite JRPG, and mysterious cybertech including a bedraggled No-Cat companion that follows someone home and refuses to leave (peak cat behaviour).

This has so many story elements I love: a fantasy world steeped in ancient tech, spirit-bonding/possession, and an expansive culture-filled world. The characters were strong-spirited and distinct enough in their beliefs that by the end of it, I found that I wasn’t sure who I wanted to come out on top. I was cheering every single one of them on.

And while I loved the second half of this book, I must admit that I found the beginning a bit of a slog to get through. Maybe it was just the wrong time for me to pick this one up, but it took me until the halfway point to become truly invested.

The world-building was amazing though, so I will definitely be keeping an eye on Ayinde’s future books.

Great book with a unique magic system and it's almost bordering on horror, but not quite there. Great first and debut novel by the author. Strongly recommend.

Oh how much I loved this one. I pretty much went into <i>A Song of Legends Lost</i>, the debut novel (and first in a trilogy) by M.H. Ayinde, completely blind. I liked the cover, the blurb sounded amazing and I was craving some quality new high fantasy in the overwhelming sea of copy-paste trope-obsessed romantasy the publishing industry is sadly feeding us nowadays. And I was honestly blown away by it. This is epic fantasy at its best, and it's so full of creativity and writing skill that I already cannot wait to read more of this author.

It's beautifully written, full of fascinating world building expertly woven into the narrative that made me want more, more, more. The world and the ideas are genuinely unique. The story is being told from five different perspectives, and all of them are intriguing. Some of them take a backseat at times when it makes sense for the story just to resurface in spectacular fashion later on. It's just really well done, the structuring and pacing are amazing and I could barely put the book down. This truly is epic fantasy in its scope and depth.

The characters themselves are complex and completely different from each other, and all of them show different facettes of the society they live in. Their stories are often separate from each other just to then connect in fascinating ways, with some of their experiences having an impact on another character's storyline without them ever meeting. I genuinely enjoyed all of them, though I do have a very soft spot for Temi and Jinao personally. I think the only character I felt I didn't connect with as much is Elari, and even her story I followed with great interest. Boleo and Runt are both incredibly fascinating too, and I'm especially excited to see where the latter's storyline will go.

All in all I was simply amazed by this book. Great writing, lush world-building, creative and unique ideas, intriguing characters - just a joy from first to last page. Absolutely recommend this for anyone who loves epic fantasy.

I had been hearing about ‘A Song of Legends Lost’ for a long time, and the breathtaking cover finally tipped the scales - I had to read this book.. In the year 2025, anepic fantasy novel without a romance focus? I was in immediately! I love my little romances in my epic books, but I also love those without ;)

The story takes place in the Nine Lands, a world where only nobles are allowed to summon the spirits of their ancestors. But Temi, a young woman from the slums, inadvertently breaks this rule when she conjures up a powerful spirit - and unintentionally becomes a key figure in a major conflict.
As befits epic fantasy, we experience the action from several perspectives - in this case five. The book deals with central themes such as family, revenge, social classes, cultural identity and the legacy of past generations. The narrative style is rather calm and character-focussed. Temi plays a central role at the beginning, but disappears for long stretches of the plot, which made it a little difficult for me to establish a lasting connection with her.

I was particularly impressed by the worldbuilding: the world is non-Western inspired, with cultural echoes: Ancient technologies, mysterious glyphs and a sophisticated magic system centred around spirit summoning make the world vibrant and unique. The battle scenes are exciting and very vividly written - a real highlight of the novel.

All in all, "A Song of Legends Lost" is a successful debut that is particularly impressive due to its unusual setting and dense atmosphere. The characters are diverse and believable, even if not all of them take centre stage to the same extent. A clear recommendation for anyone looking for a multi-layered, non-Western-inspired epic fantasy with several narrative strands.

An amazing epic story with intricate world building and multi-layered characters.
This is a story that will be remembered for times to come and I cannot wait for the next books!

This was an absolutely brilliant debut novel.
The characters, the world building, the plot ! These were all brilliant and I loved the unique magic system.

Sadly, this book was not for me. I did manage to finish but I found myself having to push through. However, it is well written and I am certain there will be a market for it who will very much enjoy it.

Thank you to Netgalley and littlebrownbooks uk for the ARC. All opinions are my own and I am leaving a review voluntarily.

I trust this book packs fantastic ideas and I like following several different POVs, but I didn't realize this story would include technology in a fantasy setting. That is simply not for me.

A Song of Legends Lost was completely enthralling! From the very first chapter I was completely lost in the story in the story and the many different characters were were introduced to! I loved how diverse the range of points of views were, from Nobility all the way down to a commoner. I really enjoyed how the strong weaved in and out of the different characters perspectives, giving us a glimpse into their own view but also how the other characters viewed and interacted with each other.

I found the entire premise for the story quite refreshing, Nobility calling on their ancestors for help was a breath of fresh air in the Fantasy world.

The world building was intense in the very best way! This really was the EPIC FANTASY adventure that I have been craving. A debut novel and first in a series - well done!!! I can't wait to see how this story continues!! I loved it!

Complex, dark and without romance : that's what I expect from epic fantasy and A Song of Legends Lost delivered. No heavy romance subplot or plot, a rich, complex and very interesting worldbuilding, strong, diverse and interesting cast of outsiders and castaways.

Some things weren't perfect, pacing might be too slow at the start, leaving the reader wondering where it's all going, and the POV weren't equally present or interesting throughout the book

But all in all, a very strong début that leaves you hungry for more in this series and puts M H Ayinde on my radar.

(4.5/5)

This book has truly surprised me in the best possible way.

If you took the African history and culture, as well as the futuristic technology of Black Panther but put it in a Game of Thrones type setting then you would get A Song of Legends Lost.

There are a lot of characters, families and POVs to follow; and each POV reveals a little more about the overarching story.

So many characters have their own motivations, their own plots unraveling, and I could not put this down.

There are multiple plot threads that are all interesting - I didn't find myself bored with one POV or waiting for a particular one to come up again (which Game of Thrones has a problem with LOL).

Honestly the epilogues (yes, plural) sealed the 5 star deal for me. Only 3 days for me to start and finish this 640 page book, I do think!

ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit—in exchange for an honest review.

A Song of Legends Lost is a Final Fantasy X inspired debut with magic summons reminiscent of Spirit Shaman King or Stand from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure.

Since I saw the beautiful cover art by Richard Anderson, I was instantly hooked on checking out A Song of Legends Lost by M.H. Ayinde. This interest was multiplied after hearing that this is an epic fantasy debut novel. As we all know, an epic fantasy debut without heavy romance elements is rare now in the traditionally published fantasy market. The massive success of Fourth Wing has pretty much changed the trajectory and focus of most traditional publishers to search for more romantasy success. This is totally understandable. It is where the money is. And it is very likely that a debut like A Song of Legends Lost, a fantasy debut with pretty much zero romance, won’t reach the success many romantasy books do these days. However, I do sincerely hope this book earns enough sales for it to continue. And for more traditional publishers to publish more debuts like this again. As far as my reading taste goes, A Song of Legends Lost is the kind of epic fantasy debut I like to read, and I wish there was more of it like it was before.

The story in A Song of Legends Lost takes place in the Nine Lands, where only those of noble blood can summon the spirits of their ancestors to fight in battle. But when Temi, a commoner from the slums, accidentally invokes a powerful spirit, she finds it could hold the key to ending a centuries-long war. But as always, not everything that can be invoked is an ancestor. And some of the spirits that can be drawn from the ancestral realm are more dangerous than anyone can imagine. From this official blurb, it is easy to conclude that Temi is the main character of A Song of Legends Lost. While it is true she is one of my favorite POV characters to read in the book, she is not the only main character.

Told from five main POV characters, Temi is one of the main characters, but she does not dominate the narrative. Not at all. This is a story about family, vengeance, cultures, classes, identity, and heritage. Noble versus commoners, and also survival. Ayinde uses five integral main characters of different identities, personalities, and heritage to explore these themes deeply. Temi, Jinao, Boleo, Elari, and Runt. These are the five main characters of A Song of Legends Lost, and this book is undoubtedly a slow-burn character-driven epic fantasy novel. I enjoyed reading every perspective, but even though Jinao has the most pages, Temi and Runt were the most compelling of the characters, in my opinion. Additionally, there were multiple clans and several key supporting characters. Readers who do not like reading epic fantasy with a relatively large cast of characters with zero romance might be turned off by A Song of Legends Lost, but it was the other way around for me.

This, however, brings me to my next point. If there is one thing that did not click with me as much as I hoped, it was the story structure. Readers are put into Temi and Jinao's perspective for the entirety of Part 1. About 130 pages long. After this, for roughly 300 pages long, Temi did not have another POV chapter. She became almost non-existent in the storyline for a long time, and I wish we could've gotten more of her in Part 2 and Part 3 of the novel, even just a little bit. This is not to say Jinao, Boleo, and Elari's stories were uninteresting. And thankfully, the big focus on them did influence the events of the last sections of A Song of Legends Lost. But for my enjoyment, I would have enjoyed seeing the chapters being spread out more evenly. That said, this is a minor issue in the grander scheme of things.

Speaking of my enjoyment of the novel, the coolest aspect of A Song of Legends Lost was the battle, summons, and the world. Each clan has its own Ancestor and sacred weapon. Two examples. Clan Adatali has the Eight Sacred Blades, and Clan Mizito has the Staff ‘Stillness’. The actions, especially when the characters summon their respective Ancestors, were exciting. Look at the badass cover art. It is exactly like that. Think of it like how Yuna from Final Fantasy X summon her Aeon to fight for her in battle. Or like how the Spirits in Shaman King and the Stand in Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure work. Everything contributed to an unputdownable climax sequence where hell broke loose.

One last thing I can definitely tell you what to expect from A Song of Legends Lost is scope. There is no doubt this is a sprawling epic fantasy with intricate world-building. It is set in a non-Western inspired world, and there were clear inspirations from Yoruba culture and, as I said earlier, Final Fantasy X in the world-building. Ancient civilizations, mysterious technologies, and glyphs, to name a few. These are evident elements in A Song of Legends Lost, and you will read the characters explore ruins to find the secret behind them. I liked learning about the history of the world. And I look forward to finding out how everything will unravel in the sequel.

A Song of Legends Lost is great epic fantasy debut. It is Final Fantasy X meets Shaman King. I am grateful epic fantasy debuts like this are still being published by traditional publishers. For a while now, my only options for epic fantasy books were limited to established authors or indie fantasy books. And they were undoubtedly amazing. However, it feels refreshing to have more epic fantasy options again. It also feels nostalgic to see an epic fantasy debut in this vein being traditionally published again. An author pouring their dream and every part of their soul into their first publication is always something I like to witness, and I am glad the Song of Legends Lost is sung. It is not lost. It is heard. And may it continue to be invoked.

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This was a very interesting read and I didn’t want to put the book down. The characters within this book was very intriguing and want through many challenges. I completely enjoyed the writing style can the fact this book has multiple pov. The storyline developed very cleverly. And with how the book ended I already want to see what happens in the next book.