Malice by John Gwynne

Malice by John Gwynne

John Gwynne has been writing for just over a decade and his books have become favorites among fantasy readers. Malice, the first in The Faithful and the Fallen series, was John Gwynne's debut novel - published back in 2012. At the time, it won the David Gemmell Morningstar Award for Best Fantasy Debut. The full series has over a 4.5 rating on Goodreads and I have been anticipating this book since I bought it in January. It deals with bullying, child abuse, death including that of a parent and animals, genocide, sexism, kidnapping, a small amount of gore and injury detail, physical abuse, war and violence, grief, and murder. However, this was not a book that delighted in being graphic and although it is about war, I did not find that anything was difficult to get through.

Evnis has been wronged since the beginning of his life. By his mother, his brother is the worst, and his father died while he was young. And the insults just keep adding up. But soon, the power that he has craved for his entire life will be his and he will make everybody pay. Nathair grates against the restraints of his father, King Aquilus. He has ideas and plans that do not get the consideration they deserve. But he has a secret that will soon change everything. Corban just wants to pass his Long Night and become a warrior under King Brenin. As the day gets closer, he feels as ready as he can be, but he could not anticipate the events leading up to the day or what comes afterward. And there are those dreams he's been having. Veradis is the best swordsman to come out of Ripa, yet still feels overshadowed by his eldest brother. When he meets the prince and joins his warband, Veradis feels a kinship with the prince right away and quickly rises through the ranks. But as time goes on, he begins to feel a sense of foreboding growing. In the meantime, the giant stones are weeping blood and the midday sun goes dark. Omens that the God-War returning to the mortal lands.

I simultaneously wish that I had read this book sooner while being grateful that I waited and continued to get more excited about it. It did not disappoint. An epic fantasy story that feels similar to A Song of Ice and Fire - with lots of different points of views and storylines going at the same time, but it's not as wordy or monotonous as George can be. The underlying plot is not new, a classic story of good versus evil, and it has a lot of the same pieces as other fantasy series (giant wolves, a lot of sword work, chosen by the gods) but after the first few chapters it no longer felt derivative. The characters were well constructed, even the secondary characters, so that I felt grief and disappointment when something happened to one of them as well which is difficult to do in a book with so many characters. The worldbuilding was quite good, although it can be a bit confusing in the beginning. But I can tell it is something that John Gwynne spent a lot of time on, which I can appreciate, while also not bogging us down with unnecessary historical details. And it has one of the funniest animal characters I've seen in a while - a crow called Craf who is judgmental and not particularly patient.

I'm giving Malice by John Gwynne 4.5 stars out of 5. I'm very excited for the sequel, Valor, and cannot wait to see what happens to some of these characters. They've got some big choices to make. It could be a bit slow at times and it was pretty hefty for the first novel in a series, but I didn't find it difficult to get through at all. For a summary of Malice and a spoiler free study guide, visit our summary page here.

For more from John Gwynne, check out https://www.johngwynneauthor.co.uk/

Pairs well with braised short ribs and being wary of dream visitors.