Review by Kei Nakagawa -- We are Voulhire: A New Arrival...
Posted: 09 Aug 2020, 01:57
[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies" by Matthew Tysz.]
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies is the first installation to the ongoing science fiction/fantasy series We are Voulhire by Matthew Tysz. It follows the stories of the different residents and relevant people in Voulhire, a progressive city led by King Wilhelm. The story narrates the stories of Galen, a young man from the Land of Princes who was summoned to Voulhire by his late great uncle to take over his blacksmithing business; and Eldus Alderman, a judge-turned-lord, as he was tasked by King Wilhelm to restore the town of Hillport that was devastated by its previous leaders. The book also follows the story of Voulhire’s centuries-old enemy, the Riva Rohavi, in its pursuit to seek the downfall of the great city of Voulhire.
While reading through, I was left to wonder, will Galen be able to successfully take over his great uncle’s business? What happened to Hillport that caused such devastation to the whole community? Were the suspects convicted? Why is the Riva Rohavi plotting against Voulhire?
Would they be successful? After reading, I was glad to find answers to most of them.
I absolutely loved how the book was written. Tysz was descriptive and was able to bring life to the characters and the stories. Celebrations felt very festive and the horrors felt very real. The writing was scenic – as if the whole book was written for the screen to be watched and not to be read. For a book that’s bordering between science fiction and fantasy, I think the writing style was perfect as it induced imagination and smooth transition of events.
Moreover, the story was entirely fresh and new to me, even as a science fiction reader. It did not reference the world as we know it in any of its pages, but it presented an entire world of its own. This only expanded the freedom of the author and also provided an avenue for the readers to discover the possibilities of the world created by Tysz.
The narrative was also idealistic and utopian. It was able to show what’s wrong in the world we are living in and suggested ways to correct it most subtly, like how Marshus did not want to follow his father’s path to politics but to make a name for himself on his own. The book made me wish the same for our world! Also, it emphasized how the horrors of the past should be handled and entertained instead of burying them deep down and trying to erase them from history.
Further, the book articulated situations from different perspectives. It was confusing at first, but eventually, everything made sense, deeming the confusion worth it.
All in all, the story was solid, rich, and well-researched, despite being written informally. Speaking for myself, I think the book, and maybe the series if Tysz is consistent, has the potential of being globally known and talked about.
However, the book didn’t seem professionally edited as I noticed some minor errors. What I did not appreciate the most was the lack of page numbers. While the story was flawless, formatting and pagination are really important to me as a reader and I think that if the book, or the series, has a good potential of being the next big thing, then it should also pay attention to these details.
For this, I would give Matthew Tysz’s We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies a three out of four stars. The first book is definitely worth a read and I can’t wait to get started on the second one. I would recommend this to young adults who are into science fiction and fantasy, but I would like to warn future readers that there is a certain level of profanity in the book. It also talked about sensitive topics such as pedophilia and rape that others may find disturbing.
Since the first book suggests that there are a lot of things left uncovered and unsaid, it urges the readers to keep reading more of the series and I hope this will not lead to my disappointment.
******
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies is the first installation to the ongoing science fiction/fantasy series We are Voulhire by Matthew Tysz. It follows the stories of the different residents and relevant people in Voulhire, a progressive city led by King Wilhelm. The story narrates the stories of Galen, a young man from the Land of Princes who was summoned to Voulhire by his late great uncle to take over his blacksmithing business; and Eldus Alderman, a judge-turned-lord, as he was tasked by King Wilhelm to restore the town of Hillport that was devastated by its previous leaders. The book also follows the story of Voulhire’s centuries-old enemy, the Riva Rohavi, in its pursuit to seek the downfall of the great city of Voulhire.
While reading through, I was left to wonder, will Galen be able to successfully take over his great uncle’s business? What happened to Hillport that caused such devastation to the whole community? Were the suspects convicted? Why is the Riva Rohavi plotting against Voulhire?
Would they be successful? After reading, I was glad to find answers to most of them.
I absolutely loved how the book was written. Tysz was descriptive and was able to bring life to the characters and the stories. Celebrations felt very festive and the horrors felt very real. The writing was scenic – as if the whole book was written for the screen to be watched and not to be read. For a book that’s bordering between science fiction and fantasy, I think the writing style was perfect as it induced imagination and smooth transition of events.
Moreover, the story was entirely fresh and new to me, even as a science fiction reader. It did not reference the world as we know it in any of its pages, but it presented an entire world of its own. This only expanded the freedom of the author and also provided an avenue for the readers to discover the possibilities of the world created by Tysz.
The narrative was also idealistic and utopian. It was able to show what’s wrong in the world we are living in and suggested ways to correct it most subtly, like how Marshus did not want to follow his father’s path to politics but to make a name for himself on his own. The book made me wish the same for our world! Also, it emphasized how the horrors of the past should be handled and entertained instead of burying them deep down and trying to erase them from history.
Further, the book articulated situations from different perspectives. It was confusing at first, but eventually, everything made sense, deeming the confusion worth it.
All in all, the story was solid, rich, and well-researched, despite being written informally. Speaking for myself, I think the book, and maybe the series if Tysz is consistent, has the potential of being globally known and talked about.
However, the book didn’t seem professionally edited as I noticed some minor errors. What I did not appreciate the most was the lack of page numbers. While the story was flawless, formatting and pagination are really important to me as a reader and I think that if the book, or the series, has a good potential of being the next big thing, then it should also pay attention to these details.
For this, I would give Matthew Tysz’s We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies a three out of four stars. The first book is definitely worth a read and I can’t wait to get started on the second one. I would recommend this to young adults who are into science fiction and fantasy, but I would like to warn future readers that there is a certain level of profanity in the book. It also talked about sensitive topics such as pedophilia and rape that others may find disturbing.
Since the first book suggests that there are a lot of things left uncovered and unsaid, it urges the readers to keep reading more of the series and I hope this will not lead to my disappointment.
******
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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His The Turn series is very good too. Thank you for a great review!
Hoping to know what you think about it. Thanks for dropping by as always!