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4 out of 4 stars
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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival Under Great Skies by Matthew Tysz is a science fiction novel. It is the first installment in the "We are Voulhire" series. The novel follows the story of Galen Bray—a young man escaping from a war-torn Land of Princes. He is welcomed into the kingdom of Voulhire, specifically in a town of Magnum Caelum. Voulhire was a land of history's greatest wizards and warriors. Despite being a small nation, it was leading large kingdoms economically and culturally. The kingdom was consolidated by eons-old oath to put an end to the violent insurgents, the Riva Rohavi.
Galen's late uncle (known as Galen Onita) owned a forge in Magnum Caelum. Before his death, he had bequeathed it to Galen and left everything with his executor, Rowan. Rowan is determined to do his work by preparing Galen to become a blacksmith who can run his uncle's business.
Galen finds himself in a completely new environment. A peaceful and prosperous kingdom, but yet not lacking a rival group. The southern town of Hillport, neighboring Magnum Caelum, has just received a new Lord, Eldus Alderman. He has just been appointed by King Wilhelm Arcolo to revamp the jumbled town which had suffered in the hands of his predecessors, Lord Orlin and Lord Meldorath—the mage who was feared for his mysticism. Will Lord Eldus accomplish his task? What about Galen's adaptation in a new environment? You will have to read for yourself.
Told in both first-person and third-person narrative style, the story is suspenseful and enjoyable. Tysz demonstrated his superb narrative skills by first describing a prosperous and powerful kingdom with a loved king and climaxing his narrative in occultism practice and later on a vicious onslaught on Hillport town. I could sometimes stop and try to ponder on the kind of magic practices that were going on in Caromentis.
The vivid illustrations using the map of the Voulhire kingdom and descriptive titles were very impressive and could eliminate confusion. I was blown away with the kind of celebration Voulhirians could have during the Feast of Human Hands. During this festivity, people could come from all over the kingdom to celebrate the year's prosperities and to pray for a prosperous future. It could be accompanied by a vivacious crowd and non-stop music and dances. I could uncontrollably grin while reading the comical description of the scene during this feast.
The book involves mild sexual references and some occasional profanity. However, there were no extreme graphic scenes to say it's not suitable for young teenagers. There is nothing I disliked about this book. The book was professionally edited. I could not find even a single error.
I rate We are Voulhire: A New Arrival Under Great Skies a solid 4 out of 4 stars. I would be too mean to overlook this wonderful creativity by giving it a lower rating. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was well-written, full of interesting characters, thanks to the exceptional description and explanations of the setting. I recommend it to lovers of fantasy novels. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.
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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
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