Review of We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
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Charlotte Woelke
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- Latest Review: We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies by Matthew Tysz
Review of We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies" by Matthew Tysz.]
Voulhire is a land full of history, politics - and magic. In the first volume of this series, author Matthew Tysz introduces his own fantasy world. Through the new immigrant Galen, who inherits a small forge from his unknown uncle in the south of Voulhire, you'll learn about the world through the eyes of a newcomer. At the same time, glimpses into the life of the king provide insight into the country's political entanglements. A mysterious antagonist is introduced against the backdrop of the multiverse, though his goals are left unknown. In addition, the author follows people who want good, whose intentions are difficult to discern, as well as characters who obviously harbor evil intentions. Therefore, We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies remains dynamic while leaving the reader with a deep understanding of Voulhire, it's political power plays and the upcoming struggles and battles of the numerous protagonists.
The highlights of the book are the worldbuilding and the writing. The author takes time to incorporate elements such as history and religion into the book. The attention to detail is clear, for example within newfound proverbs such as "chasing dragons". Furthermore, Matthew Tysz weaves the worldbuilding into the novel so well that you are captivated by his story even without the classic suspense of a standalone or action movie. In addition to this, the author has published in-depth knowledge of the underlying multiverse on his own website. The writing is beautiful and in many places full of wit and charm. The book was exceptionally well edited.
However, there is one severe drawback to the book. Women in the voulhiren society occupy high ranks on an equal footing with men, as is intentionally shown in the story several times. However, (apart from one small, rarely mentioned exception) there is not a single woman in the book who drives the story or who can be expected to do so in the next books. This is especially noticeable against the abundance of different male protagonists. In addition, there are some small cultural references that seem as if they were written without a sensitivity reader.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. The worldbuilding is exquisite and I loved the writing style. A whole star is deducted for the lack of any female protagonist or side characters that actually further the story. As a female reader, it is hard not feel like this book was written by a man for other man at times. Considering the diversity of ages and sexual preferences portrayed in this book, it seems like the author is able to write diverse characters and hopefully will focus more on that in the future.
The book is perfect for fantasy lovers who like to delve into big new worlds and complicated magic systems, and aren't afraid of long book series and lots of characters. If you are not comfortable with High Fantasy and lots of worldbuilding, I would not recommend reading We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies.
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We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Voulhire is a land full of history, politics - and magic. In the first volume of this series, author Matthew Tysz introduces his own fantasy world. Through the new immigrant Galen, who inherits a small forge from his unknown uncle in the south of Voulhire, you'll learn about the world through the eyes of a newcomer. At the same time, glimpses into the life of the king provide insight into the country's political entanglements. A mysterious antagonist is introduced against the backdrop of the multiverse, though his goals are left unknown. In addition, the author follows people who want good, whose intentions are difficult to discern, as well as characters who obviously harbor evil intentions. Therefore, We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies remains dynamic while leaving the reader with a deep understanding of Voulhire, it's political power plays and the upcoming struggles and battles of the numerous protagonists.
The highlights of the book are the worldbuilding and the writing. The author takes time to incorporate elements such as history and religion into the book. The attention to detail is clear, for example within newfound proverbs such as "chasing dragons". Furthermore, Matthew Tysz weaves the worldbuilding into the novel so well that you are captivated by his story even without the classic suspense of a standalone or action movie. In addition to this, the author has published in-depth knowledge of the underlying multiverse on his own website. The writing is beautiful and in many places full of wit and charm. The book was exceptionally well edited.
However, there is one severe drawback to the book. Women in the voulhiren society occupy high ranks on an equal footing with men, as is intentionally shown in the story several times. However, (apart from one small, rarely mentioned exception) there is not a single woman in the book who drives the story or who can be expected to do so in the next books. This is especially noticeable against the abundance of different male protagonists. In addition, there are some small cultural references that seem as if they were written without a sensitivity reader.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. The worldbuilding is exquisite and I loved the writing style. A whole star is deducted for the lack of any female protagonist or side characters that actually further the story. As a female reader, it is hard not feel like this book was written by a man for other man at times. Considering the diversity of ages and sexual preferences portrayed in this book, it seems like the author is able to write diverse characters and hopefully will focus more on that in the future.
The book is perfect for fantasy lovers who like to delve into big new worlds and complicated magic systems, and aren't afraid of long book series and lots of characters. If you are not comfortable with High Fantasy and lots of worldbuilding, I would not recommend reading We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies.
******
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
