Blood Song (Raven's Shadow, #1)

by Anthony Ryan

Vaelin Al Sorna was only a child of ten when his father left him at the iron gate of the Sixth Order to be trained and hardened to the austere, celibate and dangerous life of a warrior of the Faith. He has no family now save the Order.
 
Vaelin’s father was Battle Lord to King Janus, ruler of the Unified Realm—and Vaelin’s rage at being deprived of his birthright knows no bounds. Even his cherished memories of his mother are soon challenged by what he learns within the Order.
 
But one truth overpowers all the rest: Vaelin Al Sorna is destined for a future he has yet to comprehend. A future that will alter not only the Realm but the world.

• ISBN10: 0425267695
• ISBN13: 9780425267691
• Publish Date: 2 July 2013 (first published 1 November 2012)
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Ace Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 579
• Language: English

Reviews

[moraa]

Those who have not lived cannot meditate on the mysteries of life.

Unique and enjoyable, so much so that I can overlook the fact that the story lagged in some sections. I definitely had a wonderful time with this one.

[elysium]

The book starts with grown and captured Vaelin Al Sorna who tells his story to a historian of the enemy, before he is to fight in a duel where he is sentenced to die.

Abandoned as a child by his father at the gate of the Sixth Order of the Faith, which is sort of a military monastic order. The boys go through brutal training and not all of them survive it. Vaelin emerges as a leader of the group and becomes the most feared and greatest warrior known as the Hope Killer.

The book starts where it ends which was nice touch and while you knew what would happen, you will still wonder how it became and how he turned out the way he did.

There’s lot of people in the book and at first I was really lost who was who (even if there’s character list in the end) and trying to keep them sorted. The book starts little slow part when it picks up, it really picks up! Makes you glad you didn’t give up in the beginning.
The time when the boys were training was interesting and it showed what molded them when they were growing but it felt at times like it went on forever.

I wish it was better explained in what time we were. At times it suddenly jumped years ahead and you realize that Vaelin isn’t 15-year old kid anymore. Made it confusing but that’s my only major complain about the book.

I liked Vaelin and it was interesting to see him growing up. He’s not entirely good but he’s not entirely bad either. I’m curious to see if he will meet his father in later books because there’s some unfinished business there.

The book ended too soon and I really wanna get my hands on the next one!