BOOK REVIEW | THE TOWER OF THE TYRANT | J. T. GREATHOUSE

 

ABOUT THE BOOK

A LAND DIVIDED. A HISTORY INKED IN BLOOD. ONE SORCERESS'S QUEST FOR ANSWERS.

The world beyond the City of the Wise is fraught with danger. But Fola, a talented sorceress who has left the safety of its walls, is unconcerned. She's on the hunt for magical remnants left behind by the First Folk - ancient beings who are but the whisper of a memory. Only by finding them might she uncover the secret to their power and a way to pull the riven lands out of the darkness.

Danger lies ahead for Fola, however she feels about it. And when events conspire to drag her into a cursed kingdom to investigate the death of its king, she's soon faced by threats from both the living and the dead. 

Fola will need to rely on her wits, her magic and her unlikely friends if she's going to survive. But there is always hope, no matter how dark things get. And three things remain true, above all else. 

Fellowship is stronger than isolation.

The past will come back to haunt you.

Nothing stays secret forever.

A fantasy epic of breathtaking scope, this is a rich standalone adventure for fans of Geralt and Ciri in The Witcher, for those who loved the mystery of The Tainted Cup and The Raven Scholar, or for anyone looking to recapture the magic of The Wheel of Time.

REVIEW

The past refuses to stay buried in J. T. Greathouse’s  new standalone fantasy, The Tower of the Tyrant.

In the country of Parwys the King is haunted by wraiths that cause him to take his life causing the country to fall into chaos. 

Fola, a Sorcerress of the City of the Wise is on the hunt for a way to talk to the ghosts of the godlike First Folk. She has been out in the field for four years, away from the City of the Wise looking for a way to uncover the secrets of the mysterious people who left behind magics and machines. 

This leads her to the country of Parwys. Meeting with the Queen and the soon to be crowned Prince, Fola offers to investigate the reason for the haunting that killed the King.

Meanwhile, a group of actors has come to the country. A girl and her adopted father will cross paths with the Sorceress who recognises that they have a supernatural heritage. 

In the midst of all this, the Kingdom is under a silent coup by The Mortal. Burch who have sent emissaries to convince them to join their cause to destroy all magic.

JT Greathouse crafts an intricate story of civil war and manipulation in possibly the first of a series of standalone novels that are linked by  characters, story or other plot points. 

Greathouse takes the ethos of I. M. Banks and applies it to epic fantasy. 

The Tower of the Tyrant is an intricately plotted tale that has great characters and an immersive storyline that grips the reader from the first page. The story is a slow burn that gradually gains momentum as the plot falls into place.

Greathouse is definitely one of those writers that is under appreciated in the fantasy world and deserves a lot more recognition. His last trilogy The Pact & the Pattern was a riveting read and The Tower of the Tyrant has the same great qualities of his first series. 

Greathouse wears his influences firmly on his sleeves and uses them to write fantastic fantasy that will delight any fan of the genre.