Book Review: Blood Ruin by Tej Turner

 

Book Review: Blood Ruin by Tej Turner

Description

Two years have passed since the Battle of Fort Valen, and its repercussions still echo across Sharma. Many of the people who fought are still missing, but it is unknown how many have perished and how many have fled. Towns and villages lie deserted, and bandits roam the hills and roadways.
Selena still maintains her position in the Synod, but only in name. In reality, she is now a puppet, biding her time and doing her utmost to resist the strings that pull her when she can blunt the cruel regime. Most of her allies are among those who have escaped. Bryna vanished mysteriously without leaving a trace, whilst Rivan seems to want to do nothing more than wander aimlessly. Baird has assembled a small band of insurgents but they are no match against an empire, and Kyra has ventured to the Mountains of Valleshia on a quest to find the Temple of Briggan.
To the south, the Babuan Jungle remains the final part of the world free from the tyranny of Gavendara, but Elita knows the threat their armies of Zakaras pose and believes that they, too, will succumb to the tide if she doesn’t convince them to fight.

REVIEW

When you are a reader like me, who reads a ton of books for reviewing and having to think ‘what does this remind me of?’, or ‘are the characters well drawn and vivid?’, sometimes what you need is that book that is the equivalent of putting a pair of fluffy, comfy slippers on. And Blood Ruin by Tej Turner is just that book.

Set two years after the events of the last book, Blood Ruin is the fourth story set in The Avatars of Ruin series.

Now, I am going to try and stay out of spoiler territory, but as you can imagine when you come into a series that is as deep into the story as Blood Ruin, it’s going to be a little difficult, but I will give it a go.

After the events of the third book, the band that were together at the beginning of the first story are at different parts of the world and old wounds are about to be reopened.

As usual, Turner writes with confidence of an author who has established a world and is completely comfortable operating within it. There is no sense that he needs to stop and explain every little detail to the reader.

And that is one of the most enjoyable things about Blood Ruin, Turner makes the book easy to slip back into and find familiar footing with characters that you have already spent some time with.

For those of you who haven’t read any of Tej Turner’s books, he writes an interesting take on epic fantasy. There are familiar beats that are instantly recognisable, but he uses these tropes to make something that doesn’t feel too well trod. There is enough in here to surprise even an old fantasy hound like me.

One of Turner’s greatest strengths is his characters. Instead of them falling into the same traps as the typical epic fantasy characters, he writes them as realistic people with flaws, strengths and weaknesses. They make mistakes, but they can also do the heroic things that you would expect.

As well as that, he focuses on the human elements as well. For instance, instead of the dread dark Lord rising from the depths, it’s some bloke who has grand designs (yeah, admittedly he uses some supernatural means to do that, but he still is a bloke).

If you haven’t read any of Tej Turner’s The Avatars of Ruin, it’s one I highly recommend. And if you have, this fourth book is a great addition to the story.