Master of Sorrows

First things first, this is an impressive debut. Justin Call has created an interesting world, with a well built mythos. Master of Sorrows does an excellent job of setting up this world, even if it focuses on one small village and school. The school setting is a little tropey, but it is interesting enough not to be annoying.

The really interesting aspect of the world really comes in its use of prejudice. In the society set up here, cripples are associated with evil. Anyone with any physical deformity, even received later in life, is considered suspect and in league with evil. The effect of this prejudice is pronounced and almost self-fulfilling in places. The tag line ‘what if you were destined to become the villain' is most likely from this as villainy is not really what I associate with the main protagonist, but he is a cripple from birth.

Ultimately, this story sets up an intriguing future, and I am extremely curious to see where the next book goes.

This book has been on my radar for a while because many of the bloggers I follow have loved it and the sequel and I couldn't help but read all the gushing reviews. I just was intimidated a bit by its size and didn't plan on reading until I found the book on sale. And now that I've added it to my series I wanna read in 2022 list, I thought now is a better time than any to start. And I can totally why it's everyone's favorite.

I remember listening to the prologue of this book many months ago but never continuing with it. But even after all this time, I still remember exactly what happened, which is a wonder considering my bad memory. That should tell you the kind of impactful writing you'll find in these pages. The author is very good at creating imagery with his words, making the setting feel alive as well as the action sequences seem very vivid. The pacing is also pretty quick - this big chonk of a book takes place within the span of just a few days. The magic system here isn't described in detail but I liked knowing about the different kinds and the use of magical artifacts was super fun to read about. What I did find a bit difficult though was getting to understand the mythology and lore of this world - we got this information in chunks of exposition which was easier to digest initially, but when we get introduced to too many gods and their creations, I kinda lost track of it all. I'm hoping I'll read the sequel soon, so maybe I'll find it not too hard if I encounter all these myriad characters in it. I'm also glad I listened to the audio while reading the book because it helped me understand the world a little easily, but the narrator was pretty cool.

Annev is a young deacon and an acolyte at the Academy who wants to become a Master Avatar and marry the girl he loves. He is extremely resourceful, a quick thinking tactician who can get himself out of most situations, but also with enough kindness in his heart. But he also has his secrets to hide, a heritage he knows nothing about and a prophecy that's coming for him - if only he can choose between what he always thought he wanted and what is destined. There were ofcourse moments where I wanted to shake him for being naive and maybe even too driven by his hormones; but he is ultimately a teenager and I could sympathize with his desire to be able to have everything that he wanted, even if some of them were at cross purposes. However, I couldn't help but admire his bravery and tenacity, and his will to protect even those who would condemn him due to unfair prejudices.

The best relationship of the book is definitely between Annev and Sodar and I loved how this almost father-son dynamic was depicted. Sodar is also hiding secrets but his love and care for Annev is obvious and he just wants to protect the boy. Annev on the other hand respects and loves Sodar, and wants to learn a lot from him, but like any teenager hates being treated like a child or told to do something against his wishes. Their bickering and banter was very heartening to read and definitely their scenes together were some of my favorites.

Most of the other characters had lesser presence but were definitely quite memorable. Headmaster Tosan came across as someone who would do anything for the sake of power and I was surprised that Annev could mostly see through that facade, even if no one else could. Myjun, the headmaster's daughter and his love interest seemed a well trained but naive young woman who was deeply entrenched in her father's teachings and in her own infallibility. Annev's fellow acolytes Therin, Titus, Fyn and Kenton each have very different personalities and ambitions and it was fascinating to see his dynamic evolve with each of them. I'm personally looking forward to seeing more of them in the next book.

I can't say I'm surprised at how the book ended - I feel like that was the only way forward. It was a great buildup throughout the novel which culminated in some brilliant action sequences and a heartbreaking climax. Overall, this was quite an interesting epic fantasy with a coming of age theme, nice found family and many unexpected friendships, very complicated characters and even more complex world building full of numerous gods and their creatures and prophecies. I might look like a good vs evil story on first glance but I feel much more simmering beneath the surface and I can't wait to explore it all in the sequel.