Book Review
Title: The Coward (Quest for Heroes Book 1) by Stephen Aryan
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Rating: 5 Stars
I didn’t know anything about The Coward but the synopsis was intriguing and it reminded me a little of Kings of the Wyld which I adored. We are following Kell Kressia who became famous after slaying the Ice Lich with a band of fighters and he has been spending the last decade in relative peace but it isn’t going to stay that way for very long. From the beginning we get the sense that Kell isn’t a complete honest person about his past but despite this he has managed to become friend with a Choate named Mohan who is a barber, hairdresser and dentist rolled into once despite the Choate begin seen a dangerous race. We get a little of Kell’s past when some traders including Rowaz tan Nadia ask about his past. Kell’s story is mostly told by the barbs about how he removed the Ice Lich’s head with his sword, Slayer but as he reveals small truths we see this wasn’t the whole truth of the adventure. Shortly after this Kell receives a summons from King Bledsoe which he chooses to ignore until the Raven guards come looking for him and drag him into the Capital to answer the summons. Here he comes face to face with the King’s advisor, Lukas who informs him that an envoy from Frostrunner clans has informed Bledsoe of a new threat in the North and Kell knows he is being sent to deal with it. We then switch to the perspective of Reverend Mother Britak who runs the Holy City under King Roebus and teaches the ways of the Shepherd. Britak is trying to manipulate Roebus and she succeeds in a way by telling him that Bledsoe’s popularity will increase if Kell manages to deal with this supposed threat in the North and might challenge the other Kings in order to become High King. Britak has also installed a spy next to the King in the form of his wife and is using her to further manipulate the King even though she isn’t doing a good job of it right now. She has also convinced Roebus to send someone to deal with Kell once and for all which isn’t a good sign for him.
As we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, Lukas tells Kell what is going to be asked of him and even offers him a good job and money if he returns and Kell does consider this but he doesn’t really want to go. Lukas obviously sees this and sends a prostitute to him in order to sweeten the deal, but he and the King discuss what they will do in the case they Kell fails and what they will do if he succeeds. King Bledsoe is also very cunning using his age and appearing frail in order to trick and persuade those around him which doesn’t bode well for Kell. As Kell begins his journey North he is planning to use the money from King Bledsoe to begin a new life somewhere else where they won’t look for him. He makes sure to interact with people along the way so that if Bledsoe sends anyway to confirm whether or not Kell is dead, they will learn he had passed through the northern towns. However, while resting in one town before heading on he meets a young boy named, Gerren who wants to come with Kell, the same way Kell joined the heroes all those years before. Kell tries his best to discourage the boy and even tricks him into being left behind but he eventually catches up to Kell and there is nothing he can do to stop the boy from following him which leaves him in an awkward position as he can’t leave like he was planning with Gerren following him but I also believe he wouldn’t leave the boy to die if it came down to it as Kell seems too kind for that. Meanwhile, Britak is reminding me a lot of Glokta from The First Law series with the Inquisition but religion rather than corruption is at the heart of this. Kell eventually manages to get rid of Gerren by tying him up while he leaves, however, Gerren does realise during this conversation that Kell is a coward and has no intentions of going to the North. We also get to see more of Britak sending people to kill Kell which he doesn’t have any knowledge of but she does mention she has sent several assassins over the years to kill him and none have succeeded which is making me question the version of the past Kell is presenting us with and I can’t wait to unravel this mystery.
As we cross the ¼ mark in the novel, Kell is continuing on his journey but soon learns that Gerren sent word ahead to the northern town that he will be coming through making it much harder for him to leave as he planned. In one town he ends up meeting the bard, Vahli again and he also wants to come with Kell to the North so that he can tell the story if something happens up there. This is disturbing to Kell as more people means he can’t escape and he very quickly accepts the fact he is going back to the North. However, during a conversation with Gerren we learn he was cursed by the Ice Lich before he killed her and while he didn’t believe it at first nothing good has happened to Kell since and he knows this curse is the reason. The trio also end up meeting an Alfar, a non-human race that are rarely seen and she wants to come with them too so Kell accepts her into the band because he knows they are going to need more fighters if they are going to survive the journey especially if there is something waiting for them there. I liked the fact that because the Alfar’s name is difficult to pronounce so they take to calling her Willow. In the next town they stop in Kell expects to find some fighters as he has sent word ahead that he will accept them into his growing band, however, many are seeing it as a joke and Kell has to make them see reason. This act draws forth only one person, Bronwyn who from her appearance and what little she says about her accomplishments is a skilled hunter and warrior and will be a good addition to the band which now numbers 5 but Kell knows they need more otherwise they aren’t going to survive. There is an interesting interaction between Vahli and Gerren as Gerren is trying to convince Vahli that Kell is a coward and lair despite Kell telling him it won’t work btu Vahli proves himself to be very capable with a blade which Gerren wasn’t expecting.
As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, the group are unaware that have been followed by one of the Anointed disguised as a Seith who is going to try and kill Kell. This doesn’t happen because the Anointed is stopped by I believe Vahli but I can’t be sure as the Anointed seems to recognise the person attempting to stop them. When they get back on the road they are stopped by a group of warriors preventing them from going further into the North so the group prepare for a fight. However, they are helped by over a dozen Choate, led by Darvan and they tell Kell they will see them safely across the border but they can’t follow beyond that. Kell is confused why the Choate helped him but we the readers know these Choate were being directed by War General Mohan, who I believe is the same Mohan that Kell knows from back home as he refers to Kell as family. As the enter the Keen lands they are beginning to realise that no one wants to join them except for a madman named Malomir who claims to be the King of the Summer Isles and Kell agrees to let him come if he trains Gerren who has begun to realise the situation he has got himself into. We briefly switch back to Britak and Roebus who have been sent the assassin’s hands as a warning and Roebus believes he is going to be killed but he prevent Britak making any moves against Bledsoe. Back with the group they have to camp out under the stars where Kell is beginning to get to know his band. Willow seems to want to come on the journey to understand humans and the different beasts of the world while Bronwyn is searching for a challenge even attempting to seduce Kell but it doesn’t work. That night Gerren is given first watch when a pack of voren attack, Gerren seems to be in a hopeless situation but the pack are keeping the rest of the band occupied and it seems like this might be the end for him and I hope it isn’t because I am getting attached to this little misfit.
As we cross into the second half of the novel, the group finally arrive in Meer, the last haven they will have before heading out into the frozen North and beyond. There Kell encounters Bomani, who he met the last time he was in Meer and finds it nice to have a familiar face. A lot of the time the group spend in Meer is preparing for their trip further into the North but Gerren is in crisis as he knows coming with Kell was a mistake and wants to return home. Kell explains how he felt the same way when the heroes reached this point and he had to find his own reason for continuing no matter how selfish it was and urges Gerren to do the same to make sure the decision of leaving or staying is entirely his and he isn’t be controlled by anything not even his fear. Gerren spends most of the night thinking over what Kell said to him before making the decision to stay and I have a feeling he will come to regret it soon when he realises the condition they will be living in out on the ice. I did find it very funny that the relationship between Malomir and Bronwyn has changed from fighting to sleeping together as if they needed a physical release for the tension between them. However, it is more than that as both suffer the same sense of isolation and loneliness and it has lessened in both of them since the change was made and even Kell observes that. Before they truly head out on the ice Kell tells them about some of the beasts they may encounter since he is the only one that has been this far north and even the vague mentions of the qalamieren and maglau are terrifying. It was interesting to see the slight shift in the relationship between Kell and Willow and I wouldn’t be unhappy if this developed more of the course of the novel and series.
As we approach the ¾ mark in the novel, the journey into the true frozen north doesn’t begin well for the group as they realise they are being tracked by some ice bears. However, these bears aren’t behaving in the way Kell would expect as they are solitary animals and would only attack humans if they were desperate. These bears appear to be well fed and working together which makes Kell believe that something or someone is controlling them as its reach is long as they have barely crossed the frozen circle. They managed to deal with the bears with relatively few injuries but the very next day they are set upon by a sabre of maglau acting in the very same way. This fight is longer and everyone suffers some injuries even Willow, however, it seems that Gerren and Bronwyn have taken the worst injuries as Gerren’s leg is badly injuries and Bronwyn collapses shortly after the fight. We then switch back to Britak as she is continuing to spread her message across the kingdoms and even continues her plan to kill Kell even if he returns from the north. It is clear to see here that religion and those in high positions of power are the evils ones as Britak is willing it murder, kidnap and torture people in order to get them to come around to her way of thinking while Kell has used nothing except the truth and kind words in order to convince others. Given the situation in the north I have no idea who if anyone is going to come back alive. I hope it is all of them but I have a feeling it would be the same situation with only one survivor and that might be Gerren as it would perfectly mirror Kell’s own past. The group can’t catch a break as shortly after dealing with the maglau they are set upon by a group of qalamieren but these spirits can’t be killed and they don’t have the time or energy to run from them and it seems like the end has come for the group. However, while almost all of the group are drawn into nightmares, Bronwyn is spared because she is injured and Malomir doesn’t seem as affected by them because of his feeling for Bronwyn. Using this advantage, he ties a shirt to his sword before drenching it in oil and setting it aflame which drives back the wraiths and frees the group. They are found shortly after by a Frostrunner clan who looks after them until they have recovered, their spiritual healer also helps bring Bronwyn back with Malomir’s help before they are on the move again. Shortly after they have to cross a frozen lake in order to reach the Lich’s castle but the second they get on the ice a pack of garrow, shark-like creatures being hunting them. While Kell’s sled makes it across, Vahli and Bronwyn’s sleds have not and the garrow are punching holes in the ice everywhere they can. During this battle, Gerren is thrown from the sled onto the ice as the other make it to safety. Even as he begins running, Kell knows he isn’t going to make it so between them they create harnesses as Kell runs back out onto the ice to save the boy who has now lost a finger and is bleeding badly sending the shark into a frenzy. Kell can see from their behaviour they are being controlled as they are injuring themselves to try and get to the group. Kell and Gerren are pulled to safety before the sharks retreat refusing to eat the dead and Kell knows whatever is controlling them desperately doesn’t want them to make it to the Lich’s castle.
As we cross into the final section of the novel, the group have entered the final stretch of their journey and everyone is still alive but I don’t know if their luck is going to hold out as Britak has planned to have Kell and his companions killed if they return to Meer from the North. Britak’s plan are boarding on insane as she has basically created concentration camps to “re-educate” those that don’t believe in the Shepherd. As the group approach the Ice Lich’s castle, Willow claims the castle was made by someone called Govhenna making me think the new evil inside the castle is an Alfar like Willow and that is why she came on the journey to begin with. However, there is another nasty surprise waiting for them at the entrance as the dead heroes have been reanimated and Kell has to kill them all over again. The heroes can’t be killed normally it can only be done by smashing their skulls and it is here we learn that Bronwyn is the daughter of Bron. Even though they win, the victory is hollow as Kell had to watch some of his friends die again, Bronwyn had to kill her own father and Gerren is killed during the battle and it isn’t over yet as they have to find whoever is doing this and stop them which makes me think that not all of them are going to come out of this alive. The final confrontation and the revelations that came after it were amazing but the most brilliant thing about this novel was what happened after Kell returned to the Capital of Algany. I honestly wasn’t expecting the major curveball that Aryan threw at us right at the end but I can honestly say I need the next book right now to find out what happens when Kell eventually learns of the death of King Bledsoe and that he is being married to Princess Sigrid making him the King of Algany to rule together to prevent the uprising of the church. I liked this little twist because we also learn that Kell is royalty in his own right as he is 23rd in line for the Choate throne as the current King and the War General, Mohan are his uncles. I still has so many questions that I need answered but I am going to be reading the rest of Aryan’s work and I have a feeling he is going to become an insta-buy author for me.
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Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
I received this review copy from the publisher.
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