Shadowfall

Author: James Clemens
Published: July 2005 (Roc)
Category: Fantasy
Series: Godslayer Chronicles #1
Rating: 9/10

Wow.

It's not very often that the start of another epic fantasy series starts off so well. I could not put this book down. The book is complex, with a lot of characters, but never gets bogged down in details and keeps you in suspense at the same time. I found myself flipping ahead several pages sometimes to make sure that certain characters didn't die. The characters are extremely well developed despite there being so many, and you can really see the way they interact with each other, even without direct dialogue between them. Clemens introduces a new world with a lot of structure and details, but I wasn't confused or overwhelmed by all the information. I found it very well put together, rich in storyline, characters, and descriptions.

At the time of the sundering, the home of the gods was split, and the gods fell to Myrillia, as portions of their former selves. Each god was split into three parts: one falling to the naether, one rising to the aether, and the last took physical form to live among the people of Myrillia. Those gods that did not form a bond to the land went mad, keeping to unsettled lands called the Hinterlands. In settled areas, gods helped society grow through guidance and the sharing of his or her humours, the eight bodily fluids (sounds gross, but you get over it), which carry the god's Graces (power). They are (in order of importance): blood, seed or menses, sweat, tears, saliva, phlegm, yellow bile (err... pee), and black bile (uh... poo). Once you get over the fact that all of these things are valuable, with magical and alchemical properties, it's very interesting how they can work together. For example, black bile is a nullifier of Grace, so if you had an object rich in dark Graces and you didn't want it to affect you, you can smear it in black bile and keep it contained. Don't worry, people don't go throwing around bodily fluids willy nilly.

Aside from the gods, there is an organization called the Shadowknights, warriors trained to bring justice, wearing shadow cloaks blessed in Graces that allow the knights to move about unseen in shadows. They are usually assigned to serve a particular god, and if not, they reside in Tashijan, the Citadel of the Shadowknights. Tylar de Noche used to be one of these knights, but his title was stripped from him when he was involved in some scandal (it was a setup and he took the fall for someone else). He was sold into slavery for a few years, where his body was broken again and again, leaving him a hunched, limping man at the fringes of society. One night, he witnessed an attack on the god Meeryn, seeing a naethryn beast slay her. After all had settled, Tylar went to the dying god's side and comforted her as she passed away. Before she died, she granted all her Graces on Tylar, and connected him to her naethryn third. By having the shadowy beast reside within Tylar, his body was healed, and he found that all of his humours carried godly Graces. He was also accused of murdering Meeryn, and was branded the Godslayer.

The Meeryn-naethryn beast can be called out of Tylar's body by breaking any of his bones, and when the creature emerges, Tylar's form reverts back to his original broken self. After it deals with the immediate danger, it returns to Tylar's body and he is healed once again. I'm glad that Tylar is very responsible with this power, picking and choosing when he has no choice but to use the naethryn. I can't deal with stupid, arrogant heroes.

From there, Tylar embarks on a quest to clear his name, and figure out the mystery of why Meeryn was killed. Along the way, he picks up a motley crew of companions, including a thief who is much more than he appears, and Meeryn's Hand of Blood (the handmaiden responsible for collecting her blood).

While we follow Tylar's story, two other stories are being told. One is focused on Tashijan and the political turmoil within. A new faction of Shadowknights is rising, and they want to make Tashijan more independent of the gods. Corruption and mistrust is spreading through Myrillia, and it's even among the gods and Shadowknights. Tylar's former fiancée Kathryn is one standing against the new regime and is placed in the difficult position of taking the position of the man accused of slaying a god. The other follows Dart, an orphan training to become a god's Hand at a prestigious school. There is more to this girl than meets the eye, and someone wants her dead, even after she is chosen as the Hand of Blood to the first god of Myrillia. Everyone's story will intersect and weave together into a hugely rich book and I'm really happy I picked it up.