There are times when you list a book in yours's To Read category, thanks to a number of various circumstances. Authors you follow on twitter mention the author of the series. Individuals who I follow on Goodreads.com have given favorable reviews to the author or the series. It was also nice that my local library has the audiobook version available for me to check out if I am still on the fence about the series. And then I got busy with other stuff. So, this is my apology to Ed McDonald. Although a badly written book review may not be enough.
The main character of the series is Blackwing aka Ryhalt Galharrow, Blackwing is a Captain/ Bounty Hunter stationed on the border of " The Misery." On his forearm is a raven tattoo that identifies him as a Captain beholden to the Nameless God Crowfoot. A past war between the Nameless gods and the Nine Kings created the wasteland that is the Misery. The Misery reeks of putrid magic. Left behind are strange and deadly creatures living amongst a wasteland hostile to anything not of the Misery. But that does not stop certain individuals from trying to eke out an existence there. As the Blackwing tells us, only " the desperate, the stupid and the greedy " go that route.
Ed McDonald has created a very satisfying world. You have a broken but deadly protagonist living is a post war era that is slowing turning into a continuation of old hostilities. The Nine Kings have an army of drudges, humans corrupted by Nine Kings magic, and the Darlings. For the Darlings, think " Children of the Corn." As Blackwing tells us very early on in the first few pages, " ... there's fuck-all you can do against a Darling." The bad guys of the tale are established early on in the tale as well as the action. There is not a slow build up in this series. Very early on Blackwing and his allies are thrown into the shit. This series starts like a horse race. When the gates open, chaos and madness ensue. It does not take long for the series to get rolling. It is a series that will hook you very quickly.
Blackwing is the solo POV. My preferred writing style. My brain leans into First Person narration. And if that main protagonist is a conflicted individual, as is the case with the Blackwing, well that is to me just like a good cup of coffee on a cold morning. It hits that spot of contentment. If the writer surrounds the main protagonist with engaging minor characters, like Ed has done, it is all the more enjoyable. Plot wise there is a long arc that goes from book 1 to book 3, but in each book, there is a contained plot that reaches a conclusion. I found myself, upon finishing the first book, moving on to the second in a second. It took me all of three weeks to gobble up this series.
Which leads me to the voice performance by Colin Mace. I did this series in audiobook form. This was my second experience with Colin, having first encountered his performance in Anna Smith Spark's Broken Empire Series. (Another great series I will get around to reviewing here.) There are some series that the fit between material and narrator is like a perfect marriage. That is the case here. Colin has the perfect tone to give voice to the Blackwing character and does a fabulous job on the secondary characters. I found myself taking longer walks, and taking the longer route to a destination, just to continue the performance.
Who should read this series? Let me break it down.
- The Anti-Hero Reader: Blackwing is a a mess, and all those who surround him are just as damaged.
- The Grimdark Reader: This tale has just enough grim scenes to qualify as such.
- The " I need a story with guns" reader: Yes, I know you are out there. This series has them.
- The " Trash Talking Bird " Reader: There are, I know, a sizeable minority of readers that live for animal character, and Ravencry, book 2, has such a character. Read the series for that reason alone. It is delicious.
