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Twilight Reign
The God Tattoo: Untold Tales from the Twilight Reign
These 11 stories add further colour and shape to the epic story of the 'Twilight Reign' series. The history of the Land may remember the slaughter at Moorview or the horror of Scree's fall, but there were other casualties of the secret war against Azaer - more tales surrounding those bloody years that went unrecorded.
263 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
5 people are currently reading
326 people want to read
About the author
Tom Lloyd
48 books448 followersTom Lloyd was born in 1979 and showed almost no interest in writing until the age of eighteen. I blame the teachers myself.
Nevertheless he did eventually find himself with a long summer to spare before university, and decided to start a novel when it was suggested he get a job to pass the time. This tells you much of what there is to know about him. The rest can be derived from the fact that he first had the idea of writing a book to annoy a schoolfriend by getting published before him.
No, honestly; he's actually that shallow.
It was swiftly apparent that this was not the quick route to fame and fortune that he’d hoped for. The first sign of this was the realisation that being good at writing was required, but he managed to surprise everyone by not giving up on something he didn’t show immediate promise in.
Studying Politics and International Relations at Southampton University had very little appreciable effect on him, beyond giving him a couple of ideas for future novels, but that was largely due to spending most of those three years in London shacked up with the god-daughter of an Asian dictator. Upon leaving university he decided – along with what seemed like half of all other graduates, some of whom had had the temerity to study English – that doing “book stuff” sounded like a fun alternative to working out what sort of job he wanted to do. There was also the intriguing suggestion of literary talent being passed on by some osmosis-like process. As a result of a little work experience at Simon and Schuster - combined with some shameless flirting with the HR manager - he got a job as an editorial assistant on the Scribner list, which allowed him to mistype letters to a whole host of talented writers.
Certain luminary examples there made it clear that before he became a fantasy editor he was going to have to spend several years iron-cladding his liver. Towards this goal, he decamped to the A M Heath Literary Agency by way of Random House, which was silly because walking down Longacre would have been a lot quicker, to work in foreign rights while also freelancing for writersservices.com and constantly revising what was slowly becoming The Stormcaller.
A three year litany of madcap adventures in the crazy world of agenting ensued, but it would be far too time-consuming to detail any of that so suffice to say that his hangover cleared sufficiently one morning in 2004 for him to realise that he wasn’t quite so bad at writing now. Maybe there was something to this osmosis thing after all - although if that’s true Katie Fforde and Dave Hill might get a surprise at the effect they’d had.
Securing the services of John Richard Parker at MBA Literary Agents proved a surprisingly painless experience – despite being previously rejected by one of John’s colleagues, which just goes to show how persistent one has to be – and soon he was sat in the office of Jo Fletcher at Gollancz trying to persuade her how much of a geek he was. After four years as contracts manager at Blake Friedmann Literary Agency he decided he didn't like other authors that much so he swapped his dark corner of Camden for one at Atlantic Books where it quickly became apparent that he prefers winning arguments to scruples.
Writing part-time, also known as watching loads more TV, he also manages to play a little sport in between trips to the pub and battering his next book - into a semblance of shape.
http://tomlloyd.livejournal.com/ http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?...
Nevertheless he did eventually find himself with a long summer to spare before university, and decided to start a novel when it was suggested he get a job to pass the time. This tells you much of what there is to know about him. The rest can be derived from the fact that he first had the idea of writing a book to annoy a schoolfriend by getting published before him.
No, honestly; he's actually that shallow.
It was swiftly apparent that this was not the quick route to fame and fortune that he’d hoped for. The first sign of this was the realisation that being good at writing was required, but he managed to surprise everyone by not giving up on something he didn’t show immediate promise in.
Studying Politics and International Relations at Southampton University had very little appreciable effect on him, beyond giving him a couple of ideas for future novels, but that was largely due to spending most of those three years in London shacked up with the god-daughter of an Asian dictator. Upon leaving university he decided – along with what seemed like half of all other graduates, some of whom had had the temerity to study English – that doing “book stuff” sounded like a fun alternative to working out what sort of job he wanted to do. There was also the intriguing suggestion of literary talent being passed on by some osmosis-like process. As a result of a little work experience at Simon and Schuster - combined with some shameless flirting with the HR manager - he got a job as an editorial assistant on the Scribner list, which allowed him to mistype letters to a whole host of talented writers.
Certain luminary examples there made it clear that before he became a fantasy editor he was going to have to spend several years iron-cladding his liver. Towards this goal, he decamped to the A M Heath Literary Agency by way of Random House, which was silly because walking down Longacre would have been a lot quicker, to work in foreign rights while also freelancing for writersservices.com and constantly revising what was slowly becoming The Stormcaller.
A three year litany of madcap adventures in the crazy world of agenting ensued, but it would be far too time-consuming to detail any of that so suffice to say that his hangover cleared sufficiently one morning in 2004 for him to realise that he wasn’t quite so bad at writing now. Maybe there was something to this osmosis thing after all - although if that’s true Katie Fforde and Dave Hill might get a surprise at the effect they’d had.
Securing the services of John Richard Parker at MBA Literary Agents proved a surprisingly painless experience – despite being previously rejected by one of John’s colleagues, which just goes to show how persistent one has to be – and soon he was sat in the office of Jo Fletcher at Gollancz trying to persuade her how much of a geek he was. After four years as contracts manager at Blake Friedmann Literary Agency he decided he didn't like other authors that much so he swapped his dark corner of Camden for one at Atlantic Books where it quickly became apparent that he prefers winning arguments to scruples.
Writing part-time, also known as watching loads more TV, he also manages to play a little sport in between trips to the pub and battering his next book - into a semblance of shape.
http://tomlloyd.livejournal.com/ http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?...
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
July 7, 2015
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.blogspot.com/201...
I'm not generally in the habit of reading short story collections, though it wouldn't be accurate to say I'm not a fan of them either. It's just that given a choice between an anthology or a full-length novel, I would most likely end up picking the latter because they tend to better satisfy my appetite for more in-depth character development and world-building. Not that I don't think a short story is incapable of achieving this at all, but it does take a talented author to make me connect to their characters and world the same way in so few pages. After reading The God Tattoo though, I'm happy to report that Tom Lloyd is one of them.
Of course, this collection of "untold tales from the Twilight Reign" also has the added benefit of taking place in a fantasy universe already established in a series of five books. According to the introduction, reading the main Twilight Reign series is not a prerequisite before tackling The God Tattoo, which is good because I'm a newcomer to this world myself. I have to say not being familiar with any of the locations or characters (apparently, not many of the major ones appear here anyway) did not hinder my enjoyment one bit; if anything I'm even more impressed with the sheer scope and epic quality of the world of Twilight Reign.
As the author himself has written, his series was never intended to be about one person or even a group of people; the history and population of an entire land are affected by the events, and the eleven stories presented here give a pretty good idea of what that means. There's a nice variety, from tales of mystery like A Beast in Velvet and The Marshall's Reflection, to some that are disturbingly magical, carrying a hint of that dark fairy tale flavor (examples like The God Tattoo, A Man Collecting Spirits, and Afraid of the Dark come immediately to mind).
This collection does a good job of fleshing out the world, showing how the people are an inextricable part of its history. The way some of these stories are connected merely serves to emphasize this point, featuring characters that shape events outside their own story and vice versa. As such, this anthology seems to flow better than most. Seen in context together, all eleven tales paint a very intriguing picture of Twilight Reign, with what I felt was a strong touch of horror to give the series that haunted, shadowy feel. It definitely sets the kind of tone I like to look for in my dark and epic fantasy.
Bottom line, I think this would be a great choice for avid readers of short stories and anthologies. That doesn't describe me at all, but even so, I found myself enjoying this book a lot. Though Tom Lloyd did say that this collection is not required reading for fans of the Twilight Reign novels, I can't think of any reason why any fan wouldn't want to pick this one up as well; if you're familiar with the world already, the stories here will probably resonate more. And if you're a new reader of his work, The God Tattoo might be inspiration to add The Stormcaller to your reading list. I personally added it because I got a taste of the series and Tom Lloyd's writing from these short stories, found that I liked what I saw, and now I'm interested in the full-length novels.
I'm not generally in the habit of reading short story collections, though it wouldn't be accurate to say I'm not a fan of them either. It's just that given a choice between an anthology or a full-length novel, I would most likely end up picking the latter because they tend to better satisfy my appetite for more in-depth character development and world-building. Not that I don't think a short story is incapable of achieving this at all, but it does take a talented author to make me connect to their characters and world the same way in so few pages. After reading The God Tattoo though, I'm happy to report that Tom Lloyd is one of them.
Of course, this collection of "untold tales from the Twilight Reign" also has the added benefit of taking place in a fantasy universe already established in a series of five books. According to the introduction, reading the main Twilight Reign series is not a prerequisite before tackling The God Tattoo, which is good because I'm a newcomer to this world myself. I have to say not being familiar with any of the locations or characters (apparently, not many of the major ones appear here anyway) did not hinder my enjoyment one bit; if anything I'm even more impressed with the sheer scope and epic quality of the world of Twilight Reign.
As the author himself has written, his series was never intended to be about one person or even a group of people; the history and population of an entire land are affected by the events, and the eleven stories presented here give a pretty good idea of what that means. There's a nice variety, from tales of mystery like A Beast in Velvet and The Marshall's Reflection, to some that are disturbingly magical, carrying a hint of that dark fairy tale flavor (examples like The God Tattoo, A Man Collecting Spirits, and Afraid of the Dark come immediately to mind).
This collection does a good job of fleshing out the world, showing how the people are an inextricable part of its history. The way some of these stories are connected merely serves to emphasize this point, featuring characters that shape events outside their own story and vice versa. As such, this anthology seems to flow better than most. Seen in context together, all eleven tales paint a very intriguing picture of Twilight Reign, with what I felt was a strong touch of horror to give the series that haunted, shadowy feel. It definitely sets the kind of tone I like to look for in my dark and epic fantasy.
Bottom line, I think this would be a great choice for avid readers of short stories and anthologies. That doesn't describe me at all, but even so, I found myself enjoying this book a lot. Though Tom Lloyd did say that this collection is not required reading for fans of the Twilight Reign novels, I can't think of any reason why any fan wouldn't want to pick this one up as well; if you're familiar with the world already, the stories here will probably resonate more. And if you're a new reader of his work, The God Tattoo might be inspiration to add The Stormcaller to your reading list. I personally added it because I got a taste of the series and Tom Lloyd's writing from these short stories, found that I liked what I saw, and now I'm interested in the full-length novels.
February 28, 2014
published first for The Qwillery
The God Tattoo is a fantastic collection of short stories that take place in the Twilight Reign world. It's no light thing for me to say that a short story collection is fantastic. I hardly ever read short story collections, and when I do it's nearly impossible for me to like each one of them. I tend to read a few pages, and if the story doesn't grab me, I move on. I was a little nervous to start this book, because I'm obligated to read every page before I write a review. I should also say I've not read any of the books in Tom Lloyd's Twilight Reign series, even though they've been on my to-read list for a while. With all that said, this collection surpassed my expectations.
Lloyd's world is rich in history and detail. He does a great job of giving you enough information to make the story real, but leaves enough unsaid for you to want more. Most of the stories are short and entertaining, giving you a feel for his ability to create intriguing characters and situations. There are a string of stories that are vaguely connected to each other, which hint at a bigger story below the surface. One of the most surprising and enjoyable parts, is that several of the stories have a Gothic Horror slant. I always enjoy my fantasy mixed with other genres and Lloyd is really good at doing Gothic Horror.
Having never read any of the previous books in the series, I never felt lost with events or characters. It helped that most of the collection features new characters. This collection of stories definitely makes you want to read more from Lloyd's world.
Beware, The God Tattoo is a gateway drug to the Twilight Reign series. The God Tattoo contains strong language and descriptive violence. For that reason, I would recommend it to adult readers. It's perfect for both fans of fantasy and Gothic Horror, as well as those curious about the Twilight Reign series. I'd also recommend it to anyone who likes to read short story collections.
The God Tattoo is a fantastic collection of short stories that take place in the Twilight Reign world. It's no light thing for me to say that a short story collection is fantastic. I hardly ever read short story collections, and when I do it's nearly impossible for me to like each one of them. I tend to read a few pages, and if the story doesn't grab me, I move on. I was a little nervous to start this book, because I'm obligated to read every page before I write a review. I should also say I've not read any of the books in Tom Lloyd's Twilight Reign series, even though they've been on my to-read list for a while. With all that said, this collection surpassed my expectations.
Lloyd's world is rich in history and detail. He does a great job of giving you enough information to make the story real, but leaves enough unsaid for you to want more. Most of the stories are short and entertaining, giving you a feel for his ability to create intriguing characters and situations. There are a string of stories that are vaguely connected to each other, which hint at a bigger story below the surface. One of the most surprising and enjoyable parts, is that several of the stories have a Gothic Horror slant. I always enjoy my fantasy mixed with other genres and Lloyd is really good at doing Gothic Horror.
Having never read any of the previous books in the series, I never felt lost with events or characters. It helped that most of the collection features new characters. This collection of stories definitely makes you want to read more from Lloyd's world.
Beware, The God Tattoo is a gateway drug to the Twilight Reign series. The God Tattoo contains strong language and descriptive violence. For that reason, I would recommend it to adult readers. It's perfect for both fans of fantasy and Gothic Horror, as well as those curious about the Twilight Reign series. I'd also recommend it to anyone who likes to read short story collections.
November 2, 2013
I have a confession to make - I’m not the biggest fan of Tom Lloyd’s books. It isn’t the mythos, or the violence, or even the characters. There is something in the way that Lloyd constructs sentences that hurts my brain.
I realize that sounds petty and weak, and it is, but it makes reading a full length novel of his difficult. I’m sure listening to a narrated version would be fine - I’ve learned that lesson with a few other authors lately - but something in the word to brain translation breaks down and I begin to develop a book induced migraine. My internal critic screams at what seem like run-on sentences devoid of punctuation.
Which is why I’m as surprised as you now are to know I’m going to recommend the God Tattoo so highly. This collection of “Untold Tales from the Twilight Reign” follows the same universe as his other Twilight Reign novels, replete with White Eyes and magics and forces both terrible and dark. But somehow, distilled into these short vignettes, each chapter a story in itself, it was actually a really fun and entertaining read.
Of course, like any story collection, not all stories are created equal, and some are better than others. Fans of Lloyd’s will enjoy the collection, and fantasy readers interested in a collection of fun fantasy adventures will find something entertaining here as well. This companion book contains a well rounded collection of mysteries, gothic fairytales, and classic adventure stories - set in the world of the Seven Tribes.
Enjoy!
I realize that sounds petty and weak, and it is, but it makes reading a full length novel of his difficult. I’m sure listening to a narrated version would be fine - I’ve learned that lesson with a few other authors lately - but something in the word to brain translation breaks down and I begin to develop a book induced migraine. My internal critic screams at what seem like run-on sentences devoid of punctuation.
Which is why I’m as surprised as you now are to know I’m going to recommend the God Tattoo so highly. This collection of “Untold Tales from the Twilight Reign” follows the same universe as his other Twilight Reign novels, replete with White Eyes and magics and forces both terrible and dark. But somehow, distilled into these short vignettes, each chapter a story in itself, it was actually a really fun and entertaining read.
Of course, like any story collection, not all stories are created equal, and some are better than others. Fans of Lloyd’s will enjoy the collection, and fantasy readers interested in a collection of fun fantasy adventures will find something entertaining here as well. This companion book contains a well rounded collection of mysteries, gothic fairytales, and classic adventure stories - set in the world of the Seven Tribes.
Enjoy!
June 12, 2014
"The Twilight Reign" ranks as one of the most amazing fantasy series I've ever read, definitely on par with "Song of Ice and Fire" and "Lord of the Rings" in its epic scope and ability to weave in multiple narratives. Where "Song" is focused on human depravity and "Rings" on human hope, "Twilight" is determined to use religion as a focal point of social engagement. The gods here walk amongst people in a very personal way and the writing is so incredible they never appear out of place or merely a tool to move a stuck plot. These stories, filling in gaps in the series and going back in time to show where some of the characters first met one another, are quite fun, informative and maintain the writing quality of the series. Each one sucks you in, leaves you wanting more and now more than ever I want to go back and read the whole series again.
October 12, 2020
This book is collection of interconnected stories set in the world of Twilight Reign. You don't necessarily have to read the 5 book series, in fact this is a great introduction to the series as a whole. There is a nice mixture of short stories that vary in length, with some characters making more than one appearance.
January 6, 2021
This is a collection of stories set in the Twilight Reign universe, dodging through genres including fantasy, crime drama and gothic horror.
Admittedly, I'm not familiar with the series or the author, this being yet another book from the fabled bargain box that I bought. I think this is a pretty solid collection, but I'm not tempted to try out the rest of the series - mostly because I am so very tried of fantasy novels set in a male-dominated society. Given the lack of decent female characters in his collection (and the way they were written), I don't think I would enjoy Lloyd's other books.
Admittedly, I'm not familiar with the series or the author, this being yet another book from the fabled bargain box that I bought. I think this is a pretty solid collection, but I'm not tempted to try out the rest of the series - mostly because I am so very tried of fantasy novels set in a male-dominated society. Given the lack of decent female characters in his collection (and the way they were written), I don't think I would enjoy Lloyd's other books.
January 4, 2018
This is an excellent collection of short stories from Tom Lloyd’s Twilight Reign series. My particular favourites were The Dark Of The Moor, as Tom brings a wonderful sense of family and Shadows in the Library for the great relationship between Emin and Gennay.
June 29, 2020
Some stories I skipped. Some I thought were great. Others just ok. I haven't read his other books and feel the shorts would be better if I had, but his world is interesting and I enjoyed it.
September 6, 2021
I have not read any of the series, read this and wow. I seriously want to read all the series now. I liked it, and reading the series maybe helpful but honestly for short stories, this was good.
November 6, 2013
Tom Lloyd shares stories from before his TWILIGHT REIGN series in this collection, The God Tattoo: Untold Tales from the Twilight Reign. I read it because I thought you didn’t have to have read any of the TWILIGHT REIGN books in order to understand what was going on. I would say that’s not strictly true. My ignorance of the series definitely hampered my enjoyment of these pieces.
These eleven stories follow various characters in the city and nation of Narkang in a land called The Land. Several seem to take place at or near the site of an epic battle in the past, which the last elf king Aryn Bwr (“Aaron Burr?”) lost badly, and which seems to be cursed now. Lloyd’s writing is reminiscent at times of a number of dark fantasy writers from the 1980s, most notably Karl Edward Wagner. Once in a while he nearly channels... Read More:
http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
These eleven stories follow various characters in the city and nation of Narkang in a land called The Land. Several seem to take place at or near the site of an epic battle in the past, which the last elf king Aryn Bwr (“Aaron Burr?”) lost badly, and which seems to be cursed now. Lloyd’s writing is reminiscent at times of a number of dark fantasy writers from the 1980s, most notably Karl Edward Wagner. Once in a while he nearly channels... Read More:
http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
September 4, 2013
Mundane developments of minor characters' lives. There's a reason these stories didn't make it in the actual series. They're just not good enough. Some are ok. Others were barely tolerable. But all are nonessential. Good thing I'd read the complete Twilight Reign first. Had I read The God Tattoo before the other books, I'd never have bothered with the series and would have missed out on some very good storytelling. This collection of discarded ideas adds nothing to Twilight Reign. I'm really unsure as to why it was published at all.
December 1, 2013
this is the first time i read this author. i think i would find the full novel rather tedious, but in short bursts like this, it is all right. there is only one idea or story line ... the short stories are just variations on it. some vampire -like creature periodically create havoc killing in violent ways . not something u want to read in a full novel, but in short story form, it is bearable.
October 21, 2013
if you haven't read the twilight reign series it's pointless reading this. if you have read the series, there isn't really anything here that fleshes it out much.
this is probably best described as the cashing-in compilation.
this is probably best described as the cashing-in compilation.
April 22, 2014
An enjoyable collection of short stories from The Twilight Reign series. Not essential required reading, but does contain some background to some of the plot of the main series.
November 3, 2013
This book was reviewed by Michael Cummings, senior reviewer with the Fantasy Book Addict.
You can read the full review here: http://www.fantasybookaddict.com/2013...
You can read the full review here: http://www.fantasybookaddict.com/2013...
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews