Children of Fire

The Chaos Born #1

by Drew Karpyshyn

Drew Karpyshyn has made his mark with imaginative, action-packed work on several acclaimed videogames, including Mass Effect and Star Knights of the Old Republic, as well as in a succession of New York Times bestselling tie-in novels. Now Karpyshyn introduces a brilliantly innovative epic fantasy of perilous quests, tormented heroes, and darkest sorcery—a thrilling adventure that vaults him into the company of such authors as Terry Goodkind, Brandon Sanderson, and Peter V. Brett.
 
Long ago the gods chose a great hero to act as their agent in the mortal world and to stand against the demonic spawn of Chaos. The gods gifted their champion, Daemron, with three magical a sword, a ring, and a crown. But the awesome power at his command corrupted Daemron, turning him from savior to destroyer. Filled with pride, he dared to challenge the gods themselves. Siding with the Chaos spawn, Daemron waged a titanic battle against the Immortals. In the end, Daemron was defeated, the Talismans were lost, and Chaos was sealed off behind the Legacy—a magical barrier the gods sacrificed themselves to create.
 
Now the Legacy is fading. On the other side, the banished Daemron stirs. And across the scattered corners of the land, four children are born of suffering and strife, each touched by one aspect of Daemron himself—wizard, warrior, prophet, king.
 
Bound by a connection deeper than blood, the Children of Fire will either restore the Legacy or bring it crashing down, freeing Daemron to wreak his vengeance upon the mortal world.

Praise for Children of Fire
 
“This intricately layered adventure breathes realism and overshadowing menace into ancient mythic archetypes, exposing the pain and wonder inherent in magic and the mingled hope and cynicism of modern fantasy.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
“A rousing quest fantasy . . . a fast-paced action-packed good and evil thriller.”—SF Revu

“From the first page of Children of Fire, Karpyshyn captures the reader’s attention with his excellent, intricate storyline.”—RT Book Reviews
 
“Children of Fire stands on its own as a thoroughly entertaining tale. The book strikes a perfect balance between character driven storytelling and rich world building.”—Roqoo Depot
 
“[Karpyshyn] is truly a master of world building. . . . I would recommend this title to any fan of the genre.”—Among the Wreckage
 
“Compulsively readable, wildly entertaining.”—A Girl, A Boy and A Blog
 
“Children of Fire is engrossing, and full of characters that are modern. . . . I thoroughly enjoyed Children of Fire and look forward for the next two books.”—FANgirl Blog

“Drew Karpyshyn weaves a rich, contrasting tapestry of epic story and doom. Gripping and compelling from first page to last, Children of Fire is a dark-chocolate fantasy; delightfully biting and delectable at once. Four ill-fated children born under a sign of chaos and flame carried me on a journey into an intriguing world of shadowy wonder. It is a spellbinding epic told with masterful craft. Well done, Drew!”—Tracy Hickman, New York Times bestselling co-author of the Dragonlance and Death Gate series

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Epic Fantasy, Magic, High Fantasy, Science Fiction Fantasy, Audiobook

512 pages, Paperback

First published August 27, 2013

About the author

Drew Karpyshyn is a Canadian author and game designer. After working at a credit union for some time, he eventually became a game developer. He joined BioWare towards the end of the Baldur's Gate series, and wrote the tie-in novel for Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal. He stayed with BioWare, where he worked on Neverwinter Nights, and became the Senior Writer on the critically acclaimed Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.

This Star Wars connection gave him the opportunity to write Darth Bane: Path of Destruction, his first hardcover. Karpyshyn still works for BioWare where he is the lead writer for the Mass Effect series.

Reviews

[Markus · Rating 3 out of 5]

All things are born from fire. The flames of Chaos are the source of all life and all creation; the cause of all death and all destruction. The entirety of the mortal world was forged from the inferno of the Burning Sea, the Chaos shaped and bound by the power of the Old Gods to create an island of tranquility floating in an ocean of flame.

Once upon a time, the immortal Daemron, champion of the gods against Chaos, betrayed them all and was sealed away from the world behind the barrier known as the Legacy. But the Legacy is weakening, and as Daemron ritualistically attempts his return, the power of his talismans split in four and scatter. But then four children are born.

Children of Fire is almost stereotypically a diamond in the rough. There are so many qualities here, so much potential. But the writing style, the structure of the narrative, and some of the more simplistic naming conventions used are all unfortunately taking away the chance of realising that potential. I was also slightly disappointed that most of the epic events and worldbreaking threats for the legendary past are never fully established. The way Daemron is presented, he only seems like an interesting side character whose exploits you want to read more about, which makes it hard to see him as threat whose return you should be afraid of. Similarly, “the Order”, fanatically religious inquisitor who used to purge and massacre magic-users, seem more like a nice bunch of chill monks.

Drew Karpyshyn has masterminded some of the most magnificent epics I have ever experienced, as BioWare’s lead writer for both Knights of the Old Republic (*cough* the best video game ever made *cough*) and Mass Effect; both science fiction role-playing game masterpieces. He’s helped create worlds, stories and characters that I have come to deeply care about.

This all shines through when he tries his hand in the writing of free-form literature. Sure, he’s written tie-in novels for both Star Wars and Mass Effect in the past, but they are always merely supplements to video games rather than standalone works of fiction.

He is still a master of creating, but not yet a master of adapting his creations to the page. I am saddened to say that every time I put the book down, I had no desire to pick it back up again until I forced myself. The whole book felt like it would have been better as a video game, but I can understand why Karpyshyn wished to try something else.

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book goes down some well trodden fantasy paths. As I've noted over and over this is not necessarily a bad thing but it "needs" to be done right.

Prophecies of a coming hero to save the world, multiple points of view to tell the story, young person/people called to "destiny" (every time I see that someone has or is called to a "destiny" I think of George Mcfly [Marty's dad in Back to the Future] saying to his future wife, "I'm your density").... Anyway, children of destiny.

The magic system here assumes that all magic apparently comes from Chaos. Seemingly Chaos is the natural state of things but at some point some powerful individuals (who got called gods, but have since died) pulled a world of order together and set protection. There was an assault by Chaos so these "mortal gods" picked a "worthy hero" a "champion" and gave him some powerful artifacts to control Chaos magic and fight the Chaos Spawn and resist the Chaos.

It seems he did...at first but then the Champion (a la Diablo 1) lost control of the artifacts, "joined" Chaos and became the main enemy. The said "mortal gods" defeated him, his the artifacts and locked him away from the world.

But of course they knew this wouldn't hold so there are now prophecies that the "Destroyer" (who used to be the champion) will return. When this happens the new hero to save the world will be born

Of course all this happened before the book opens. As the book opens the birth is about to take place...but we don't get one birth no, we get 4.

So for the first part of the book we bounce around between the stories of 4 infants and how their lives go, what happens to them and so on. For this part of then book you could almost use a program to keep up with which child we're being told about and what's happening to who.

I'm never a big fan of the bounce between characters motif, but it works. here it takes a while to shake itself out and settle in. Once the babies become children the stories start to take shape though i do think the story is still a bit slow for a while. Somewhere around the middle of the book we finally hit our stride and tell an intense and somewhat enthralling read.

The end of the novel is very a much a "run out and get the next volume of the series" ending as we have set up a lot of coming attractions but our characters are all in precarious positions. We also introduce another element to the plot just as the epilogue closes...so, yeah series teaser at the end of the book.

All in all if we had the often mentioned and never happening half star system (and if we got it now I'd have to back through a lot of books and "re'rank them") I might have called this a "high 3.5 out of 5 because it starts so slowly. Still it's a good read and I can recommend it. I plan to pick up the next.

Enjoy.

[Spencer Orey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This felt like I was reading the first part of a video game, and it turns out the author was involved in some great RPGs.

Like an RPG, the book happily spins through genre cliches and magic. There are some big set pieces but no thoughtful politics. Some long descriptions of battles grow so detached from any character that it felt like I was missing the visuals on a screen. There's a drifting point of view, which made it hard for me to connect with anyone.

The pieces here feel rough, like it could have been a great book with some more work (on character, on point of view, especially on politics). But what's here is solid and entertaining.

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book goes down some well trodden fantasy paths. As I've noted over and over this is not necessarily a bad thing but it "needs" to be done right.

Prophecies of a coming hero to save the world, multiple points of view to tell the story, young person/people called to "destiny" (every time I see that someone has or is called to a "destiny" I think of George Mcfly [Marty's dad in Back to the Future] saying to his future wife, "I'm your density").... Anyway, children of destiny.

The magic system here assumes that all magic apparently comes from Chaos. Seemingly Chaos is the natural state of things but at some point some powerful individuals (who got called gods, but have since died) pulled a world of order together and set protection. There was an assault by Chaos so these "mortal gods" picked a "worthy hero" a "champion" and gave him some powerful artifacts to control Chaos magic and fight the Chaos Spawn and resist the Chaos.

It seems he did...at first but then the Champion (a la Diablo 1) lost control of the artifacts, "joined" Chaos and became the main enemy. The said "mortal gods" defeated him, his the artifacts and locked him away from the world.

But of course they knew this wouldn't hold so there are now proficiencies that the "Destroyer" (who used to be the champion) will return. When this happens the new hero to save the world will be born

Of course all this happened before the book opens. As the book opens the birth is about to take place...but we don't get one birth no, we get 4.

So for the first part of the book we bounce around between the stories of 4 infants and how their lives go, what happens to them and so on. For this part of the book you could almost use a program to keep up with which child we're being told about and what's happening to who.

I'm never a big fan of the bounce between characters motif, but it works. Here it takes a while to shake itself out and settle in. Once the babies become children the stories start to take shape though I do think the story is still a bit slow for a while. Somewhere around the middle of the book we finally hit our stride and tell an intense and somewhat enthralling read.

The end of the novel is very a much a "run out and get the next volume of the series" ending as we have set up a lot of coming attractions but our characters are all in precarious positions. We also introduce another element to the plot just as the epilogue closes...so, yeah series teaser at the end of the book.

All in all if we had the often mentioned and never happening half star system (and if we got it now I'd have to back through a lot of books and "re'rank them") I might have called this a "high 3.5 out of 5 because it starts so slowly. Still it's a good read and I can recommend it. I plan to pick up the next.

Enjoy.

[Mogsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd looked forward to this novel for a long time, ever since last year when Drew Karpyshyn announced he was leaving BioWare to focus on his own original book project. Having very much enjoyed his work in video games in the past, including the novels that spawned out of the Mass Effect and Star Wars: The Old Republic universes, I was disappointed to see him go but was also very curious as to what he was working on.

Turned out, it was Children of Fire, the first book of his idea for a new epic fantasy series, and it sounded something he'd been cooking in his head for long time. After years of reading his Star Wars and video game tie-in novels, I was very interested in seeing what Drew can do with his very own story and characters. My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with this e-ARC.

About the book:

Long ago, a great warrior called Daemron was was chosen by the gods to lead the war against the Chaos spawn. He was given three magical talismans to aid him in the fight -- a crown, a ring, and a sword. Daemron, however, grew corrupted with their power and ended up turning against the gods. The savior of the world instead became its destroyer.

Daemron was thwarted in the end, banished to a plane beyond the Chaos Sea, sealed behind barrier called the Legacy. A religious cabal called The Order have been tasked to maintain this magical shield, protecting the world from the Chaos and its minions. The three magical talismans were hidden away or lost.

Now the Legacy weakens, and Daemron grows strong enough to cast his essence into the world. Across the land, four Chaos-touched children are born beneath a blood red moon, each embodying an aspect of Daemron himself. Though Keegan, Scythe, Vaaler, and Cassandra grow up in different places with different lives, their fates are intertwined -- but whether it is their destiny to restore the Legacy or unleash the destroyer upon the world is yet unknown.

My thoughts:

I loved lots of things about this book, and on the top of that list was the sweeping, overarching feel of the story. The introduction including the details surrounding the four children's origins was in my opinion the best part of the book. While all born of "suffering and strife", the background and circumstances of each child were nonetheless unique and interesting.

The character development continues as we follow the four children, and we get glimpses into the major events of their lives as they grow up. But as we edged closer towards the present and more and more talk of fate and destiny crept into the picture, that's when I hit a wall. I still enjoyed the story very much, but at this point everything began to feel a lot more run-of-the-mill and typical.

It is possible that I am just a bit more critical of the fantasy I read these days, especially if they come with the description of "innovative epic fantasy", but I admit I expected a lot more from the characters and plot. Both bordered on the cut-and-dried and formulaic after while, which I felt was the main thing holding back the story. I know the concept of the Big-Damn-Hero-destined-to-save-the-world is one that's tried and true, but it's very in-your-face here and nowadays I crave a lot more out of my fantasy reads.

And maybe I'm just still not used to seeing the author's writing outside of media adaptations, but while I love his "pulpy" style in Star Wars and game tie-in books, here it kind of feels out of place for the kind of story he wants to tell. I thought that more focus could have been placed on the setting and supporting characters too, to give the story as a whole more of an "epic" vibe, because I didn't feel like I was getting enough of history and identity from this original world he's establishing from scratch. The Danaan people and their cities come to mind, for example.

I also think some of the points I brought up above could do with the pacing. I think Drew Karpyshyn did a fantastic job presenting to us his main characters, considering there are four of them and that's quite a few different perspectives to follow. Keegan gets the bulk of the attention, though, and I wished we could have seen more of of the others at different ages because it feels like a couple of them disappear for a long stretches at a time. When they resurface, sometimes years afterward, I don't feel like I know them enough anymore to know if it only seems like dialogue feels forced, or if they are actually acting out of character.

Overall, this ended up being more of a fun read than a truly epic read, and became a lot better once I shifted my expectations accordingly. It felt like the book could have benefited from a little more structural editing to address pacing issues and plot and character development, but it was a great introduction to a brand new world of magic and fantasy lore. I'm a big fan of Drew Karpyshyn, and I'm glad he finally got the chance to bring his own ideas to life and share it with his readers.

[Mitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Children of Fire is, in every way, pure popcorn fantasy. In other words, I think anyone coming into this expecting the kind of high concept epic featuring complex, iconic characters, groundbreaking uses of magic, or uniquely compelling world building is setting themselves up for disappointment, because to be honest, Drew Karpyshyn’s first foray into original material is mostly a retread of familiar ground. But that said, I do think this is still a book that has plenty of merit as a compulsively readable, wildly entertaining retread, because even though the fantasy elements are simplistic stereotypes and cliches, in this case, it’s not a bad thing at all, because Karpyshyn has done an excellent job putting them together in a way that’s easily accessible, but more importantly, interesting and engaging.

What makes the book for me is definitely the almost cinematic quality of the storytelling. As anyone who’s for example both read Lord of the Rings and watched Peter Jackson’s movies would know, watching the movies is a completely different experience from reading the books. And while most fantasy books aim to replicate that heavy, voluminous feel of Tolkien’s books (and Karpyshyn even cites Tolkien as one of his influences), Children of Fire is the exception that, with its simpler storyline and plenty of cinematic action sequences, feels more like watching the movie adaption, or maybe one of those old sword and sorcery TV shows. So although the setup involves nothing but generic fantasy stereotypes and nothing in Children of Fire screams unique or different from every other fantasy out there - even if Karpyshyn calls his elves (and they obviously are the generic woodland dwelling elder race everybody else calls elves) the Danaan - none of it really mattered for me because Children of Fire is a different, yet nonetheless enjoyable, reading experience from the typical fantasy. For me, the point of this book really wasn’t to build a complex fantasy world or to create an immersive cast of scheming, backstabbing characters, but just to follow a group of characters on a very simple quest of good versus evil while being entertained by the gobs of addictive action sequences along the way - and I was definitely entertained; it really is addictive.

The other aspect I really liked is that while following these various children of fire through their quests to save the world (and the passage of time is something I think Karpyshyn does well and makes the book feel more epic), he never resorts to the same old black and white characters that can really sink these kinds of books. Of course, there’s this demon character the Slayer who’s been imprisoned in an alternate dimension for eons and planning his revenge now that the barrier between the worlds has been weakened (sounds like a Buffy plot, no?), but the other characters never predictably fall into one category or the other. For example, there’s the Pontiff and his Order of anti-magic fanatics dedicated to stopping the Slayer by whatever means necessary, but while the sorcerer characters like Rexol perceive them as evil based on what they do, they consider themselves good, and you know, their eventual actions go both ways (plus, who doesn’t like reading about badass blind monks?). Even Rexol and the Danaan Queen Rianna, they have an understandable goal and course of action that helps and hinders the various children, but they can’t be said to be doing what they do because they’re ‘good’ or ‘evil’, and that ambiguity in the characters really makes up for the genericness of the plot and setting.

Still, in addition to the setup I did have one other problem with the book. Like I said, I thought the way Karpyshyn handled the passage of time from the birth of the children to their quest to save the world, over a period of years, was definitely a strong point of the book, but I really feel there may have been a few more coincidences in the book than necessary. The various intertwining storylines was definitely a great idea and a huge part of what makes the book work, but while many of them, like Cassandra being Rexol’s first apprentice followed by Keegan as his second, are understandable and in retrospect pretty cool, others, like the whole storyline with Scythe, felt really contrived. In fact, I’m not really sure of Scythe’s role in the story - is she even one of them? - and her inclusion feels more like a plot contrivance so we end with a party consisting of a warrior, a mage, a monk, and a rogue than anything else.

Overall though, while Children of Fire is a lot simpler than most fantasies, I think Drew Karpyshyn has made it simpler in a way that also makes it accessible to many first time or reluctant fantasy readers. Even better, I personally read a lot of fantasy and still found the story, despite its flaws, incredibly addictive, precisely because this is a book that makes the stereotypes work.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four unique children are born under a portent omen, each touched by Chaos in some way. Initially, the story moves through the lives of all four, leaping through time as they grow and deal with varied situations that shape them towards their destiny. Their paths cross in various ways until they reach adulthood and then dark forces are unleashed...

I've played the Bioware games Karpyshyn has been heavily involved in as a writer and I have read one of his Star Wars books, as well as his Mass Effect books. With those, I found that his writing was not as strong as the ideas and characters behind it and concluded that Karpyshyn works best when his ideas and characters can be visually brought to life. Perhaps he'd do a better job with the comic book stories.

However, Children of Fire is Karpyshyn's first novel of his own creation, and I'm always curious to see what a creator can do when freed from the constraints of an established franchise. So far, I'm very pleased. I don't feel this book is a strong entry into the epic fantasy genre, however, it has a lot of potential.

Actually, considering how I feel about epic fantasy classics like Eye of the World, Children of Fire is very good. The characters are strong, unique and memorable, and there's little time wasted on too much exposition. I was worried at first, with the format of travelling through the children's lives as they aged, but Karpyshyn did a good job of telling only what was needed at each given point in their lives.

There are some typical fantasy tropes used, such as talismans, chosen ones, dark lords, fellowships and seemingly evil ruling bodies. I liked the latter two items though, because they did not quite follow the conventional 'rules.' When the four children cross paths, their interaction is not predictable, and the Order, who seeks out people who wield Chaos magic, does so for a good reason.

I did enjoy the magical aspect of the story. There is a lot of lore behind it and varying opinions on those with magical abilities, but I liked that Karpyshyn doesn't use the magic as a crutch to easily get his characters out of situations. In fact, the moments when magic is used serves to advance the plot and develop the characters themselves.

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[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is so much better than all the other fantasy crap that's out there right now. I delayed reading this for so long because I had a crap ton of fantasy books to get through and I could tell I was getting steadily more bored with them as I went. I was worried the same would happen here, so I held off.

I really had nothing to worry about.

It's slow building as with most fantasy novels, but it manages to stay interesting and keep a steady pace the whole way through. It relies heavily on characterization and the author did a brilliant job of fleshing out each individual person. Cassandra was a thousand leagues apart from Keegan who was light years away from Scythe who was a million clicks away from Vaaler. It never felt like I was reading just one voice.

While the characterization was the foundation, where the novel really shines is with the climax. I realize that may be an obvious statement, but there's been plenty of times in the past where a book that was meant to keep me on the edge of my seat did nothing to excite. When the Minions (who are incredibly fucking awesome in their own right) sneak into the world it is literally hell on Earth. I couldn't get enough of them, and I fervently hope that they will play a larger role in the next book. Keegan's culmination of power is probably the most dramatic bit while he fights a dragon. It's just so freaking entertaining and I was glad I kept along with the slow and steady pace of characterization in the beginning.

The only thing I dislike is how idiotic Keegan was and how stubborn Scythe. I almost don't even want to say it just because I'm so happy the author made them so vastly different, but I can't help it. They got on my nerves (but only mildly) a few times, but it was never enough to make me hate them. They were still strong characters with their flaws and I rooted for them the whole way through.

[Jacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been trying to read this book since it first came out and now that I have I am blown away. Truly epic. Grand in scale and very ambitious in design. This story delivers. Ancient evil returning, destinies being created, characters faced with repercussions to their actions, fast paced and engaging. A story worth reading!

[WayneM0 · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars

For most of this I struggled getting through it.
I felt it would be worth it but it was hard to keep going.
It had all the elements I usually like but it just didn't hook me.
And then I got to the last chapter and bang I was hooked.

The world building is good but some elements are a bit too detailed I think. It gets bogged down in detail but by the end when the pace picked up then it worked better.
It did convey the world they inhabited though and was pretty vivid.

The characters were good but it felt a bit disjointed as they were being introduced. Scythe though is my favourite and I think she's really going to develop well in the future. Keegan Cassandra and Vaaler were interesting as well and I'm curious to see where there characterisations take them.

The pacing was a bit slow at times but the plot strong and there are some twists turns and drama as well.

Overall a good start to this series and while not easy to get into I think it set the scene well for the next book.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

In full disclosure I won an Advanced Readers Copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway.

The first third of this book details the birth and early life of the “Children of Fire”, they are born under different circumstances, one is a prince, another the daughter of a minor noble, a third is the son of a farmer the forth is born in a brothel. They live their separate lives, but there are certain similarities and overlap.

One of the few criticisms I have for this part of the story is we are often told how many years have passed since we last read about the character we have just switched to, but we are not always told how old they are now.

I thought the author was successful at giving enough reminders of a character when the POV switches back to them. This helped me remember who this character was and what was happening with their part of the story. There was never too much of a recap which would have slowed the pace.

All four characters were interesting without being exceptional. I wanted to hear from them all. I was interested in reading about whoever the current POV character was and wanted to hear what was happening to them, but simultaneously I also wanted to hear from characters I hadn’t read about for a while.

The characters each have their own personalities, which were consistent but also developed as they continue through life.

The rest of the book details the characters at about 18 years old, and it is were there main part of the story starts. We no longer have the rapid jumping forward in time and the characters lives begin to cross over more.

I thought the secondary characters were well written and realistic. Most of the major players believe that they are good people trying to do to the right thing and they are working towards defeating the great evil (a character known as the Slayer). Each of them had different believes and different ways of dealing with the Slayer, often at odds with the other characters. Sometimes what they do is helping one of the main characters and at other times they are harming them. This led to ambiguity for these secondary characters making them more interesting.

It was also interesting to see how the main characters behaved when the met with one another. Sometimes they would work together which was great, but sometimes they were at odds with one another which was very interesting as I had grown to like all of the characters and wanted them all to succeed.

The descriptions are fairly good, perhaps a little short compared to most fantasy novels, but there is always enough there to clearly follow what was happening. The short descriptions did help keep the pace up as well.

The story is very good, while it is true to say there isn’t really anything original about it, there are defiantly strong similarities to Robert Jordan’s Wheel of time, as well as some similarities to Tolkien, Terry Brooks and other traditional fantasy authors. I didn’t think it mattered too much since the story is exciting and enjoyable.

The pacing was fast, it didn’t really feel like an epic fantasy, but more like a movie, mostly due to its light concepts, familiar ideas and high amount of action. This did make for a fast and enjoyable read even if there was nothing exceptional about it.

There were quite a few times were a character acted in a way that seemed to be in a way to set up plot or start a piece of action (such as when Jerrod started a barroom brawl when he was supposed to be protecting Keegan and keeping a low profile) rather than act in a way that would be realistic or consist with the character.

I thought the world building and the magic system was well developed. We are told about it in a way that felt natural and are given the information at an appropriate time. There was never a time that I felt this went of for too long, if anything it was too short.

There wasn’t a map included, although this was an ARC so perhaps there will be one in the final edition. I really felt like this book would have benefited from having one, there are a few kingdoms and many cities and it would have been nice having a clear way to see how they were all linked.

There is nothing particularly wonderful about this book, it is not original, the magic system and world are traditional and the characters are good without being exceptional. But somehow the author makes the story interesting, exciting and easy to read.

[Josh · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm done. This novel was so bad, I couldn't make it past the halfway mark. I almost quit several times already, and should have listened to my inner voice and wasted less time. It is so BORING I cannot stand it anymore.

Wow, I actually kind of enjoyed Karpyshyn's Darth Bane novels, and was hoping for a fast-paced and action-packed book filled with cool concepts and magic. Instead we get an extremely amateur and unoriginal book that seems to be as dark as possible simply for the sake of being dark. This is exactly what is wrong with modern epic fantasy, and Karpyshyn is just falling right into the well-trod wagon ruts hewn by Martin, Abercrombie, Weeks, and others, albeit with seemingly none of the skill in writing that the other authors have.

I mean, seriously. Don't authors have EDITORS anymore? The whole first part of the book at four bloody and gruesome birth sequences (by the fourth you have compeltely forgotten who was born to whom), ALL of which should have been cut and filled in later on in the story. Then we apparently get snippets of the different kids growing up. I'm not sure because by that point I was so lost and couldn't remember who was who, so stopped caring and listened on max speed. I dare you to try and make sense of this mess.

The novel just gets worse from there. Not to mention the rampant misogyny (another supposed "dark fantasy" trait) - women should be offended at not only how Karpyshyn treats the females in his book, but also in how he writes them. Maybe he should stick with male characters. Right from the start, his descriptions of pregnant women just felt totally misrepresented and sexist to me. Birthing does not have to be the horrible experience that you think it is, Drew. Some women actually are happy when their kids are born! Just about every character that shows up in this book is so stereotyped, I think you could skip a large portion of it and still not feel like you missed anything at the end.

Sheesh, this book is just so bad that it's... No, it's still bad.

[Drakehou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok I really like Drew Karpyshyn and I think he's doing a great job moving on from star wars. It started slow but finished strong will be getting the next one soon and can't wait for the third to come out.

[Charles Boyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

not bad. I will read the next installment.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty unremarkable book, and I mean that in both good and bad ways. It was a simple story about magic in a fictional land. It had a number of the standard fantasy tropes (chosen one, wise wizard, orphan, etc), and didn't really do anything too new with it. I enjoyed the storyline, and some of the characters were very well developed, but the work as a whole was just simple.

[Warren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really dug this book. The prose is simple to follow (william gibson is my favorite author, so i usually prefer something a little more abstract, with confusing bits to chew over). The story is simple to follow (i've read all of George RR Martin's song of ice and fire books so far, and those books often feel like they're drowning you in details in order to hide mysteries).I can't think any part of this book where I could debate what happened, or what someone was trying to do.
There were several bits where people wonder what a prophecy means, or suggest a dream might be symbolic, but I can't remember any of them really being ambiguous.
There is even a big moment near the end where a character storms off to do violence while others wonder what their intentions are - and even though we know why they stormed off, the book still stops and has everyone talk it out afterwards to make sure everyone knows what everyone else was thinking, and clear up any confusion. So the approach to writing seems pretty simple. A book for the masses. Easy to follow.

I guess there's a core prophecy that is setup in the first chapter and then left for you to chew over throughout the book. So that's cool. but i also figured what I made of it right off the bat, so it wasn't keeping me awake at night. (it'd be a lot like a prophecy that a savior will change the world. and here is satan having a kid named Damien, with 666 on his scalp and everyone wonders if he'll be a good savior. pretty quickly you've settled where you stand on that 'big mystery.' I think)

That said, I really dug the pacing, tone and creativity. It moves along a good clip, with each chapter feeling like it's own little awesome fantasy moment. No fat. sometimes the book will leap many years ahead, and you feel kind of safe that it just wants to get to the next awesome sequence. So, I appreciate how many different awesome sequences the author came up with.

Finally, just want to note the tone. I've been working on my own dark fantasy story, where shit is a little more gory and scary, and less political and dainty. And this book trumped me on several fronts. I love the way magic is reimagined as a sort of chaotic force (literally called "Chaos" instead of "magic"). I dug the dark imagery of a wizard covered in tattoos, adorned in special bones and skin, slurping down a sort of drug to help him connect with the "Chaos." Feel like this is much more badass than your standard fantasy fare.


Anywho. I'd read Karpyshyn's mass effect books, and this has a similar feel. maybe a little TOO easy to follow. but very creative and fun ideas, so i don't regret the ride.
Hope this ends up turning into a movie for video game. I'm definitely eager to read the next in this series.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Info: Genre: Epic Fantasy
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: fans of epic fantasy
Trigger Warnings: zealotry, people being tortured, burned at the stake, killed; children being taken from their parents, violence, fighting, murder

My Thoughts: This is an extremely complex book, as is common for epic fantasy, with lots of characters to keep track of and lots of things going on. It is also very obviously the first book in a series, as many things are left unfinished.

While there is a great deal of similarity to other epic fantasies, including a very strong homage to Lord of the Rings, at the same time this is a very unique idea and done in a new way. I think most fans of epic fantasy will quite like this story. The characters are all very interesting, if somewhat cliché at times (such as Norr's “honorable savage” and Scythe's “rogue” character). I enjoyed learning about the ideas behind the Chaos and Chaos magic. If you like epic fantasies, definitely check this one out.

Disclosure: I received an e-galley from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: Long ago the gods chose a great hero to act as their agent in the mortal world and to stand against the demonic spawn of Chaos. The gods gifted their champion, Daemron, with three magical Talismans: a sword, a ring, and a crown. But the awesome power at his command corrupted Daemron, turning him from savior to destroyer. Filled with pride, he dared to challenge the gods themselves. Siding with the Chaos spawn, Daemron waged a titanic battle against the Immortals. In the end, Daemron was defeated, the Talismans were lost, and Chaos was sealed off behind the Legacy—a magical barrier the gods sacrificed themselves to create.

Now the Legacy is fading. On the other side, the banished Daemron stirs. And across the scattered corners of the land, four children are born of suffering and strife, each touched by one aspect of Daemron himself—wizard, warrior, prophet, king.

Bound by a connection deeper than blood, the Children of Fire will either restore the Legacy or bring it crashing down, freeing Daemron to wreak his vengeance upon the mortal world.

[Ron · Rating 2 out of 5]

An author at a convention I attended advised, "if you think you need a prologue, you don't."

In addition to the actual prologue, I felt like the first several chapters are *also* prologue. Telling me about the world, and the background, and the magic, rather than actually introducing me to the characters (and letting me see the world through their eyes). Somewhere around chapter nine it finally starts to introduce us to the four main protagonists advertised on the back cover.

At 360 pages in, I realized that I am still not invested in any of these characters.

[Bookwyrm Speaks · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent Fantasy story. Really original magic system, with deep world building and multiple plot lines that all run parallel and merge at the end of the book. The characters are complex, and the story has a deep back story that drives and impacts the plot. I would recommend this story to any fan of Steven Erickson or Gail Z. Martin.

[Mary Fan · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a world born from Chaos, the Gods chose a hero to protect the mortal world from the demonic
Chaos spawn - monsters and creatures who would destroy all life if given the chance. He was Daemron, a great king, warrior, prophet, and wizard, and he was gifted with three Talismans of power: the Crown, the Ring, and the Sword. But, corrupted by the power he wielded, Daemron rallied the Chaos spawn and betrayed the Gods, waging a great war. The Gods sacrificed themselves to defeat him, trapping him and his monsters behind a barrier called the Legacy and scattering the Talismans across the world.

Centuries later, Daemron senses that the time for his return is near, and he enacts a ritual that touches four mortals born under the Blood Moon with the essence of Chaos. Children of Fire, the first book in Drew Karpyshyn's Chaos Born trilogy, follows these four from the unusual circumstances of each of their births through the first twenty years of their lives. There's Keegan, mild-mannered and physically frail but gifted with immense magical power. There's Cassandra, who's training with the warrior monks who vow to protect the world from Daemron and Chaos at all costs. There's Scythe, a tough and quick-tempered fighter who grew up on the mean streets of a pirate harbor. Then there's Vaaler, a prince born to a kingdom that reveres magic but lacking magic of his own. And they're surrounded by a rich cast of characters from all corners of this richly developed fantasy world--fanatical monks, tribal warriors, wizards, royalty, demons, and more. The big picture goal of the story is for the protagonists to obtain the Talismans, but along the way, so, so much more happens.

512 may sound like a lot of pages, but considering how much Karpyshyn packs into this world, this book's not long at all. I sat down one Saturday to read a few chapters... and ended up sitting on my couch for a good 8 hours or so, tearing through 400 pages in one sitting. The worldbuilding is truly phenomenal -- the different civilizations and cultures, the magic system, the various powers at play... It all fits together in a way that makes this fantasy universe come to life and feel real and lived-in. You learn the history of this world bit by bit through various scenes and character revelations, so that by the time you're done with the whole trilogy (and really, you should read it back-to-back), you feel like you've lived there. Of course, the downside (as a reviewer) is that the three books are blending into one big one in my head, so some of this review might touch on points explored in later books (but no spoilers, I promise!).

The book sets up the stakes right from the beginning, with the threat of Daemron's return, and as it winds its way through the lives of four characters in four different parts of the world, weaving pieces from other forces at work, the pacing never slows. It's really quite amazing how so many different story lines not only fit together, but are presented so memorably that it's easy to keep track of what's what. The plot is complex and multi-layered, but never confusing. And throughout, it kept me with the feeling of imminent danger, like each and every action these characters took, no matter how mundane-seeming, was leading toward a great destiny.

This story is told from the POVs of multiple characters -- heroes, villains, and those who are in between. There are too many interesting characters for me to describe all of them in a review, so I'll stick with gushing over my top three. Scythe quickly became my favorite, with her confidence and snarkiness. Yet behind the hard exterior, there's a compassion and vulnerability she never lets the world see. She's loads of fun to read and a thrill to watch in action, and her rather skewed sense of morality makes her POV fascinating. I also found myself drawn toward Keegan's character--first when he was introduced from his father's POV as a somewhat creepy kid, and then when he starts becoming his own person, which is difficult for him since, of the four Children of Fire, he's the most aware of his destiny. Thanks to a fanatical monk's vision, he's believed to be the Savior--a role he accepts but isn't certain of. Earnest and naive, he doesn't always do the right thing, but he certainly tries (unlike Scythe, who's a survivalist and often seems amoral). Then there's Vaaler, a noble spirit who was born to royalty and works hard to be the perfect student, but, tragically, will never be good enough in the eyes of his people due to his lack of magic.

An overarching presence in the book is the dark wizard Rexol, who's both creepy and mesmerizing in his arrogant, power-hungry ways (he's also the book's cover boy). He winds up interfering in the lives of three of the Children of Fire, setting them up, sometimes intentionally and sometimes not, for their ultimate destiny.

There's something Tolkein-esque about the world and the overarching ideas, and yet it's also very different. For one thing, women have actual roles as heroes and villains who drive the story rather than love interests and side characters (huzzah!). And there's racial diversity too, which makes me very happy. Also, there are no deus ex machina-type easy resolutions to anything. While the forces of fate certainly are at work, nothing is simple for these characters. In fact, one of the central points of the worldbuilding is "backlash", meaning that for every spell cast, the chaotic essence of magic will cause something bad to happen. The story is also considerably darker. I've seen this book categorized as "horror" in some places, probably because of the gruesome demonic rituals, bloody battles, and the horrors of war. Evil is evil for a reason...

Suffice it to say, this book was a fast-paced, gripping read that left me begging for more. Good thing I had the sequel on standby...

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Drew Karpyshyn weiss, was er tut. Nämlich gute Fantasy-Bücher schreiben. Dieses hier ist eines seiner wenigen, das nicht auf einer bestimmten Marke basiert. Man merkt aber deutlich den Einfluss gewisser grossen Namen: Star Wars und Herr der Ringe.

Doch vielleicht hat genau das für mich die Faszination dieser Welt ausgemacht. Karpyshyn schafft sich nämlich etwas Eigenes daraus. In dieser Welt warten auch einige Überraschungen auf uns und den Figuren wird es auch nicht einfach gemacht.

Ebenfalls ein grosses Kompliment an den Autoren: die weibliche Hauptfigur, Scythe, hat es geschafft, mein Lieblingscharakter zu werden. Und das ist echt selten, da ich oft Mühe mit den weiblichen Figuren habe.

Definitiv eine Reihe, die ich weiter verfolgen möchte, da man dem Buch leider anmerkt, dass die Handlung noch weitergeht. Man muss also sozusagen weiterlesen.

[Jamies · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing Dolan Tree find! This falls into my fantasy/mystical/apocalyptic heroes wheelhouse, which I don't read too often depending on the balance of subgenres within the story. Since the names & there are time jumps, it was harder to keep straight who the 4 kids were in the beginning. Once you find out who they are all you want them to do is meet. By the end of the book SPOILER ALERT!!



you get 3/4 all in one place. Couldn't make this update for a while but I've started the 2nd book & things are frustrating me beyond end. Good read, like that I can guess certain real world ties to different elements of the story.

[Bookphile · Rating 2 out of 5]

More like 2.5 stars. It was mildly interesting and I liked some of the characters, but it wasn't anything that got me overexcited. More complete review to come.

Full review:

Being the rabid fan of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect that I am, I was intrigued by the idea of reading Karpyshyn's book and seeing what sort of world he constructed when able to run free in his own playground. While I liked some aspects of the book, it didn't stand out for me and disappointed me in some respects. Some spoilers to follow.

One of the things I found most disappointing was how ambivalent I felt about some characters. In general, I think characterization is a weak point of this novel. The Pontiff in particular was a source of irritation for me. I didn't like a lot of what he did and wanted to hate him, but I couldn't work up enough emotion. He would have worked better as a character had I understood his convictions more, but I never crossed that bridge. Rexol is another character who let me down, for many of the same reasons. He was more like a character from an after school special than like a fully-fleshed character from a fantasy novel. I think a major reason why I failed to connect with so many of the characters is because there's a certain distance in this book, as if I was observing rather than actively engaged in the story.

Aside from the lukewarm characterization, my lack of engagement in the story was due to two other factors that often yanked me out of the story's flow: the leaps in time and the use of multiple character points of view. Some of the points of view were just plain superfluous. There is one in particular that irked me, a short passage told by an injured character in a small tone for no purpose other than to let us know one of the main characters is being hunted by a Chaos monster--something we've already been told. There was no need whatsoever for the reiteration. The leaps in time are also distracting, and there were chunks of text I thought could have been axed in favor of streamlining the story and focusing more on the ultimate conflict. I didn't really see the point in rehashing every single birth, and for a stretch I felt like I was reading a twisted version of What to Expect When You're Expecting or something.

There were some things about the book I did enjoy. The world borrows--sometimes heavily--from other works, some of which Karpyshyn contributed to. The whole dynamic between the Order and wizards felt a little too close to Dragon Age for comfort. Still, I liked that the world was a new one, and I really liked that rather than using standard fantasy character types, there are some races of Karpyshyn's own creation. The Danaan were interesting, a good commentary on what happens when a culture becomes obsessed with signs and portents at the expense of progress. I'd like to learn more about them. I don't have anything against elves and dwarves and halflings, but it was nice to read a fantasy novel that didn't include them.

Another strong point of the novel was Scythe, though she does waffle a bit. Still, she's different from most female characters in fantasy novels, and though I wouldn't say gender equity had been achieved in Karpyshyn's world, I did enjoy the presence of such a strong, pigheaded female warrior, and I like characters who are more anti-hero than hero. However, I have to add a caveat because I did feel like Scythe's character vacillated quite a bit in the end. She threatens to go, then she stays. This wouldn't be a problem if I felt like she was following some inner logic, but I didn't. In fact, the text explicitly states that she doesn't understand why she's doing what she's doing but she does it anyway. Sure, such moments of irrationality are possible, but they don't feel in keeping with her character, even given the extra incentive of Norr.

Norr is another character who's interesting because he breaks convention. The first time the reader glimpses him in the book, it seems as if he'll fit certain tropes, but then he proceeds to flip those tropes on their heads. This earned a nod of approval from me. I enjoy it when characters act in ways opposite what I expect, and I thought Norr was just a good character anyway.

Lastly, I also very much enjoyed Vaaler. In a lot of ways he's a classic outcast character, but I felt like there were real depths to him. He has every right to turn his back on his people, but he refuses to be defeated and tries to find his place in his world. I think some of the assumptions he draws about why he is, in fact, the right leader for his people are right on the money, and I see a lot of potential for good character development in future installments.

There's a big, full world here with its own mythos, but I think it takes too long for the plot to really get going, and this left me feeling mildly interest at best. There were sections that grabbed me and compelled me to continue reading, but for the most part this book felt like a big setup, one that wasn't interesting enough on its own to get me excited. Instead, I have the impression that future installments will improve, because this book brings the reader up to the speed necessary in order to really get to the good stuff.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Children of Fire is Drew Karpyshyn’s take on an original fantasy setting filled with taboo magic, deep characters and an engrossing plot. There are no orcs, dwarves or pointy eared elves in this fantasy world. Instead it focuses on magic and how the world views it as both acceptable and heretical. From the viewpoints of four children, the story unfolds through various threats, adventures and mysteries. Drawing upon the sea of fire, a well of unfathomable magic, they must battle the forces of chaos to survive. Yet this is only the first part of their journey.

The core of the story lies with a banished immortal named Daemron. A twisted creature who was once human and mortal, Daemron is now an exile in a world of his own creation. Separated from the mortal world by a magical barrier known as the Legacy, Daemron longs to escape from his prison. He uses a complicated ritual to seed his essence on earth. The result is four children born under the Blood Moon. These four children become the main characters of the story: Vaaler, Scythe, Cassandra and Keegan.

Vaaler is a member of the Tree Folk. In this world, they are the equivalent to elves. The Tree Folk live in the Northern Forest of Danaan. They have brownish green skin and a natural affinity for magic. Vaaler is the crown prince of his people, destined to one day rule their empire. But Vaaler has a problem: he was born without the Gift and the Sight. Unable to perform magic or see into the future, he is seen as handicapped. Before him is an upward battle to earn the right to rule and to earn the respect of his mother, the Queen.

Scythe represents the opposite end of the spectrum. Born in a brothel and raised by a doctor who flees to the safety of the ocean, she learns a very different way of life. Scythe is very independent. She learns how to live on her own, how to survive on the streets, and how cruel life can be. Her destiny leads to a life of adventure. She goes where the actions at. Without any aptitude for magic, she has to rely on her own talents.

Cassandra is the beautiful blond with emerald eyes and gifted with the touch of Chaos. The Sight is strong with her. Alas, life is not so kind. Kidnapped and raised by a rogue wizard, Cassandra grows up with only the vaguest memories of her parents. Even then, there is no stability for her as she is threatened by the Order, a monastic group that represses magic and forcefully takes any children gifted with Chaos magic.

Keegan is the most powerful of the bunch. Skilled with both the Sight and the Gift, his raw talent for magic is unprecedented. Like Cassandra, he’s raised by a wizard, but his training is never fully completed. Thrown into the world half trained and brimming with destructive potential, he falls in with a heretic named Jerrod. Jerrod claims Keegan is the Burning Savior, the one destined to defeat the Slayer Daemron. But Jerrod is a fanatic who has fallen onto his last hope. Keegan may be powerful, but is he really the savior?

The story follows the lives of these characters from their births to their early adulthood. It shows their trials and tribulations, and some of them even cross paths. There are other characters who play large parts such as the Pontiff Nazir who leads the Order, the powerful Chaos mage named Rexol, and Daemron himself. Karpyshyn does a great job of developing all the characters slowly. Here and there we get glimpses of just what kind of people these characters are. He stays away from simple good and evil archetypes. All of the characters have their flaws. Some of them are more good than evil. Others are more flawed than perfect. The world they inhabit is one with a rich history, which, like the characters themselves, is slowly revealed here and there. The pacing and content of the book created an engrossing story that’s easy to dive into and hard to leave.

As a fantasy story, Children of Fire stands on its own as a thoroughly entertaining tale. The book strikes a perfect balance between character driven storytelling and rich world building. In comparison to Drew’s Star Wars books, this one stands on par with the best elements of his Darth Bane series. But this isn’t Star Wars and Drew doesn’t hold back in his storytelling. In this world, Chaos magic is a dangerous thing that can as easily destroy your foe as it can yourself. With two more books to follow, Children of Fire kicks the series off with a great start. I give this book an impressive five out of five.

[Sandra Marquardt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ich mag das Cover, das im Speedpainting-Stil gestaltet worden ist und ich denke es ist vor allem ein Buch für Fans von Heldengruppen, die Abenteuer bestehen müssen und nach Artefakten suchen um die Welt zu retten. Mir hat es sehr gut gefallen. Drew Karpyshyn hat einen angenehmen Schreibstil, hat einem auf den ersten 200 Seiten die Geburt und das Aufwachsen der vier Kinder miterleben lassen und sie zumindest mir dadurch beim Lesen noch näher gebracht. Er hat die Handlung anfangs recht linear erzählt und hin und wieder immer mal ein paar neue Wendungen eingefädelt, so dass es nicht langweilig wurde.
Das Setting hat mir gefallen. Typisches Mittelalter mit verschiedenen Völkern wie zum Beispiel den Danaan - einem Waldvolk, den Leuten aus den FreiStädten und den Barbaren aus den östlichen Eislanden und zwischen all dem der Orden des Monasteriums, welcher dem Pontiff Nazir untersteht, welcher Kinder mit der Gabe oder der Sicht zu sich holen lässt um ihre Begabungen zu verfeinern bzw. in der Hoffnung Visionen für die nähere Zukunft deuten zu können. Natürlich gibt es auch die Kehrseite der Medaille. Leute, die sich gegen den Orden stellen wie zum Beispiel der Hexer Rexol der sich mehrerer Schüler angenommen hat um in ihnen die Magie zu stärken, die sie verinnerlichen und nach denen der Pontiff und dessen Inquisitoren fahnden.
Die vier Hauptfiguren haben mir bisher gut gefallen und waren soweit auch sympathisch und interessante Protagonisten mit abenteuerreichen Hintergründen. Vaaler fand ich bisher ein wenig fade, vielleicht kommt er in den folgenden Bänden noch ein wenig mehr aus sich heraus und kann sich beweisen. Ich hoffe es, denn ich vermute, dass er doch nicht ganz so talentlos ist wie alle glauben. Keegan hat noch so einige Probleme seine Macht unter Kontrolle zu halten, auch hier ist es aufregend mitzuerleben wie er stetig lernt seine Magie/das Chaos zu benutzen, aber hin und wieder auch über die Stränge schlägt und über sich und seine Gabe die Kontrolle verliert. Vor allem die Szenen, wenn Keegan Magie angewendet hat wurden vom Autor bildhaft und imposant dargestellt. Wirklich faszinierend! Cassandra fand ich von den Mädchen als einzige interessant, weil sie in so einem Zwiespalt steckt und wie auf einem Schachbrett hin- und hergeschoben wird. Anfangs hat sie keine sonderlich große Rolle gespielt was sich im Verlauf der Handlung jedoch ändert. Scythe ist die einzige Figur, die ich bisher von den Protagonisten nicht sonderlich mag. Sie ist ziemlich egoistisch und denkt nur an sich selbst. Das mochte ich an ihr nicht. In einigen Situationen konnte ich ihre Denkweise allerdings nachvollziehen, dennoch mag ich ihre Art einfach nicht. Zum Ende hin war sie dann aber doch etwas erträglicher.
Die Nebenfiguren hat der Autor soweit auch alle prima in die Geschichte eingefädelt, so dass es ein Gesamtkonstrukt ergibt und alle irgendwie miteinander zu tun haben, das gleichzeitig auch die Geschichte etwas verdichtet hat.
Die Szenen mit Daemron haben mir auch gefallen und waren spannend zu lesen, vor allem seine Knechte sind noch für einige Überraschungen gut, da will ich nicht wissen was es für ein Chaos gibt, wenn der Schlächter wirklich zurückkehren sollte.
Auch die Hintergrundinformationen der Geschichte hat der Autor in aller Ausführlichkeit beschrieben. Das fand ich wirklich toll, da man so auch die Handlung, die Welt der Götter und der Artefakte besser versteht. Auch die Visionen fand ich gut umgesetzt und irgendwie hat der Autor es bei mir immer wieder geschafft mich trotzdem zu überraschen, obwohl es so vorhersehbar wirkte. In einigen Aspekten war die Handlung doch recht vorhersehbar, aber es hat mich beim Lesen nicht gestört.
Das Ende gefiel mir ganz gut, es gab noch eine spannende Wende mit einer Menge Action, von der es im Buch reichlich gibt und ich freue mich schon sehr auf Band 2.

Wer Heldengeschichten mag mit vielen Abenteuern, einer Menge Actionszenen, verschiedenen Protagonisten, Hexern und einer tiefgründigen Hintergrundstory ist hier genau richtig.

[Lilian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nachdem der mächtige Daemron seine Saat in die Welt der sterblichen geschickt hat, scheint sein Plan aufzugehen. Vier Kinder wie sie unterschiedlicher nicht sein könnten werden geboren und in dem einen oder anderen von ihnen beginnt sich bereits die Macht des Chaos zu regen.
Der Order, allen vorran Nazir ist bemüht die magisch begabten Kinder des Landes in seine Fänge zu bekommen um sie unter ihrem Schutz zu stellen. Zusammen mit dem Pontiff will er sich die magischen Kräfte der Begabten zu nutze machen. Für ein heiliges Ziel, selbstverständlich.

Ihm gegenüber steht Rexol, der gefürchtete Hexer, der dem Pontiff ein Dorn im Auge ist, denn Rexor hat es sich ebenfalls zur Aufgabe gemacht, magisch Begabte Schüler zu sich zu holen um sie den Umgang mit der Macht des Chaos zu lehren und sie für sich zu benutzen. Schülerin Cassandra ist die erste die ihm würdig genug erscheint mit ihr richtig zu arbeiten, doch leider wird er gezwungen sie an den Pontiff zu übergeben. Später erhält er eine neue Chance mit Keegan.

Während Cassandra im Buch die erste Zeit ein wenig schwach und fast willenlos wirkt, so ist Keegan gleich von Anfang an ein sehr starker Charakter der seine Macht oft unkontrolliert einsetzt. Zum Glück hat er nicht nur einen Meister, der ihn immer wieder zu bremsen versteht. Die Macht des Chaos ist sehr stark in dem jungen Hexer, aber ebenso sehr in Cassandra, die einen harten und steinigen Weg vor sich hat.

Scythe ist die andere Frau im Bund. Sie ist hart und wirkt oft kühl, irgendwie konnte ich zu ihr keinerlei Beziehung aufbauen, dazu wirkte sie mir zu abgebrüht und emotionslos. Sie ist eine begnadete Meisterin im Kampf und zahlreiche Tote pflastern ihren Weg. Sie hat nicht nur schlechte Seiten, Scythe hatte ein schlimmes Leben bis jetzt und das hat sie geprägt, trotzdem steht sie loyal zu ihrem Freund, was ich ihr dann wieder hoch anrechne. Der nächste den ich erwähnen will ist Vaalan, der Daanan Thronfolger, er scheint über gar keine Gabe zu verfügen und wird somit von seinem eigenen Volk, zu dem er steht, nicht besonders geachtet. Er ist Keegan ein guter Freund und hat mir in seiner Schlüsselrolle gut gefallen.

Der Schreibstil ist einfach zu lesen und ließ mich das Buch in nur wenigen Abenden durchlesen. Dabei hat es Drew Karpyshyn hervorragend verstanden mit seinen Beschreibungen eine tolle Kulisse für die spannende Handlung zu bauen. Mir war zu keiner Zeit des Buches langweilig, im Gegenteil, ständig wollte ich mehr lesen, mehr wissen. Kurz, diese Buch hat mich gefesselt.

Hier passt einfach alles und ich habe schon lange kein so tolles Fantasybuch mehr gelesen. Ich bin jetzt noch ganz hin und weg und bedauere das es noch bis März 2016 dauert bis der 2 Teil" Die Dunkle Flamme" erscheinen wird.

Die Brut des Feuers erhält verdiente 5 von 5 Sternen

[Bruna Bellini · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well... I thought the plot of this book was interesting: some new born childrens with a great power!  So, the story started ok, with lots characters with some interesting developing if their lives. But then,  I think the things started to make no sense. People (wizards) that has the power (Chaos) are hunted, by the Order, who wants to keep the so called Legacy and protect the world from the evil, Daemron. But, it seems some wizards are allowed to have their power and work for kings (?), whatever! The Order has the sight. So,  they know that Daemron are getting strong and will comeback, but they keep with the hands tied, allowing the other enemy ( the wizard) to train someone in the arts of Chaos, and  pretending that nothing is happening. In the end, they are totally powerless. And Jaerrod, also from the Order, with some followers, believe that it has a champion with Chaos power, that can save the world. He keep looking for the savior, but always bringing those he thinks it's the savior, to a powerful wizard, Rexol, that he knows he only wants the power for himself!  So, Rexol is one of the most annoying character of this book, with Scythe, another selfish character. I think the only nice characters in this book are Valeer, Norr and Cassandra. But even they couldn't save the story. Anyway, is such a sad world they all live! Like there are nothing good on it! At all! I love fantasy books, with wizards, thieves, warriors.. whatever! But with a nice quest,  in a world, even with all the monsters and all, but atleast a world that you can imagine someone living! This world of this book is totally gloomy and depressing! It's like don't even make a difference if something really bad happens or not! Another weak point in this book for me is that we rarely have dialogs on the it and, when we have, it's such a silly one! Well.. it was an ok reading, but I don't think I would recommend it.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the beginning, there were a lot of different story lines and characters coming at me that it was hard to keep them all straight. So to be honest, I did not put forth as much effort in the beginning to remembering all of the characters or the book as a whole. I sort of skimmed over the book to get to the section where the action started. Which when I say action I mean the pacing of the story and when it picked up speed for me. This was not until about chapter ten. There was some action with the children using their special abilities but since this is the first book, the author took his time to really give details to the characters, where they come from, and what they are fighting for. Again I am for detail but there is a fine line when it becomes too much, especially when a book is about five hundred pages long.

If you are expecting a sci-fi book than you might be a little disappointed. This book I found to be more about the story telling than about the unexplainable or crazy, special effects. There is something here that might have me checking out the second book but I would probably borrow it from the library instead.

[Cathy Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads. I ejoyed reading this book so much! But the closer I got to the end, it made me realize that I was not going to find out what happens to Keegan and his troop. Oh, what a disappointment! Excellently written, with great characters. I want to find out what happens to Cassandra, Norr and Scythe, Jerrod and Vaaler. The monsters and demons are very believeable, and the story is simply great! Will the Queen join with the demons? Will Keegan learn to control his gift? Will Cassandra survive and what will happen to the Crown? And they haven't even found the Sword yet! I have got to find the next book!!!! RECOMMENDED!

[Miriah Isel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Children of Fire is a fantasy novel portraying the plight of four children and accounting for their lives as they grow and mature-- all in different walks of life.

I haven't read a decent fantasy in a good while for the simple fact that I primarily read Science Fiction Novels so for me this was a good break from my norm and I enjoyed every page of the book. There were times where I was conflicted if I wanted to put the book down from the weight of the character's situation or did I want to continue on to find out how they would push through the obstacle.
Now that I have finished the novel, I am anxious to see what is next.