What do you think?
Rate this book
Crata Velden #1
The Tyranny of Shadows
A simple mission, a web of lies.
Infiltrate the keep, remain unseen, leave only a corpse.
For Gillis and Amelia, two of the Mordenari's most trusted assassins, it should have been a routine job. A little bloody, sure, but nothing they couldn't handle.
But Amelia has other plans, an old score to settle, and her deception—should her employers learn the truth—could mean a short trip on a rope for both of them.
With no one left to trust in a world consumed by murder and deceit, Gillis and Amelia know they're both only a single step ahead of the grave.
Infiltrate the keep, remain unseen, leave only a corpse.
For Gillis and Amelia, two of the Mordenari's most trusted assassins, it should have been a routine job. A little bloody, sure, but nothing they couldn't handle.
But Amelia has other plans, an old score to settle, and her deception—should her employers learn the truth—could mean a short trip on a rope for both of them.
With no one left to trust in a world consumed by murder and deceit, Gillis and Amelia know they're both only a single step ahead of the grave.
312 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 6, 2019
40 people are currently reading
128 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 6, 2019
A breeze to read.
The plot of the novel is fairly simple and all through the time I was reading the book, I realised that it was a very easy read. The plot is simple, it mostly seems like a quest and the characters had the potential to be something more, sometimes fall flat. The magic system is fairly simple which works and the ending is well tied up.
The antagonist doesn't feel dangerous, at least to me, maybe it is my perception but I could not feel a sense of dread whenever the antagonist was shown. There were some typos which is okay because self publishing is a lot of work.
Overall a 4 rating for solid effort and an easy read.
The plot of the novel is fairly simple and all through the time I was reading the book, I realised that it was a very easy read. The plot is simple, it mostly seems like a quest and the characters had the potential to be something more, sometimes fall flat. The magic system is fairly simple which works and the ending is well tied up.
The antagonist doesn't feel dangerous, at least to me, maybe it is my perception but I could not feel a sense of dread whenever the antagonist was shown. There were some typos which is okay because self publishing is a lot of work.
Overall a 4 rating for solid effort and an easy read.
December 24, 2019
Straightforward and predictable fantasy story. It felt too flat to me. Clunky dialogue, weird character relationships, somewhat nonsensical magic system. I found much of the writing at least slightly off-putting and it kept me from being invested in any of the characters or their respective missions. Friendships formed rather awkwardly and incredible perception blindness by otherwise hyper-competent assassins/agents advanced the story. There is certainly some potential, but overall this felt like the self-published debut it is.
August 18, 2021
2.5 stars rounded up.
The story was good, and I enjoyed the characters but the pacing was off and there were a lot of grammatical errors in the ebook version that were quite jarring.
The story was good, and I enjoyed the characters but the pacing was off and there were a lot of grammatical errors in the ebook version that were quite jarring.
April 20, 2019
I received this book some months ago when it was free on Amazon. I'm very glad I decided to read it!
The blurb describes the setup of the book fairly well, but perhaps makes it sound a little grittier than it really is. I found the greatest strength of the book to be very endearing character interactions. Being about an order of assassins, the book is a little bloody at times, which some pretty solid action sequences, but my favorite parts were the small scenes between the four main characters. Seeing everyone slowly becoming friends, sometimes reluctantly, often times over one character's cooking, made for some pretty heartwarming moments. Two characters not mentioned at all in the blurb - the former soldier Choson and the giant Roos - were my two favorites. I ended up very attached to each of the characters.
I really liked the magic in this book. While it's not super intricately detailed, it has multiple forms of magic that I found to each be quite interesting to read about. The primary magic used by the assassins is called "Momaentum", and it isn't too far off from what it sounds like. In essence, it lets the assassins move very quickly to make them a real force in combat. The most interesting and inventive type of magic in the story was a series of oils/powders and enchantments. The rules of this system was pretty vague, just a kinda twist on a generic potion brewing - i.e. can kinda do whatever it needs to do. The actual uses of these oils/powders was fun though, my favorite being a "hearing oil" that is used to transmit sound. This is used early on to baste a lord's dinner to listen in on a dinner conversation (once tuned to filter out the sounds of digestion).
Ultimately, I really really enjoyed reading this book. In general it was fairly quick and light read, but it kept me engaged and it was enough to make me feel for the characters and feel their struggles. I definitely recommend this book to others!
The blurb describes the setup of the book fairly well, but perhaps makes it sound a little grittier than it really is. I found the greatest strength of the book to be very endearing character interactions. Being about an order of assassins, the book is a little bloody at times, which some pretty solid action sequences, but my favorite parts were the small scenes between the four main characters. Seeing everyone slowly becoming friends, sometimes reluctantly, often times over one character's cooking, made for some pretty heartwarming moments. Two characters not mentioned at all in the blurb - the former soldier Choson and the giant Roos - were my two favorites. I ended up very attached to each of the characters.
I really liked the magic in this book. While it's not super intricately detailed, it has multiple forms of magic that I found to each be quite interesting to read about. The primary magic used by the assassins is called "Momaentum", and it isn't too far off from what it sounds like. In essence, it lets the assassins move very quickly to make them a real force in combat. The most interesting and inventive type of magic in the story was a series of oils/powders and enchantments. The rules of this system was pretty vague, just a kinda twist on a generic potion brewing - i.e. can kinda do whatever it needs to do. The actual uses of these oils/powders was fun though, my favorite being a "hearing oil" that is used to transmit sound. This is used early on to baste a lord's dinner to listen in on a dinner conversation (once tuned to filter out the sounds of digestion).
Ultimately, I really really enjoyed reading this book. In general it was fairly quick and light read, but it kept me engaged and it was enough to make me feel for the characters and feel their struggles. I definitely recommend this book to others!
February 10, 2019
A good read with engaging characters. Loved the direction the author took the assassin characters, making them more relatable and quirky rather than jaded, coldhearted killers set on one goal.
I especially liked the giant and his swordsman companion (don't remember names, but I did not forget the impact they had in the story).
The magic system was also ingenious with its original usages throughout the novel.
A well thought out fantasy novel. You will not be disappointed in reading this.
I especially liked the giant and his swordsman companion (don't remember names, but I did not forget the impact they had in the story).
The magic system was also ingenious with its original usages throughout the novel.
A well thought out fantasy novel. You will not be disappointed in reading this.
May 24, 2019
A good, quick read. Engaging characters - although I kind of wish the story were longer, so they could be developed further. The ending was okay, but it felt a little hollow.
July 8, 2019
Excellent light read
I read it all in one sitting. Light and easy to follow Fantasy prose, likeable characters and a simple but interesting plot. The beginning and end felt a little too brief but I love how it ended on a heartwarming note. Glad I found this book, it was a refreshing read.
I read it all in one sitting. Light and easy to follow Fantasy prose, likeable characters and a simple but interesting plot. The beginning and end felt a little too brief but I love how it ended on a heartwarming note. Glad I found this book, it was a refreshing read.
July 29, 2021
Enjoyable
I really enjoyed the story. Writing was crisp and there were very few grammatical errors.
There was very little world building which was ok, because it was not needed. But what was needed was character growth. There needed to be more in depth focus on how characters developed emotional connections. It all felt very rushed.
I really enjoyed the story. Writing was crisp and there were very few grammatical errors.
There was very little world building which was ok, because it was not needed. But what was needed was character growth. There needed to be more in depth focus on how characters developed emotional connections. It all felt very rushed.
January 9, 2023
The Tyranny of Shadows (A Crata Velden Novel), my second read from author Timothy S. Currey. A 312-page enjoyable read. “I received a free Kindle copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review." The gifting of this book did not affect my opinion of it. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018.
March 29, 2020
Loved this story! Great world building and I was instantly engaged and invested in the characters. I really liked the consistent theme of loyalty throughout the story. Excellent debut novel! Can’t wait to see more from this author.
December 3, 2023
This book is all kinds of amazing. When I read the blurb, I knew I had to read it and I am SO glad I did. This is a powerful story, full of action, betrayal and strong characters. This was a fun and exciting read. Don't waste more time reading my review and go read the book. Fantastic!
February 2, 2019
Decent read! A little light and kind of a jumble of a variety of elements but it all came together in the end.
March 30, 2019
Quick read and story was ok. No suspension and predicable plot. Good if free or cheap.
October 2, 2019
An enjoyable read, short but with solid characters, interesting worldbuilding and a good ending. Definitely would recommend reading.
October 3, 2022
Enjoyable but nothing spectacular. It's a pretty quick read, but not one that I'll probably revisit.
March 20, 2023
solid story
Enjoyed the characters and how their backgrounds were shared. Good stuff! Looking forward to reading more books from this author.
Enjoyed the characters and how their backgrounds were shared. Good stuff! Looking forward to reading more books from this author.
July 5, 2023
An easy read, not overly complex, basic magic system explained. Not maybe quite the same style of ending as similar books but a fine ending all the same, if maybe a little abrupt.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews