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The Split Sea #1
A Handful of Souls
Mud, gold and lies. That's all you get in Branera. You'll find no better expert on these things than Lily Kale-Tollworth. Yet she has no clue of the events already in motion around her.
Weeks ago, a murderer with a bleeding grin was released from the Mountain Head. Lily doesn't know this pale-skinned giant has been writing to her. She doesn't even know he's coming to find her. But as her father, Husker Tollworth feels like it's his right.
Days ago, a tax patrol was slaughtered. Lily doesn't know her brother's corpse was pulled from a ditch, stolen by a man who can raise the dead. Lark Kale-Tollworth will follow this bizarre scholar to the Southlands. He will forget how many times he's died.
Hours ago, an informant showed Lily's stepfather an incriminating note. Branera has taxed its villages too hard. An uprising is massing in the Northlands - and they have a noose with Josef Kale's name on it.
At this very moment, Josef is frantically packing their coach, while Lily is drinking whisky in a brothel. She's met the arrogant idiot who will be their guide south. She doesn't know he has a hollow soul, filled with thousands of spirits. She doesn't know his mouth is filled with as many lies.
But if there are three things Lily's good at, it's mud, gold and lies.
Weeks ago, a murderer with a bleeding grin was released from the Mountain Head. Lily doesn't know this pale-skinned giant has been writing to her. She doesn't even know he's coming to find her. But as her father, Husker Tollworth feels like it's his right.
Days ago, a tax patrol was slaughtered. Lily doesn't know her brother's corpse was pulled from a ditch, stolen by a man who can raise the dead. Lark Kale-Tollworth will follow this bizarre scholar to the Southlands. He will forget how many times he's died.
Hours ago, an informant showed Lily's stepfather an incriminating note. Branera has taxed its villages too hard. An uprising is massing in the Northlands - and they have a noose with Josef Kale's name on it.
At this very moment, Josef is frantically packing their coach, while Lily is drinking whisky in a brothel. She's met the arrogant idiot who will be their guide south. She doesn't know he has a hollow soul, filled with thousands of spirits. She doesn't know his mouth is filled with as many lies.
But if there are three things Lily's good at, it's mud, gold and lies.
346 pages, Paperback
First published December 28, 2020
About the author
Stephen Rice
1 book10 followersDangerously enthusiastic author of the Split Sea Novels, Stephen lives in Cambridge UK and writes software as well as books. Winner of absolutely nothing, he writes words that make you laugh, wince and cry - which is a fairly similar experience to reading his code.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
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August 3, 2021
Mud, gold and lies. That’s all you get in Branera.
OH HECK YES THIS BOOK. DARK, BRUTAL, FAMILY-FOCUSED FANTASY.
Okay, to properly ramble about this book, there might be spoilers from here on out. So, SPOILER WARNING.
This is my first read by Stephen Rice and I must say I’m in awe of the prose. So many well spun lines! Like, I just really adored the descriptions and details. So many were so visceral (which is a compliment for a dark fantasy book in my opinion, but my goodness the BLOODY TEETH and the YELLOW GLOWING GUNK and aught else. I won’t clarify further, lmao. This is a fantasy book that doesn’t shy away from the brutal and rough). Despite how grimy and grim the setting was, I could so clearly envision the world and sank into the story easily. The writing is never info-dumpy, nor did it ever get in the way of the plot, but it twists and dives, offering wonderful turns of phrase. Rice’s prose is very descriptive, almost lyrical, even when describing the horrors of the dark world he’s laying out for the reader to devour.
Branera was the proudest, richest city in the Northlands, even if half of it was buried in rivers of mud and shit. The buildings that rose high enough were blessed by the greatest of the northern aristocracy, with boarded paths threading between these affluent peaks and reserved for the exclusive use of the fantastically well-off.
The story follows multiple POVs, but all centred around the Kale-Tollworth family. You follow Husker, Lily, Lark, Rose, Josef, Dren and Crone through the dark and twisting roads of Branera, to the Split Sea, and beyond. The cities and lands have as much life and character as the cast.
That said, Lily stood out to me from the start and her chapters swept me up into the narrative. While she might not look like Max from Black Sails, I couldn’t help but imagine her thus in my head. Can’t explain it!
She was magnificent. Half-baroness, half-beggar. A bit of everything he had ever wanted.
I loved Lily’s character instantly. She was prickly and opiniated and hard-headed, but loyal and determined and I just really rooted for her throughout. Rose, her sister, I was a little bit hesitant about, but following her chapters was very interesting and she juxtaposed Lily nicely. And, I must say, she grew on me and I was rooting hard for the sisters to sort things out.
POOR LARK, though. (Their brother.) Like, poor all of them really, but POOR LARK. I just felt so bad for him. Like, all the time. PROTECT LARK AT ALL COSTS. I don’t think it’s a big spoiler to say Lark dies (it’s on the back cover), and bless his little heart, he just has a rough go of things from start to finish. I really appreciated the final scene cos bless his wee little heart.
Husker and Dren I also felt bad for. Honestly, I just spent pretty much the entire story feeling bad for all the characters and the hardships that they have to, somehow, surmount. I felt SO BAD for some of them at the end, so I really can’t wait to see how it shapes up in the next book and how all the trauma is resolved and the relationships mended.
Despite the grimdark nature of the book, the writing is never too heavy or the moments too bleak for it to be overwhelming. I felt a spark of hope throughout and this wasn’t diminished by the ending (HUZZAH!). I just kept wanting to know what was going to happen to everyone and if they could possibly be all reunited and healedafter all the gunk. So much gunk.
Something I found really quite cool about this story was how unlike so many other fantasy reads it is. Like, it’s grimdark family drama in a world that brought to mind everything from Westeros to Ketterdam. Now that I think about it, I reckon this book would nicely suit fans of A Song of Ice and Fire and The Bone Season. I have also barely dipped my toes in The Wheel of Time and Shadow and Bone book series at this point, but I did enjoy the shows, and I think fans of those would enjoy this! There’s a motely cast of characters and you care for them all despite their edges, and the family relationships are so wonderfully threaded together.
Excited to see where book two takes the Kale-Tollworth family!
Thank you to the author for a review copy.
☆ Blog | Twitter | Instagram ☆
OH HECK YES THIS BOOK. DARK, BRUTAL, FAMILY-FOCUSED FANTASY.
Okay, to properly ramble about this book, there might be spoilers from here on out. So, SPOILER WARNING.
This is my first read by Stephen Rice and I must say I’m in awe of the prose. So many well spun lines! Like, I just really adored the descriptions and details. So many were so visceral (which is a compliment for a dark fantasy book in my opinion, but my goodness the BLOODY TEETH and the YELLOW GLOWING GUNK and aught else. I won’t clarify further, lmao. This is a fantasy book that doesn’t shy away from the brutal and rough). Despite how grimy and grim the setting was, I could so clearly envision the world and sank into the story easily. The writing is never info-dumpy, nor did it ever get in the way of the plot, but it twists and dives, offering wonderful turns of phrase. Rice’s prose is very descriptive, almost lyrical, even when describing the horrors of the dark world he’s laying out for the reader to devour.
Branera was the proudest, richest city in the Northlands, even if half of it was buried in rivers of mud and shit. The buildings that rose high enough were blessed by the greatest of the northern aristocracy, with boarded paths threading between these affluent peaks and reserved for the exclusive use of the fantastically well-off.
The story follows multiple POVs, but all centred around the Kale-Tollworth family. You follow Husker, Lily, Lark, Rose, Josef, Dren and Crone through the dark and twisting roads of Branera, to the Split Sea, and beyond. The cities and lands have as much life and character as the cast.
That said, Lily stood out to me from the start and her chapters swept me up into the narrative. While she might not look like Max from Black Sails, I couldn’t help but imagine her thus in my head. Can’t explain it!
She was magnificent. Half-baroness, half-beggar. A bit of everything he had ever wanted.
I loved Lily’s character instantly. She was prickly and opiniated and hard-headed, but loyal and determined and I just really rooted for her throughout. Rose, her sister, I was a little bit hesitant about, but following her chapters was very interesting and she juxtaposed Lily nicely. And, I must say, she grew on me and I was rooting hard for the sisters to sort things out.
POOR LARK, though. (Their brother.) Like, poor all of them really, but POOR LARK. I just felt so bad for him. Like, all the time. PROTECT LARK AT ALL COSTS. I don’t think it’s a big spoiler to say Lark dies (it’s on the back cover), and bless his little heart, he just has a rough go of things from start to finish. I really appreciated the final scene cos bless his wee little heart.
Husker and Dren I also felt bad for. Honestly, I just spent pretty much the entire story feeling bad for all the characters and the hardships that they have to, somehow, surmount. I felt SO BAD for some of them at the end, so I really can’t wait to see how it shapes up in the next book and how all the trauma is resolved and the relationships mended.
Despite the grimdark nature of the book, the writing is never too heavy or the moments too bleak for it to be overwhelming. I felt a spark of hope throughout and this wasn’t diminished by the ending (HUZZAH!). I just kept wanting to know what was going to happen to everyone and if they could possibly be all reunited and healed
Something I found really quite cool about this story was how unlike so many other fantasy reads it is. Like, it’s grimdark family drama in a world that brought to mind everything from Westeros to Ketterdam. Now that I think about it, I reckon this book would nicely suit fans of A Song of Ice and Fire and The Bone Season. I have also barely dipped my toes in The Wheel of Time and Shadow and Bone book series at this point, but I did enjoy the shows, and I think fans of those would enjoy this! There’s a motely cast of characters and you care for them all despite their edges, and the family relationships are so wonderfully threaded together.
Excited to see where book two takes the Kale-Tollworth family!
Thank you to the author for a review copy.
☆ Blog | Twitter | Instagram ☆
September 26, 2022
Score: 4.75 out of 5 stars
Full review text: https://vueltaspodcast.wordpress.com/...
Interview with Stephen Rice: https://vueltaspodcast.wordpress.com/...
A Handful of Souls is the debut novel from the English author Stephen Rice and certainly, a unique book in the way it takes some themes. Defining its genre is certainly something kinda difficult, so I think the best way to define it is by making ours the term used by the own author "family grimdark", as certainly we are going to follow the story of the Kale-Tollworth family, and the characters have a certainly questionable moral.
While the story follows multiple POVs, all of them will be centered around the Kale-Tollworth family, showing an interesting variety of characters, one of them being Lily, which easily became my favourite. And let me stop here because I cannot express how well-written Lily is. Her chapters are certainly the most interesting, and it's a character that I loved from the start. She was prickly and hard-headed and might have a small problem with certain substances, but also a real force in this book; and as we usually tend to see her in the company of Rose, her sister, much more cautious, who usually overthinks, all these characteristics from Lily are enhanced due to comparisons.
Lark, the brother of Lily, has enrolled in the tax militias, and well, has been poisoned. In contraposition to Lily, we see a much more vulnerable person in Lark, and somebody who is just receiving all the bad things that could happen in his life, especially after his death. Don't worry, this is not a spoiler, it's basically the first chapter of the book, and the way one of the fantastical elements of the Split Sea world is introduced, the Necromancy, as a mage, Terrano, has got the corpse of Lark to experiment (something that as you can imagine is not exactly the most desirable end to somebody). Outside of Lark and Lily, we are also going to follow Husker and Dren, being Husker another element that will add conflict to the plot, as he has been recently freed from prison, because he was a murderer, and had been writing to Lily, without her knowing about it; Dren will serve as a sort of guide to him.
Let's dive now into one of the aspects I loved in A Handful of Souls, which is the world. The Split Sea feels like a mix between post-industrial revolution England, and Taboo, balancing between the fantastic elements, and the crudeness of grimdark; something that Rice does by creating certain contrasts between the Southlands and Branera, which are separated by the Split. The extension of travel chapters also helps to create a certain sensation of the immensity of this rather small zone, helping us to empathize with Lily in particular.
The writing style of Rice is something I would also like to highlight, as it is different from classical grimdark, not being as heavy and bleak as it appears to be the standard in the genre. And probably it's due to the difference that this book has with the standard, as rather than ending hopeless, we can see some light rays at the end, some redemption possibilities for our characters.
I enjoyed greatly the uncommon of A Handful of Souls. Rather than a classical story, we get a family grimdark, in the best style of what we could have seen in A Song of Ice and Fire; and honestly, any fan of it will greatly enjoy A Handful Of Souls. My journey across the Split has felt rather short, and hopefully, Rice will deliver us an opportunity to return soon, to experiment another time adventures with the Kale-Tollworth family.
Full review text: https://vueltaspodcast.wordpress.com/...
Interview with Stephen Rice: https://vueltaspodcast.wordpress.com/...
A Handful of Souls is the debut novel from the English author Stephen Rice and certainly, a unique book in the way it takes some themes. Defining its genre is certainly something kinda difficult, so I think the best way to define it is by making ours the term used by the own author "family grimdark", as certainly we are going to follow the story of the Kale-Tollworth family, and the characters have a certainly questionable moral.
While the story follows multiple POVs, all of them will be centered around the Kale-Tollworth family, showing an interesting variety of characters, one of them being Lily, which easily became my favourite. And let me stop here because I cannot express how well-written Lily is. Her chapters are certainly the most interesting, and it's a character that I loved from the start. She was prickly and hard-headed and might have a small problem with certain substances, but also a real force in this book; and as we usually tend to see her in the company of Rose, her sister, much more cautious, who usually overthinks, all these characteristics from Lily are enhanced due to comparisons.
Lark, the brother of Lily, has enrolled in the tax militias, and well, has been poisoned. In contraposition to Lily, we see a much more vulnerable person in Lark, and somebody who is just receiving all the bad things that could happen in his life, especially after his death. Don't worry, this is not a spoiler, it's basically the first chapter of the book, and the way one of the fantastical elements of the Split Sea world is introduced, the Necromancy, as a mage, Terrano, has got the corpse of Lark to experiment (something that as you can imagine is not exactly the most desirable end to somebody). Outside of Lark and Lily, we are also going to follow Husker and Dren, being Husker another element that will add conflict to the plot, as he has been recently freed from prison, because he was a murderer, and had been writing to Lily, without her knowing about it; Dren will serve as a sort of guide to him.
Let's dive now into one of the aspects I loved in A Handful of Souls, which is the world. The Split Sea feels like a mix between post-industrial revolution England, and Taboo, balancing between the fantastic elements, and the crudeness of grimdark; something that Rice does by creating certain contrasts between the Southlands and Branera, which are separated by the Split. The extension of travel chapters also helps to create a certain sensation of the immensity of this rather small zone, helping us to empathize with Lily in particular.
The writing style of Rice is something I would also like to highlight, as it is different from classical grimdark, not being as heavy and bleak as it appears to be the standard in the genre. And probably it's due to the difference that this book has with the standard, as rather than ending hopeless, we can see some light rays at the end, some redemption possibilities for our characters.
I enjoyed greatly the uncommon of A Handful of Souls. Rather than a classical story, we get a family grimdark, in the best style of what we could have seen in A Song of Ice and Fire; and honestly, any fan of it will greatly enjoy A Handful Of Souls. My journey across the Split has felt rather short, and hopefully, Rice will deliver us an opportunity to return soon, to experiment another time adventures with the Kale-Tollworth family.
August 10, 2022
Can a grimdark fantasy be swashbuckling? I think this one is! The characters are distinct, ribald and at times very fun. The plot is so damn original that at times it veers almost into the surreal. Lily was an absolute force to be reckoned with. I enjoyed this one!
November 5, 2022
I really enjoyed this book! A fantasy book that’s not afraid of embracing it’s creepy side. I am not saying this is Grimdark I’m saying it’s closer to a fantasy with some horror elements. Demons, undead, and feasters EVERYWHERE. I Had some fun with this book. Great characters in the broken Family of Rose, Lily, Lark and Husker. There dynamic is dysfunctional with a tinge of duty to each other. I really enjoyed following these characters.
My biggest con is that I wanted more connective tissue between chapters. Characters can be in doing one thing in this location one chapter and then next chapter they have time skipped a month and are doing something related but different in another location. It requires you to piece the story together rather than flow with the narrative!
Overall I call this one a win! Interesting dysfunctional characters that entertain and magic that reminds me a bit of Mark Lawrence book of the ancestor! Brutal at times but never over the top. I think there is a lot to love here.
My biggest con is that I wanted more connective tissue between chapters. Characters can be in doing one thing in this location one chapter and then next chapter they have time skipped a month and are doing something related but different in another location. It requires you to piece the story together rather than flow with the narrative!
Overall I call this one a win! Interesting dysfunctional characters that entertain and magic that reminds me a bit of Mark Lawrence book of the ancestor! Brutal at times but never over the top. I think there is a lot to love here.
September 21, 2022
I received A Handful Of Souls in exchange for a honest review.
First off this is not the authors fault at all but it is Amazon's, they need to work on the quality of their bookbinding as my copy now has pages falling out after one read through.
A Handful Of Souls is a fantastic fantasy novel and an amazing debut for Stephen Rice which has made me excited for Book Two A Kings Feast.
If you are a lover of the Necromancy trope but with added humour then this is perfect for you, Rice takes Necromancy and puts his own twist on the law.
Rice writes characters that we can relate to especially if you have a sibling, reading the dialogue between lily and Rose was like reading about me and my sister.
This book keeps getting listed as a Teen/YA novel but it reads as an adult novel.
Rice manages to tie off some plot lines to give a satisfying ending but leaves enough open to make you want to FEAST on more.
First off this is not the authors fault at all but it is Amazon's, they need to work on the quality of their bookbinding as my copy now has pages falling out after one read through.
A Handful Of Souls is a fantastic fantasy novel and an amazing debut for Stephen Rice which has made me excited for Book Two A Kings Feast.
If you are a lover of the Necromancy trope but with added humour then this is perfect for you, Rice takes Necromancy and puts his own twist on the law.
Rice writes characters that we can relate to especially if you have a sibling, reading the dialogue between lily and Rose was like reading about me and my sister.
This book keeps getting listed as a Teen/YA novel but it reads as an adult novel.
Rice manages to tie off some plot lines to give a satisfying ending but leaves enough open to make you want to FEAST on more.
December 22, 2022
A promising start to a world that offers political intrigue, dark magic, and much more to explore in future books.
The world building is very good, and with some intriguing characters along for the journey. I didn't connect so well with the main characters. However, I did enjoy the story arc of Husker Tolworth, who is a fascinating character. I enjoy books with complex, morally grey characters, and this book as them in abundance.
There were some pacing issues for me, where I felt the story lost focus somewhere in the middle, and again towards the end. I found it slightly disjointed in places, with jumps in time and location, which didn't work for me overall, but I know this will not be an issue for other readers.
What I found different, in a good way, about this story is the creepy undertones to the world and some of the characters. I definitely felt uncomfortable at times, which is credit to the writing.
If you enjoy dark fantasy, bordering on fantasy horror, with grim dark overtones, involving broken families, political intrigue and characters with questionable morals, then you will love this book.
Thank you for taking the time to read my review.
The world building is very good, and with some intriguing characters along for the journey. I didn't connect so well with the main characters. However, I did enjoy the story arc of Husker Tolworth, who is a fascinating character. I enjoy books with complex, morally grey characters, and this book as them in abundance.
There were some pacing issues for me, where I felt the story lost focus somewhere in the middle, and again towards the end. I found it slightly disjointed in places, with jumps in time and location, which didn't work for me overall, but I know this will not be an issue for other readers.
What I found different, in a good way, about this story is the creepy undertones to the world and some of the characters. I definitely felt uncomfortable at times, which is credit to the writing.
If you enjoy dark fantasy, bordering on fantasy horror, with grim dark overtones, involving broken families, political intrigue and characters with questionable morals, then you will love this book.
Thank you for taking the time to read my review.
August 9, 2021
Loved it, highly recommended.
September 17, 2024
what a strange, beguiling story
Pick up this book. It's not like anything else I've ever read, and now that I've started this series, I can't stop. These are some of the best written characters I've seen in a long time.
Pick up this book. It's not like anything else I've ever read, and now that I've started this series, I can't stop. These are some of the best written characters I've seen in a long time.
January 14, 2021
Fast paced fantasy, set in a rich world full of cities bursting with character! Would recommend to any fantasy fan.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews