Tim Akers' The Pagan Night was published by Titan Books in January 2016.
Information about Tim Akers:
Tim Akers was born in deeply rural North Carolina, the only son of a theologian. He is the author of the Burn Cycle from Solaris Books, as well as The Horns of Ruin, featuring Eva Forge, published by Pyr Books. The Pagan Night is his inaugural entry into epic fantasy.
Click here to visit his official website.
Information about The Pagan Night:
The Celestial Church has all but eliminated the old pagan ways, ruling the people with an iron hand. Demonic gheists terrorize the land, hunted by the warriors of the Inquisition, yet it is the battling factions within the Church and age-old hatreds between north and south that tear the land apart.
Malcolm Blakley, hero of the Reaver War, seeks to end the conflict between men, yet it will fall to his son, Ian, and the huntress Gwen Adair to stop the killing before it tears the land apart. The Pagan Night is an epic of mad gods, inquisitor priests, holy knights bound to hunt and kill, and noble houses fighting battles of politics, prejudice, and power.
A REVIEW OF TIM AKERS' THE PAGAN NIGHT
Tim Akers' The Pagan Night is the first novel of The Hallowed War series (it will be followed by The Iron Hound and The Winter Vow). It is the author's first foray into epic fantasy - and it's a good one.
Because I had previously read Tim Akers' The Burn Cycle and enjoyed it, I was excited when I heard that he had written The Pagan Night. I'm glad I had an opportunity to read it, because it's a strong and well written start to a new epic fantasy series. It is without a doubt among the most interesting epic fantasy novels published this year and will appeal to readers who like entertaining novels.
The Pagan Night is an interesting combination of different elements ranging from epic fantasy to dark fantasy. Tim Akers successfully blends epic fantasy elements with Celtic and mediaeval elements and creates a fascinating story. He writes well about conflicts and intrigue, and also does a fine job at writing about the characters' lives and feelings.
Here's a bit of information about the story:
In the beginning, Allaister leads Tenerran men to Gardengerry to kill Suhdrin men. Tunnie is suspicious of Allaister, because he knows nothing about him or his background. Soon the men enter Gardengerry where Allaister sacrifices Tunnie and turns him into something unholy... Artur is traveling towards Gardengerry with his daughter, Marie. They're going to meet Artur's brother there and celebrate the Allfire festival. When they arrive there, a carnage awaits them. They meet Frair Lucas who is an inquisitor of Suhdra. Frair Lucas hunts the gheist that destroyed Gardengerry. He is a bit afraid of what is growing in the trail of the demon... Ian Blakley, the son of the duke of Houndhallow, is practicing swordsplay before the high elector arrives to Houndhallow. The high elector meets Malcolm, Ian's father, and tells him that the church has need of him. The high elector wants Malcolm and Ian to go to Greenhall with him to spend the Allfire festival there. Greenhall is ruled by Gabriel Halverdt who may cause problems, because there are conflicts between the North and the South... Gwen Adair, the huntress of House Adair, is about to celebrate the Allfire festival with her family in the castle Fen Gate. She participates in the ancient pagan ritual that is carried out by a witch. Soon Frair Lucas arrives to the castle and tells Gwen's family that he's been tracking a gheist. He tells the huntress to call the hunt, because they have a god to kill...
This is the fascinating beginning of a story that has plenty of action, intrigue and supernatural elements. The author delivers a strong story that will keep readers turning pages to find out what happens at the end.
The characterisation is good and flawless. All of the main characters - Malcom and Ian Blakley and Gwen Adair - are realistic and well portrayed characters, each with their own characteristics and traits. They're interesting individuals who have problems and secrets of their own.
Malcolm Blakley, the duke of Houndhallow, is a level-headed man who does his best to keep peace. He is a hero of the Reaver War and many people trust and respect him. He feels the weight of responsibility on his shoulders and tries to seek a way to end the conflict between men before the land is torn asunder.
Ian Blackley, Malcolm's son, is a young man who is skilled at using a sword. He is not as experienced in politics and diplomacy as his father, but he wants to learn things. He's like any other young man and has a strong mind of his own. He knows the glory of battle and war, but doesn't entirely realise that he has a lot to learn.
The relationship between Malcolm and Ian is loving and protective, but there are disagreements between them. Malcolm tries to shelter his son from the horrors of war and tries to give him a chance for a childhood, but Ian is willing to take risks and wants to make a difference. Malcolm has plenty of knowledge about war, but Ian knows little of it except for the glory.
Gwen Adair is the huntress of House Adair. She has double faith - she is loyal to the church, but she is also to the old pagan ways. She secretly says old prayers to pagan gods. She knows that her family has a lot to lose if the church finds out about how they worship pagan gods.
I was positively surprised by the quality of the dialogues between the characters, because they were realistic. They felt believable and natural. The author seemed to have paid attention to them, which is great, because well written dialogues are an essential part of epic fantasy fiction.
The worldbuilding is good, because Tim Akers has created an interesting history for his fantasy world. It's great that the author gradually begins to reveal bits and pieces of the world and its history, because it feels natural to learn new things about the world as the story unfolds.
The conflicts between Tener and Suhdr are handled well, because there are tensions and some grudges have never truly been forgiven or forgotten. Suhdra is suffering from blight that affects fields and the forests are bare of game, but Tener doesn't have the same problems. Suhdr is a church-fearing land and the church has many followers there, but the northerners are more inclined to old pagan ways and some of them still hold the ancient rites close to their hearts. The southerners don't like those who worships pagan gods.
The church matters are portrayed excellently, because the author shows how much power the church has and how it meddles in people's lives. The church does good and banishes evil, but not everyone looks favourably upon its deeds and financial needs. It was fascinating to read about how people felt about the church and faith.
The supernatural elements are fascinating. Because I love the darker and weirder side of fantasy fiction, I enjoyed reading about the gheists. The author wrote well about them and what they do. It was interesting that the gheists were the gods of the old religion. Some of them had gone mad, because they were deprived of their sacrifices and abandoned to the quiet places of the forest. Tenerrans used to worship these spirits for generations before the crusaders arrived.
One of the best things about this fantasy novel is that it is genuinely intriguing and approriately intense. The author tells about the happenings in an engaging and fluid style that keeps the story flowing effortlessly. He delivers enough twists and surprises to keep readers fascinated by what happens to the characters.
The action scenes are well written and there's enough grittiness to please those who want roughness from their fantasy stories. In my opinion, Tim Akers writes good action scenes and knows how to keep them intriguing.
It's nice that this novel has maps. I personally consider maps to be an essential part of epic fantasy novels, because they give readers an opportunity to form a picture of the whole world.
I look forward to reading the sequel, The Iron Hound, because the author has created a good and strong story with interesting characters. I want to find out what happens next, because this novel offered an interesting glimpse into a world where conflicts abound and mad gods cause death and devastation.
This novel consists of every component that a good and entertaining fantasy novel should have - it contains action, grittiness, magic, intrigue and well created characters. It also has a few dark fantasy elements that will please readers who love the darker side of fantasy fiction.
I give this novel strong four stars on the scale from one to five stars, because the author has succeeded in creating a good story that deserves to be read. It's a satisfying reading experience. This may sound a bit strange and I'm not sure if all readers will agree with me on this, but this novel reads almost like an entertaining and exotic blend of Kate Elliott and Gail Z. Martin with a faint touch of Glen Cook.
The Pagan Night a strong start to The Hallowed War series, because it has heart, soul, style and grittiness in equal measure. It manages to be both entertaining and thrilling, and it never descends into mediocrity. It's a gripping read and should not be missed by fans of entertaining epic fantasy, because it is something familiar yet slightly different.
Highly entertaining epic fantasy!