The Way Into Chaos
Book One of The Great Way
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4.5 • 25 Ratings
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- $3.99
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- $3.99
Publisher Description
The city of Peradain is the heart of an empire built with steel, spears,and a monopoly on magic… until, in a single day, it falls, overthrown by a swarm of supernatural creatures of incredible power and ferocity. Neither soldier nor spell caster can stand against them.
The empire's armies are crushed, its people scattered, its king and queen killed. Freed for the first time in generations, city-states scramble to seize neighboring territories and capture imperial spell casters. But as the creatures spread across the land, these formerly conquered peoples discover they are not prepared to face the enemy that destroyed an empire.
Can the last Peradaini prince, pursued by the beasts that killed his parents, cross battle-torn lands to retrieve a spell that might—just might—turn the battle against this new enemy?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Connolly (the Twenty Palaces urban fantasy series) makes his first foray into crowdfunded self-publishing with this immersive, thrilling, and elf-free epic fantasy trilogy launch. Peradain is the capital of a loosely held feudal empire where the rulers hold a monopoly on magic and back it up with steel. On the day of a major festival, the city is invaded and overrun with monsters that rapidly spread across the country in a destructive wave. As the empire begins to falter, a small band of loyalists seeks a new spell that will defeat the beasts and restore the crown. The tightly written story alternately follows Tejohn Treygar, a senior warrior guarding the king, and Cazia Freewell, a 15-year-old student of magic. Connolly deftly moves the action across the countryside and explores the changing lives of soldiers, slaves, nobles, and nomads without being bogged down by politics. The high body count is unsurprising for the genre; less typical, and very welcome, are the egalitarian treatment of gender and the lack of sexual violence. This twisty, subversive novel will win Connolly a whole new set of fans. (BookLife)
Customer Reviews
A grand epic
This is the first installment of three parts. The world it reveals is dense, complex and worth the effort. The characters are not the usual swaggering heroes. Instead, they are flawed, real and men and women. The emerging portrait of human beings is messy yet inspired.
The scope of the characters presses the edge of the novels. Ultimately, the plot drives past some to move to a conclusion.
I read all three installments with interest and recommend them highly.
Nice story & writing
I got a sample of this book and could not put it down. It combines fantasy with science fiction and I can't wait to start the next book. Worth trying because it is well written, just plan on some late nights trying to finish it.