As you may (or may not) have known it, I am a fan of fantasy novels. Another strange fact: I am an aphantasiast (one who has aphantasia; or who is literally cannot picture anything in their head). Foggy images floats through my head as words flows. I still can get lost in the words if the story is good enough, however. The process is quite fun.

My recent “book hunting” led me to “Master of Sorrows” and “Master Artificer”, which are the titles of two books in a series called “The Silent Gods” by Justin Call. I spent 1.5 days going through the series, and opened my computer just to write this review.

In short, “The Slient Gods” is incredible.

The two books are told in third person, mostly follow Annev, who is a “traditional” “chosen one”: clueless at his origin; having a good sense of honor; fighting smart but not book smart. He has a mysterious mentor, which is also a father figure named Sodar. Annev is bullied by an upper class man named Fyn, and falls for Myjun, the daughter of the magic (anti-magic to be precise) school’s princple.

World building of the series is thick with magic and mythologies. Mysteries unravel themselves slowly, keep you suspended, wanting to know more. Everyone in the story is a big shade of gray. Even the ones that we “supposed” to hate do have their own vision, own motives, and own reasons. We understand them, but do not necessary accept their actions.

“The Silent Gods” is not for everyone, however. Slow pacing can be liked by one and disliked by another. The grayness of the series means sometimes, we cannot even root for Annev, the protagonist, on his actions. Rich, detailed, and multi-layered world building can potentially overwhelm the readers. “Master Artificer”, the second book of the series, splits its focuses to multiple “important” characters, which can be distracting and confusing (I myself sometimes skip an entire chapter for the reason).

To conclude the review, “The Silent Gods” is for you if your taste is:

  • Mystery
  • Dark Fantasy
  • Realistic Characters
  • Complex World Building

I really look forward to seeing how would Annev be “Master of The Fallen” in the next book (sorry for the minor spoiler!).