Have you ever found yourself ambling around your local bookstore, mumbling as you search the shelves for something – anything– that will fulfill your need for fictional giants mounted on giant bears? Search no longer, my darlings! I present to you: “The Faithful and the Fallen” fantasy series by British fantasy author John Gwynne.

A race of warrior angels, the Ben-Elim, once vanquished a mighty demon horde. Now they rule the Banished lands, but their peace is brutally enforced.The First Law is a fantasy series composed of a trilogy and three stand-alone novels set in the same world, written by British novelist Joe Abercrombie. I loved the characters. Corban ben Thannon may be my favorite Chosen One character of all time. He's flawed, stubborn, and makes mistakes, but you can understand his reasoning and he never feels "pure good" to an obnoxious or unrelatable level. Reading Maquin's journey was an incredible experience, and watching him finally get his vengeance in Wrath was exhilarating, and watching Fidele die was heartbreaking... Veradis ben Lamar may be one of the most interesting, three-dimensional characters I've read. His conflict between serving his blood-brother, High King Nathair, and fighting for good was highly engaging. The series really points out the dangers of committing atrocities for "the greater good," which I thought was a great touch. I enjoyed most of the POV's, honestly; Camlin, Fidele, Coralen, on the side of Good, and even Uthas and Lykos's chapters were interesting. While I thoroughly enjoyed exploring this world, I wouldn't say that it blew me away. Although engaging, it weaves around some rather tropey ideas – tropes that I personally love, but which might feel familiar to seasoned readers of the genre. Gwynne's world-building is both expansive and intricate, yet it treads a path well-worn by fantasy predecessors, striking a balance between the comfort of the known and the allure of a new take on ancient myths. I absolutely loved almost everything about this book that in fact, I only have two really minor cons. The following three books in the series - Valour, Ruin and Wrath, were all shortlisted for the David Gemmell Legend Award for Best Fantasy Novels of 2014, 2015 and 2016, with Wrath winning the 2017 BookNest Awards for Best Traditionally Published Novel.

So next time you’re in a bookshop and you hear somebody muttering “giants… where are all the giants?”you’ll be able to step in and give them exactly what they need.

A Chorus of Dragons by Jenn Lyons

Love and family! Something I just have to give Gwynne a standing ovation for is how he writes love between family and friends. This is one of the reasons why you will love the characters so much. There are so many small but moving scenes in these books and they felt so real. I haven't really read stuff like that before. P.S The last 10% of this book was cruelly and realistically heart-breaking. I had to remind myself to BREATHE constantly. Who would I recommend this to: I think this book would only be suited to adults who have a heart of steel. There are a few parts in this story that are brutal and I literally cried my eyes out. This is also not for the faint hearted a lot of killing, blood, guts and grim shit lol.

Corban - who is young and impressionable but wants to learn how to fight and stand up for himself. He would like to be a warrior. Cywen is bad to the bone and takes up for Corbin beating the crap out of Rafe :-D But of course, Corbin doesn't want his sister fighting his battles. And it's going to be a little bit before he can start training to be a warrior. I’ve mentioned already that neither Malice nor Valour swept me off my feet. Ruin, however, totally blew me away. By the time you reach book three, you’re invested in the characters and the story, but you’re possibly also wondering if and when the shit is going to hit the fan. I love the characters and found them all really well developed. There is a few characters who I ABSOLUTELY LOVE.. Cywen was amazing and such a badass (I love strong female characters), Corban who is a cinnamon roll (and a badass too, I felt so proud of him during this book) and then there was VERADIS omg he is so amazing & honourable *heart eyes*(but he is blinded atm) I also loved storm, shield, Gar & Brina <3 John Gwynne's prose style that is both dynamic and richly textured, making it a standout in the fantasy genre. The action scenes are particularly notable; Gwynne writes these moments with a visceral intensity that is both thrilling and remarkably clear.The ending was just so satisfying because of all of the pain our protagonists have suffered, losing family, home, kingdoms to Asroth. The first three books are just our good guys getting beaten into the dirt again and again, and when it finally looks like the tide is turning in the second half of Book 3, we're left with that ending (man am I glad Storm survived, otherwise that would have broken me). Wrath really earned its title. It's a book about our protagonists finally releasing the wrath and vengeance on the Fallen. The scene where Corban offers Calidus to Viathun was awesome. The Banished Lands has a violent past where armies of men and giants clashed shields in battle, the earth running dark with their heartsblood. Although the giant-clans were broken in ages past, their ruined fortresses still scar the land. But now giants stir anew, the very stones weep blood and there are sightings of giant wyrms. Those who can still read the signs see a threat far greater than the ancient wars. Sorrow will darken the world, as angels and demons make it their battlefield. Then there will be a war to end all wars. Veradis is a warrior born and bred, sent to the capital city of Tenebral to earn both respect and experience in service to his king. Soon, however, our young swordsman finds himself the fast friend of Prince Nathair of Tenebral; a brilliant youth who is the epitome of all a king should be: handsome, strong, eloquent, brave, and enlightened. And Veradis finds himself rising to heights of authority and power he had never dreamt of attaining, but he soon finds that the web of friendship, respect, and adoration that ties him to Nathair also has a dark side, for the Prince of Tenebral dreams of more than following in his father’s footsteps as king but of becoming something even more legendary: The Bright One himself. The story starts off with familiar fantasy vibes - think young teens with big responsibilities, like the classic village boy and the often-ignored youngest son. But Gwynne isn't just playing the same old tune. He takes these typical characters and adds his own twist, making them more intriguing and less predictable.

Except in the eyes of the characters, that is. The protagonists in this book are so pathetically, monumentally, unreasonably, unrealistically moronic and naive that everything gets past them. And so you’re left sitting waiting for the painfully obvious to catch them unawares. Yes, they’re young and stupid. Yes, they don’t have all the information. There are many excuses one could make, and none of them even come close to mitigating these examples of cataclysmic idiocy (there is one scene in particular I will always remember from this book, which is unfortunately an example of just this). But alas, when the whole world is too obvious for comfort, the characters in it have to be kept in the dark even when it makes no sense, so that the storyline can go where it clearly must go. I finished this series yesterday after almost two months reading, and I need to gush and talk about it before I can start reading anything else. There are no spoilers in this review!

We see an on-coming 'god-war' / wide spread crisis as the first tremors of it reach into the lives of a collection of characters (mostly young men ranging from low-born to noble) scattered across the many nations of this world. There are intrigues and mysteries and we're often not sure who can be trusted. Various potential heroes grow over the period of (possibly a year?) and have their mettle tested. Listened to the audiobook of Malice for the first time! Damian Lynch is a great narrator who offers a fantastic array of voices for our characters.