Reviews
Early Reviews up for Beyond the Shadows (Book 3 of the Night Angel Trilogy)!
Un:Bound says, “I love these books, beautifully written, entertaining and leaving me with a sense of satisfaction at the conclusion, they deliver everything I could ask for…”
Fantasy Books News and Reviews confesses to being “very impressed… I honestly can’t think of one bad thing to say.”
The Beezer Review calls it “a fantastic read… one of the best trilogies I have read in a very long time. Mr. Weeks has not only made his mark on the fantasy genre, he has kicked in the doors and announced he is here to stay.”
Books Monthly selects Beyond the Shadows as its Books Monthly Choice for December, declaring it the “Best fantasy of the year, possibly the decade.”
Reviews for Shadow’s Edge (Book 2 of the Night Angel Trilogy)
RisingShadow.net says, “I wait in agonizing pain for the next book. And I do not regret it.”
Un:Bound says, “Weeks has shown that the first book was not a fluke, he really is that good.”
The Beezer Review says, “Mr. Weeks is two for two… This book, and series, gives me renewed hope that the fantasy genre still has new and fresh ideas to offer its readers.”
Fantasy Book News and Reviews says, “Kylar is just a flat out great character to spend time with…. [Brent Weeks] is now in my ‘buy upon release’ category.”
Wannabe Writer says, “A fantastic sequel, just as gripping as its predecessor….Now I understand why these are being published in such quick succession–anything else would be cruel.”
Blood of the Muse says, “Fast-paced and hugely entertaining, Shadow’s Edge just may have one of the best endings ever for a middle book in a trilogy. There’s no sophomore slump here. It’s a good thing that the third book Beyond the Shadows is being released in December, because I’d probably start a riot if I had to wait a year for the next one…”
The Road Not Taken says, “Having just completed Shadow’s Edge by Brent Weeks, I feel as though I have been sprinting through a maze, and each time I thought I had it figured out it became another series of twists, turns, or dead ends. I’m still breathless.” And notes the depth of the characters: ”these are not just your average class of nobles, assassins, and prostitutes–they are all so human it is heartbreaking.”
The Bookbag objects strenuously to the phrase “trying to be cute” but still says, “the magic is inventive, the evil is, occasionally, genuinely terrifying, the monsters are horrendous, obscene and tragic, the artefacts intriguing, the overarching moral dilemma and conflicts between private happiness and public duty, between piously high moral sentiments and cruel realities of the world, valid and genuine. There were also moments of epic grandeur and real pathos, moving heroism and a good final twist.”
Reviews for The Way of Shadows (Book 1 of the Night Angel Trilogy)
RisingShadow.net says, “For those who love assassins, corrupted power figures, twisted politics, and disturbing magic, this is the book of all books.”
Sci-Fi Fan Letter says, The Way of Shadows is the kind of book “you can’t put down even though you have to eat, sleep or work.”
Books Monthly calls it “an extraordinary debut…an astoundingly good fantasy world.”
Un:Bound says, “Weeks really has a knack for creating complex, realistic, and very human characters… Intrigue and tension pull you through to the next page, and for the first time in years I actually flicked a few pages ahead to see if someone was really dead…. a delight…”
Harriet Klausner, extraordinary #1 reviewer for Amazon.com, gives 5 out of 5 stars, noting the “shadowy twists that feel genuine and quite exciting… Especially fascinating are the poetic legendary assassin [Durzo] and his new apprentice [Azoth]“.
Wannabe Writer says, “I was soon hooked. It’s exciting, full of action but interesting characters too, the world is wonderfully realised, the use of magic imaginative, the fight scenes thrilling…”
Sffworld.com calls it “an impressive debut…if someone were to ask me for a recommendation on a well-written, high fantasy that exemplified the expected elements of the genre, I’d pass them a copy of The Way of Shadows.”
Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review says, Brent Weeks infuses the book “with energy and intrigue while giving us plenty of opportunity to get to know both the city and the people who live there…. Anything can happen and you’ll find yourself constantly surprised when it does.”
BookspotCentral.com says, “it made me turn off television, it made me skip dessert, it even made me skip a shower once…unless something extraordinary happens in the next month or two, this is going to be my book of the year for 2008.”
Memoirs of a Rabbid Hotdog says, it “kept me glued to my chair for the duration of the book.”
Fantasy Book Critic says, “so engrossing that after I stayed up late to finish it, I stayed up late again to reread the book!” It is “a superb epic fantasy that will absorb you from start to finish…Highly, highly recommended.”
The Literary Cat says, “With liberal doses of magic, politics, and warfare, the six hundred-odd pages really will fly by.”
Fantasy Cafe says, [minor SPOILERS in linked article.] “The Way of Shadows is a fast-paced, entertaining read that is difficult to put down.” She also really liked the term wetboys: “It sounds like they should be the guys that fetch water for all the important people…” So picturing Adam Sandler as Durzo Blint could be problematic.
Blood of the Muse says, “Overloaded with fun, The Way of Shadows is an absolute joy. Filled with a pantheon of unforgettable and epic characters and an intense, high-octane and twisting plot, the book has me eagerly anticipating the sequel Shadow’s Edge.”
The Bookbag calls it “a captivating page-turner that verges on the unputdownable.”
Fantasy Book News and Reviews says, “this book might take my label of best book of the year…”
Grasping for the Wind remarks on “a depth of character [epic fantasies] often lack….Yet it never bogs down for lack of action, or suspense.”
The Civilian Reader says, “Solid, extremely well written, and deftly plotted…”
The Fantasy and Sci-Fi Lovin’ Book Review says, “The Way of Shadows” is a pretty big book, 688 pages, but it reads really fast… hard to put down”
Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist: “I believe that The Way of Shadows and its sequels…will sell extremely well, regardless of the fact that it will likely not be held in high esteem by the SFF fandom’s ‘in crowd.’”
Having invoked “gritty” YA lit, and SFF fandom’s “in crowd,” Pat’s review provoked a rebuttal. And some discussion of what is and is not Young Adult fiction. I swear I don’t pay people for these.
Interviews
On January 4th, Un:Bound posted THIS INTERVIEW.
In December, the Falcata Times posted THIS INTERVIEW. (On page 13, magazine is in .pdf format.)
On November 15th, Bookspot Central posted THIS INTERVIEW.
On November 3, Schuler’s Books and Music (comprising four of the nation’s largest independent bookstores), posted THIS INTERVIEW.
On November 1, Nextread released THIS INTERVIEW.
Fantasy Book News and Reviews carried THIS INTERVIEW.
Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist carried THIS INTERVIEW.
Several other interviews are in the pipeline, and will be posted as soon as they become available.
(All links worked at time of posting.)
