Synopsis
“A gritty, heart-pounding tale of betrayal and bloody vengeance. I loved every single word.” —John Gwynne
The Pariah begins a new epic fantasy series of action, intrigue and magic from Anthony Ryan, a master storyteller who has taken the fantasy world by storm.
Born into the troubled kingdom of Albermaine, Alwyn Scribe is raised as an outlaw. Quick of wit and deft with a blade, Alwyn is content with the freedom of the woods and the comradeship of his fellow thieves. But an act of betrayal sets him on a new path – one of blood and vengeance, which eventually leads him to a soldier’s life in the king’s army.
Fighting under the command of Lady Evadine Courlain, a noblewoman beset by visions of a demonic apocalypse, Alwyn must survive war and the deadly intrigues of the nobility if he hopes to claim his vengeance. But as dark forces, both human and arcane, gather to oppose Evadine’s rise, Alwyn faces a choice: can he be a warrior, or will he always be an outlaw?
“This makes a rich treat for George R.R. Martin fans.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Review
“All ambition is folly when it fails to be matched by reason.” —The Pariah, Anthony Ryan
The Pariah has been on my TBR forever. In fact, I even bought it, fully intending to read it around Christmas 2023, but I didn’t get to it until this summer, and I’m still mad I waited so long.
The first book of The Brotherhood of Steel trilogy is part Robin Hood, part Count of Monte Cristo, but unique in both its trappings and execution. We are treated to an expert narrator, Alwyn Scribe, who tells us the story in a way that is both enthralling and also cuttingly insightful. Alwyn may be my favorite first-person narrator in fantasy, and I found myself viewing him and the other characters as people I knew rather than fictional people in a made-up story. As narrator, Alwyn adds a human and oddly philosophical bent to the story that gives the reader a lot to think about.
Now that I have the benefit of hindsight (I finished the last installment, The Traitor, recently), I have a greater appreciation for the humble beginnings of our protagonist and the setup that is deftly executed and paced through three books. Alwyn starts as a lowly outlaw of questionable birth running with the legendary king of crime Deckin Scarl and eventually evolves into a crusader cum scholar in a conflict that threatens to sunder the world.
We see the seeds of the major conflict of the series in The Pariah, but it sits just below the surface. Without spoiling the events of this book, the story focuses on a young man who is given over to misfortune time and time again only to find clever ways to turn situations to his (seeming) advantage. This is used to great effect in this book where a massive amount of “insignificant” random events end up driving the central conflict of this story through all three books.
I think the thing I appreciate most about the plot and pacing of this trilogy is how I would find myself wondering what the purpose of something was only to find out at exactly the right moment what was truly going on. In The Pariah, we see some of the payoff immediately in the thrilling conclusion of this book where….well, I will let you see for yourself.
What makes this book unique compared to the stories that come next is the understated worldbuilding and soldier-level battles. Anthony Ryan gives us “just enough” of the world to get us invested, and unlike some fantasy series that tend to throw all of the worldbuilding bits into book 1, the even spacing of information made it easier to digest and enjoy the story. As a big Bernard Cornwell fan, I loved the shield wall battles and billhooks and elements of feudalism that littered the second half of this book. The fantastical elements were certainly there, but they never threatened to take over from our protagonist or his ragtag group of friends.
Speaking of the other characters, Anthony Ryan has a gift for making us care about just about everyone. Toria, Brewer, Shilda, and more do a lot to endear themselves to the reader and give Alwyn more stakes as he tries to navigate a war that he only wishes to escape. Alwyn easily could have been truly cold and calculating, but the endless amount of empathy he has for the misfortune and those who don’t deserve their fate is commendable and makes for a compelling reason to cast himself into danger time and time again.
Long story short? I recommend this book for fans of understated fantasy. Great character work and low amounts of magic made this one of my favorites of the year. And even though the world and magic become more grandiose over time in this series, it never feels intrusive or out of place.
Give this a shot. You definitely won’t regret it.
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