Synopsis:
Tales of the Bringer of Urrinan had been told for generations, but never had the prophecy felt so near to so many. Elan wasn’t sure if she even believed one man could cause the sort of upheaval that would change the world. And yet, just as the prophecy foretold, dark forces were on the rise—including the many Spali warbands raiding across the borderlands.
It was in pursuit of one such warband when Elan’s host discovered the hidden compound of the Outcast. She’d heard how the former chieftain of the mighty Amalus Clan had been unjustly accused of murdering his rival. How the conflict had begun over a woman. How the Outcast’s son—born of that same woman—perfectly matched the prophecy’s foretelling of the Bringer.
Prophecy aside, it seemed that fate had led Elan into the midst of a legend. Because of a choice made in the heat of battle, Elan found herself bound to an outlaw hunted by friend and foe alike. Whether she believed in the prophecy or not, she found herself entangled with a lone figure who vowed to seek the sort of upheaval that might just change the world.
Could Vahldan, son of the Outcast, truly be the Bringer of Urrinan?
Review:
This book is tailor-made for me, almost comically so. It has: Roman Empire era Germanic (the Goths) inspired clans, deep lore and worlbuilding, coming of age with revenge seeking, a well-executed MFF love triangle that is built upon duty, identity, and love, a chosen one prophecy with a reluctant chosen one, an Amazonian all-female warrior clan, political scheming and backstabbing, a low-key magic system, excellent battles and war tactics, and delivers a complete story arc but fully sets up the greater series. Honestly, this is the best indie book I’ve read all year, bar none, and if it wasn’t for the masterpiece Jay Kristoff just released, it would be my book of the year.
The Amalus (lion) and Wulthus (wolf) clans of the Gottari people are fractured after the previous Lion Lord murdered the Wolf Lord over the Wolf Lord’s betrothed (but remember, this is a political scheming book) and is banished with said betrothed (both actually loved each other, so no patriarchal society shenanigans here). Set years later, the Outcast’s son is ordained the Bringer of the Urrinan via prophecy, essentially he is the harbinger of the end of the Gottari way of life. When the Outcast is hunted down by those dastardly political schemers, the chosen one must rise and reclaim his father’s rightful place, plus some honor. But within him he carries an ugliness, one that makes him a killer, one that might break him before he can claim his father’s stolen blade.
Put it this way, if you don’t like revenge-seeking chosen ones, you probably won’t like our main protagonist, Vahldan. He’s young, he’s brash, he’s a hothead, he’s reluctant, he’s a failure in his father’s eyes (maybe?), he loses himself to the “ugliness” (aka a blessing of a god that can threaten everything). But he also possesses everything we love about the farm boy chosen one trope. He’s loyal, he’s determined to right wrongs, he’s fallible, he just wants to carve wooden animals. And he IS an incredible protagonist for everything listed above. I just loved everything about Vahldan’s arc in this book.
But he’d be nothing as a character without our other main protagonist, Elan. Hands down, Elan might be one of my fave characters in a long while. Elan comes from the Skolani clan and is a Blade-Wielder (aka the Amazonians, but they are not just here for snu snu iykyk haha). The Skolani are respected warriors and they have a very interesting lore; with their oaths to their clan, their rites of fertility, and their rigorous training in hopes of earning a blade. Despite being a formidable warrior, Elan is incredibly deep, having so many warring emotions after meeting, and ultimately being assigned as Vahldan’s guardian. Her arc is laced with ideations of self: self-discovery, self-loathing, self-wondering, self-growth. She is clearly torn by everything pulling her in multiple political angles.
And Elan is also the center of one of the best executed love triangles I’ve read in ages. Obviously there is the burgeoning romance between Vahldan and Elan, and it forms from respect, but more importantly, it’s because Elan is able to ground Vahldan with his ugliness. Personally, it makes me think of the tactics I have to use with my neurodivergent son, or how some people might need go-to actions/words when in the middle of a panic or asthma attack. It was just an incredible touch by Roycroft to build this relationship in this manner. Then on the other side of the triangle is Elan and her love for her near-sister (Skolani term for mate) Princess Icannes. Theirs is a love built on their Skolani upbringing. At times, you want to really dislike Icannes because of the political manipulation happening and her brusque attitude toward men, Vahldan in particular, but in the end, her love is true. Watching Elan go through the wringer with what the Skolani do to women who leave the clan v being the only female in a lion’s den of male soldiers, it made the final decision all the more powerful. Bravo, Mr. Roycroft, bravo!
Now, with all this charactering going on, we have an incredible political intrigue plot and unfolding war within these pages. We see four different factions all scheming to keep power, utilizing the big bad (an awesome goliath killer called Death’s Grin and these badass horsemen) for their own means. Chess pieces being pushed all across the board, including Vahldan and Elan. It is nuanced, the political theater tense, things you might expect are turned upside down, the gotcha moments by the characters are actually quite clever. The war is deftly woven in and shown in all its horrible glory. Characters are cut down and trampled. It’s all very entertaining and engaging.
The prose is adept, the pace cruises. The details were always there, the scenes always painted exactly. My only complaint is that time passes but it’s never really clear how long, could’ve been weeks, maybe months. And I really couldn’t put an age on Vahldan. At times he seems 16 but then other times he’s 18+, and we are also told a ton of times his beard is thick (I know 16yr olds can have beards but I still struggled to figure it out). And Elan is only 2 years older, but when she makes her realization, it felt very adult, not exactly something you might expect from an 18yr old. Either way, and this is an admission of guilt, this book took me longer to read than a usual 550+ page book because I legitimately read every single word and took my time enjoying this story. As a speed reader who typically skims paragraphs to parse the meat of a book, this is high praise for Roycroft’s storytelling. I also want to dive directly into book 2, another thing I don’t always do with such a long TBR. Roycroft truly crafted something special with this book.
I’m really at a loss of how to end this review because this book is truly special. I enjoyed every page of The Severing Son and I recommend it with every fiber of my being!
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