Customer Reviews

Corvus (Macht Trilogy 2)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I avoided this for a while as I thought who needs a thinly disguised Alexander the Great story amongst all the other stuff that has been written on the bloodthirsty maniac. However, once I had finished The Ten Thousand I needed another Kearney fix so started it. Although not quite as good as the Monarchies of God series this is still brilliant. Gritty and gripping it will keep you entertained right up to the last page. Personally I'm going to hunt down everything he has written and read it.

In The Ten Thousand, the first book of the Macht Trilogy, Paul Kearney introduced the world of Kuf, an intriguing world, home to different races. This great first book took us to the heart of The Empire far away from the homeland of the legendary Ten Thousand. In Corvus, the author takes us back to the land of the Macht, the fabled warrior race.

And to the readers delight, he also brings forward a familiar face: It was a great pleasure to meet Rictus again from page one. The book starts with Rictus going back home twenty-three years later after the events of The Ten Thousand.

Machts are a warrior race and they excel in this art. And not surprisingly, there are constant quarrels between cities. However, twenty three years later, Rictus is not the same man. He is torn between war and family. As he struggles to decide between two, life makes a choice for him. Sometimes it's easier that way, when the choices are made on one's behalf.

Kearney is amazingly talented in creating very realistic military scenes. The picture of the terrible face of war that he paints tugs at the heart of the reader. War is a terrible thing but it is in us, in our genes. You kill or you are killed. But everyone is somebody's son, brother or father and every single one of them has their own story that one ends in a blink of an eye.

Some parts of the book reminded me of another great book that I read last year: Brandon Sanderson's The Way of Kings. Especially the Antimone's Gift, the magical black armour of the Cursebearers reminded me of Shards: Their origin is unknown, they are limited in number and offering money for one just doesn't work.

Not surprisingly, in Corvus, Kearney maintains his fluid and addictive style. He creates and develops some great characters in a memorable fantasy setting. The author is amazingly talented in mixing military aspects of the fantasy with drama and individuality, which, at times, gives the impression to read a mixtures of Steven Erikson and Guy Gavriel Kay.

Even though I read The Ten Thousand previously, the reader is not required to do so to fully enjoy Corvus. Although I would recommend to read The Ten Thousand before just because it is another excellent book.

Corvus has confirmed that Paul Kearney is an amazing writer. Unfortunately, and very surprisingly, he is also incredibly and criminally underrated. Corvus was one of the best books of 2010 and made the last book of the trilogy, Kings of Morning one of the most anticipated books of 2011. Just pick it up and read it. Resistance is futile.

I couldn't help but smile when I first started reading this book, for I am, albeit indirectly, kind of responsible for its existence. You may recall that then Solaris editor Mark Charan Newton initially got in touch with Paul Kearney when the author was dropped by both Transworld and Bantam Dell at the same time after reading my rant about this on the Hotlist. Months later, after signing with the imprint, the excellent The Ten Thousand saw the light and became Kearney's first work with Solaris.

You see: Online rants can -- rarely, it must be said -- have very positive repercussions. Now, if only I could somehow help Kearney become a bestselling author. . .

The Ten Thousand turned out to be a solid effort, possibly the author's best novel to date. And I'm pleased to report that Corvus continues in the same vein, raising the bar even higher and setting the stage for what should be a terrific finale in the forthcoming Kings of the Morning.

Corvus is dark and gritty military fantasy at its best. Joe Abercrombie's depicted heroism and the brutal violence of war with a witty and humorous style and tone in The Heroes. Paul Kearney's Corvus is at the opposite end of the spectrum. Although there are a number of poignant and touching moments throughout the novel, Corvus is all about the stark realism of military campaigns.

The author has always been known for his brevity, and this book features minimal worldbuilding which doesn't intrude on the storytelling. And yet, now that he can build on the events of The Ten Thousand, Kearney manages to flesh out his world and its people without relying on info-dumps or long-winded elaborations. The narrative is written with tight focus, keeping the pace fluid and making Corvus a veritable page-turner.

Most will tell you that Kearney's bread and butter are the battle sequences, and I would tend to agree. Still, I feel that the author doesn't get the credit he deserves for his characterization. Indeed, the man came up with a disparate yet amazing cast of characters for this one. Though there is an overall story arc, that of Corvus' campaign to unite the Macht, most of its threads consist of more personal plotlines adding more depth to the tale. The domestic scenes create a bit of balance between the more violent sequences of the book. There is also a great balance between the various POV sections, with the novel focusing in turn on Rictus, his wife Aise, the Speaker Karnos, Phaestus, and Kassander's sister Kassia. Seeing events unfold through the eyes of such distinct men and women imbues this book with a human touch seldom seen in military fantasy offerings. There is indeed a parallel between Rictus and Corvus and Philip II and Alexander, but it's nothing more than historical inspiration and doesn't take anything away from the story.

Corvus delivers on all fronts. As was the case with its predecessor, it features good pace, a grim setting, superior characterization, and bloody battles. -- It definitely is Paul Kearney writing at the top of his game.

It's another brutal and uncompromising tale of warfare and survival written by one of the most underrated talents in the fantasy genre.

Hard to put down. Do yourself a favor: Pick up both The Ten Thousand and Corvus. Mark my word: You will thank me!

Having loved Paul's Ten Thousand, I really couldn't wait to embark on another novel set in the lands of the Macht. When this title landed after girding myself and preparing my own baggage train (hey I got a 2 litre bottle of Dandelion and Burdock and a selection of Sandwiches) I settled down to see what would befall the Dogshead.

What you get with Kearney is a story told at a blistering pace with graphic battle sequences, decent dialogue and above all else cracking characterisation with a Spartan descriptive style so that the reader knows that theirs no extra padding. In short a title that is combat fit with a hard toned literal wall of muscle that will kick the hell out of a lot of other titles on the shelves.

All in I loved this book which was a welcome escape from the real world into a clearer black and white one of the fantasy ilk. Great stuff.

This book is quite good, it has a fair pace and the battle scenes are vivid. It's only problem is where is it going what is the purpose of Corvus. He rules the Macht and then what. I could not really see why the men from other cities stayed with him. To starve and run the risk of an extremly painful death for what.

He was nothing to them and although he shared the danger and rode with the companion cavelry that sounds familiar "Alexander". There was no reason for any of them to stay. Even the mercenaries did not seem to get paid

As a story it had pace and the storytelling was good, such that I read it within a couple of days, but by the end did I really care the answer is no. What was probably missing was real background of charecters . Karnos seemed a better man than Corvus braver even, he could not fight but went all the same. There was no real back story for him or Rictus's wife or even valerian

A good read but to many gaps

This is the second story in a series, which draws cleverly on the military history of Late Classical Greece. The character of Corvus is a blend of Alexander the Great and Philip of Macedon, his father. Among the inhabitants of the world of Kuf, the Macht are alien. Among their most precious possessions as a people are artifacts which have no equal on Kuf. How and whence the Macht arrived is merely hinted at. The story covers the conquest and unification of the independent city states of the Macht into a kingdom, under the rule of Corvus, who has emerged with a devoted army from the mountains to the north of the cities. He conquers with the aid of bold tactics and new methods of fighting. It is clearly hinted that his ambitions will lead him into conflict with the Asurian Empire to the east, where the previous novel "The Ten Thousand", which drew on Xenophon's "Anabasis" was set.

The novel cleverly sets out the pros and cons of political unity under a single ruler as opposed to the freedom of independent city states, which often means the freedom to enslave others. The battle scenes are vivdly drawn, as are the more humdrum aspects of military life in foul weather when the supplies are late or non-existent. Their language is usually foul, and their personal habits unappealing, but these soldiers spring to life off the page.

Set years after "The 10,000" this is interesting if predictable story,if you enjoy historic fiction you will enjoy this book,lots of action and well described battle scenes,characters are interesting if not complex.

Paul Kearney has written some great great novels. His monarchies of God is a great series.
Only problem with him is that the books he releases are so erratic. Its not so easy to read his books as a series. luckily he knows this...and basically each bookcan be read on its own.
The same with this book. It's a followup from his ten thousand. based on Xenophons March. This book is based on alexander.

Book is a good but not great read. The universe of teh Macht and Kuft is interesting...but well we know what happened to the persians right. So we know what will happen to them....not so excited.

I guess its a weakness of books from this genre. they use so much effort creating the alternate world and using real histroical as a plotline. Tehy forget o enhance this part of the story enough.

I gave this book 5 stars....but should have given it 4 based on Kearney's previous work. He's definitely a consistent 4 star author...but, I didn't want to bring down the score of a book I haven't read yet.
Now, why haven't I read this book yet?? Well, simple really! It's because THERE'S NO EBOOK RELEASE for this title currently!!! What's up with that??

I hate to be a whiner or whinger...whatever...but, I ONLY read ebooks since I cannot travel with the amount of books I constantly am reading....which is usually anywhere from 1 (if it's outstanding) to 10 (if they're all decent but nothing has grabbed me yet)...and I usually average around 4 or so... You can see how this was a problem prior to the introduction of electronic books...

Anyway....this book was only released a month ago, so I'm still hopeful and patient...but, please, please, please....do something about releasing an ebook for this.

Thanks so much for your patience in reading this...and for writing and publishing such wonderful books. I initially was turned on to you upon receiving the Monarchies of God books years ago....and have been patiently waiting for more books since I finished The Sea Beggars....so here's to hoping you have a long, illustrious career as a Fantasy author...and to Corvus being released any day now as an ebook!!! Ha ha...

Mahalo and aloha!!!

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