Fractures
by N. K. Leem
Series : Ledgers of a Dark Mage
Genre : Dark Fantasy
Dark magic is evil. The Crown executes all dark mages.
Every Itothian child grows up hearing stories of their wicked spells, demonic rituals and human sacrifices. But what do you do when you are told you are the monster from the very stories used to frighten you?
After the attack on his home village, Thaleon makes the unfortunate discovery he is a valekyn—a dark mage. Facing the threat of execution with his entire family gone, he places his trust in the kind strangers who whisk him away to Allesdale, the Crown’s training facility for young mages. As he navigates the dangers of a world plagued with fear and persecution of his kind, Thaleon begins to question everything he had been taught about the evils of dark magic. But he must keep his magic a secret—for the simplest of mistakes will demand his life.
Meanwhile, Dawyn is captured by hostile raiders and taken to Scyrta—a thriving merchant port of magic and secrets. As he adjusts to his new life in the strange and foreign isle far from home, Dawyn experiences firsthand the terrifying power of dark magic and its wielders. The darkness of Scyrta craves to take every part of him and it is only a matter of time before it swallows him whole.
An amazing read from start to end!
I really loved the fascinating world that the author has created in this book! Honestly, I couldn't believe that this was a debut novel, because the writing had me gripped from page one!
Fractures is a dark fantasy novel that tells the coming of age story of two boys - Thaleon and Dawyn, who have been as close as brothers since childhood!
The story starts off with us seeing the prejudice that Thaleon faces due to his mixed heritage and how Dawyn is always there to protect him.
A series of events that start off with the raiders pillaging their village, leads the boys on a grueling journey, which causes them to get separated along the way!
Thaleon ends up discovering that he is a valekyn - a dark mage who possesses great powers, but he has to hide this due to the fact that his kind are executed on sight! He gets rescued by a kind noble and ends up in Allesdale, where he must learn to be a mage without revealing his dark powers.
On the other hand, poor Dawyn is captured by the raiders and taken to Scryta(a land where debauchery seems to reign and no one enforces laws) to be a slave to a powerful but cruel mistress. Here, he undergoes all kinds of trials that might be enough to break his body, but not his spirit!
My favorite part about this book was the world-building and the characters! The writing flows easily and the author shows us the world slowly along the way, without overwhelming us with information! We discover so many things about the world, right along with the boys, because though they hadn't lived an easy life, it was quite sheltered!
Every character in the book was well fleshed out and so realistic! There is no black and white in the world that Ms. Leem has created! Everyone operates in shades of grey, with equally fascinating strengths and weaknesses! No-one is outright good or evil! A few characters that you thought were pure, might end up surprising you with their actions and a few others you assume are bad, are the ones who might help in the end!
"Because one's heart is not determined by the magic one wields, Thaleon. All magic can be used for good or evil. Even had Darius wielded elar - or light magic as it is commonly called - he would have taken the same actions and his place in history would not have changed. The choices we make are our own - right or wrong."
The two main protagonists were so realistic that I wanted to leap through the pages and give them both a hug! I loved the journey that each had to go through and the character development that they both underwent! Thaleon is stronger and is armed with more knowledge now, but he still lacks the confidence to stand up for himself, without losing control! Dawyn, who was the protector, is put through so much and still manages to come out somehow. But, now he faces a long road ahead of him that might take him on a path that is directly opposite to that of Thaleon!
My only complaint would be that the book ended too suddenly! I came to the last page and I was surprised there wasn't more! Even a cliffhanger ending could have eased this abruptness!
All in all, this was a great book that I'm happy that I got to read this year and I'm super excited to see where the author will take the characters next! I think there's a lot more of this world that we will get to see, with new background stories!
Note : As this is a dark fantasy book, there are references to sexual assault, torture and situations that may be unpalatable to some. So, if you find yourself uncomfortable reading such references, then please heed the trigger warnings!
* An ARC of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review *
Hi, my name is N.K. Leem and I write fantasy! I love mythologies, fairy tales and all sorts of magical things!
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