Casey Sutton
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Malfus, a necromancer has been captured by a ruthless Inquisitor – a religious zealot from the Vesenian Church who have the power to march through the triple kingdoms of the Ossory Empire and deliver the Church’s justice to heretics and law breakers. And, as Necromancy has been outlawed for half a millennia, anyone who practices it (or even holds a scant amount of knowledge of the arcane art) is arrested, tortured and then sentenced to a fiery death. Now, Malfus has been dragged behind the horse of his captor for a month; he’s starving, dehydrated and in desperate need of new boots when they’re ambushed by a strange species called gnolls. A half hyena, half human hybrid who simply want nothing more than to kill and destroy all humans. After a brief skirmish, the Inquisitor and Malfus manage to flee and come across a besieged fort. Can their timely arrival mean a change in the fortunes of the forts inhabitants?
Malfus: Necromancer Unchained is Sutton’s first full length novel – and a follow on from his short story Greedy as a Ghoul which introduces us to the hapless necromancer. Malfus: Necromancer Unchained takes us into a world filled with strange creatures, magic and religious dictatorship in an action packed whirlwind. It’s told from a third person omniscient point of view, delving into different characters perspective at different points within the book. Unusually, when Sutton deems it appropriate to meet these characters, it doesn’t always necessarily mean that we will meet them again – as more than once, that character is killed off part way through their scene. It’s definitely an interesting way to keep the reader engaged and on their toes, as they try to determine who will actually live until the end of the page – never mind the story. And that the entire story – barring the first few chapters, is one long fight filled with blood, gore and death – is certainly unusual in itself.
Malfus’ world makes more sense in this full length novel. We learn more about his backstory and about those he loved while he was a student in the academy. Sutton doesn’t overwhelm the reader with a large information dump in anyone place; instead he trickles information as we learn more about the characters in the story. The world building is much the same, with Sutton even giving the gnolls a reason for their burning hatred. Some information about the world is still frustratingly out of reach; why is the commander of the fort so afraid of the Inquisitor finding the Dwarven ballista? What is the Scar? Why does the Church and its goddess hate Necromancer’s so much? It’s as though Sutton touched on these themes and then, in a rush to get the battle moving, forgot to revisit them. Although, hopefully, as Malfus continues on his quest to revive Kiara, we’ll discover much, much more.
S. A
First published on Reedsy Discovery as part of their ARC programme. To read the original review click here. You can also find out more information about the sale of Malfus: Necromancer Unchained by clicking on the above link.
The prequel Greedy as a Ghoul is available to buy from Amazon or to read for free on Kindle Unlimited.
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