Annon and Hettie are twins separated at birth. Annon grew up to become an accomplished Druidecht; he has learned to live in harmony with nature and to commune with the spirits from the realm of Mirrowen. Hettie, on the other hand, was stolen away by the Romani as a child, and has only known a life of servitude. Finding someone to purchase her now is her only chance of freedom.
Brother and sister were unaware that the other even existed, until they are brought together by their estranged uncle Tyrus. Along with the help of Paedrin, a warrior-monk of the Bhikhu order, they are tasked to journey on a quest to seek a priceless hidden treasure. Unbeknownst to them, however, Tyrus harbors a secret agenda of his own. Not knowing whom they can trust, along with being hunted by the ruthless Arch-Rike, the trio must learn to work together before their enemies get the upper hand.
The Good
The sources of inspiration the author drew upon for this book. It's obvious Jeff Wheeler is a fan of ancient history, world cultures, as well as the medieval era. I recognized a lot of this in the places, cultures, and lore as I was reading, such as the parallels between the Druidecht and the Celtic druids of old. Having interest in some of these subjects myself, I took an immediate liking to the world of Fireblood. It is rich and populated with a fascinating diversity of races, classes, and religions.
Also, loved the first chapter, which really would have been better served labeled as a prologue. As cheesy as it sounds, the book did hook me straight from the start because of it. It was filled with urgency, danger, just the right amount of bombastic, and came to a close with enough mystery to make me want to turn the page and find out just what the hell happened.
The So-So
The characters. Sadly, this was the biggie that prevented me from enjoying the book more and giving it a higher rating. Annon, Hettie, Paedrin, Tyrus, and some of the other supporting characters thrown in were presented with their own unique background and histories, but none really stood out. Each felt like they were missing something crucial in their personalities to make them memorable or help me make a connection. It was hard to immerse myself 100% in the story when I struggled to truly care about the characters.
The Not-So-Good
It almost hurts to write this, because like I said, I very much enjoyed the world of Fireblood. But it all just felt so dang small. Maybe it's the pacing of the story, because despite the richness of the setting, I felt it lacked an epic scope, especially when the more important and grander nature of our characters' quest is put in context. No doubt their world is a much bigger place, but I couldn't help but imagine Annon, Hettie and Paedrin zipping around from zone to zone in an area not much bigger than the size of a theme park.
Nonetheless, this was a great introduction to what I suspect will be a much bigger story. Readers who are used to having more "epic-ness" in their fantasy might yearn for a little more character development and world-building, but fans of adventure fantasy and heroic journeys should enjoy this.
Final verdict:
3 of 5 stars
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