MY ⭐️ RATING: 4/5
Format: Kindle Whispersync
BOOK DESCRIPTION
Some lies cut deeper than any sword.
War has come to the fragile city-state of Carenos. A self-proclaimed ‘King of the South’ sows destruction among its outlying villages, cutting a bloody swathe towards the capital. As smoke from the burning wheat fields blackens the sky, Carenos beseeches its northern allies for aid.
Dexios, general of the Thenean phalanx, is one of those chosen to answer the call. After braving the tumultuous Sea of Scales, he arrives in Carenos at the head of three hundred hoplites, determined to put an end to the enemy incursion.
One threat, however, can often hide another.
Something is stirring in the shadows of the sun-drenched lowlands, an age-old legend, abandoned
and forgotten. Drawn from its den by the need to satiate its ravenous hunger.
And the enticing scent of blood.
MY REVIEW
I enjoyed this novella/novelette quite a bit, though it was a bit shorter than I was expecting since it is at 99 pages, but actually around 76 with extra chapters for Panacea at the end. One thing to know about me is that I absolutely love Greek mythology, so to have a book set in a fantasy setting but use Greek mythology for a Mytho-fantasy story, made me feel at home. The tempo in the beginning was a little slower than the rest as we were introduced to the characters and world, which is to be expected, but also because I was a little overwhelmed by some of the wordage used as it is written with many Greek/Roman words and phrases, though I will say that the glossary at the beginning was helpful tool to understand most of those.
Once we got through the introduction of the characters and world, Robins ramped it up and was able to get in not just one exciting battle with an invading army to show what the main character Dexios is all about, but a second battle with a mythological beast as well, which you can see on the amazing cover done by the illustrious Felix Ortiz! With that said, I would’ve rather seen a single massive battle with either the invading army or just the manticore instead of two smaller ones because each one just left you wanting it to be more.
Robins made me like Dexios pretty quickly with his personality and the way he carries himself, so I was all in on seeing how the story unfolded. Despite the minor criticisms I mentioned earlier, it was a really good story that was exciting with an epilogue that got me even more excited to jump into Panacea to see how Dexios and Polydius relationship evolves into something electric.
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