Riven Earth
The Book of Astea, Book 1
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Riven Earth
Buy Now for £18.99
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Narrated by:
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Adriel Brandt
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By:
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Zammar Ahmer
About this listen
The world has stopped turning.
Burned by a blazing sun. Thrust into eternal winter.
Life survives only in the Sunset Forest.
For untold millennia, mankind lived subservient to the dryads, forced into worship of the Earth-Mother, Astea. Then one man ventured into the Scorched Desert and returned with the secret of fire. His rebellion brought the dryad empire to ash. In its place, he founded the Kingdom of Heartsong.
Twelve years later, the new king is missing. The earth trembles. Famine ravages the land, and a mysterious illness creeps through the capital.
Plots of treason and revenge abound, but as the mistakes of the past bear fruit, men will reap what they have sown.
Riven Earth is the story of a king who has lost his nerve, of his advisor tempted by the throne, of a politician plotting revolt, and of a dying soldier who finds new reasons to live. It is a character-focused epic fantasy adventure perfect for fans of Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive and Joe Abercrombie’s First Law.
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A prime example of the indie market keeping Epic Fantasy exciting. Diverse POVs. Bizarre magic. Nuanced dilemmas. Pretty much everything I want.
5/5
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Listener received this title free
Ahmer shines with his characterizations of flawed and multi-layered people, all struggling with things from the past that haunt them, trying to find a way forward - for better or worse. I especially liked Raia and Kaido (though I hope to see more development with Kaido's character in book 2), but Otto (in an unexpected turn of events) ended up being my favorite. I found myself looking forward to his chapters, feeling & rooting for him - which I would not have guessed from the very start. He actually reminded me a bit of Abercrombie's characters, giving me strong Sand dan Glokta vibes, and sending me on a similar journey of "no way I'm gonna like him" to arrive at "damn, I can't not like him". ^^
In Riven Earth, Ahmer explores an array of themes, such as religion, zealotry, racism, corruption, environmental destruction, and climate issues, but also touches on mental health, grief, depression, and suicidal ideation. All these topics are seamlessly incorporated into the plot and give the world and its characters a lot of depth and tangibility.
Riven Earth is a very strong debut and a great start to the Book of Astea duology that sets up (what I believe will be) an exciting conclusion in Sundered Moon. I have already purchased book 2 and can't wait to get to it!
A captivating grimdark fantasy debut
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