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The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French
Nov. 19th, 2018 11:10 pmThe Blurb On The Back:
Live in the saddle.
Die on the hog.
Jackal is proud to be a Grey Bastard, member of a sworn brotherhood of half-orcs. Unloved and unwanted in civilized society, the Bastards eke out a hard life in the desolate no-man’s-land called the Lots, protecting frail and noble human civilisation from invading bands of vicious full-blooded orcs.
But as Jackal is soon to learn, his pride may be misplaced. Because a dark secret lies at the heart of the Bastards’ existence – one that reveals a horrifying truth behind humanity’s tenuous please with the orcs and exposes a grave danger on the horizon.
On the heels of the ultimate betrayal, Jackal must scramble to stop a devastating invasion – even as he wonders where his true loyalties lie.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Jonathan French’s epic fantasy novel (the first in a series) has solid worldbuilding (albeit based on the cliched medieval trope) and I enjoyed the half-orcs and their society and way of thinking (especially the war pigs) but the plot strains at times, Fetch is the only female character who isn’t a whore or a mother and I’m a little over the whole ‘evil from the east’ thing, although this wouldn’t stop me reading the sequel.
THE GREY BASTARDS was released in the United Kingdom on 21st June 2018. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
Die on the hog.
Jackal is proud to be a Grey Bastard, member of a sworn brotherhood of half-orcs. Unloved and unwanted in civilized society, the Bastards eke out a hard life in the desolate no-man’s-land called the Lots, protecting frail and noble human civilisation from invading bands of vicious full-blooded orcs.
But as Jackal is soon to learn, his pride may be misplaced. Because a dark secret lies at the heart of the Bastards’ existence – one that reveals a horrifying truth behind humanity’s tenuous please with the orcs and exposes a grave danger on the horizon.
On the heels of the ultimate betrayal, Jackal must scramble to stop a devastating invasion – even as he wonders where his true loyalties lie.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Jonathan French’s epic fantasy novel (the first in a series) has solid worldbuilding (albeit based on the cliched medieval trope) and I enjoyed the half-orcs and their society and way of thinking (especially the war pigs) but the plot strains at times, Fetch is the only female character who isn’t a whore or a mother and I’m a little over the whole ‘evil from the east’ thing, although this wouldn’t stop me reading the sequel.
THE GREY BASTARDS was released in the United Kingdom on 21st June 2018. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
