Winds of Strife
“They burned me and mine. I'm not done until I burn them and theirs in return.”
Witch-hunts have plagued the kingdom of Olyanath for decades. Thousands were slain due to the king’s paranoia of women who practice Senspiritic magic.
No more.
Nye and his companions have seen enough of murder and misogyny.
Fifteen years have passed since he joined the witch-hunters, and now, at long last, an opportunity to destroy them from the inside reveals itself.
An opportunity to overthrow the king and end his reign of cruelty.
But fifteen years of pretense have taken a toll. The strive for vengeance has steered Nye toward a path of violence and villainy. His hands are stained by the blood of countless innocents, his heart is scorched by grief, and his sanity hangs by a thread.
Even if he can kill the king and see this revolution through, it may not suffice to purge the voices from his head.
Title: Winds of Strife
Series: Dawnless Night
Genre: Fantasy
Paperback: 548 pages
Publication Date: 11/06/2020
Publisher: Self published
Language: English
ASIN : B08MSV1Y3Q
ISBN-13 : 979-8559854984
My Review
This is an intriguing one! The novel begins with a conflict that is deeply engraved onto the hearts and minds of the main and other characters’ futures and creates a great way to lure a reader in. Written with an aura of mystery, it automatically becomes a page-turner. The premise of the novel isn’t necessarily new, a world of wronged characters due to oppression, mainly women, but the presentation and wayfinding solutions offer a sharp allure in terms of writing, a unique magic system, and distinctive tools utilized to guide the flow of the narrative.
Unlike a fast read, vital attention to detail is needed beyond the enjoyment factor and requires some investment here. The magic structure herein used is very unique. It is based on emotions where characters can harness powers by summoning emotions and they come at a price and consequence. This system is nicely visualized with charts of emotions, senspiritic powers, and auralogy maps along the way as the reader learns more and more about the characters, their motives, and abilities. This is the part one can refer back to when characters see or feel things in others but it isn’t necessarily clearly spelled out for the reader. A bit like rock, paper, scissors, some emotions can be overwritten one way or the other, and emotions are channeled into spells and shields. Much thought is given to the darker emotions like hate and the subtle differences on how to combat each of them.
In the world of Winds of Strife that Gutman created, women aren’t allowed to practice Senspirity. They are dehumanized and hunted by Senspiriters like the Harbingers. Yet, in this world, the nights are getting longer as a witch's spell has been cast, one that flooded most of the civilization before. Nye, one of the main characters, is feeding off of an event from his youth and plays a double role in the aid and defense on both sides of the factions to follow his own agenda. He is plagued by what has been done to him and his family, yet, to infiltrate the source, he is to keep the king’s daughter from finding out she has senspirit abilities while at the same time, he is mingling with the resistance of women, fighting the Harbingers who have caused him such trauma. Nye is a character that is worth analyzing as his struggles lie deep. This being a novel based on emotions, Nye’s state, especially towards the end is one of delusion, paralyzed by his own demons and insanity has been well imagined in his struggle. Looking back at the cover of the novel, it is clearly shown right there, the struggle with the darker side of Nye’s personality. He isn’t necessarily a likable character, but one interesting to follow, especially from a psychological point of view.
“With no separation between the conscious and the subconscious, you attain similar clarity for both. You may hear phantom voices sometimes but, curiously, it comes with unprecedented control of your emotions.”
The group of the resistance woman was a nice touch to this novel. Glitter is a fantastic, sort of bubbly character, and the relationship among the women armed like sisters is great to read about. Diane was one I wanted to figure out more and I think there was room given for the reader to interpret some of the connections between the characters. It isn’t all written out to satisfy, but let the reader make decisions about what characters they are drawn to. The mix and variety of all together allow for diverse and dynamic emotions, relationships, and spells to find a place in this novel.
The author’s insight into cognitive behavior was well utilized in writing such a uniquely crafted novel combined with a love for fantasy. The Winds of Strife comes in with a strong gust in its sails, dark, sharp, and well imagined.
I recommend it for readers who are fascinated with the dynamics of emotions, manipulation, and tools drawn from the roots of psychology.
I received a copy of this novel from the author in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.
All opinions are my own.
Thank you!
