Publishers Weekly
02/20/2023
Ford continues to impress with both his worldbuilding and his facility at creating fully realized characters in this sequel to 2022’s Engines of Empire. Torwyn, a nation only recently elevated to the status of an empire and ruled by six powerful guilds, is at a turning point after its founder, Emperor Sullivar Archwind, is assassinated during a coup. Now the land’s religious leadership, the Draconate Ministry, seeks to eliminate the guilds and consolidate power. The ministry’s head, the current Archlegate Sanctan Egelrath, sets out to ban the use of artifice (or magic) and to impose a regime in which the elaborate artificer machinery that’s been the nation’s lifeblood will “be replaced by the vigour and labour of its people.” Opposing him is Lancelin Jagdor, swordwright of the Archwind Guild, which specializes in artifice, who hopes to gather allies to save his people. Ford’s imagined world is so societally detailed that there’s even a character who’s an actuary. The result is a complex but accessible epic fantasy that keeps the series going strong. (Apr.)
From the Publisher
"Constant peril and charged action sequences propel this high-octane steampunk thriller forward at break-neck speed. The solid writing and engaging plot establish a fully realized world with diverse magic systems mixed with artifice. Perfect for fans of Brian McClellan and Tyler Whitesides."—Library Journal on Engines of Chaos
"Ford continues to impress with both his worldbuilding and his facility at creating fully realized characters in this sequel to 2022’s Engines of Empire ... Ford’s imagined world is so societally detailed ... The result is a complex but accessible epic fantasy that keeps the series going strong."—Publishers Weekly on Engines of Chaos
"The ensemble cast of deeply portrayed and emotionally connectives characters, coupled with an impressively intricate storyline, makes for a highly entertaining read. Additionally, the novel’s structure—alternating back and forth among numerous story arcs—gives this doorstopper a continuous sense of immediacy and momentum, making for a virtually un-put-down-able read. Fans of shelf-bending fantasy will find this richly described and impressively intricate installment utterly satisfying."—Kirkus (Starred Review) on Engines of Chaos
“Epic fantasy fans listen up: This is the good stuff. Highly recommended.”—Kirkus (starred review) on Engines of Empire
"Perfect for fans of Brent Weeks, George R. R. Martin, or David Gemmell . . . . The best traditional epic fantasy I have read in years."—Grimdark Magazine on Engines of Empire
“An excellent start to a new series: fast-paced and engaging, with a properly epic setting and a cast of characters I look forward to seeing more of.”—James Islington, author of The Shadow of What Was Lost, on Engines of Empire
“Ford succeeds in building a complex fantasy world, complete with warring factions, fearsome creatures, and bloody struggles for power . . . Fans of R.A. Salvatore’s DemonWars Saga will be especially hooked.”—Publishers Weekly on Engines of Empire
“A heady blend of action, arcana, and intrigue.”—Gareth Hanrahan, author of The Gutter Prayer, on Engines of Empire
"The latest from Ford is the first in a new series that will give fantasy readers exactly what they want: conspiracy, magic, a delectable cast of characters, and an ending that will leave them begging to know what happens next."—Booklist on Engines of Empire
Grimdark Magazine on Engines of Empire
Perfect for fans of Brent Weeks, George R. R. Martin, or David Gemmell…The best traditional epic fantasy I have read in years.”
Booklist on Engines of Empire
The latest from Ford is the first in a new series that will give fantasy readers exactly what they want: conspiracy, magic, a delectable cast of characters, and an ending that will leave them begging to know what happens next.
James Islington
An excellent start to a new series: fast-paced and engaging, with a properly epic setting and a cast of characters I look forward to seeing more of.
Gareth Hanrahan
A heady blend of action, arcana, and intrigue.
Library Journal
03/01/2023
Lady Rosomon Hawkspur and her wild and willful children return in this mercilessly epic sequel to Engines of Empire. The story picks up right where the first book left off. The Empire has traded corrupt guilds for tyranny, but Rosomon hardens herself to lead the resistance against the Draconate Ministry. Tyreta adjusts to her newfound abilities and embarks upon a dangerous mission to retrieve a deadly weapon. Meanwhile, Conall fights to escape being enslaved and realizes he has cascading problems. Even with upheaval in all corners of the Empire, a much more monumental threat emerges from behind the scenes, with a war of machines, gods, and demons right in the thick of it. The large cast of multifaceted characters grapples with thorny family dynamics, and they're determined not to be pawns in a much larger game. VERDICT Constant peril and charged action sequences propel this high-octane steampunk thriller forward at break-neck speed. The solid writing and engaging plot establish a fully realized world with diverse magic systems mixed with artifice. Perfect for fans of Brian McClellan and Tyler Whitesides.—Andrea Dyba
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2023-02-23
The second installment of Ford’s Age of Uprising trilogy (after Engines of Empire, 2022) continues the grand-scale fantasy narrative that follows a group of adventurers and their struggle to win back their nation from usurpers.
After Sullivar Archwind—the emperor of Torwyn—is assassinated, the industrial powerhouse is thrown into chaos. For generations, every aspect of Torwyn’s society has been ruled by the Guilds (transportation, mining, military, farming, etc.) and driven by the magic pyrestones that power everything from weapons to machinery. But with Sanctan Egelrath—the ruthless Archlegate of the Draconate Ministry—systematically dismantling the entire Guild system and rebuilding the country as an inflexible theocracy, time is quickly running out for those who want to avenge Sullivar’s death and reestablish the Guilds. Following numerous characters, the intertwining storylines chronicle the action and intrigue from a diversity of perspectives. Former Guildmaster Rosomon Hawkspur attempts to stay alive long enough to assemble an army while her daughter, Tyreta, embarks on a quest to find an artificer whose forbidden magical experimentation could help defeat the Ministry. Swordwright Lancelin Jagdor of the Archwind Guild, on a mission to find potential allies to join Rosomon’s forces, travels through his devastated homeland in search of an increasingly rare commodity: hope. Rosomon’s son Conall—believed to be dead in a shipwreck—is sold into slavery and becomes an unknowing pawn in a much larger, and more nefarious, game of world domination. While the worldbuilding isn’t as much a focus in this novel as in its predecessor, the ensemble cast of deeply portrayed and emotionally connected characters, coupled with an impressively intricate storyline, makes for a highly entertaining read. Additionally, the novel’s structure—alternating back and forth among numerous story arcs—gives this doorstopper a continuous sense of immediacy and momentum, making for a virtually un-put-down-able read.
Fans of shelf-bending fantasy will find this richly described and impressively intricate installment utterly satisfying.
