I am an ARC reader for Mitch. I look forward to everything he writes. Dark/Epic fantasy at its finest.

Throwback fantasy which leaves you desperate for more!
I loved that the main character was a demon, Tarrik, and his utter displeasure at being summoned by a sorceror made him all the more enjoyable for me.
The world building was fantastic and intricate without being confusing, the plot was fast moving and engaging, and the interaction between the two main characters was one of my favourite parts of the book.
A great fantasy read, and I can't wait to check out the next one.

I. Loved. This. Book! Loved it till there was no higher rating to show this, but only 5 stars!!!

Holy cow, it has it all! Demons and magic and action! And so much suspense!!! There was even a past tragic romance in the plot! And the main hero was my all-time favorite kind, the anti-hero! What more could a girl ask for?! Though, keep in mind, it's not a story for too young people...

So, in the first installment of this series, we have Tarrik, a demon who is also exiled, and is summoned by a sorcerer named Ren in order to help her with her hidden agenda. Throughout their shared journey and adventure, they will learn to coexist, understand each other - if only a little - and try to survive - possibly while succeeding this crazy plan the sorceress has come up with.

I freaking loved this story! The world that the writer has built is not exactly detailed, though he makes sure to give us enough lore and information for each place to make the canvas behind the characters more plausible and understandable. Still, I kinda dig the whole "an entire nation that practically worships demons" thing - put a nice twist to it.

I especially enjoyed Tarrik as the main character. He was very interesting, and he makes you fall in love with him instantly! His dry wit and his sassy way of taking care of things, while at the same time giving a big middle finger to his orders from Ren, came in a nice contrast with his hidden, sweet side. Tarrik became an exile because he fell in love, yet he still has feelings for his lost beloved, and his friend, and he can't help but feel strongly for those under his care (willingly or not), either. If that doesn't wake up the romantic in any of you, I don't know what will! That part especially, about demons not being heartless, but actually feeling all emotions much more strongly than humans, made so much sense about the way we usually see such beings depicted in stories, and it seriously broke my heart, because it made everything he experienced in the book that much more intense for him, and it hurts to think what he had to go through under Ren's orders and treatment.

Speaking of Ren, I really didn't like her. At first I respected her, sort of. She was no innocent, and also a member of the dark cult, and didn't care to hide it. But then her true colors started showing, and it just didn't sit well with me. Especially the way she kept punishing Tarrik and treating him like garbage. She kept pushing him for info on his personal life, but refused to give any herself, and then she dared act like THE benevolent mistress of all times! And when the poor guy just got fed up with her attitude and didn't try to probe further, she changed tactics and forced the info down his throat anyway! Not to mention she kept finding things that she disapproved of in Tarrik's mere existence! His stance, his battle tactics, the way he fed, the way he clothed himself - it was one insulting and racist comment after another, disrespecting him and his culture, all the while demanding he shows respect to her own morals and customs! Jesus, woman, why summon the guy then in the first place?! He's a demon, an entirely different species than you, you'd think someone worshiping the damn things would know there are major differences between them and humans! And when she was asleep and bleeding, she punished him for trying to treat her wound!

It should go without saying, I didn't feel sad to see her go.

Now, the series obviously doesn't end here, but the story in this particular book didn't necessarily have a happy ending. Still, I can't say I found it bad - I usually prefer HEAs, but this one served the purpose of the story just fine. Even though I cried because of the magnitude of feelings rushing through Tarrik, I felt that this leg of his personal journey was good to end, and I can't wait to read the next book with him in it!

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***

Shadow of the Exile is the tale of a demon summoning, but its from the point of view of the demon Tarrik Nal-Valim was summoned from his exile by a powerful sorceress to aid her in her schemes.

The concept is a fresh idea and an interesting concept just felt that this book needed more push in the plot to keep things moving. Other than that the book is a fun read with some insane magic battles.

I couldn’t put this book down and can’t wait to read more from this world; I also plan on reading the previous series set in this world.

Tarrik Nal-Valim is a powerful demon, he’s a level 37 and has been summoned by a powerful sorcerer Ren (Serenity) and he must do her bidding. As a higher-level demon, he is intelligent and retains his memories. Ren is being hunted by some bad guys and we’re never sure why until the climatic ending which leavers readers anticipating the next book. Tarrik is mot happy to be summoned, he was working on a plan to hopefully end his sentence of exile and now he is forced to grudgingly do as Ren wants. Although, he must do as Ren says or he will be punished he’s not altogether obedient at times. He’s easy to like, even though he’s a demon, while the storyline leaves you wondering for most of the book what Ren’s motives really are. There’s lots of action, plenty of snark and the characters and world building are well done so it should appeal to many fantasy lovers.

4.5/5 STARS: **This is an honest, unbiased review. I would like to thank the author and/or/publisher for providing an ARC through Netgalley, all opinions are mine. **

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC of Shadow of the Exile by Mitchell Hogan in exchange for an honest review. And sorry this wasn't sooner!

Tarrik Nal-Valim, a demon of the 37th order, is summoned from his exile in the Abyssal Realms to human lands by sorceress Serenity "Ren" Branwen. Ren is the daughter of Tarrik's former master, who he'd come to trust, but now it appears he revealed all of Tarrik's secrets for his daughter to enslave him once again to do her bidding. Ren instantly commands Tarrik to protect her from her enemies, while keeping her own goals shrouded in secrecy.

Tarrik hates Ren for enslaving him and vows to get free of her bindings as soon as he can, but his urgency grows when he discovers she's part of the Nine, a group of deranged sorcerers who have been broken and compelled to free the worst and most powerful demon who ever lived, Samal. If Samal is freed, the human realm will be wiped out and the Abyssal Realms enslaved to his will, and Tarrik finds himself facing increasingly difficult choices, especially when Ren's path appears to deviate from this goal.

When I started this book, I admit I had some particular expectations for it. A powerful monster enslaved to do a human woman's bidding? That's got Hellsing and The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms written all over it. Instantly, though, I realized the relationship between Tarrik and Ren would not be like that of Alucard and Integra, or even Yeine and Nahadoth. There would not be struggles for one to obtain power from the other, their interactions ripe with sexual tension from the start. So I adjusted my expectations, excited for this new type of relationship.

Unfortunately, though, I quickly became bored, and I soon realized this book just wasn't for me. While Tarrik was a strong-willed character, he was almost mostly ineffective compared to Ren's power; I kept wondering why someone as strong as she clearly is needed Tarrik. I wondered why, as a demon, Tarrik wasn't more interesting, more creative as a character.

He read more like an incredibly honorable human man who wouldn't shy away at getting his hands dirty if the situation called for it---which was the point, I suppose, and the cause for his exile: being a demon who possessed humanity. But that's not what I'm after when I read about a demon character.

I also didn't see anything particularly demonic about Tarrik, other than his skin color, eating habits, and the slight supernatural power he possessed. Normally, these things could easily be considered demon traits, but Tarrik ran into quite a few humans capable of these things, too, which made him seem incredibly ordinary in comparison.

As for Ren, I liked her, but she was also incredibly difficult to get to know, even from a reader's standpoint. She was distant, assertive, and cagey to Tarrik, and even when her goal became obvious to me, she refused to shed any light on it for Tarrik's sake until close to the very end of the novel. I enjoyed her abilities, her rare shows of humor, her vulnerable side, and her determination; that's probably why I'm as dissatisfied with the ending as I am.

While the worldbuilding and fearsome creatures that Hogan created were fascinating, a lot of the backstory of places and characters was told through exposition, particular facets of both Tarrik's and Ren's pasts. I came to wish that their respective backstories were the focus of the novel instead of the plot I was given, because they sounded more intriguing, more natural. I felt this keenly with the way Tarrik went on about his dead human wife, the one he'd gotten exiled by his own kind for, as well as Ren's torments under Samal's influence.

Otherwise, the novel consisted of a lot of rapid traveling as Ren and Tarrik flew from place to place. Even though the events that occurred at each place were different, the rhythm of it became very repetitive to read and eventually Ren's goals at each of these places felt that way, too.

Tarrik's fleeting on-and-off attraction to Ren despite his hatred of her was also not the best I've read, making the time when his feelings for her changed less poignant than it should have been. Part of me still roots for the both of them; I think their relationship---be it friendship or romantic in nature---could be enjoyable to read if handled a little better.

Despite this, I can see many people enjoying this book for the epic fantasy romp that it is. The prose and writing style is also very good. It just didn't scratch a particular itch that I have, and I kept expecting elements from it that I never received, making the reading experience less enjoyable for me. However, I'm still thankful for giving it a shot.

Shadow of the Exile was an action-packed and fun novel from an author who is quickly becoming one of my favourites on the fantasy scene. A bit snarky with a little bit of the popular grimdark thrown in without being a grimdark novel, this one kept me up much later than I should have been up but it was so much fun to read. And best of all, no love triangle in sight!!!

Tarrick is an exiled demon trying to find his way back into the demon world when he is suddenly summoned by a desperate sorcerer who just happens to be the daughter of his previous master. Tarrick was definitely not happy to be summoned, and definitely not happy to learn that his previous master, with whom he actually developed a friendship, had written down some of the things he promised never to reveal, ever. I loved Tarrick's character; he was so much fun to follow in this novel as he spent half the book saving Ren's life and half trying to figure out how to kill her so he could return to the demon world. With a constantly evolving character (man, the character development for his character was sooo good), Tarrick had to figure out what was safe for him and what was going on in this war between sorcerers. What he did discover made even his demon blood run cold. This shift between him and Ren as enemies to him and Ren fighting together was so subtle and I enjoyed following their partnership throughout the book. It would have devastated me if their relationship had turned into a love relationship as it just didn't fit the tone of the book, at least for now. Maybe later.

I wasn't overly sympathetic to Ren at the beginning, but having read some of this author's other work, I understood how he wrote and I was willing to be patient. That patience definitely won as Ren's backstory was slowly revealed and while you really had to read between the lines, I am so glad it was done this way as her story was pretty horrific. I definitely became a fan of hers towards the end. It made their relationship so much more interesting throughout the book and I loved the give and take that happened. Both Tarrick and Ren were so interesting as characters and I enjoyed them both.

The plot moved quickly from event to event but what I really enjoyed was the well-thought out magic system. It wasn't in your face and a lot was explained as you read along but I enjoyed it and thought it was kind of neat. I have always enjoyed the way this author wrote and this book was no different; he has a way of drawing you in and I definitely stayed up way too late finishing this book. There were lots of witty and snarky moments and I enjoyed them as much as the fight and magic scenes.

Shadow of the Exile was a pleasure to read and I am so happy to learn there will be a sequel, Dawn of the Exile, releasing March 19th 2019. Tarrick and Ren had an interesting relationship and I enjoyed how we only hear Tarrick's thoughts about the events as the book was written from his point of view which made it even more interesting. Full of interesting details with a fascinating magic system, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interesting in fantasy with magic and demons.

Thoughts and Plot

It's not often you can honestly say you are 100% on the demon's side. In fact, this may be the first time I have ever said anything like that in my life. But I am 100% behind Tarrik Nal-Valim, demon of the 37th order, outcast, lover of a human woman. Tarrik is considered a pretty high level demon among demons, even if he is an outcast for breaking demon law for marrying a human. So he is rather surprised (and pained) when he is summoned to serve a human in one of the realms.

Serenity Branwen is a sorceress of surprising skill and power. She summons Tarrik using her father's old notes and binds him to serve her. This is somewhat of a desperate act on her part, but she is being pursued and requires someone with the strength and skill to wield a blade. He cannot go against her orders and is therefore forced to go along with her plans.

Feeling rather betrayed by his old friend who swore he would destroy his notes upon returning Tarrik to the demon realm, Tarrik follows Ren acting as her body guard all the while trying to find out a way to betray her and get her killed so he can return home. Tarrik knows that the cold, calculating Ren desperately needs his help, but the only thing that is keeping him there is her binding spells. Pleads for help be damned.

Learning that Ren is part of an order bent on resurrecting one of the most powerful and devious demon ever to walk the human realms Tarrik becomes a little more concerned with what Ren might be doing. He quickly realizes she is one of the nine, the elite of the organization, rumored to have been driven mad by the demon they are trying to bring back to the human world. Tarrik has a right to be concerned. After all, this demon could potentially wipe out all demons. But his initial prodding for information gets him nowhere.

May I just say that Mitchell Hogan does an awesome job of luring you in and then tricking you into cheering for the demon of the book. After all, demons in this realm feel deeper and more strongly then any human could. Tarrik uses alcohol to control himself as best he's able and standing next to cold-fish Ren, he almost looks like a saint. After all, he's not the one forcing another into servitude for his own means. He's not the one ordering that enslaved individual to fight his battle for him. He's not the one forcing that person to kill innocents to keep secrets while stealing relics at great personal risk.

What made this book lose a star, for me personally, is how they get to and fro in the book. It is a magical flying platform. Just hop on and boom, next town, next fight, next object to collect. I totally get why this is a thing. At 450 pages, something has to give and travel time it is. And while I enjoyed each 'level' of the story, it felt a bit like I was reading a dungeon crawler. Tarrik did add a lot of depth ,being the solo point of view. So that was a saving grace. As an older demon, he was able to add a lot of background info and general observations that an older demon should know about both his own realm and the human one he was currently on.

In Conclusion

I really enjoyed this book and since it seems like it is going to be book one of a series, I really hope we get to continue following Tarrik around and that his next journey isn't forced upon him.

This is the first novel I have read by this author, I was a little dubious based on other reviews/comments I had seen from others but decided to give it a chance, and boy am I glad I didn’t listen to the negative nelly’s!

First of all, how utterly refreshing to read from a Demons point of view! Tarrik is a classic antihero, written so well you cannot help but love him. His dry sense of humour and ruthlessness is a breath of fresh air. Coupled with Ren, a badass female sorcerer that will do what it takes to get what she wants, they make an excellent team and their journey is a thoroughly enjoyable one to follow.

It’s obvious that Mitchell Hogan has put so much thought and love into this universe, the detail of magic, sorcerers and demons, it’s all so intriguing and well thought out!

All in all, this was an easy book to read, well-paced, funny and enthralling! I will definitely be adding this to my read again pile and look forward to more from Mithcell Hogan!

This was a very good book, right storyline with cool and interesting characters that had you turning the pages in anticipation!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review.
I have read other books by Mr. Hogan and will admit to enjoying them more.
Not that I didn't enjoy this one.
I've been thinking about this book since I read it and I still can't place my finger on what seems off to me.

This is the first book in a possibly planned 3 book dark epic fantasy and let me tell you, I am buckled in for the ride because this one really surprised me! It's mainly focusing on two characters, Tarrik who is an extremely powerful demon and Ren who is a sorceress.

REASONS YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK:
-Amazing action scenes and showdowns of epic proportions
-450 pages of buttery writing with no slumbering info dumps
-Stunning and thought-provoking
-MAGIC and even a likeable demon character!
-An RPG inspired magic system

Add this one to your TBR's, follow news of future releases. This is for sure a new favorite of mine and wouldn't be surprised if it ended up being one of yours.

This seemed like it was going to be a pretty interesting book based on the premise. A sorceress summons a demon to do her bidding, but the tale is told from the demon's point of view. Turns out the demon is a lot like your typical fantasy antihero. He has a history with the sorceress's family having been summoned by her father years earlier. During that time he fell in love with a human and wound up being exiled in the demon world because of his betrayal of demonkind. The story itself wasn't bad. Some fairly predictable things happened, bad guys got killed, the kinda good guys had victories with consequences. In the end, I would give it a 3.5 rounded to 4. There were a lot of repetitive refrains where Tarrik (the demon) reexplained things that we had already heard from him many times before. The book probably would have been about 60 pages shorter if it had dropped all that repetitive stuff. Not a bad read if you are a fantasy fan, but not really anything spectacular.

I mostly enjoyed this book. I enjoyed Tarrik and Ren as the main characters, and found them to be well-written. I really enjoyed seeing thugs from Tarrik's POV, but I would have liked to see more of his world.

The world building was good, but it felt quite slow. We got the information as Tarrik did. We could put two and two together in places, but I would have liked a bit more pace at times. Saying that, it was a fairly quick read.

When Tarrik is pulled from his exile, into the human world, he is shocked. He is a higher level demon, he hasn’t seen this world in hundreds of years. Who would even know his name, let alone be strong enough to bind him?
Serenity ‘Ren” Branwen is desperate. On the run from those who wish her harm, she calls Tarrik, she binds him to her will and uses him to set her plans in motion. She is a member of the Nine, hellbent on releasing Samal from his prison. She is cold and ruthless and orders him to kill.

In a world of sorcerers and magic, demons are treated like slaves. They are dragged into this world to do sorcerers bidding. Sometimes they are experimented on, sometimes they are let loose on the world. Demons are complex, they feel everything stronger than a human could. Whether it be anger or lust, their passionate natures make them seem like they have no self-control. But when it comes to higher level demons, like Tarrik, they are masters of self control. They just might not always use it.

Shadow of the Exile (Book 1 Of the Infernal Guardian series) had an awesome old school fantasy feel to it. Tarrik and Ren travelled the world, gathering relics and scheming. Making sure everything is in order for the release of Samal. They run into trouble wherever they go and have to rely on each other to get out of some very sticky situations; From mad sorcerers to demons, it’s chaos.

Tarrik is a complex, endearing, ruthless, scheming character. I loved him. I think he was written really well and his displays of emotion contrasted with Ren’s cold, business like manner really well. He showed a lot more “humanity” than 90% of the actual humans in the book and it turns your concept of the term demon on its head.

The world was intriguing; Because of the way Ren travelled we got to see glimpses of many places. While it didn’t go deep into each place we did get a sense of how oppressed the people were by their rulers and governments. It was interesting seeing it from Tarriks viewpoint. He was often disgusted with the behaviour of humans and his thoughts on things were often much more reasonable than those he was judging.

“Ideas are everywhere,” he said. “To imprison someone for history and ideas would mean imprisoning all.”

The writing itself was good, there were a few phrases that were repeated a lot or bits of information that we kept getting given, but other than that it was a solid, fast paced read. The world has so much more room to be explored.
I received a copy of this from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very difficult book to put down, and very easy to get into!

I started reading this one just a little bit before bedtime, and pretty soon it was way, way past my bedtime, lol.

This is the story of Tarrik Nal-Valim, who is a demon. He’s one of the higher ranked demons, so he’s intelligent and retains his memories, unlike the lower ranked demons in the worlds of the abyss. He’s been exiled by his people into one of the worst worlds in the abyss, and is just trying to make his way in the hopes that he’ll have a chance to redeem himself to the demon lords, when he is suddenly summoned, and it turns out it’s by his former master’s daughter, Ren. Ren is in a bind, and has bad people chasing her, and is part of a cabal of sorcerers that is going to try and summon the worst demon ever… so, as a last resort, she summons her father’s demon friend to help her contribute to the cause.

And there were many, many shenanigans to be had!

I really, really liked Tarrik. He’s often rather snarky or witty, and the way that he always toes the line of his bonds with Ren was great. He either toes the lines of disobedience, or obeys her commands so to the letter that it’s more than she bargained for. He’s a really easy character to root for, even when he’s doing things that are… not so great. I mean, he is what he is, amirite? Demons in the universe that Mitchell Hogan has created are somewhat similar to demons in our own lore. They vary in power, can be summoned and controlled, and are generally fond of mischief and mayhem. But, Tarrik isn’t the sort who actively goes out of his way to do horrible things. He seems like a pretty good dude, all told, it’s just that demons have an emotional spectrum that’s powerful and difficult to control. So, he gets into trouble at times, but he really just wants to end his exile and move on with his life. So, I found myself cheering for him to win the day.

I didn’t really latch on to Ren until later on in the story, but I did eventually get there. She’s a bit of a mystery, in terms of why she’s so powerful compared to all the other sorcerers like her, and more into the goal that she’s working towards. She knows some interesting people and goes to some interesting places, that’s for sure.

I’m pretty sure that this is part of a series, as it’s certainly left room for further stories with Tarrik at the helm. While this one wasn’t a cliffhanger, it did end rather abruptly and differently than I thought it would. Not badly… just… differently. I’m excited to see where this story will go!

This was an easy book to read, and was never boring. I found that it was rather well paced, and there was usually something exciting or interesting going on. I was really interested in this one because a story from the POV of a bound demon was something I thought sounded really interesting. Well, it was rather interesting, so I’m certainly glad that this one found its way into my hands! I had 4/5 stars of fun with this one. I hope to find out what’s next for Tarrik!

Thanks to the author, and 47North via NetGalley for the review copy!

Shadow of the Exile by Mitchell Hogan, I really enjoyed this book, well written and from the viewpoint of the being summoned. He is summoned to protect her against his will, and winds up learning that in order to save himself he may have to save humanity.

In the outstanding opening scene, Tarrik is ripped from the demon realm, summoned by a new master to do her bidding.  Ren is a soceress threatened by many adversaries and the summoning brings muscle. This starts a relationship that is edged in suspicion, capitulation, and maybe even respect. Tarrik’s own history of interactions with humans complicates things and adds great depth and enjoyment to his character. His anger and base rage... the nature of the relationship will bend and develop throughout the novel. This is really one of the most interesting aspects of this book.

The world is ruled by political sects that seek to rule over demons and as has happened in the past, demons over humans.  Tarrik is very reluctantly brought into this ethereal play for power, but soon finds a some reason to sympathize with his new master.

The biggest draw for this book is that it is told from the demon's perspective. There is a tendency to drawn the antihero without much dimension, but Hogan's protagonist, his quirks and proclivities, is a very good one. There are many other highlights in this book: Catacombs fighting, original monsters, spears, cants, and an inventive style of sorcery. 

But the biggest criticism in the work is in the telling of the story. For much of the book, Tarrik is in the dark as to the true motives of his master. And with him, the reader also is lacking some basic information. The audience is allowed a slow drip and some solid fight scenes early help to sate the need for conflict, but it just wasn't enough. The story picks up after the midway point and the mystery starts to reveal itself.

Overall, Shadow of the Exile has a solid premise and some great characterization, but the storytelling is lacking at times.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

I loved this from the beginning to the very bittersweet ending. I had never read Mitchell Hogan before, but I will definitely be looking at his other works. The story begins when Tarrik, a long-forgotten demon in exile, is being summoned by Serenity or Ren. Ren is a powerful sorceress in a desperate situation and as a last resort summons her first demon for assistance. The story is interesting because it's told from the demon's point of view. He is very demon-like and often thinks of the many ways he'll kill Ren when he gets free from her bonds but he slowly but surely begins to identify with Ren and her predicament even though being friendly with humans is precisely why he was exiled in the first place. Tarrik is in a constant struggle trying to decide if it's in his best interest to help Ren or not. Even though he is a demon, he's quite likeable. I loved the authors writing style, his world building and was on the edge of my seat during the intense and exciting battles and altercations. This is a great start to a new series that has me wishing that it will not be limited to just three books. I definitely recommend this book if you loved the Hobbit, LOTR and Harry Potter. Overall a great book in my opinion. I received an ARC from NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Dang. Not often when a book ends do I sit up straighter and huff my annoyance at the cliffhanger ending. This books is very very good. Intricate details and magic, it takes the usual sorcerer/demon dynamic and juxtaposes it with the demon's viewpoint. Seriously so many layers to unpack in the characters and their dynamics alone, never mind the complex system of magic employed. I was expecting a jazzed up rehash of the usual "cabal of madmen unleash the end of the world deity seeking power" and instead read a dazzling jewel of a story. I would also like to know what happens next in the worst way.