Tanya Huff is a seasoned, multi-genre author whose work never ceases to amaze me with its sensitivity, thoughtfulness, and sheer drama. She’s as prolific as she is versatile, both with her many long-running series and her stand-alone novels. Into the Broken Lands introduces a completely new world and characters. The set-up is familiar to fantasy readers: generations ago, mages intoxicated by their own limitless powers shattered the laws of nature and reality, resulting in their own demise and a landscape of magical impossibilities, The Broken Lands. Since then, the royal heirs of Marsan, greatest of the surviving human realms, venture into The Broken Lands in search of the fuel for an ever-burning flame and their own legitimacy as rulers.

Here, Huff does something both challenging and brilliant: she weaves together two such journeys, one in the present and the other, a couple of generations ago. At first, the two seem disjoint, the past being no more than prolog to the present. As the two sets of characters venture deeper into the perilous Broken Lands, both similarities and differences echo and build on one another. Eventually, the fate of the earlier expedition shapes the present, and the present offers redemption for what has come before. The unifying elements include records kept by the first expedition, taken as reverential gospel, and the discovery of how scholars have selectively edited them, horrendous dangers that are repeated with unpredictable variations, and a single character: the sole surviving weapon of the mages, without which no heir can reach the source of the fuel and return safely. Only the weapon isn’t a thing, an “it;” the weapon is a person, a giant rock-like female warrior who had been enslaved and imprisoned until a healer, a member of the first party, saw her as a person.

Into the Broken Lands is understandably character-fueled, although there is plenty of action, escalating tension, and mystery in the story. At its core, however, the story allows us to examine key questions. What is a person—and how does one become a person? What is the redemptive power of love? What is the role of knowledge and is there such a thing as knowledge free from ethics? While an entertaining story filled with bizarre magic and compelling characters, it is at its heart a story of love and grief. Exceptionally well done!

Into the Broken Lands is a captivating and imaginative novel by Tanya Huff. The story follows a young woman named Kiera, who finds herself transported to a mysterious and dangerous world after a sudden earthquake shakes her city. In this new world, Kiera discovers that magic is real, and she must learn to navigate its rules if she hopes to survive.

Huff's writing is vivid and descriptive, bringing the world of the Broken Lands to life with stunning detail. From the dangerous creatures that lurk in the shadows to the ancient ruins that dot the landscape, every aspect of this world feels fully realized and believable.

One of the strengths of Into the Broken Lands is its character development. Kiera is a relatable and engaging protagonist, struggling to come to terms with the reality of her situation and the magic that surrounds her. Alongside her, there is a diverse cast of characters, each with their own motivations and secrets. The interactions between these characters are rich with tension and emotion, and their relationships evolve over the course of the novel in ways that feel authentic and satisfying.

Overall, Into the Broken Lands is a fantastic read that will appeal to fans of fantasy and adventure. The world-building is top-notch, the characters are engaging, and the plot is full of surprises and twists. If you're looking for a thrilling journey to a new and exciting world, this is a book you won't want to miss.

Into the Broken Lands by Tanya Huff was a fairly standard fantasy epic quest book. I couldn’t say that I necessarily disliked it or that I loved it. If there was a sequel, however, I would certainly be interested in reading it. Not sure what type of measurement that might mean to other people, though. Continue reading to see what led me to this conclusion.

Plot and Characters
Into the Broken Lands is a typical fantasy quest and with that comes with your stock of characters on a dangerous adventure into the unknown. We also have the heir lacking confidence and needing to prove themselves, the power and knowledge-hungry scholar, and the stoic reluctant guide. Pretty standard fare. Unfortunately, it allows for certain tropes that are at times overdone in the genre. There are some additional aspects that are touches that I enjoyed, such as LGBTQ+ representation, the question of what constitutes personhood, etc.

World Building
I’m not sure how I stand on the world building. The concept of the “Broken Lands” that the quest takes place in is pretty interesting. Although things are not explained regarding certain aspects of it. For example, only at certain times can you enter into it. Why? I’m still not quite sure. Huff clearly outlines that this world is a post-mage era that looks down upon the use of magecraft and all that comes with it. I, however, didn’t catch why they were so against it. Since no one lives in the Broken Lands, everyone is from somewhere else. Unfortunately, we do not necessarily get an idea of what Marsanport and other locations are really like. Thus there is an aspect of the characters’ culture that feels neglected. While that is not necessary to enjoy their quest, it just would have added more depth to the world building.

Narrative Structure
Huff wrote the saga with not only multiple viewpoints but also timelines. I must say I really like stories that have numerous timelines that also reflect each other. Most of the viewpoints take place in the “now” while one of them is “then.” What I really thought was an interesting aspect was that the timelines both occur during this coming-of-age quest for the Heirs of Marsan in the past and present. Beyond that, one of our characters was present during both timelines. Thus our reluctant guide knows more than she is letting on. This is something I would have liked to be played upon more throughout the story.

Overall
As I mentioned, I do not feel very strongly one way or another about Into the Broken Lands. Tanya Huff certainly created an interesting story, but it was not one that made me feel invested in the characters and their quest. If they had to bring back fuel for a flame to keep Marsanport safe, I should feel connected more to Marsanport. There were certain aspects that were fresh for the genre, but I do not think that was enough to carry the book. I think most fantasy lovers would enjoy this book, but I do not think that it revolutionizes the genre by any means.

Into the Broken Lands is a story that features a host of POV's and an even crazier host of things that are trying to kill you.

The world is struck with devastation after the Mage Wars and the land is now left over with some of that raw power, but that raw power doesn't want you to go where you are not supposed to. The world was unique and rich and well planned out and one of the things I loved about this book. The idea of the land almost fighting back was something I had never read before.

The characters are flushed out and well thought out, with most of the characters having their own chapters to really get to see what is going on in their heads. I would have liked to see a bit more depth when it came to the conversations with one another. When the characters were "talking" in their own heads, I felt they were very believable and real, but once they started to interact on a daily basis, it felt a bit off to me.

While I feel hat Nonee had the most compelling story of them all, I really did appreciate the moral grayness of the other characters.

Pros:
Great character work
Flushed out world building

Cons:
The plot had a few holes in it where I thought maybe the lore was a bit lacking
Dialogue could use some work to feel more real

This was very slow for me and I had a lot of trouble getting into the story. This book also includes changing time periods with the changing points of view, which is personally one of my least favorite things. It's a very questy fantasy, so if that's something that you're looking for and you don't mind time jumps, then Into the Broken Lands will probably work well for you.

The Broken Lands were shattered by mage wars and are full of malevolent and sadistic magics. The heirs of Marsan have to venture forth every so often to get fuel for the black flame which – in some unknown way – protects Marsan Port. In the Now the black flame is flickering so the heir to Marsan, Ryan, young and inexperienced, leads an expedition consisting of himself his friend Keeting, a few soldiers and two scholars, one young and one elderly, plus Nonee, a magically constructed being, created during the Mage Wars, whom the Marsan contingent think of a ‘the weapon’. Ryan’s story maps on to the previous expedition, many years earlier when Arianna, healer from Gateway, the border town on the edge of the Broken Lands, accompanied the then heir, Garrett. As we pick up the story, it’s been long enough that Arianna is dying of old age and Nonee (who seems to be ageless) is mourning her long-time friend. Nonee is the link between the two expeditions. We get Ryan’s journey and interspersed flashbacks to the previous journey when Nonee, as the nameless weapon, is released from a jail cell and forced to act as guide and protector. I like Tanya Huff’s writing. I started with the Four Quarters books and went through the Keeper chronicles and loved the Emporium stories and the Valor ones. This I’m not so sure about. The pacing is slow to begin with, Ryan and his crew spend what seems to be a long time in Gateway before the journey even begins. This gives the opportunity to take a deep dive into the characters who are surely going to be tested to the limits. Not all of them are likeable which makes this a challenging read.

Much thanks to the publisher and author for the pleasure of this approved eARC. I have loved Tanya Huff's books since the very first one I picked up and this didn't disappoint.

The Broken Lands were broken by a war between six mages, leaving a magic twisted land that must be guarded against. Gateway and the Mage Road that leads to Marsanport are the only spots of civilization we hear of (along with a mysterious Shurlia) - although as the very different quests of the to-be Lord Protectors Ryan (Heir of Marsan) and also Garrett (his great uncle) only Gateway and the Broken Lands are really focused on.

Both Ryan and Garrett are after "the fuel" for the Black Flame that their ancestor Captain Marsan took out of the Broken Lands with the Five Thousand survivors, settling Madsanport by use of a mage crafted weapon.

That weapon, we find, is at the heart of this story. The fear and use of magic that crafted her haunts and asks hard questions and probing truths on appearance and what makes a person a person. She is Uvili, known as Nonee to everyone in Gateway and only she can guide the Heirs and their parties into the Broken Lands with any hope of getting out alive and with the fuel for the very magic of the Broken Lands hates to give it up.

While there were a lot of characters to remember, this is a character-driven story and I enjoyed it throughout and didn't find the shifting points of view too difficult to follow - a last warning that a lot of characters die, pleasant and unpleasant even some you'd probably been rooting for!

Stars: 5 out of 5

I absolutely loved this story! The setting is unique and the characters are memorable. Exactly what I need in a fantasy book. 

This story is in fact two stories told parallel to each other. One is about the journey of a young heir to a powerful city, charged with bringing magical fuel out of the Broken Lands to keep the flame going that protects his city. The other one is of his uncle who undertook the same journey over 50 years ago. The common denominator for both stories is Nonnie - the last living weapon created by the mages before they annihilated each other and created the Broken Lands.

It is interesting to follow two similar journeys of two different parties of characters. Their mission is the same. Their destination is the same. They are going into the same lands... but their stories are as different as the Broken Lands themselves.

The Broken Lands, what an intriguing concept! Image a land created by magic, and then scarred by the same magic during a horrible war. There are fixed points in the landscape - places that stay the same, no matter what happens. Everything else is... malleable, mutable, and definitely hostile to outsiders. See, the road between two fixed points can take a day during the first journey and meander for four during the next one. It can cross a lush forest one time and become a murderous swamp other. Landscape, weather, and even time are not set in stone. 

This makes both journeys fascinating. Just because Ryan and his crew have the accounts of his uncle's journey, their own adventure takes a different turn. They never cross the same landscape, apart from those fixed points. And I think that is the point of this book, no pun intended: each team gets their own share of trials, tailored specifically to them, like that dark tunnel in the cave that was the second fixed point. The Broken Lands force them to confront their own fears and insecurities an emerge on the other end changed. Some for the better, some for the worse, but always as a consequence of their own choices.

That's another thing I loved about this book. There isn't a big bad to fight against here. Yes, the mages who created the Broken Lands were horrible beings (I wouldn't even call them human by now), but they are dead. The horrors they left behind stay in the Broken Lands. There isn't immediate danger to the lands around them (apart from some incursions). Our protagonists choose to cross the boundary and travel these lands, so all the horrors they encounter are the consequence of their own choices. You could say that what they find in the Broken Lands is a confrontation with themselves. It's a crucible, in which they either crumble or are mended into a better version of themselves.

And all the characters are memorable, even those you begin to hate by the end of the book. Which is no small feat, considering that we have two distinct groups of around eight people each (even though not all of them make it back out of the Broken Lands). They all felt distinct and "alive", and I mourned those who were left in the Broken Lands along with their surviving companions, because they weren't just numbers, they were people.

Nonnie is the glue that holds his story together. It's amazing to see how much she'd grown between the story journeys - from a weapon that barely spoke and didn't even consider herself as a person, who could have feelings and desires, and who was forced to undertake the trip into the Broken Lands, to someone fully accepted into a community, valued and respected, who chose to accompany this new group because of a promise she'd made to a friend. And she knows that the Broken Lands test people both physically and mentally, so she lets her companions make sometimes stupid choice because she knows they need to go through those trials. Like she lets Ryan find out for himself what his precious fuel really is, and make his own decision about what he wants to do with that knowledge. Just like she let his uncle fifty years ago.

I will definitely check out other books by Tanya Huff because I was impressed with her imagination and storytelling.

 PS: I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Character driven quest fantasy that’s witty and queer! Really enjoyed getting POVs from different points in time.

The big draw of a Tanya Huff book is that it will be character driven: snappy dialogue, plenty of innuendo, and sharp wit. This new fantasy book lives up to the legacy: a somewhat larger group of characters who each have their faults and strengths and must navigate a post apocalyptic landscape in order to bring hope to the people. The varying POVs can be frustrating/a barrier at the beginning but pay off by the middle as the story really picks up.

Story: Ryan is the new heir to the Lord Protectorate position - something he came upon only at the unexpected death of his three older brothers. Young, unsure, and inexperienced, he is tasked with traveling to the Broken Lands to retrieve a symbolic flame for his people (and to prove his worth). But the Broken Lands are a hellscape of a land greatly damaged and corrupted by a mage war in the past. Along with his companions, he will have to keep his group alive and survive the horrors that the corrupted magic will throw at him.

The POV alternates between individuals in Ryan's present-day group and a similar expedition in the past by his ancestor. The events of the past will greatly echo a lot of what Ryan's group will encounter in their journey so there is a payoff for the past. As well, it will shape a legacy for one of Ryan's group in particular.

This is a book that you take your time with and really enjoy. It doesn't have the outright humor of e.g., the Confederation Series but it also has a larger cast of characters who are each interesting and nuanced in their way. Although we were not given an indication if the story will continue after this book, I do feel that there is more than enough here to continue this into an engrossing series. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

This is a slow burning and character driven book so if you expect battles and action since the first pages this is not the right book.
I found it fascinating and Tanya Huff delivers a novel that kept me turning pages even when I was wondering if something was going to happen.
It's a classic fantasy but I was fascinated by the unknown and how the characters related to the people who live next to the Broken Lands.
You can see the Broken Lands history as an allegory of the risk of science and power or you can enjoy the story and the world building.
This book features one of the most hateful characters I've in some time: Lyelee the scholar someone who could be a perfect villain but you're not sure if she's just impatient or someone who is not empathic at all.
I love Tanya Huff's books and even if this is not my favorite I enjoyed it.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This is my first Tanya Huff book, and I cannot wait to dive into more of her stories.

This was a pretty easy read, although a good chunk of the book is the characters journey from point A to point B. The plot of the book is a basic idea. A main group arrive at the Gateway, a town that borders the Broken Lands, and is where the 'weapon lives'. The group heads off into the lands to face all the horrors that it holds. The characters are well written, to the point of loving one and hating another. Definitely keeps you on this love-hate feeling and wanting to see where it all ends up. The Authors world building is pretty great. To be able to describe the world in great detail to make the reader feel like they can picture it in their mind is what really sells a book for me. I want to feel transported to where the characters are.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc.

Did you expect 2022 to be the Year of Tanya Huff for me? Neither did I! But when Into the Broken Lands became available on NetGalley from DAW, I couldn’t not request it. I picked up some of her earlier secondary-world fantasy (Sing the Four Quarters) from the used bookstore but haven’t read it yet, so my experience with Huff has been limited to her urban-fantasy offerings. So I leaped at this chance to read a different type of fantasy from a Canadian author whose storytelling I enjoy, even if her writing hasn’t always worked for me. I wanted to see what she was like in a different element, and I got my wish.

In a severe case of Aerith and Bob, Ryan is the Heir of Marsan, whether he likes it or not. He has travelled the Mage Road for its requisite twenty-eight days from Marsanport to Gateway, a town built atop ruins. There, he hopes to embark on a quest into the—wait for it—Broken—I said wait for it—into the Broken Lands. With me so far? He’s got your standard group of warriors, rogues, mages (but they’re called scholars because mages got a bad wrap after breaking said lands), and even a tank in the form of Nonee, aka “the weapon.” As Ryan quests for fire—er, fuel for a symbolic fire that burns back in Marsanport—death visits the party because Huff is a mean DM. Oh, and there are flashback chapters to when Ryan’s granduncle, Garrett, did this all sixty years ago.

If my summary sounds tongue-in-cheek, believe me when I say that I enjoyed this book and am teasing it with love simply because it is so easy to tease! I seem to be on a fantasy kick at the moment with a lot of new books that attempt to recreate or pay homage to classic fantasy. As I noted in my recent review of The Oleander Sword, the best of these books do so in a way that improves on diversity and storytelling and makes it the author’s own while preserving the tropes of classic fantasy that make it so addictive to a reader like myself. Huff’s worldbuilding and cultural elements are not as refreshing as Suri’s, but I think she still manages to strike a good balance.

This book feels like a D&D adventure or an old-school quest narrative. The in-and-out structure makes it easy to follow, if a tad linear for my tastes. Huff tries to offset this with a dash of parallelism in the form of the flashbacks to Garrett and Arianna. These offer a contrast to what Ryan’s party experiences in terms of differing setbacks and hardships but mainly serve to establish the throughline of Nonee’s increasing sense of self and agency, which is arguably the most important and interesting part of the book.

Nonee was designed, shaped in the womb by a mage, to be a weapon. She has supernatural strength, endurance, etc. Ever since Ryan’s ancestors fled the Broken Lands and founded Marsanport, she has been with them, a potent reminder of a past filled with now-forbidden magic. Is she a person though? Most of the scholars and nobility who had access to her in Marsanport would have said no. When Ryan arrives in Gateway, where Nonee has lived for the past sixty years, he probably would have said no based on all the stories he was told. But we know better, of course, and Ryan soon learns better, as does much of his party. The question Huff actually wants us to ponder is a little more interesting than the simple affirmation of personhood; she wants us to ask, “Who is Nonee if she isn’t just a weapon?”

As we ponder this, we’re treated to an adventure narrative featuring monsters, traps, and the madness of mages of a bygone era. Huff delivers all of this in her usual expressive style, along with banter and humour among her characters that is familiar to me from her Gale Women and Keeper novels. There’s a little less focus on sex in this book, which I enjoyed, but don’t worry, there’s still some good innuendo and a fair amount of queerness here as well. Huff is very good at writing characters who are believably flawed, people like Ryan who are only trying their best, or Lyelee, corrupted by her thirst for knowledge.

I like how Huff sets up the general antagonism towards magic and mages as a function of the history of this world. It would have been cool to learn more about cultures outside Marsanport, like Shurlia, and their attitudes towards magic—we get tantalizing glimpses, but that’s all. It’s unclear from the marketing whether this book is meant to be standalone or the beginning of a series—to its credit, it can function as either; like so many chameleon novels, however, that makes it somewhat of a letdown as both.

See, I enjoyed this book a great deal—I was always eager to pick it up again after I had put it down—and it lived up to my expectations for it. But it only lived up to my expectations; it never once was in danger of exceeding them. Ryan’s quest is perilous, and at times its intensity becomes engrossing. Yet the resolution is about what I expected to happen. The characters develop roughly along the trajectory I expected them to develop. Nonee’s emotional journey she undergoes as she grieves for Arianna while simultaneously developing a grudging respect and camaraderie for Ryan? Par for the course.

This is a book that does everything it sets out to do with all the exquisite skill that a writer of Huff’s experience and talent can muster. It is a serviceable fantasy novel that scratches my itch for more classic epic fantasy. But it doesn’t swing big, doesn’t take advantage of the potential of the world Huff has created.

Would I read a sequel if one is forthcoming? Yes, absolutely. Huff and the book have both earned that much. Yet I don’t find myself clamouring for such a sequel quite as much as I need from other series. Into the Broken Lands is a fun, fulfilling fantasy adventure—but it just leaves me wanting instead of wanting more.

Unusual epic fantasy about an excursion into lands destroyed by the Mage Wars three generations ago. The Broken Lands are ever-shifting, and deadly in many unforeseen ways. Navigating it would be impossible without the last surviving mage-crafted weapon, a large stone person who initially has no name. The bulk of the story is told in the "present," with flashbacks to an earlier expedition led by this leader's grandfather.

Well-crafted, with well-rounded characters and a lot of genuine surprises.

Content warning for body horror.

I DNF'd this book. After the first few pages I totally lost interest. I felt like I was missing something, like it started too far into the story.

I would describe this one as let’s all go through a post apocalyptic hell scape for a thing we don’t actually really truly need! Sounds like a grand idea. What could possibly go wrong? This time. Because we did this a couple generations ago too and it wasn’t awesome that time either. Maybe…. A lesson can be learned here?
I enjoyed it but while I have always enjoyed this author and I do like this be it isn’t my favorite book by her. It’s very much about the setting and what’s happening to the feckless fools who’ve volunteered for this mission more than most of the characters. Three of the characters stood out to me, the princeling, the younger scholar and “the weapon”. The solidiers were pretty forgettable as was the older scholar. I tend to love character driven stories better myself. If you find setting driven stories fun this is a good read.

Although I grew up reading epic fantasy stories where the heroes go off on perilous quests to save the world, it has been quite some time since I re-visited the genre. Thus, I was excited to get my hands on a copy of ‘Into the Broken Lands’ by Tanya Huff and delve into a new world, a new quest and new heroes. Whilst ‘Into the Broken Lands’ certainly provided those elements, and overall, the book was enjoyable, I found the characterisations and world-building to be somewhat lacklustre. There were so many narrative threads that were introduced but not fully developed or resolved, that for a standalone novel I did find myself getting a little frustrated at times.

The book starts with the reader being introduced to Nonee. She is sitting by the deathbed of her oldest and dearest friend, Arianna, when she is informed that strangers are approaching Gateway and will want to see her. You see, Nonee is a mage-crafted weapon. The only mage-crafted weapon that wasn’t destroyed during the mage-wars that occurred roughly 160 years ago. Gateway is the last town along the Mage Road before one can enter the Broken Lands. Lands that were distorted and warped during the mage-wars remain unclaimed due to their dangerous inhabitants. Nonee is the only person to have seen the Broken Lands during the time of the mages and then lived through their breaking. It gives her unique advantages to anyone wishing to enter them.

Ryan is the Heir of Marsan and the next in line to be the Lord Protector. He was never supposed to be the heir, but after his three elder brothers died in a tragic accident, he was thrust into the position with no real training or understanding. As part of his role, he is tasked with recovering fuel for the black flame from the Broken Lands. The black flame is a symbol to the people of Marsanport and the surrounding city-states of the Lord Protectors power and authority. After gathering a small group of guardians to accompany him on his quest, he journeys to Gateway to secure the weapon, Nonee. Whilst having Nonee with them will not guarantee survival, it does raise the odds to about fifty-fifty according to the current Lord Protector and Ryan’s great uncle, Garrett. And he should know, as he was the last Heir of Marsan to undertake the quest for the black flame fuel sixty-three years ago.

Also accompanying Ryan and the guardians is representatives from the scholars – Scholar Gearing and Scholar Novitiate Lyelee. Lyelee also happens to be Ryan’s cousin and next in line to the Lord Protector after him. However, Lyelee has no desire to be the Lord Protector no matter her mother’s political aspirations. All that interests her is knowledge. Scholars don’t answer to the Lord Protector, instead, they are directed only by scholarship and the pursuit of knowledge. A concept that Lyelee embraces wholeheartedly and demonstrates consistently, wilfully ignoring warnings to secure information even to the detriment of others. She managed to wrangle her way into the party, along with her mentor Scholar Gearing, to study the Broken Lands during the quest to find the black flame fuel.

Nonee, Ryan and Lyelee are the narrators for the ‘now’ sections of the book, whilst Nonee, Garrett and Arianna are the narrators for the ‘then’ sections of the book. For around the first third of the book, the story takes place exclusively in Gateway and focuses on the ‘now’. There is a lot of waiting around and self-reflection from the Marsanport group as they wait for Nonee to complete her death vigil for Arianna and begin their travels. There were snippets through this section of the book that were interesting or humorous, but it doesn’t compensate for the pace being sluggish with the protracted start. I would have preferred for this to be condensed and move the plot along to the quest through the Broken Lands. For new readers, stick with it through this section as it does pick up once they start their travels.

Once on the road, we also get introduced to chapters from the ‘then’ quest of Garrett when he was heir. Whilst these sections reveal the personal journey Nonee has been on over the past six decades, I found it difficult to focus on both quests at the same time. With the narrative split over the two time periods with the two different groups, it was hard to establish a connection with all the characters and invest in the danger they were experiencing. I wish that Garrett’s journey had been written as a short prologue or even some type of relic that Ryan had been given that gave him short dream visions. Anything but the focus being shuttled back and forth as it was.

As for the world-building and lore, I found myself wanting more detail to enrich the experience. Several elements just weren’t given the attention they should. For example, early on, one of the characters mentions ‘flicking flame’ at someone else and I assumed this meant a real flame. But then, that didn’t make sense as the culture is very anti-mage after the mage-wars that they escaped. It took me over half the book to realise that what they were talking about is giving someone the finger or whatever their equivalent was. I also would have liked to understand the world setup a bit more. Both Ryan and Garrett and their parties are from Marsanport, but we don’t get an understanding of what it’s like to live there. Also, Marsanport is a city-state, one of several scattered around a great lake. However, the other cities and lands are barely mentioned, just that they pose a threat should the black flame go out. I would have liked to know just a bit more details about the different cultures.

The characterisations are a bit hit and miss as well. Whilst Garrett’s group had the smallest number of sections devoted to them, I found them to be the more interesting and engaging group. I understood their camaraderie and willingness to put themselves in danger to protect the rest of the group. As for Ryan’s group, they were a little undeveloped apart from Keetin and Servan. Keetin worked as the comedic foil for most of the situations the group found themselves in and Servan was one of the guardians who had a way with animals that developed over the journey. As for the rest of the guardian group, Captain Yansav, Destros, Curtain, and Harris, they all had some small moments, but weren’t fully fleshed and therefore it lacked the emotional importance when they were in danger. As for the scholars, Gearing is very much the crotchety old man who wants his own way and expects to be respected without giving any respect in return. And Lyelee… Lyelee is one of the most selfish, narcissistic, egotistical and downright unlikeable characters I have ever come across. I cannot think of one redeeming feature for her and without that small glimmer of hope that she could earn a redemption story arc, her sections were uncomfortable as I kept wanting her to get her final comeuppance.

Overall, I did enjoy ‘Into the Broken Lands’ by Tanya Huff and found Ryan and Nonee to be interesting characters. Ms Huff has a wonderful writing style and can visually bring the world she has created into focus with her vivid and evocative descriptions. The book did leave me wanting more detail around the characterisations and world-building, but it made up for the lack by exploring the mental struggles of the main characters as they try to define who they are and what their worth is. Whilst ‘Into the Broken Lands’ does have its flaws, I would recommend it to any epic fantasy readers out there who love a classic quest storyline.

3.5 out of 5 stars! Rounded up to a very soft 4 stars.

NOTE: I struggled between giving the book a 3 or 3.5-star rating but ultimately decided to increase it to 3.5 stars due to the illustrative writing style and the potential I could see in the book.

DISCLAIMER: Thank you to DAW and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for this review. Whilst I received a copy for free, this review is my honest and unbiased opinion.

Into Broken Lands by Tanya Huff was quite a mixed bag of a read for me. The story was your typical classic fantasy quest that involved a group of characters with diverse personalities going on a perilous journey in order to find a relic that would save their beloved land. The plot's rather simple and straightforward. I loved the world-building, lore and history as those were detailed and had some wonderful descriptions. The use of varying points of view alternating between two time periods to show the parallels between the past and the present was also nice touch in keeping the reader engaged on what was happening.

However, the start of this book was rough and the pacing practically glacial. It was a struggle trying to get through the first few chapters of the book. Add in the fact that the story had one of the most annoying characters that I have read in a while in Lyelee. Her character was a scholar who's deemed rather important from where they came from due to the knowledge that they have. They are considered powerful and they always had the last word. She and her mentor went with the group in order to gain more information about the Mage Lands.

If the point of this book was to make one dislike the study of history and scholars in general through Lyelee, then it did so splendidly. All throughout the book her character has been insufferable, know it all, and utterly devoid of human compassion. Her pursuit of history, of lost knowledge was her main drive and nothing else mattered not even human lives. The setting and some of the creatures has touch of horror in them but that aspect was hard to appreciate due to the annoyance I felt whenever Lyelee was on page.

I was just glad that Ryan, Nonee and Keetin were such interesting, likeable and complex characters in their own right. Their growth and development throughout was wonderful to see. Their interactions with each other as well as the exchanges were enjoyable to read. It was rather fun to see these group slowly learn more about their world and form a deep bond during their journey. Ryan and Nonee were easy to root for as their story arcs were quite satisfying to read.

Overall I'd give this book 3 stars out of 5 stars.

I’ve been a long time fan of Tanya Huff and was beyond excited to see she had a new book out. In this novel, which is written from the viewpoints of five characters and two different time periods, she illustrates just why she is considered a master storyteller. Even with the complexity of the various points of view and timelines, she never misses a step, drawing the reader in, creating engaging characters and a story that is intriguing and thought provoking. 

Part of what makes the characters so engaging and for some, endearing, is the view into what they are thinking and feeling. Both heirs show a depth of character and caring that is easy to empathize with. The scholars, one the heir’s cousin, are perfect examples of how easy it is to see only knowledge as important, divorced from those that knowledge would help. The book also develops themes on the implications of magic and its use as well as abuse of power. That abuse of power dives into more than just magic, commenting on censorship and how lack of true information can guide a society into making the same mistakes as the past. Nonni or the weapon is unique, intriguing, and while the idea of how she is created is truly abhorrent, the character is interesting and caring. 

With the unique spoon on magic, mage wars, and the consequences of power plus endearing characters, this novel is intriguing and thought provoking. It is what true fans of fantasy or science fiction long for, a book that questions, makes you consider the answers and think through what the novel is trying to say. The theme of censorship and abuse of power is especially compelling in today’s society and if you like books that make you think, I found this one compelling and masterful.

I picked up Into the Broken Lands because I knew Tanya Huff would never let me down and, lo and behold!, she did not. This is a character-driven fantasy at its best: the book is about not just the physical journey the characters go through, but their internal journeys too.

Into the Broken Lands follows a plot very much explained by the title alone: a group of travellers enter the Broken Lands, a wild place created as the result of magic, where every step they take risks attack from unknown creatures. They go in search of fuel for the flame, which must be kept burning.

This is a meandering book, really, one that takes a while to progress. It’s one that you just have to sit with and let it take its time. It’s a long book, but it’s an absorbing one. Part of that is because Tanya Huff throws you straight in. You’re given just enough information that you can follow what’s going on, and from there it drip feeds you what else you need to know.

It’s not just the main characters of the present day you get to see, but also the previous trip featuring the current characters’ grandfather and his companions. This helps with not just understanding why they’ve been sent into the Broken Lands by their grandfather, but also gives Nonee in particular space for her backstory. These two threads of the story felt distinct and, in both cases, I was fully engaged with the characters and plot.

Really, the characters are the best part of this book, as they ought to be for something character-driven. They also don’t always grow in the way that you might expect, given general fantasy tropes and that made this book surprising in the best kind of way. In the interests of not spoiling anything, I won’t mention just how they were unexpected, so I guess you’ll just have to read it to find out.

Because really, if you don’t read this one, you’re seriously missing out.