Member Reviews
Stormless is a very interesting and unusual story, which takes place in Auris, and has a group of strong and very human characters.
The inhabitants of Auris are divided into two types: those who possess certain "powers", called Summoners and who belong to different sects or clans, depending on the type of power they can use and people who do not have any type of power, or Stormless. .
The universe of Stormless is very dynamic, with many moments of action so immersive that they sometimes remind those of some video games. The concept is very original. An extremely interesting and entertaining book, difficult to put down.
The only detail is that so far only two of the four books in the series have been published. Anyway, you have to have a little patience, the story is worth the wait. Nick Stitle is a young author with a very promising future.
I thank the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.
The opinion I have expressed above is based solely on what I think and feel about this book.
Real Rating: 3.5* of five
First novels usually have issues...this one has mostly fantasy-novel ones. Male characters predominate, and they are the ones we get to know. The female characters, therefore, are there to dress the stage up for the males...sadly all too typical in most genres, especially Chosen One fantasy narratives like this. The author, as a counterweight to this, understands pacing quite well. He uses the templates of fantasy that are well known and well developed. This is not a knock, since there really is little reason to mess with a generations-old template unless you have to. Many others do not bother to do so, and they have far less command of their material than Author Stitle does.
And now a word about our author: He is all of seventeen. For someone that age to have the fluency and the grasp of the mechanics of storytelling that he does is *remarkable*. If you need a good reason to read this particular fantasy novel, there it is. Will you come away from the read enlightened and changed by the power of the storytelling? No. Will you be entertained for the trip you take with these dudebros through Auris?
Fantasy fans surely will. I came to this read expecting to be annoyed and frustrated, but willing to try because someone seventeen does not lightly just write a novel. I was ready to applaud him for doing this difficult task, but criticize his output. Here I am, not his natural reader, saying you should give this book your time.
I love epic fantasy and this fits right up there with Brandon Sanderson and others.
The fact that Nick Stitle wrote this at age fifteen seems incredible to me. The characters feel very real and the storyline is in-depth and exciting.
I cannot wait for book two.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a new epic fantasy series!
Action packed fantasy. The land of Auris is plagued by Tempests, severe weather phenomena that vary day by day. Though the citizens have to live in the few areas that are protected by wards, there is an upside to these devastating storms: they power the crystals that are used by the country's Summoners to fuel their magical gifts. Those without powers are deemed Stormless. Only seven sects of Summoning remain, after the mysterious Vanishing occurred ages prior, destroying several others. One long thought extinct branch of Summoning somehow reappears, kicking off the events of this story. The world of Auris seems to be in for another large upheaval, and things will never be the same again.
This fantasy novel is deep and immersive. A lot of worldbuilding went into this one. There's so much potential for future books in the series to delve further into the intriguing magic system, and the new/old sects. I really enjoyed the dual timeline; you see how things are playing out in current day and get an in depth view of how these events were kicked off. I loved the inclusion of Castien's battle with anxiety (relatable). I am slightly less interested in Faelyn's character, but I feel that it will be developed a lot more in the next installment. The Shadow-Swifts were also interesting to follow, though it's hard for me to fall in love with characters who are clearly on the "dark side". I'm definitely picking up the sequel when it comes out. Huge props to the author for coming up with this fantastical world at such a young age. A great start to a hopefully prolific career.
I DNFed close to the 15% mark- i sadly just don’t think i was in the mood for this one
3 stars because it’s a “it’s me, not you” situation
There is so much to learn and digest right off the bat, which i normally have no issues with at all but i think IRL circumstances kept me from being able to dive in like i normally do so i became lost in the storyline
I will be picking this one up at a later date via my local library and plan to have my library system order a copy if it’s not already in order. I feel that this book has so much potential to become someone’s favorite! Maybe it will become one of mine when i try it again :)
So far, due to everyone’s reviews i think i will be able to enjoy this book later! Please don’t judge this book off of my incomplete reading journey
I wish I could see some fan art of this one because I'm sure the war scenes will look amazing! I really enjoyed the world building and magic system. To be honest this book explored one of my favorite tropes. the one where our MC has to fill their parents shoes.
I loved the descriptions and how well written the plot was and I can't wait to read more in this world
3.5 stars
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review.
3.5 ✨
I will say that this book is very ambitious and I’m impressed. Especially taking into consideration that the author is 17. Wow!
The world is ravaged by different storms, which feed the magic system of the world. Which there is a lot of different magic systems which I had a hard time keeping track of.
Some of the characters were pretty fun, like Castien, who is a common soldier who doesn’t understand the powers he has. (Common trope but a good trope nonetheless)
Faelyn is heir to the throne and is constantly battling his father to protect the kingdom but the King has plans of his own.
I enjoyed where you follow the antagonist throughout the whole book and get to see how he became crazy.
I didn’t much care for the love story in this but it wasn’t terrible.
All in all it’s a decent book that I would assume later books will get much better given how the author will get older and even better at writing. I gave it three stars because I had a hard time following the magic system but that might just be a me issue more than the author.
I was instantly drawn in by the cover for the book. Visually it looked right up my alley, and the synopsis was intriguing so I decided to give it a go. I'm glad I did! The story of "Stormless" was very interesting, the characters fun to follow, and a whole new world with a unique magic system.
At times there was a LOT of info-dumping, which didn't bother me personally too much as I found it all interesting anyways.
Overall, I'd say this was a great debut novel from a young author.
This is an interesting novel, told in alternating pieces, one in the present of the novel and one in the past. The magic in the novel is a power inherent in people, manipulated via crystals, which are charged by various atmospheric phenomena, called Storms. There are seven forms of power - the seven sects - with another eight that were lost far in the past. The present society is based around the seven sects, which hold power, and the Stormless - those who do not belong to one of the sects, those without power. There is a power play building between those currently in power, and those who wish to find out what happened in the Vanquishing, when the missing sects vanished, and bring the Resurgence, which will resurrect the missing sects, and those who want to maintain the status quo and their own power.
This novel is part one of a series, and like many novels today, it is not a complete story in itself. This is the first installment in a serial - not a complete story with allowance for a sequel, but an incomplete novel that is to be completed in future volumes, something that is becoming more common. If you dislike incomplete novels, you will have issues with this one and should wait for the series, and thus the story, to be complete.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Stormless has a rich magic system, and the world-building is intriguing, with rules you begin to learn about as the adventures of the characters unfold. The physical land and political friction add interest and depth. There are four main perspectives in the EPIC fantasy Stormless. First, Castien, the stormless without any magic, gets thrown into an expedition because of his ability to withstand influence from Whispers (basically someone able to manipulate thoughts). Second, you have Lucien, a killer, power-hungry deranged shadow-swift in pursuit of more control, more everything, really. Third is another shadow-swift Asteros, who leads the shadow-swift clan and wants to rearrange the world for his purposes. Fourth, you have Faelyn, the young prince of Arvendon, who is very young at just 15 (his father described that he was six years from inheriting the throne at 21).
Their world seems to be on the cusp of change on a scale of great magnitude.
Stormless has a few weaknesses; Prince Faelyn’s perspective threw me out of the story a few times, and although intense felt the weakest because I questioned his actions and ability. For example, he was described as having stubble. What 15-year-old has stubble? Unfortunately, Stormless, like many epic fantasies, tends to lean toward intricate multiple storylines and requires merging them into one cohesive plot. The difficulty can be in investing a reader’s interest in all the perspectives; in fact, I personally like about three, maybe stretching to four. I stopped counting this book after five perspectives.
It's a strong start to a series with some room for improvement.
I don't read many high fantasy novels; I wouldn't say I dislike the genre, but it's hard for me to get into. Though when I read the synopsis of Stormless, I was so excited about reading it. I wanted to love it! It started out so STRONG and it was so GOOD.
It has an awesome plot line, but... honestly, I'm not sure when it started losing me.
Like many high fantasies, there were many characters, but all these characters felt the same to me. They seemed to have the same mannerisms and speech patterns, so the dialogue became a little stagnant for me. And while the world building and description was absolutely beautiful, (Especially when the Tempests were being described- the Wisps were goregous!!!) there was also too much description where it didn't necessarily need to be.
The story was also told from multiple POV's and the only one I particularly enjoyed was Castien's.
I'm sad to give Stormless a 2 star rating, I really did want to add it to my favourites list.
Stormless by Nick Stitle was given to me through Book Whisper and by Shaun Loftus. I have only read a few chapters in Nick Stitle’s YA fantasy world series and already immersed myself in Nick Stitle’s world. This masterpiece is told from 3 points of view. A world where a sect was thought to have been ridden of, but maybe not completely. If this sect is indeed still thriving, it could be leading to a breakage, unease, and causing people to dig deep within themselves to realize that they are perfect for the task at hand. The world building is very thought out, can picture the scenes in my mind as if I am watching a movie and I love the characters.
Thankyou Nick Stitle for creating characters that are truly relatable. Not too many characters that I have read about have anxiety, feel awkward in social situations, and which people can relate to. It is okay for people to have their own quirks, their own way of dealing with problems, may seem odd to the others that are around them, but truly make them who they are. So, looking towards the rest of this series.
Stormless by Nick Stitle is set in a fantasy world , from which we get to explore through three MMC POVs, all with their own struggles and guiding motivations for their actions. They come from their own distinct backgrounds, and as we journey through the novel with them, we get to explore more of the magic world around them, and how the Tempest and Stormless are connected. My favorite character POV was Castien, who we're introduced to as another grunt in the army, and as he makes his way through various entanglements, learns more about himself and the world around him. As with most books with multiple POVs, we do eventually get to see them all come together at the end, though I guess enough of it was hinted at for us to expect. Stormless ends on a cliffhanger that'll leave you wondering what comes next, and I guess we'll just have to wait and see in the next book!
I am very thankful to have been given an eARC copy from NetGalley and my review will be 100% honest <3
This book felt like the type of fantasy stories that I would listen to with my father in the morning on the way to school. The writing is amazing and the beginning interested me right away.
It reminded me a lot of Brandon Sandersons books, which I enjoy a lot. I usually prefer books with female protagonists so I'm really hoping the second book has more of that.
I actually enjoyed the characters a lot, I feel like they are pretty realistic in the sense that it is a world ruled by the powerful and ravaged by constant natural disasters.
This was a wonderful high fantasy.
I found myself wishing it moved faster at times and wanted more action but I did enjoy the plot, characters and the story. My favorite of the 3 male protagonists was by far Castien. His storyline to unearth the past to ensure the future isn’t destroyed was one I really became invested in.
The world building is amazing and even with my difficulty with book imagery I was able to see where the author was going.
Overall the author was able to write a story I enjoyed and couldn’t put down. The writing is poetic and theatrical in a way that helps paint a picture every fantasy novel should work to have.
Thank you to the publisher, author, and netgalley for this e-book arc.
My rating would be 4 stars and I will recommend to high fantasy lovers looking for a new spin on the basic road fantasy has taken as of late.
Stormless by Nick Stitle
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️
This book was provided to me as an ARC through NetGalley.
Stormless by Nick Stitle is a thrilling fantasy novel set in a world ruled by seven powerful tempests. The story follows Castien Varic, a soldier, Faelyn Titansworn, a powerful Summoner, and Asteros Silverglade, a member of a sect with god-like powers. Together, they face magic, war, love, and loss in an epic tale that will change the fate of their world.
I enjoyed reading this book as it was well-written with excellent pacing that kept me hooked. The prose itself was perfect for me, since as a German reading English books I do not tend to vibe well with books that have overcomplicated prose, because it takes away from what interests me the most. The worldbuilding, the characters and the story. And while I liked all of the mentioned I had a few problems with it as well.
Throughout most of the book only one of the three main characters showed depth in character, while the other two seemed one-dimensional. Additionally, there were only male POVs, and I would love to see more female main characters in modern books. Although I do see some potential with some of the female characters becoming main characters in the next book. I also found some similarities with Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive in terms of the magic and worldbuilding, which took away from the originality of the story. Although they are more similar in how they are powered but differ a lot in what is possible to do with them. Lastly, I would have liked to see more of the tempests. I wanted to see the brutality of nature and the fear that people get by being close to them.
Overall, Stormless is a great fantasy read for fans of epic tales and I can see it having a great future. I can't wait to see where the story goes, especially after such a cliffhanger!
Rarely do we get books with a male protagonist but with Stormless we get 3 MMC. We have a country ravaged by storms that aren't wanted but needed since they help with fueling the magic in the world. There is a TON of world building since all 3 MMC were different trades in the world and had their own story to tell but don't worry it converges to make a bigger picture. The transition from one plot point to another or one character to another was one smoothly but I LOVE different POV's to really understand a world/plot/inner monologue and choices made. My favorite was Castien and his adventure to unearth the ancient past to ensure the future isn't compromised. I also liked being in the Princes mind since we were submerged in politically angst and him trying to prove himself to the court. It took me awhile to get into Asteros' mind but he became a favorite with his vulnerability and just trying to figure out how his life took a turn so suddenly. There is romance in the book but it felt more like instalove. I mean I was rolling my eyes every time Asteros said how beautiful Shalheira is . All in all, this is a great start to a series and We also have random chapters with other characters or flashbacks to knit the story together. It does end on a sort of cliff hanger, so I'm excited to see where this series goes! My star rating is 3.5 stars!