This was interesting in that this book was clearly inspired by the traditional fantasy tropes (plucky young noblewoman, ancient order of magic that’s now almost forgotten, down on his luck soldier, evil spirits rising etc) it also has some of the modern trends and some twists that I think audiences will enjoy.

The tale is mostly told through the eyes of Sergeant Hawley but the main character is arguably Enelda (a vigilant and part of that ancient order of magic I mentioned earlier). The Vigilants magic is primarily manifested as augmented powers of observation and deduction (think of it as like Sherlock Holmes) which I haven't come across too often. Enelda is also a elderly woman which is also kind of unique.

Anyways what follows contains a lot of mystery, adventure, and action that I think readers will enjoy. Also, thankfully, it ends in a appropriate place with no cliffhanger but room for more stories to be told. Recommended.

Set in a world where magic is forgotten, monsters lurk in the dark woods, and honorable soldiers are few, this utterly gripping epic fantasy tells the story of two flawed humans, an out-of-practice wizard and a hot-headed sargent, who are thrust into the heart of a mystery that threatens to unravel their kingdom's fragile peace.

I had a ton of fun with this book. A very interesting mystery told through the fantasy lens. There were plenty of classical tropes in this but with a modern twist which I think was the point. I loved this one and cannot wait for the next installment:)

Classic fantasy, but written for a modern audience. Even the cover looks like a fantasy book you might have come across 20 or 30 years ago. I hope the series continues to be a love letter to classic fantasy.

Children have been going missing, but up to now, these have been children of low birth so little has been done. Now, however, the boy of a powerful noble has disappeared and so a band of soldiers is sent to seek out the last of the old Vigilants, an ancient order capable of performing acts of magic, the only one believed to be capable of resolving this mystery. The commander of these soldiers, Sargent Hawley, is a rarity, achieving his rank not by birth but in deed, but he has his own demons haunting him as well. After some issues with his soldiers, Hawley, alone, finds this elder Vigilant; only he is a she and Vigilant Enelda Drake is quite the character. The two become a most unusual team to investigate these disappearances. The book starts somewhat slowly, but the world-building and character development are delivered in easy to read prose helping to acclimate readers to the players and setting for this story. A tale of power hungry nobles and religious zelots and intrigues and machinations commences. Though there is little epic level battle, military or magical, beyond a duel or minor scrimmage, there are suggestions that this may yet come in the future of the very promising series that begins with this book. I found this to be an interesting read and look forward to seeing what comes next for Hawley and Enelda.
I received access to this eARC thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Orbit Books) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

☆ Fun Factor 2/5 (It's really slow from beginning to end)
☆ Writing Style 5/5
☆ Characters 4/5
☆ Plot 4/5 (Despite the very fantasy cover, this is a murder/conspiracy mystery novel in a fantasy setting)
☆ Setting 2/5
☆ Feels 1/5
☆ Spiciness 1/5 (mild sexual references)
☆ Gore 3/5 (torture, whipping, dismemberment, monster mayhem)

If this were a movie it'd be rated: R for mild sexual situations, violence, body horror, disturbing imagery, dismemberment, murder, blood

☆FOR FANS OF: The Justice of Kings or just the idea of a mystery set in a fantasy world

Ultimate verdict: ☆☆☆☆/5

☆☆☆Best Character Award goes to:☆☆☆ Vigilant Enelda Drake was a very unconventional choice for a secondary protagonist: an old woman seemingly retired from her Order of "necromancers". The mentor-mentee relationship between Enelda and Hawley paid off for me.

Review: A very slow start to a potentially great series

The very Wheel of Time inspired looking cover fooled me into thinking I was going to get an epic fantasy with wizards, elves, dragons, dwarves and so on. That's not what this actually is. This is actually a lot more akin to Richard Swan's Empire of the Wolf trilogy (also published by Orbit). Like Empire of the Wolf, this is a series of slowly trickling details through a lot of investigative work: conversations, digging through old logs, gradually piecing together what's going on. If you're on board with that idea, you'll have a lot to like here. Our two investigators are Holt Hawley, a struggling, hot headed Sargeant who finds himself displaced from his company early on in the books and Vigilant Enelda "Nell" Drake, a more or less retired member of of a sacred order called the Vigilants who once held great sway in the world and have now become disgraced. Enelda's the brains and Hawley's the brawn as they travel together to solve the mystery of why so many children are disappearing. There's more to what's happening than meets the eye.

There's promise here for a larger series to expand on revelations learned in the back quarter of the novel. It was slower moving than I liked personally, but for those of you that really love to spend a lot of time getting to know your characters before the plot gets going good, this might be for you.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this early copy in exchange for my honest review!