Review – Shadow of the Exile by Mitchell Hogan
I’ve been meaning to read some of this author’s stuff for a while now, but the weight of my TBR always pushed it back. Needless to say, when Netgalley gave me the chance to check out his latest, while also applying a deadline, I was more than chuffed. And it’s a good book, to boot.
The story is told from the perspective of Tarrik Nal-Valim, an exiled demon who i
s summoned by a human sorcerer to help her achieve her mysterious goals. For a former high-ranking demon, being a slave to a human is possibly the worst fate he could h
ave. Worse even than his current life of scratching out a living in a desert realm. Can Tarrik break the bonds that tie him to his slaver, giving him a chance to kill her and go home, or is there another fate in store for our bizarre hero?
Yep, a demon MC. Not often we get to read a lot of books of this ilk, and it’s done well. If all demons were like Tarrik, we’d be summoning them for their dry sense of humour alone. Tarrik hasn’t been summoned in hundreds of years, so he’s seeing the human realm through relatively fresh eyes, and what we learn of the world is told through his eyes and experiences, as is the unfolding of the interesting plot.
Branwen, the sorcerer who imprisons him is an interesting character in her own right. Tough as nails and willing to torture Tarrik and rack up a high body count to achieve her goals, she’s also vulnerable at times, and relies on Tarrik’s own skills, along with his smarts when the need arises. Despite the strange arrangement and the od
d couple setup, they are a good team.
The plot rattles along at a steady pace, with little slowdown, and we hit the epic showdown almost before we know it. The side characters are a mixed bag, with some more interesting than others, but needless to say Tarrik has plenty to say about each and everyone of them.
An impressive 4.5/5 stars
