Welcome to the first book thoughts post for 2020! 🙂 Towards the end of 2019, I read an amazing fantasy book, Anbatar: Legacy of the Blood Guard by Anne Dölleri. It was a gripping tale about politics, strength of mind, with a splash of forbidden love. Since I have thought so much about my reading experiences in the past weeks, I’m trying out some new things with the book thoughts post starting with this one, so keep an eye out for the new elements! Let’s begin with the synopsis.
Zessalon’s war with the Northern Kingdom has ended, their enemy once more defeated. But Nareth—ruthless Samerier warrior and half-brother to the Southern king—can find no rest behind the battered walls of the Golden City. Craving unity after centuries of bloodshed, he rides north to initiate peace talks with his kingdom’s lifelong enemies. There, he discovers the Northerners’ hatred of him and his people runs far deeper than he suspected. In the dark alleys of Anbatar, Nareth encounters a fierce enemy, turning his quest into a battle of life and death.
Why I chose to read Anbatar
Anne reached out to me many months back to review her book and what piqued my interest was that it is originally in German. As someone whose mother tongue is not English, and who took a course in books written by authors like me, translated works hold a special place in my heart. Anne gave me the opportunity to not just read her work, but to also ask her whether her novel in English is different from her novel in German.
It’s fantasy, and though I do not visit fantastical realms often, some books are just hard to say no to. I think a big advantage that this one had was that it is a standalone novel. I can’t think of another fantasy that I have read which was not part of a series. This got me even more curious at one more level.
Themes for Thought
Anbatar was a gripping novel and the protagonist, Nareth, represented quite a puzzle initially. Through my years of reading fantasy, I have become acquainted with a number of creatures and species of humans, from elves, dwarves, seers, magicians and many more. Sameriers though? I had never come across them before! I expected Anbatar to be a full filling read with a rich background story and though it feels from the synopsis that so much has happened before this starts, I never felt that I was missing something.
Though I will not be talking about the city itself, I want to make a quick note that Anbatar is a fortress like the cover shows and I loved exploring it through the eyes of the many characters.
On Politics
Imagine that you belonged to a nation that had just ended war with another nation, but seeing the disorder in this neighboring place, you decided to come in peace and offer your services to the person who you feel should ascend the throne… how do you imagine that playing out for you? Knowing that the war wasn’t too long ago and the army of this said nation has not even returned home yet!
Sometimes, peace comes by taking risks.
The above situation is a very loose way of describing the events that started Nareth’s journey. Yaron is a diplomat who is sent to ensure the mission is a success and Nareth bitts heads with him often. They both have the same goals bu every different ways of achieving them. I really appreciate the power struggle and events at this crucial time of finding leadership in a nation.
It is not just the Southerners (Nareth, Yaron, and their people) who portray the balance that politics demand. The Northerners, people of Anbatar, have their own ideals and incidents. Some of these are long past but wounds do not always heal and sometimes, wounds inflicted by people in power, come back to haunt everyone.
On Anger and Passion
Through Nareth, a Samerier, I learned many things. As a representative of his brother’s nation and a warrior who killed many in the war that took place not long before this story begins, Nareth faced moral, political as well as personal dilemmas throughout the novel. His logical mind leads him to make friends with people others would never have considered allies. His hope to have peace runs that deep.
He presented a powerful character that is constrained by society’s view of him, while at the same time, believes that he is not just a war machine and can pave the way towards a conflict-free existence. As I learned more about him through the histories shared in the book, I loved his moral compass. He had been through hell and people knew how to put him back there. He was created as someone who could harness his anger and use it to fight. That is not what he believes his destiny to be. He is an inspiration!
I prefer to write my own tale.
I was recently watching The Witcher on Netflix and Geralt reminded me of Nareth sometimes.
On Fantastical Realms
Why do we love reading / watching fantasy series? What is it about these worlds that captivate our attention and make us wanting to go there again and again? You can laugh at what I will say next but part of it is social media. Which fantasy ever used social media to create a movement? Fantasies center closely around the people, using the age old strategy of talking to people face to face, making connections, taking risks, and being upfront.
There is danger in every move but there is also a form of commitment towards a bigger goal that underlies everything that happens. There is no escape from the situation for the characters and they have to keep going.
I loved that about Anbatar, the straightforward nature of the way the story was told, and the role that every character played.
View this post on Instagram
Overall, Anbatar took me into a world that kept me there for hours. I would love to go back and read this book again, and also hope that Anna will share more stories from Nareth’s world. I remember at certain points of the book where things seemed conclusive and then new things happened in the blink of an eye. That is an experience that I really appreciate in books.
** Anbatar: Legacy of the Blood Guard is now out in stores so get a copy and let me know what you think! **
Amazon Print
Amazon Kindle
(available on Kindle Unlimited)
Come back tomorrow when I talk to Anne about the book and the world she created! 🙂
Cover image: Photo by Sandra Ahn Mode on Unsplash
Be First to Comment