The Shadow of What Was Lost

That was a nice ride !

At first I wasn’t impressed by the world building honestly but as I kept reading I got more and more intrigued especially when meeting some characters. The more we learn the bigger the scope and the bigger the questions lmao

I guess the story started to grow on me and I hope that book 2 brings the wow factor or more excitement. I like that we also follow a character that is not meant to be a « good guy » and I cannot wait to see what the author will do with this character.

However, I still stick to the first impression of the world building not being outstanding or memorable. The author created a classic world and familiar for those who are already acquainted with the genre. Doesn’t make it a flaw because it’s still nice to explore new stories with familiar tropes or lores. But it lacks the sparks not gonna lie. Still, the execution so far makes it worth the try.

The audiobook is very good and has a very good narration, but geez, the names 🥲 A name list would be a wonderful addition to the audible. On the book now, it’s a very good fantasy with a very interesting magical system. A bit confusing at times (still a bit lost on what the prologue meant, but well) but it’s a fairly well rounded book that answers a few questions by the end without taking away from the mysteries to be solved on the next books.

Despite the slow start, the characters and the mystery behind each are extremely compelling. One the strings of fate start pulling each character to their place and to their futures the story gets very interesting and its hard to stop.

It's a good book albeit a bit unoriginal. Hard to describe as the premise is the same old trope but there are sections of the book that pique and keep your interest going. IMO this is not the in the same league as Sanderson or Wheel of Time as some reviews mention but the reading pays off and I'm looking forward to starting the second book. Giving 4/5 as I really wish the magic system was a little more fleshed out and the motivations of antagonists were a little less boring.

Run away from this book it you're not pre-teen. Far too simplistic for its own good.

🖤 .3.5 Stars Read this book eons ago and forgot to write my inconsequential thoughts down in the hopes that it actually helps someone make a choice about picking up this book to read or not. 🖤🖤 Anyway, here goes: Seeing as this is James Islington's debut, I thought it was really smashing. Some parts did feel like going into that never ending 'omg just tell me already who the fuck this is' kind of thing because you'd feel like you're going to get answers and then something happens and yeah no answers (pretty frustrating and annoying) really. Think that was really the only complaint I had about the book. Otherwise, a pretty solid debut. Honestly, I love it when a debut author can hold their own with the established authors. Excited to read the rest of this trilogy. Solid effort that I believe can only get better.

I just don't get it. The world-building is wonky. Characters are boring. Magic system isn't that interesting. Won't read sequel.

This was my first foray into a huge sprawling fantasy. I enjoyed it. But I have some notes: I found it kind of hard to follow some of the story line, keep track of twisting plots and remember all the character names. Especially when some characters have many names. But overall I’m excited for the aha moment that I’m sure is waiting for me when I have read all the books and the plot finally makes a little more sense. I definitely should NOT have read 70% of the book then put it down for over a year. Oops.

This book was so engrossing almost from the start. The world is fascinating and while I wish it was a touch more fleshed out, it feels real. I love that it’s a high fantasy that weaves power and politics throughout, but also comes with several mysteries and contests with the idea of fate alongside visions of the future. You don’t know who you can trust and there are so many plot twists that kept the book moving and kept me reading. All of the characters also seem very real in that there is good and bad inside them all and they sometimes make mistakes on the path to do good. I’m diving into the second book asap.

Interesting and different.

The Shadow of What Was Lost is one of those books that has been sitting on my shelf for years. Islington is an author highly recommended not only to Sanderson fans but by Sanderson himself, so I picked it up on Kindle when it was still self-published and ended up purchasing physical copies of the entire Licanius trilogy before ever reading the first page. Not the smartest way to buy your books, I grant you, but it worked out this time! The Shadow of What Was Lost is a throwback to classic fantasy in the very best way. There’s a brightness and coziness to it even when the plot goes in dark directions. The characters and tropes are comfortably familiar without ever feeling derivative or tired. Best of all, Islington manages to take these tropes and characters and do some shockingly original things with them. I’ve heard this trilogy called ambitious and risky and, by the end of this first book, I could definitely see some of that ambition. All that I wanted, I received All that I dreamed, I achieved All that I feared, I conquered All that I hated, I destroyed All that I loved, I saved And so, I lay down my head weary with despair, for; All that I needed, I lost. Our main characters, Davian, Wirr, Asha, and Caeden, seem incredibly reminiscent of the main cast of characters from the Wheel of Time series at first glance. However, as I spent more time with them I came to realize that there was a depth of character to each of them that I found lacking in the (admittedly few) Wheel of Time novels I’ve read. I also found them all far less obnoxious than their Robert Jordan counterparts. Each of them felt real and likable and refreshingly honest. I could see myself befriending every single one of them, and would be hard-pressed to name any of them my most or least favorite. “You can put your trust in something that’s obvious, that’s measurable or predictable - but that's not faith. Nor is believing in something that gives you no pause for doubt, no reason or desire to question. Faith is something more than that. By definition, it cannot have proof as its foundation.” While Islington did a wonderful job on his characterizations, I found his true strength to be his lore and world-building. He gives us just enough to maintain our interest without ever inundating us with too much information to process at one time. I was always intrigued by each new bit of information, and was impressed by the fact that its delivery did nothing to distract or detract from the plot, instead adding a layer of depth and richness that was a great benefit to the story. I’m fascinated by the religious undertones of and the philosophical questions raised in this book, especially considering that these mimic Christianity in some ways. Honestly, any scene that leaned more toward deep discussion instead of action tended to be among my favorites in the book. I highlighted and bookmarked like a madwoman. For instance, I absolutely adore the following piece of poetry from the book, which brought to my mind the fall of Lucifer as told in the Old Testament (in Isaiah 14:12-21). Here is what Islington wrote: Hail, king of traitors! We who knew you mourn what was lost. Only a shadow remains: A whisper where once a shout, A pond where once an ocean, A flickering candle where once the sun itself. Hail, king of corruption! We who serve you despair for what is to come. You will break the Oath, You will shatter the Path, You will sing the Song of Days as a dirge. Your people will weep tears of ice and blood And only the fallen will know peace. I have nothing but good things to say about The Shadow of What Was Lost. The only reason it wasn’t a 5 star reading experience for me is that I found myself easily distracted from reading it and had no problem putting it aside to do something else. This actually says more about my current reading mood and the busy season of life in which I find myself than it does the book. I think this is the type of book that will greatly benefit from being reread, which I can absolutely see myself doing in the future. Thankfully, I had a couple of amazing friends (Petrik and TS) to chat with about this book while I was reading, which made the experience a lot of fun. I can say without hesitation that I’m invested in this story and can’t wait to see where Islington takes this trilogy. It’s refreshing to know that there is a fantasy trilogy out there that balances classic with complex and comfortable with original, and that said trilogy is actually finished. And I plan to continue my journey with Licanius soon. You can find this review and more at Novel Notions.

Not bad! This is helped out by some commercial fiction practices, most notably pacing wise. Everything in this clocked into fine; a click up from commercial fiction but nothing mind blowing. But I think that’s sort of the target it was trying to hit. It goes deliberately against epic fantasy conventions and expectations and I think that will garner a decent readership. It doesn’t have long ass info dumps, let me tell you about my fantasy city, or diatribes. The characters aren’t incredible but there are some character moments that are quite good. There’s fun/interesting/cool setting details and magic system stuff. It’s not one billion pages. It’s pretty much exactly what it says it is, so 3 stars for me. It didn’t exceed expectations, but it’s a perfectly serviceable fantasy romp. I’m not sure I’ll continue with it. The narration on audible was pretty good, not fantastic. Characters are different enough that most of the time it’s easy to follow, but not always. And I wasn’t blown away, so I’m debating whether to continue with the trilogy or try and find something that I’ll like more.

For many years now I've been looking for a sci-fi or fantasy series as smart as Asimov's Foundation (or at least as thrilling as GoT or The Name of the Wind), and unfortunately, this isn't it. It was entertaining, and I took a liking to the main character -hence the four stars- but the main problem I had in the end was that it was too predictable, and I didn't feel much emotion throughout (a few exceptions here and there). I never felt like any of the characters were in real danger, as I was sure somebody would come and save the day... Even the "big" reveal at the epilogue. I guessed as much from very early on, but it felt too obvious so I hoped I'd be surprised...

“You can put your trust in something that’s obvious, that’s measurable or predictable - but that's not faith. Nor is believing in something that gives you no pause for doubt, no reason or desire to question. Faith is something more than that. By definition, it cannot have proof as its foundation” 🐺 This was a great fun read - like you can easily read over 100 pages of this and not notice ! Each POV had a great driving force of drama and mystery and I definitely enjoyed the plot twists. Occasionally the world building and characterisation sometimes felt a bit 2d, but that’s only compared to the greats like WoT and LoTR. 🐺 Basically just read it for Asha because her storyline is such a wild ride and a step away from the trope of only super magical people can have an effect in a magical world. I’m really looking forwards to getting the next book !

3.5 / Has its flaws, but so action-packed that I was not able to put the book down. Definitely reading the rest of the trilogy.

A very ambitious and solid debut epic fantasy novel. I really enjoyed the worldbuilding - which has an expansive scope and yet remains coherent throughout this long but also fast paced read. It's a joy to turn through the pages and realise how amazing the magic system is imbued with the worldbuilding. There's a lot going on at first but eventually everything just clicked and it was a satisfying experience. I also found the main characters quite likeable, i.e. I could empathise with their struggles throughout the story. For example: Davian's hidden powers and Asha's struggle when people around her came and went - it felt really raw and real. Along with a solid worldbuilding & a cast of likeable characters, there's also the fast paced plot (after the first few chapters) where there's an abundance of surprises and plot twists which left me wanting to find out what happens next. While this is a very enjoyable read, I also found that the multiple perspectives initially a bit tricky to get into - hence it took me nearly 2 weeks to finish the entire book. On the other hand, the multiple perspectives paid off because the internal struggles & their reactions to betrayals / conflicts of interests are very well fleshed out. So I get to understand what's going on within these characters rather than just one - and it was very interesting to see how they all came together towards the end of the novel. I think part of this is due to the descriptive writing style & the lack of glossaries to sort out all of the terminologies of the worldbuilding (even though the main text itself self-contaned the info about the fictional universe). Hopefully in the subsequent books, there will be a designated glossary including the worldbuilding / a dramatis persona - because this epic fantasy has a very large scope so it can be quite tricky to remember all of the characters & the details in the magic system. Otherwise, The Shadow of What Was Lost is a delightful epic read with excellent worldbuilding, likeable characters, and interesting plot twists. I recommend this for anyone who's into epic fantasy with a broad scope of characters. N.B. This novel contains following triggers during / after the fight scenes: violence, gore, weapons, sickness, injury, and death. (4 out of 5 stars)

A new favorite. UNDERRATED! I picked this up from my local bookstore on whim. It called to me, I suppose. The plot line was beautiful. The world- political, magical, economically sound- obviously took time to thoroughly develop. Augurs feel a bit like what we would call an "empath" in modern day. Preemptively, I bought the second book. I really had to search for it, as no one seems to even care this AMAZING series exists. Once I finish the second book I will be buying the last book immediately. SO. GOOD. PLEASE READ.

I was really excited for this book. Unfortunately, it took me a while to get used to the writing and the dialogue, sometimes it felt forced. I got hooked when I was nearly 50% through, and the characters felt flat to me. I would also have loved to know more about the magic system, but I thought the characters didn't use theirs much. And I felt detached from the plot for some reason, I felt like I needed more background information on the characters, their relationships with each other (like, show not tell), and some elements in the plot. However, I did like the concept behind this and I didn't see some twists coming. Still looking forward to the next two books though, hoping to like them better, too.

I am amazed that this is a debut novel. I loved it!

This was great! It had a few clunky aspects, probably due to being a debut, but nothing I really minded. The Good: - several (!) unique magic systems with interesting rules and limitations, all well-explained without infodumps - clever subversions of familiar tropes and plotlines in ways you don't expect - interesting world with a very rich history - good stories within the story - very complex and mysterious, always keeps you guessing - cool plot-twists The "Bad": I wished the characters were a little more eccentric, had a more unique voice (they all sound the same) and their own way of describing things. A few things also seemed too easy and convenient, and characters kept getting conked on the head and fell unconscious for a few minutes, only to get back up right away without any issue. That's not how concussions and head injuries work! There was also a bit too much power creep for my taste: many of the characters basically turn into supermen due to powerful ancient magic reawakening. But this was always kept from getting too overwhelming through interesting limitations, strong adversaries etc. Many people and places seemed to have several different names, many of them similar, so that I had to keep looking them up online, and the map was pretty, but no help at all in finding things: you've forgotten where Tol Athian is? Tough luck, the map doesn't tell you that it's within Ilin Illan. Where is Tol Shen? No idea, it's not on the map at all, despite of being mentioned many times in the book. You don't know where the borders between countries are? The map will carefully keep this secret from you for no reason. There are so many locations mentioned (and travelled through) that are not on the map. But that's the end of my criticism, and due to some of the other aspects of the book being really excellent, and it having such an exciting finale, I can't wait to continue this series. Is it a bit flawed? Yes, it is. But if you like epic fantasy and don't mind teenage protagonists, you'll probably really like it anyway.