I put off writing this review to try and sort it out in my head, and not just lean on what I already said in the readalong posts about it, but I’m not sure that’s served me well — especially since I read the sequel in the meantime! But let’s see what I can do. The Ninth Rain is a fantasy novel that reminds me a lot in some ways of sci-fi and horror; in fact, it reminds me a lot of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. It’s a human world, but one that’s full of strange flora and fauna wiped by the remnants that a mysterious attacking force, the Jure’lia, leave behind them. In this world, we follow Hestillion and her brother Tor, a scholar named Vintage (“Lady Vincenza de Grazon”, actually, but she doesn’t stand on ceremony), and a young witch who wields fire fuelled by energy ripped from living things.

Hestillion and Tor are not quite human: they are Eborans, formerly sustained in long, healthy, beautiful lives by the sap of their tree-god Ygseril. But he’s been silent and dormant for years, leaving the Eborans at a loss — though they did find that human blood makes a substitute for the sap, leading to monstrous barbarism, and later prejudice. Tor’s not like that: he’s only interested in blood given willingly, and probably during sex. I find it interesting that he’s one sort of vampire, but arguably the witch, Noon, is an energy-vampire. They’re both pretty prejudiced and awful to each other about what they are, when their paths cross, but really they’re neither better than the other.

Vintage is mostly just a delight. Older than the others, and sure of what she wants, she is passionate about the remains of the Jure’lia and finding out what exactly is going on with them. Naturally, this steers a course straight into trouble, bringing Noon and Tor along for the ride.

Noon herself… is not really a favourite for me. She’s damaged and desperate, and horrible things have happened to her, but I don’t find her motivations as interesting as Vintage’s. Vintage has this scientific curiosity that really appeals. Tor’s alright as well, and I’m entertained by the female gaziness of the descriptions of him, but I don’t adore him.

Hestillion, though… she’s so clever and so manipulative; she’s both a horror and a delight, because you need to know what she’s going to do but ai, you wish she wouldn’t do it. That’s more or less what this whole book does: it’s an awesome ride, and it does some awesome things, but they’re also awful and whyyy do they have to happen.

It’s immensely satisfying — like filling up on a good meal.

I've read a fair few fantasy novels and I don't think I've ever read anything quite like this before, so brownie points for Jen Williams for doing something a bit different. It's utterly jammed packed with all sorts so consequently takes a while to get going, but I didn't struggle and appreciated the world building.

I loved the characters, just as much as the three from the author's Copper Cat trilogy. Think female Indiana Jones going adventuring and relic hunting with a vampire elf and escaped prisoner witch. Their banter and interactions go a long way to alleviate the dark and bleak parts of the story.

Now I've just got to decide whether to re-read this before the second one or jump straight in...

(ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley)

By crikey I love this book! It tells the story of Tor, Vintage and Noon, three disparate wanderers all of whom have a vested interest in restoring the city of Ebora to its once vaunted heights. Firstly, it is really hard to classify this book in terms of genre. It is predominantly an epic fantasy, with just amazing and original world building, but there is a definite sci-fi element to the plot, with alien invaders. Throw in a touch of steampunk and a healthy sardonic tone and you have what is, for me at least, a pretty perfect introduction to an incredibly exciting new trilogy. The author has written some fabulously diverse characters here that display nuance and depth often lacking in fantasy epic. Vintage is a delight, Tor is suitably mysterious and brooding and Noon, while perhaps the least consistent in voice, is nonetheless, someone who will clearly be developed more deeply as the trilogy progresses. The world is very unique with some startlingly original features and Williams gives the reader just enough backstory to flesh out the history without becoming bogged down with too many minutiae. All in all, I was really impressed with this book and am going to be reading the second instalment eagerly.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I read The Copper Promise last year (funnily enough, also for the fantasy bingo reading challenge) and I liked Williams' characters, their banter and interactions and how much that book felt like a D&D novel. I ended up not getting the sequel on Kindle initially because of the price, but I've actually recently seen it drop, purchased it and I have a feeling I'll return to that trilogy sooner than I think. So when I was approved for a galley of her newest novel (and then its sequel!), I knew I had to read this as soon as possible.

In the world of Sarn, Ebora once stood head and shoulders above the rest. Its beautiful people (elf-like, with long lives and fantastic cultural riches) were the only one who could stop the invasions of the Jure'lia, a race bent on destruction. The great tree Ygseril would birth the war-beasts of the Eborans and with them, they repelled the invasions time and time again: for every invasion, a rain. Everyone thought the Eight Rain was the last and since, the Eborans have fallen as a race: wolves and weeds now stalk the streets of this once mighty city. Tormalin the Oathless will not see himself succumb to the slow death of his people and instead sets out to see as much of the world as possible.

So he enters into the service of one Lady Vincenza 'Vintage' de Grazon, a woman who is obsessed with learning as much as possible about the Jure'lia, exploring the relics of their Behemoths and fighting off spirits (and sometimes people). Vintage is a great character: sarcastic, with a love of wine and adventure and one who is undaunted. A large part of the world building comes from her letters and journal entries, which I actually really enjoyed; it's nice to see things through the eyes of one character, with their opinions peppering the descriptions and annotations. Because if there's one thing that Vintage doesn't do, it's hold back on her opinions.

Finally, there is Noon, a fell-witch, someone seen as poisoned and evil, who will spend the rest of her life in the Winnowry, good only for making a potent drug. Until she discovers something horrifying, something that will put her on a collision course with Vintage and Tormalin. For the Jure'lia are coming and the Ninth Rain must fall...

This is, for all intents and purposes, an incredibly detailed world, full of eldritch horrors. The Jure'lia are actually pretty damn creepy, bugs and creepy crawlies and terrifying hivemind queen. They burrow and consume and take over, a constant wave of destruction and death. The drones, taken over by the burrowers, with that ever-present smile on their faces? Creepy enough to make your skin crawl. And Williams never lets off, relentlessly reminding you of how creepy and horrible her creations are. There is an underlying sense of dread running in the background of the plot and for every action scene, every chase, there is the knowledge that there are far worse things in Sarn than fell-witches.

The Ninth Rain also maintains the fun parts about The Copper Promise, that aforementioned adventure and chase, that back-and-forth zippy dialogue. But beyond that, it's a lived in world, with its myths and legends, with its histories and cultural differences. They are sometimes only hinted at, but as this is book one of what I assume will be a trilogy, I hope we get more details from Williams in the sequels. It's exactly the kind of fantasy book I needed to end the year on: one that tries to (and succeeds in!) creating a fresh version of the adventure novel; the characters are great (and I love what Williams does with both race and sexual orientation in the book) and I got absolutely sucked into it. So much so that I've already picked up the sequel - I really can't wait to see what happens next.

This just grew and grew on me even when the Jure’lia had me squirming. I adored Vintage and have a strong ship for Been/Aldasair (even if I do keep reading him as Alasdair). It didn’t matter that I could see where the plot was twisting to, I was still screaming with excitement at the Ninth Rain.

Tree god Ygseril, once the heart and protector of Ebora lies wasted and broken after the last attack from the Jure'lia (the Eighth Rain). Eborans are dying, Hestillion is trying to wake the protector but Tormalin wants to see the world before he dies so goes off to explore leaving her to deal with the deterioration of their culture. Vintage, mid-life explorer, sets off from her family estate to see if she can find out more about the Behemoths and the parasite spirits that were left behind from the Jure'lia and worm people after the Eighth Rain (with more than one reason for needing to find out). Noon, fell-witch, desperate enough to escape her captivity, crosses paths with Tor and Vintage in the Shroom Flats and Vintage offers her a job. All our characters in place for the tumultuous time ahead ...

Once again, the world building from Jen Williams' is awe inspiring. The different tribes and the politics, fell-witches, Eborans and their history is seamless. The settings are amazing - in Ebora, Sarn, the Wild, and the Winnowry (not used for the best purposes but how I loved the whole concept!). The Behemoths have a key part to play in the story and they're a horror story in their own right in the way they work when linked to the Jure'lia. Just seeing what was left behind from the Eighth Rain caused fear and nausea for me. Perfect.

There's so much I could talk about - dreamwalking, the House of the Long Night, Hestillion in the netherdark. So many scenes elicited a strong response in me. My notes are littered with 'magnificent' 'fascinating' 'OMG' 'amazing' (in fact I wrote amazing three times for one scene).

The Ninth Rain isn't just about a quest. It's about people and interaction, friendships formed, love in all its guises and the unexpected. My need for an emotional connection was fulfilled with several of the characters. The dynamics between Hestillion and brother Tor/Tor, Vintage and Noon/ Tor and Noon/Aldasair and Bern are entertaining with subtle undertones running beneath the facade.

I loved the pace. The story didn't seem over 500 pages! The settings switch up between Hestillion in Ebora on her quest to wake Ygseril and the trio of three on their quest. Despite laying the foundations for the following two stories to come, at no time was I bored (first stories in trilogies can be slow can't they - but the Ninth Rain isn't). I'm in awe of Jen Williams' creativity.

The ending was page turning so even though I didn't want the story to end, there was no way I could slow down! Parts of the ending wasn't what I was expecting at all. I need to have answers to some questions. What will happen with Bern the Younger? Who's Fulcor's allegiance to? What happens to Tor's contracts? Will Nanthema stay with Vintage? What happens to Hestillion? Will Ygseril come alive? Will Aldasair take on a different role? How will the Jure'lia queen come back? I can't wait to see where the bonding will lead us!

I just could not get into this.
The characters were confusing and the plot did not hold my interest.
Not for me.

For starters, this isn’t a straight swords and sorcery. The city of Ebora might be a faded version of its former self, driving Tormalin to seek his fortune elsewhere, but it isn’t the only place enduring sustained and catastrophic deterioration. Sarn and the other surrounding countries are still suffering the ravages of the last invasion by the lethal aliens, the Jure’lia. Wildlife and vegetation have been mutated wherever the huge spaceships have crashed, which also attracts the very dangerous parasite spirits that turns their unfortunate victims inside out if they so much brush against them. Where the huge maggots crashed through, they excrete a thick transparent sludge that hardens to an impervious block of varnish, trapping people inside like flies in an amber. In short, the world is still reeling from an apocalyptic attack several generations earlier.

As you must have gathered, William’s depiction of her ruined world made a deep impression – I’ve even dreamed about it. This could have been a completely bleak tale, but it’s not because the main protagonists, particularly the wonderful Lady de Grazon, ping off the page with a fine disregard for local customs as she insists on investigating every aspect of the alien wreckage, instead of trying to ignore it like most of the population. There is a fair amount of humour scattered through this story, which makes it far easier to read, though that doesn’t mean it’s innately funny – it isn’t.

Tension winds through the story as we are pitchforked right in the middle of this fascinating wrecked world and then try to figure out exactly what is going on as slices of information is steadily fed our way. I also loved the young fell-witch, Noon, kept in a horrible prison called the Winnowry, where others like her who involuntarily summon fell-flame, are incarcerated – apparently so they can atone for their innate wickedness and to protect the rest of society from their fell-fire. Though the fact that their flaming energy is harvested and used to craft a number of exclusive, highly expensive artefacts is also a major factor.

Each one of the three protagonists have their own journey through the book which involves different aspects of this shattered place and unlike a number of epic fantasy tales, I didn’t find myself wanting to know more about one of them such that I skimmed through the others to get back to it. For this rich world sank its hooks into me and since I have finished reading it, I still find myself thinking of it. And I’ll be on the lookout for the sequel as I’m looking forward to revisiting this unusual world.

While I obtained the arc of The Ninth Rain from the publisher via NetGalley, this has in no way influenced my unbiased review.
9/10

Having read the authors previous books and enjoyed them I was looking forward to reading more from her. I find that Jen Williams has great world building skills and always portrays well rounded characters be they heros or villains. I recommend her books and think she deserves far more exposure. Looking forward to see how this unfolds.

Spectacular! That's the only word that pops to mind when thinking about this book. It's a true and pure triumph of a fantasy novel and one of the best novels I have read in some time. Seeing as I haven't read any of Jen Williams' previous books this came as a pleasant surprise as I had no idea what I was going into here but what I got was a indescribable and powerful tale that can only grow and improve even further, if thats even possible, with the rest of the series going further and I for one will be there to read them and carry on enjoying this superbly built world and to get to know these deep and realistic characters even further.

Bravo Jen Williams! This book is a classic in the making!

Great book. Traditional fantasy with a nice twist of something new.

I thought this was a fantastic introduction to this new fantasy trilogy. I didn't really know what to expect when I started it but I was hooked pretty quickly. The characters are so well written and intriguing - in my opinion they are one of the best things about this book. Another great element was the world building. The world is such an interesting one. It is definitely a new favourite of mine. I found it rich, complex and interesting but it was never too much. I never felt bogged down by it. The plot was engaging throughout and I enjoyed seeing it all unfold. Overall I loved this. I think this trilogy has a lot of potential and I am very excited to see where things go in the next book. I will definitely be continuing with this trilogy.

Ebora is a fading civilization. Ever since their tree god Ysagril died, these long-lived elven people have been in decline, their main source of longevity being its sap. Soon after Ysagril's demise, they discovered that drinking the blood of humans could reinvigorate them. After some decades and centuries of gory vampiric excess, they find that drinking the blood of humans is, ultimately, poisonous and fatal. Oops.

In the prologue, Tormalin turns his back on his people and their dying nation: he wants to see the world before the inevitable creeping death catches up with him. His sister names him The Oathless and stays behind. He takes his famous sword, The Ninth Rain, and sets out to have adventures...


Fell Noon, as drawn by Jen Williams
Fell Noon, meanwhile, is kept imprisoned in the Winnowry with all the other fell witches. Hated, feared, oppressed and exploited by priests and nuns, the fell witches live miserable lives. Their magical winnowfire is unlike any other, and the Winnowry uses it to produce drugs and products that no one else can manufacture (it's handy, having a monopoly on a manufacturing process). At the same time, the fell witches are seen as the root of all evil. It's slavery and misogyny and exploitation at its ugliest, but Fell Noon does not resist, because she has her guilty past... and because punishments for resistance are severe.

It's Vintage, a woman from a rich landowning wine-producing family, whose projects will ultimately lead to their paths crossing. Vintage's passion is (scientific) research. Almost as a side effect, this involves exploration: her research is focused on remnants and artefacts from the previous Eight Rains, which are spread all over the world.

The Rains are terrible periods: every few hundred years, this world is invaded by powerful aliens. So far, only the Eborans have been able to prevent defeat, but the Eborans are almost all gone...

It took me a while to get into The Ninth Rain. This may be because I was reading it alongside other books (which I was under some time pressure to finish), but I also suspect that starting with Tormalin and a fairly extensive set of pre-plot scenes may have had a slowing effect on some readers. However, I did get properly hooked (by the time the story reached the mushroom forest), and by the end I struggled to put down the (whopper of a) book at all. It's gripping stuff once you get into it.

The world of The Ninth Rain is not too different from other fantastical worlds (although I must admit, vampire elves are new to me, and such a logical thing I am surprised that no one else has thought of this until now). What makes a big difference is the Rains. They give a much more credible context to the returning evil, which contrasts with the out-of-nowhere corruption that spreads in classics like Lord of the Rings. The Rains come from somewhere - it just happens to be off-world. Just like The Rains, other aspects which seem like staples of the genre are cleverly explained within the novel, which reinvigorates them and lifts the book above using cliches.

The heart and soul of a novel of great length is its characters and the chemistry between them. Sure, the skirmishes and fights are exciting, the chasing pursuit tense, the world intriguing and the sense of building tension builds up pleasantly like a slowly accelerating river on its way to the falls, but The Ninth Rain is above all a novel about three interesting people. Vintage is the glue that holds everything together, immensely likeable, yet quite tough when she needs to be, and not flawless either - she has her hypocritical sides. Noon, the poor thing, seems in urgent need of a hug. Tor, meanwhile, is a bit too pompous for his own good.

Unsurprisingly, for a novel written in the 20teens, the characters are of different skin colours and sexual orientations, but the diversity is utopian in its equality: people on this world have their prejudices based on physiological differences (bloodsucking, fire-starting, life-draining) rather than cosmetic ones (skin colour and sexual preferences). It's a bit like Star Trek in that regard.


Tor, as drawn by Jen Williams
It's better than Star Trek at putting women in the driver's seat: Vintage is the captain, so to speak, and Noon is the most intriguing character. Even Tor's manipulative sister Hestilion (whom I found quite sinister) is filled with drive and agency. In comparison, the only male (and presumably white) main character, Tor, is a vampiric elven sex toy / whore, who drifts through a changed world, uncertain of his place or purpose now that his kind are no longer physically protecting anything nor exerting any real power. Hmmm, what would a 'meninist' say? (I'm being facetious in case this isn't obvious)

The Ninth Rain is a novel where pretty much everyone tries to get along, or has really really strong motivation for adversarial actions. It is part of the softening trend in genre fiction. After hyper-gritty and ever more grimdark excesses, there's an entire spate of novels that are written (often by women writers) with a kinder core. Think Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, or the Natural History of Dragons series, or The Best of All Possible Worlds, or even The Collapsing Empire. All of these novels, to my mind, have something Whedonesque about their core groups of characters (Firefly's spirit lives on): the protagonists tend to form groups that are a bit family-like, only less dysfunctional. Expect bickering, a bit of banter, and plenty of fuzzy feelings. The Ninth Rain evoked similar reactions in me.

Also, the novel is filled with adorably loyal giant bats.

The Ninth Rain is a wonderful novel for fantasy readers. It's big, filled with ideas and fun. One of the early highlights of 2017.

https://lynns-books.com/2017/02/23/the-ninth-rain-the-winnowing-flame-trilogy-1-by-jen-williams/
Well, what a brilliant start to series this is! I picked up The Ninth Rain with a certain amount of trepidation. I confess that I always do so when it’s an author that I enjoy reading – I always worry ‘will this book be as good as?’! Goodness only knows what the author must feel. Anyway, after loving the Copper Cat series, yes, of course, I had a certain amount of concern about where Ms Williams would go next but in real style she’s pulled another wonderful number out of the hat. The Ninth Rain brings to us a fascinating world, populated with a variety of different beings, conflict, characters that you will root for and a good degree of the author’s wonderful sense of humour. I admit that I’m a little bit in love with Jen Williams at the moment – not, of course, in a bunny-boiler-stalker fashion you may be pleased to hear (although I may stalk her twitter and Goodreads pages for news of the next book).

Anyway, to the book. It gets off to a great start. We read of the Eborans. Once a mighty empire Ebora now lies mostly empty. It’s once golden and busy streets are populated by the vines that again encroach and take hold and the few remaining inhabitants are simply waiting to die. The Eborans are a fascinating race. They worship a tree God called Ygseril. Their God bestows upon them an unusually long life, strength and grace. Unfortunately, Ygseril seems to have declined – or died – or just gone plain missing leaving the Eborans not only starved of his presence but also of the sustenance that he provided and forcing them to seek solace from another source – blood. As you can imagine this didn’t go down too well with the human population and obviously war ensued until a more peaceful arrangement could be accommodated. This was long in the past and many of the Eborans have now died as a result of a disease called the Crimson Flux – brought on by human blood! And so we arrive at Tormalin the Oathless as he prepares to leave his home, much to the disgust of his sister. Tormalin doesn’t want to sit and wait for the Flux to catch up with him – he wants to experience life and so off he goes with his little spotted hanky packed with goodies to sustain him on his travels!

And so we met Tormalin. Now let’s meet Lady Vincenza ‘Vintage’ de Grazon! You’ll be pleased to make her acquaintance. She’s totally eccentric and a real character to boot. Full of sass and wit. Vintage’s family have made their fortune in wine and she now has the means to support her real passion in life. Vintage is something of an explorer and a scientist. She travels the country looking for clues about the Jure’lia from the broken pieces of their left over crafts. She’s determined to be ready for the Ninth Rain when it comes and knowledge is valuable. It seems almost inevitable that Tormalin and Vintage should meet up – the brawn to the brains, plus Vintage’s wealth and easy access to wine allows Tormalin a good deal of freedom, drinking and other exploits. Plus he gets to fight with all sorts of monsters whilst Vintage has her very own protector!

Of course, you’re probably pondering over the Ninth Rain. The previous eight ‘rains’ refer to attacks by an alien nation. Hideous attackers who leave a trail of death in their wake. The only people who have ever been able to stand up to the Jure’lia attacks are the Eborans – oh the irony! Now, what I love about this is it’s a delicious combination of science fiction and fantasy. The Jure’lians are the strangest race – at this point, I’m really not aware of their motivations. Perhaps they don’t have any – perhaps they’re just the downright baddy of the piece – they certainly don’t take prisoners and they create swathes of zombie type people as they swarm forward. Lets just talk about insects and the screaming heebie-jeebies for a moment – because that’s going on – even the ships that are used for travel. Anyway, no more of that – I’m not going to give too much away.

To the final character, Fell Noon – a fell witch with powerfully fierce sorcery. Beware the fell witches! Oh yes, they’re all evil, destructive, murderous creatures – or are they? Anybody can manifest this magical ability – it strikes at will and without any recognisable pattern and anybody who displays such talent is immediately taken from their families and placed in the Winnowry. This is a dreadful place. Cruel and harsh, the people who run it are religious zealots who treat the inhabitants terribly and at the very heart of it is corruption.

These three characters are going to eventually find each other on the same path. A darkness is once again growing. Strange portents and dreams are drawing people together, they know the Ninth Rain is looming. In the meantime our characters are on a desperate hunt, a race against time to prevent what could be the extermination of everyone on the planet.



One thing about Jen Williams is that she can write – well. And frankly good writing is never going to go out of fashion (in my humble opinion). It’s a delight to read a book like this, so well written and made to look deceptively easy. Yet again she brings characters that you will love, in fact to be honest, the plot plays an almost secondary role by comparison. Plus the world building. This is a completely different world – it takes a little time to become accustomed to what’s going on but once you sit back and chill it all just falls into place.

I really enjoyed this. It’s just a delight and I highly recommend it. I look forward to the next instalment because it appears that there will be critters aplenty to look forward to.

I received a copy courtesy of the publisher through Netgalley for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

This is a satisfyingly long book which makes for a good, immersive read. I particularly loved Noon, the fell-witch character, and I really cared what happened to her. It was with great pleasure that I got to watch her story progress and unfold, and at no point was I left disappointed.



Although this is a fantastical and brilliant world, it felt realistic. At no point was the fantasy element used as a 'get out of jail free' card which so often happens in stories of this kind. Instead, our characters faced real troubles, and worked within their limited abilities to overcome them. There are several layers to the story which requires a little perseverance in the beginning, but it definitely pays to stick with it - these details are important to the story and everything comes together very nicely as it progresses.



I am so pleased this is part of a new trilogy from this author and I look forward to reading the next instalment.

Mixing science fiction and fantasy in a fantastic new world that somehow just bleeds into your subconscious so you accept it without question, Jen Williams has written a brilliant start to an exciting new trilogy. In her trademark style, this is a big book that could easily have been derivative but is told with warmth, enthusiasm and humour in such a way as to be completely original and engaging. The characters are diverse, well developed and likeable – Lady Vintage is just brilliant. The dialogue is sparkling and the pace just carries you along. A really enjoyable fantasy romp that steps lightly over well-trodden turf in a dance which feels completely new. Highly recommend.

The ninth rain by Jen Williams is a sci-fi and fantasy read.
The great city of Ebora once glittered with gold. Now its streets are stalked by wolves. Tormalin the Oathless has no taste for sitting around waiting to die while the realm of his storied ancestors falls to pieces - talk about a guilt trip. Better to be amongst the living, where there are taverns full of women and wine.
When eccentric explorer, Lady Vincenza 'Vintage' de Grazon, offers him employment, he sees an easy way out. Even when they are joined by a fugitive witch with a tendency to set things on fire, the prospect of facing down monsters and retrieving ancient artefacts is preferable to the abomination he left behind.
This was a good read with good characters. Aaron little slow in places. 4*. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book from netgalley.

Wonderful, fantastic, amazing, typically, classically Jen Williams in all the ways I'd hoped. Review to follow on my blog; will update with ink.