What a fantastic debut novel!

The Unspoken Name is intricate and enthralling - I found myself intrigued from the very first page and I didn't want to put the book down. The novel is full of action and energy but it also has quieter moments which bring your attention back to the characters and their motivations.

Csorwe is a very striking character from the beginning. She's a young girl who is due to be sacrificed to a god at the age of fourteen, never able to imagine a life outside of the small cult she grew up in, but she is thrust into an adventure with a man she barely knows. She takes her life into her own hands and becomes a skilled young woman in charge of her own fate. Csorwe may be the main character of The Unspoken Name but none of the supporting characters are one-dimensional lifeless entities. I thought that the rest of the characters, especially Sethennai, Tal, and Shuthmili, were wonderfully written. I also loved the relationships that are developed in the book. There's a lovely, authentic sapphic relationship (!!!) which I loved but, honestly, one of the best relationships cultivated within the novel is a frenemy bond which is full of friendly tension and animosity. All of the relationships in this novel felt genuine.

Larkwood's writing is beautifully vivid and she draws upon all of the senses to give a well-rounded description of the characters and settings. In particular, I loved the way Larkwood sketches out the landscape as she includes tiny details that make the settings realistic and alive. I loved the attention to detail in other aspects of the novel too, especially the different religions of the land. I adore books that weave the worldbuilding into the storyline and I really enjoyed learning about the world as Csorwe did.

I think my only issue was the pacing of the novel. There are some odd time jumps, which were probably necessary for the story to work, and the novel spans about nine years which made sense since it's an exploration of Csorwe's journey into adulthood but the pacing of the second chapter didn't work for me. It depicts an entire year and, while I understand that time is meant to be confusing due to the landscape that Csorwe and Sethennai are travelling through, I thought that this could have been explained a little better because I was lost. In a film, this chapter would be a wonderful montage showing Csorwe's travelling and growth but, unfortunately, it just didn't work for me in the book.

One final little thing to mention: I was so thankful for the pronunciation guide! It was a nice little extra to include and, while I didn't refer to it often, I'm glad it was included because I knew how to pronounce the main character's name from the very beginning.

The Unspoken Name is one of the most intriguing and exciting books I've read in a long time. I'd definitely recommend it and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series!

This book was insane. I'm not sure I can even describe how good it was.

The multiple-worlds concept is not new, but I feel like here it was done differently to any other story with multiple worlds. I love the map in this book showing how the gates connect to the different worlds.

Then there were the different races or species of people from the different worlds - again, the inclusion of this was done so elegantly and without any thought of "What, she's not even human!". The way Csorwe's tusks are described is so effortless, as with Sethenai's ears.

The characters in this book were so relatable and real. Tal was one of my favourites, and his position was so earnest, his humour and anger so darn normal, that I can't help but feel that anyone would love this book for the characters alone (nevermind how fantastic everything else is, too!).

Csorwe's (and Shuthmili's) character development was so entrancing, and I loved the slow-burn romance in this novel. Oranna was also a fascinating antagonist, and the twists towards the end showing her as more than just "the bad guy" made her into a real, complex person.

I loved the story, the action, the characters and the plot twists! There were several times when I thought, "Oh no, that's it, she's done for", but then something happened and Csorwe pulled through! This book really kept me on my toes! I 100% would recommend it.

The Unspoken Name is a commendable fantasy debut with fascinating worldbuilding ideas.

With so many fantasy debuts cropping up every year, it is not an easy task to differentiate oneself from the rest. In this respect, Larkwood has created an interesting setting that blended old-world god worship that bestows magic, technology such as airships and dimensional plane called the Maze of Echos through which these ships travel via portal gates. Technology aside, the setting still feel very much like most classic fantasy, mainly because of the prevalence of gods and magic.

What I got out of The Unspoken Name is that it is a story about choices vs destiny. The main protagonist, Csorwe, is the prime example as she renounced her 'destiny' as the Bride of the Unspoken One by escaping with Belthandros Sethannai, a powerful wizard. And henceforth became his personal aide and assassin. The same theme came up again when Csorwe met Shuthmili, a very powerful Adept who was believed to be able to channel a goddess thought long dead. Magic in this world is bestowed by the gods, and wielding it comes at a cost, and a possible consequence of losing oneself or burning out completely, if not careful.

As much as I commend Larkwood for her worldbuilding and consistent use of character theme, I didn't get much emotional resonance from the character work itself. Being unable to bring myself to care much about the characters, I felt detached from the story which affected my overall reading enjoyment. There are also aspects of the writing style which didn't sit well with me. For example, the dialogue came across as being more suited to a urban fantasy romp (even comedic at times), while other parts read very much like dark high fantasy.

I do think that this is a good book, and a lot of the other reviews could attest to that (my co-bloggers loved it). Larkwood has produced a contemporary fantasy that has great ideas and solid plotting. The Unspoken Name is a debut that's worth checking out for modern fantasy readers.

I wanted to love this more than I did - all the elements I like are present and correct, but I couldn't entirely sink into the execution, which felt slightly rushed and shallow in places.

An extraordinary debut from a fresh and exciting new voice in fantasy!

It has been a while since I added a book by an unknown author to my tbr that fast. It was unavoidable though, as the blurb of the Unspoken Name spoke to me! On the day of her inevitable death as a sacrificial bride to the god of desolation, Csorwe is gifted a choice. She can ignore her fate and walk away from this needless death. All she has to do is join a wizard named Belthandros Sethennai as his loyal agent. Her duties? Fulfilling the role of thief, spy & assassin in the mage's quest to regain rulership of the city Tlaanthothei, and helping him recover his ultimate prize - the Reliquary of Pentravesse. As choices go, it’s not the hardest one to make, but it has consequences. Gods do not forget.

“Nothing in this world has earned the power to frighten you, Csorwe,” he said. “You have looked your foretold death in the face and turned from it in defiance. Nothing in this world or any other deserves your fear.”


At first glance, the map in the front of the book does not seem to cover a large area, but in hindsight, I can see how I was fooled. When we first meet Csorwe the story feels contained and small in scope, confined to a temple in the wilds of northern Oshaar. The reality though is much more exciting, as we soon follow Csorwe trying to acquire the Reliquary for Sethennai, travelling between different worlds via flying ships and portal gates, giving the story an expansive and distinctive feel with its blend of space opera and fantasy. Larkwood has imagined a vast, fascinating universe with countless possibilities and it made for an altogether more exciting and unpredictable plot, seeing Csorwe exploring places such as dying worlds where gargantuan serpents ruled, vast settlements the size of small cities floating in the void and planets overrun with the walking dead, never a dull moment. The scope of the setting never overwhelms though with the author keeping the cast small and thereby bringing balance and an intimate feel to the story, which is only enhanced further through the character relationships.

If I pissed in the corner,” muttered Tal, “do you think all twelve thousand ghosts would haunt my dick forever?”

“Yes,” said Csorwe. “Hold it in.”


The tale told has many themes and elements to it. Loyalty, love, self-discovery, sacrifice, faith and the power of choices are all featured, and a light is shone on relationships and how they can become cages when unbalanced, unreciprocated. Surly dialogue makes for some highly entertaining passages, but the characters also shine through physical interactions, with Larkwood not only using conversation but also conveying so much with small gestures and looks. I loved the small romance subplot and the organic, realistic way that Larkwood integrated it, including the pacing of it. Many times these things just feel rushed and contrived. I admit I understand why, as books have only so many pages, but the author has pulled it off with aplomb, making this feel so real, filling a need I did not know I had when I started The Unspoken name and perfectly supplementing the story.

“Whatever kind of monster you are, so am I.”


The Unspoken Name is an exclamation mark in the world of fantasy, revealing AK Larkwood to be in complete control of her style and the story she wishes to tell, writing with such skill and purpose that it belies the fact that this is a debut novel. The compelling narrative, authentic and complex characters and the wonderfully imaginative universe all combine to deliver one of this year’s most exciting releases, and if you have not yet decided to read this, you will be missing out.

Coming up with a way to first introduce The Unspoken Name in a review is, at the very least, complicated. This is a novel with many layers and many aspects that cohabit peacefully with one another, and to put focus on one before the others would be to build wrongful expectations for what is the end result.

…and there I tricked you by giving you what I feel like should be the first thing to keep in mind when going into this novel. If you expect it to be fantasy more than scifi, or plot more than characters, or characters more than plot, or relationships more than characters, then you’ll end up expecting something this novel isn’t.

Keeping that in mind, now we can move on and talk about the different aspects!

The first thing I realized I liked about this book was the writing. I will admit it does feel like a debut novel but like, in a good way that makes me want to read the author’s future books and see how she improves based on what I already know she does well. I personally love when authors don’t force-feed you information about characters’ intentions and feelings/reactions at any given moment but let you understand it from the context and what you already know about them. I think this aspect was excellent and it had sometimes hilarious, sometimes powerful effects in moments that would have been spoiled by an overly detailed description. I also think each character’s voice was very distinct and immediately recognizable.

Speaking of which, I think characters and relationships are where this book truly shined for me. Amidst a lot of plot and action, these characters bleed through the pages and you absorb them slowly, as you would with a real person. By the end they all felt real in a way that doesn’t always happen with fantasy, and I truly Felt for their relationships.

The romantic aspect was really enjoyable but to be honest, not my favorite part. It was, I guess, just not as present as I usually like it to be, but I do feel that the sapphic (!!!!) relationship was very naturally built up and cute. I was also under the wrong impression (I don’t remember if because of reviews or why) that there would also be a side m/m romance but there is not (if you’ve read it and see a romance in That…I really don’t know what to tell you), and I would like to add: thank the Nine Gods. I don’t think there’s anyone here who’s allocishet but anyway there are like: three confirmed mlm characters (at least one of them is bi/pan) and three wlw ones.

The plot was intriguing and I was never bored. I do think it had some pacing issues, not something that necessarily always bothered me (for example, I love when it got a little slower for the sake of showing us certain characters and relationships), but it did make things a little weird in a couple of points. If you’re someone who cares a lot about plot and pacing, you might notice and care about this more than I did.

The worldbuilding is so unique and I’m not even going to pretend like I’ve understood how things work well enough to be able to talk about them but basically it’s a fantasy + scifi setting in which together with more high fantasy elements we also have uhh,, space (?) ships and you can jump between worlds.

So, would I recommend this? Absolutely! If you’re into adult fantasy and/or casually queer (sapphic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) books then this one is for you. And I’m really looking forward to the next book (by the way, this book can be a standalone because it has an arc that’s fully resolved by the end, which is even more reason to give it a try!), hoping it will follow Tal (my favorite character tbh).

TWs: human & animal sacrifices, violence, gore, drug use, death, alcohol, self mutilation

This is a much slower fantasy read that, as a friend said, feels much more like a classic fantasy. I feel like I should have enjoyed it more, and I suspect that this was largely a case of reading not at the right time. Reading a very long, very slow fantasy over a hectic, exhausting weekend probably wasn't optimum reading time.

It is not a faced paced book, instead slowly building up through long chapters the world and setting through lots of description and rather passive actions from the main character. It was nice not to get dropped in to a confusing world that you have to suddenly learn about.

However, I found the slower pace wasn't matched with a strong starting hook and connection to the main character, so it was a lot more work to keep reading initially. It was a conscious "you need to read to the end of the fifth chapter in one go to give this book a fair chance" reading experience rather than being naturally pulled along.

A large reason I really struggled to connect with the main character was the fact I simply could not pronounce her name. Instead of being able to focus on the hints of her character being built up, I was wrangling with the phonetics.

I really struggled with all the names, and frankly only managed to get my head around them once I'd seen them enough to read them based on letter recognition rather than sounding them out. Even with the pronunciation guide, I couldn't work out how to say most of the names. A linguist friend and I looked at the pronunciation guide, and still struggled (she had opinions on how it was written).

The names didn't help build a sense of world either - they felt like fantasy odd names for fantasy odd names sake. Maybe if I'd been able to pronounce them, I would have noticed differences in names between major races, but instead it was a blur of names that felt like they needed changing to assist the reader.

This is a book of three parts really - possibly even four. The main character has very different goals in all three. The first section is her escaping the temple, and then there's a five year time jump (though, thankfully it's clearly stated on the "part 2" page that there's been a time jump). Then she's following another until a big climax for it, at which point she then switched. It was a rude-awakening goal change (for the character) rather than a gradual one, which contributed to the feel like the next section of the book was very different to the middle. It didn't help that the big gismo of part two was largely forgotten towards the end of part three/part four.

There are several POVs introduced in the latter parts, where the first part is simply Csowre's POV. It was jarring initially, because I'd been expecting the entire book to be just hers after 130 pages of single POV, AND the new section started with a different POV. However, once I'd accepted the range of POVs, it made the pace a bit faster, as switching POVs to show what the antagonists were doing really helped balance out the slower Csowre scenes.

This is a book for classic fantasy lovers, and maybe one I should revisit at another time to see if a different mindset helps.

This review will go live on my blog on the 14th of February

Csorwe is an orc priestess, destined to die during a rite of sacrifice to the Unnamed god on her 14th birthday. The arrival of powerful, maverick wizard Belathandros Sethannai – a renowned causer of mischief and walker between worlds (in fairness apparently anyone can do that if they know where the gates are but it seems very fancy to the young oracle priestess!) changes things. On the eve of the sacrifice, Sethannai persuades Csorwe to question her destiny resulting in her running away with the wizard and learning to become his personal bodyguard/ assassin instead. This is an amazing fantasy debut. Csorwe is naïve but likeable and her character journey from innocent ignorance to hard won wisdom is immensely satisfying. Considering all the world hopping the book should become chaotic because a lot happens, but Larkwood keeps a firm hand on the tiller and the reader is steered through a fast paced, engaging and breathless adventure. There’s a quest for a mysterious reliquary; there’s a burgeoning queer romance for our orc maiden; there’s plenty of bloody action interspersing the tight, well-wrought world building. And beneath then classic heroes journey is a coming of age story for fantasy fans, tackling the themes of choice and personal responsibility. I loved this book. Highly recommend, especially if you want a different protagonist in a twist on the classic fantasy setting.

I went into this book pretty blind apart from the fact that it was about orc lesbians and necromancy – and I feel like that’s a damn good reason to pick something up!

Okay, there’s a lot of good about this book. I enjoyed it while I was reading it – it’s very pacey – but when I came to write this review, I realised that overall, I felt kind of detached from it. I’m really not sure why, and I’m not 100% certain that it isn’t me being a bit reading-slumpy, but I found it hard to get invested in the characters. That being said, there are a lot of excellent and innovative elements, and I think this will be a huge hit with many people, especially if they liked the sardonic millennial style of Lord of Secrets or the rompishness of City of Lies.

While Csorwe’s people, the Oshaarun, aren’t labelled orcs on the page, their grey skin and tusks aligns them quite closely with the traditional orcish image. I thought that with Csorwe being labelled a bodyguard-cum-assassin, we’d get the violent side of the traditional orc too, but actually, although she is able to fight, she’s actually more intelligent, pragmatic and gentle than the stereotype had led me to believe. I really liked this subversion of what I was expecting from her as a character. In the first section of the book, when she is a teenager, I really enjoyed her character, and loved seeing her come to terms with the dark side of her destiny and then getting to explore the world outside of the cult. I was really engaged with her journey, and was excited to see her grow.

And then we jumped five years forward in time, and I completely lost the thread of her character. I feel like we missed out on some really crucial development in skipping her growing up – we’re presented with a fully-formed adult, with new opinions about her role and her colleagues that have clearly been formed over years of tension, but that we didn’t get to see. It’s hard to empathise with her rivalry with Tal, for example, when we’re just told that they have been thorns in each others’ sides, rather than getting to see them grow up with in this competitive sibling-esque battle. I struggled with Csorwe’s relationships with any of the main characters, to be honest – so much of it is told rather than shown that it left me feeling very disconnected from her, and therefore from the rest of the cast.

I also almost want to say that things happen to Csorwe, rather than her doing anything, but that’s not quite true; she is the instigator of about half of her actions, it’s just that they all sort of come out of the blue. I don’t know if it’s that we didn’t spend enough time in her head, but I never had a particularly clear picture of what she was up to, or what actions would be ‘in character’ for her to feel satisfied when they were revealed. Again, this comes down to my not making that connection with her – if you get on with her better, I think this could definitely be a five star read for you.

One thing I did love about this book was the casual but extensive queer inclusion. Csorwe is interested in women (though she also admits to an adolescent crush on a male tutor, who turns out to be gay), and the main romance is f/f (but the slowest of slow burns, with mostly pining). Tal, another main character, is gay; Belthandos Sethennai, her mentor/employer, is bi, and has on-page relationships with both men and women (although he slightly falls into the ‘bi people are manipulative’ trope, I think the extensive queerness of the world saves this from being a negative). In fact, I don’t know that a single side character is explicitly straight! This was so brilliant to read – I love when a fantasy writer just decides that as well as all the fantastical elements, the world will just be comfortably queer. It’s really heartwarming.

Overall, I’m really struggling for a score on this one! I thought it was going to be an instant favourite, and in the first section of the book I was genuinely prepared to write a rave review, but something about the rest of it didn’t quite click for me. I think it gets 3.5 stars from me (rounded up to 4 since NetGalley doesn't have halves) – I still think it’s a really good read, and I would urge you to pick it up if you’re looking for queer fantasy, classic adventure fantasy, or an innovative look at destiny and chosen ones!

I really enjoyed this fantasy world. The world building was really good, it was super enjoyable. Magic system was interesting as well as the characters.
The pace was really high at first, and then slowed down, but it didn't bother me.
Overall, I loved it and I'd read more from the author.

I have super admired the world building. It was absolutely incredible, hence the three stars. Take me into this world of gates and maze and wizards. But -- a big 'but' -- the first 30% of the story was really fast paced, we have a lot going on and I loved it. Then, the remaining 70% was completely the opposite, I felt the descriptions, every interaction or anything in this story was dragging on forever and I slowly lost interest. High fantasy is not my usual jam and maybe I started this book with lots of expectations, but they were not matched. I loved the diversity of the characters, but I also felt the main character, Csorwe, needed more development, I could not connect with her or fully understand her feelings or personality. In conclusion, outstanding world building and deities, strongly recommended for the lovers of the genre.

This book was kindly gifted to me by the publisher Tor in exchange for a honest review.

4.5*

The Unspoken Name is a story that begins with Csorwe, a young orc priestess who is destined to be sacrificed to her God when she comes of age. She has known this for a long time and yet when she is given the opportunity to flee with mage Belthandros Sethennai she dives at the chance and finds herself journeying and completing tasks to acheive Sethennai's goal of obtaining the Reliquary. A object which contains immeasurable knowledge.

What to say about the Unspoken Name?
Its majestical, its enthralling, and it took me on a journey of epic proportion! I loved this book! The.world.building! I say again the world building: this world is one that terrifies and yet entices me all at the same time! Csorwe's journey was so beautiful to read and her desire to suceed was so tangible. Who doesn't want warriors and creatures and gods and mages, and crazy objects that bequeath the holder with immense knowledge!! And if you take one thing away from this review, take GIANT SNAKES with world building that makes you literally want to step right into the page! The Underspoken Name is an incredible installment of what is sure to be a great series and I for one cannot wait to continue.

Not my usual reading, but I enjoyed this. I felt the beginning was a little rushed, and there were some leaps in the timeline, but still well worth picking up this book.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to enjoy this, but because of the pacing issues ( it was all over the place for the first half) , lack of character connection and time jumping forward constantly, it just wasn’t for me. Couldn’t connect with the characters or story, just not my cup of tea, sorry.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

I had a hard time both rating this book and going through it. From reviews I've read, it looks like I'm in the unpopular opinion here, but I feel that this book had great potential but was rushed.

Things I liked:

-I truly believe that the story overall had potential.
-The author had some good ideas and tried to build a unique world with a range of races with different beliefs.
-Shuthmili was actually a nicely developed character with a great arc.
-There were some nice twists and others that had potential.

Things I didn't like:

I think most of my issues with this book comes down to the fact that I strongly believe this should have been split into two books. On Goodreads, it says that this is to be a duology but in my opinion, it should have been a trilogy.

-For the first 30% of the book, the pacing was very rushed and all over the place. We start with Csorwe preparing to be sacrificed but she runs away with Senthennai. And then we jump to 2 years later were Csorwe has supposedly trained but we don't see any of it ever again. What's the point of that? And then they leave to reclaim Senthennai throne, and then we have a proper story arc where the "bad guy" (or at least one of them) is defeated and one of the main plot-line is over. And after that, we jump again to 5 years later.
-Because of all this time jumping and the rushing I wasn't given any time to process what was going on or to get to know the characters properly or to believe that there were saying. For example Csorwe mention for the spam of one page that she trained with a group of to-be mercenaries. And she goes on about how close she got to them and how much she liked training with them etc. But we never get to actually see that. But after a couple of chapters when Csorwe says that she misses them I'm supposed to actually believe and fell that somehow?
-We are constantly told things instead of been shown. Csorwe felt angry, Csorwe thought that, this person said something that Csorwe thought was anger, Csorwe is such a good warrior, Csorwe was so close to these characters. Ok, cool, can you please show me that instead of telling me the fact and just expect me to fell some kind of emotion.
-Through the book, we are told that Csorwe is supposed to be amazing at fighting and yet she constantly gets herself so injured she almost dies and need to be saved. And to add to that she is supposed to be badass but then constantly second-guesses herself, and worries about what Senthennai or other people will think and we get pages of those thoughts. Don't get me wrong I like characters that are badass but know also how to have feeling and not being perfect but this was a little too much towards self-pity and I don't like this.
-The love story. We have a f/f romance which is great. And the author really tried to not make it insta-love but... it was. As soon as Csorwe within 10 days (maybe less) she completely discards her mission to save the love interest which actually felt just like a way to move the plot forward. Csorwe also convinces the love interest (again within 10 or so days, without really knowing each-other) to run away from her destiny only based on hints and feeling.

In conclusion, this story frustrated me because it had potential but it was rushed. I think the first 30% of this book should have been the first book and then the other 70% should have been the second book and then whatever the third book will be. This will have given the author time to show us more about the character and how they get to know each other so we can actually feel and believe what we are constantly being told.

So this was a real change of genre for me and I really enjoyed the book it was so well written and I was very surprised to see it was actually a debut novel. I have to say it was the beautiful cover that first attracted me to request the Arc and I’m so glad I did . It’s a very complex and detailed read with lots of characters, full of mystery and magic, plots and politics, schemes and surprises this was a book to savour and it’s only the first in the series !!
So well recommended to all lovers of high fantasy and overall a solid 4 star read.
My thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan, Tor for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Starting off 2020 with a bang, The Unspoken Name is an epic fantasy debut from A.K. Larkwood which centres queer relationships in a grim but compelling world. Though I'm not a big reader of the Grimdarks, I'd been intrigued by this one, since hearing about it, and I embarked on its journey with an open mind - and, of course, the promise of Orc warrior lesbians was far too intriguing to pass up.

Csorwe has been raised in a remote temple to the Unspoken One, a god which requires a sacrificial "bride" every fourteen years, raised from birth. As the chosen sacrifice, Csorwe has never really questioned her role in life until it comes close to the time of her ceremony - and its then, when a mysterious stranger from another land called Belthandros Sethennai shows up, asking questions of the senior priestesses about a particular relic that's been lost to time. Not just a relic but a reliquary - a box belonging to an ancient being which will give the bearer immense magical powers if found. Weeks before her scheduled sacrifice, Csorwe suddenly realises there's much more potential to her life then she's ever been allowed to imagine, and when Sethennai turns up at the moment she is entering the catacombs to face her doom, offering a position with him if she decides to escape, she takes the obvious choice to join his cause.

Based on that set-up, you're probably not expecting me to continue by saying that Csorwe and Sethennai use a ship to enter a portal and traverse a between-space called the Maze, and re-emerge in another world. So much for fantasy temples covered in snow; this world-hopping turns out to define much of The Unspoken Name, embedded into the fabric of the world and not treated as a surprise or novelty beyond the excitement of a new method of travel for sheltered characters like Csorwe. It turns out that before our duo can recover the reliquary, they first need to take back Tlanthothe, the city (and/or world) that Sethennai used to rule. The opening quarter deals with this reclamation, taking us swiftly through various traumatic scenes and level-up montages in Csorwe's upbringing as she evolves, in an appropriately safe but edgy third location, from the determined but sheltered cult sacrifice into a bright, if worryingly unquestioning, right hand to an increasingly mysterious master. After training in swords, languages and other less savoury skills with Sethennai and a rotating group of tutors, Csorwe is ready to play her part in the recovery operation, although the infiltration she's required to undertake is a dangerous one, involving a brutal warlord and an even more terrifying giant snake. Ultimately - as you'd expect, as we're not yet a third of the way in - Csorwe proves her worth, though not without suffering some traumatic injuries, and confirms her position with Sethennai. Once all of this is set up, Csorwe's story gets a little less tortuously grim, though no less full of tough decisions and brutal moments, and this is also the point where I really started enjoying the twists of her episodic journey.

That's likely due to the narrative evolution around this quarter mark, when the third main culture in the book is introduced - the Qarsazhi empire, which protects its worlds and territories through a strict but powerful system of training mages. On visiting one of the "precursor" worlds in search of the reliquary, Csorwe and her on-and-off rival Talasseres come across a group of Qarsazhi conducting a survey on the dying planet, including Shuthmili, a young adept hoping to advance in service before too long. Once Csorwe and Tal start investigating, they discover - not entirely to anyone's supririse - that Csorwe's old sect is also heavily involved in seeking out the same artefact, and the subsequent stand-off between themselves, the Qarsazhi, and rogue librarian Oranna, leads Csorwe into making a decision between maintaining total loyalty to Sethennai and his mission, and rescuing Shuthmili and making up for her failures at a later date. Naturally, the previously obedient Csorwe makes the narratively interesting choice of helping Shuthmili, bringing the two women into each others' orbits and starting a series of encounters, rescues, betrayals and reversals with their growing relationship, and its tension with Csorwe's hitherto unquestioned loyalty, at the heart of it all.

It's hard to go further into the plot of The Unspoken Name without giving some of its reveals away, but the theme underlying all of this is that of loyalty, when and how it can be earned, and how to be true to yourself in the face of much greater powers who only see you as a tool to be used. That choice is particularly obvious for both Csorwe and Shuthmili, who find themselves in situations where those in power are strongly pushing them towards a particular agenda, and learning to question that agenda turns out to be more complex than simply trusting people who allow you to escape it. It's a narrative that acknowledges how difficult these choices can be, and how hard it is to do anything other than go along with the least worst option (and, to be fair to Sethennai, despite his use of Csorwe and especially Tal he generally is more benign than most of the other power players in The Unspoken Name), and while this leads to an exhausting number of from-frying-pan-to-fire-then-back-to-frying-pan style reversals, the fundamental investment we develop in Csorwe, Shuthmili, and (though your mileage may vary) trash child Talassares, who goes through the most in The Unspoken Name, the majority of which is self-inflicted.

The action here is fast paced and unrelenting, and the narrative style switches effortlessly from formal dialogue, Csorwe's more or less polite internal narrative, well-described and brutal fight scenes and the delightfully irreverant sweary sass from characters like Tal. The language use extends to the different naming conventions for the three cultures depicted, each of which have distinct linguistic traditions and systems which, while not heavily developed, are distinct and fun. Of course, it's helpful to have a pronunciation guide (Csorwe like the "ks" in "books" plus "oorway" in "doorway") to demystify some of the more unusual consonants and the emphasis in particularly long names, but each one ends up rolling off the tongue once the pronunciation guide is deployed - Csorwe, for example, has the "cs" sound at the end of "books", and rhymes with "doorway" - and I ended up whispering a lot of them to myself to listen to the way that the sounds were being deployed. The differences in the language are matched by physiological differences in the characters, which generally match up to known fantasy races but aren't labelled as such - so Csorwe and her kin are large and grey-skinned with tusks (i.e. orcs) and Sethennai and Talassares are dark-skinned with long, "leaf shaped" ears that move with their emotions (elves). The Qarsazhi are harder to pin down, but are described by the other races as short and angular (and, notably, no tusks). The narrative treats these differences matter-of-factly, addressing Csorwe's tusk growth and describing ear movements without making it into something that the characters define themselves by. It's a nice touch that sidesteps any weird fantasy racial essentialism, as well as avoiding any cross-species implications in any of the potential romantic pairings. The people of this world don't really think of themselves as different races, just as looking different based on where they come from, and given that we're talking about portal-hopping between worlds here, that all makes quite a bit more sense than the average high fantasy world.

All in all, The Unspoken Name is a great debut, one which overcame my worries about its grimdark content and offered a world with plenty of complexity and interest - and the hope for better things to come, for characters who definitely deserve them. If you're after a book that takes care to subvert and redefine the tropes of their genre, and offers a brilliant adventure into the bargain, A.K. Larkwood has your back - may it only be the beginning of some brilliant reading in 2020.

The Unspoken Name is such a good book and I’m so happy I got to read it! It’s filled with magic and gods, has assassins and priestesses and monsters and wizards—and every single character has a mind of their own and some kind of agenda. I loved the ancient cities and dying worlds, I loved the easy conversation between the characters and that I never knew who to trust. I loved the world as a whole, the magic of it—in some way, it reminded me of Howl’s Moving Castle, although I can’t exactly say why.

I would have liked to get a deeper look into Csorwe’s head, her hopes and fears; she is, after all, the protagonist. But beside that (and a bit of slow pacing in the middle), The Unspoken Name has wonderfully complex and interesting characters and a plot that makes you excited to keep reading, because you never know what might happen next.

I adore how the world A. K. Larkwood created is filled with queer characters, how straight really isn’t the default and how natural that is—this alone truly makes me love The Unspoken Name. I think this can be read as a stand-alone, but I would love love love to discover many more of the worlds A. K. Larkwood has created (and the ending was so good, but it makes me want a sequel even more!).

(My full review will be up on my blog, Ink & Myths, closer to the release date.)

Deserves all the hype! This standout fantasy will be topping so many best of lists in 2020! I feel so lucky to have been able to read early!

This was a great first book to this series. I loved that the main protagonist is a young orc girl, as this isn't something I've seen in a lot of fantasy books. It did take me a little while to get into the story but after a while I was invested in the characters and the story. This is a great debut and worth checking out, if the synopsis interests you.