This is the first instalment in the Kithamar series.

Over the course of this series, one story will be told from a multitude of different perspectives of those living within the city of Kithamar, with its developing future and longevity relying upon their actions. What is important to them will be at the forefront of their perspectives, as well as their part to play in Kithamar's future, however small or trivial, and whether they are aware of this or not.

This immediately proved itself to be an impeccably well-told and intricate tale. I adored it initially and this did not lessen throughout the course of the twisted and slowly unfurling tale. I was often unaware of where this book would take the reader or what each sometimes seemingly unrelated side-tangent or sub-plot had to do with the overarching storyline. Blind trust in this author had me enjoying it immensely, keeping my queries silenced, and in utter awe at what was produced.

Lots of mediocre reviews on this one for some reason. While not a 5 star book, it is exceedingly well and beautifully written. The underlying mythos is quite interesting. Looking forward to book 2.

Thank you to the publisher for my eARC copy of this book. Unfortunately I didn’t love this book and therefore didn’t finish, I just didn’t engage with this one. Not for me, sorry.

This was an interesting read though I did find it slow at times especially in the middle. Though overall I did enjoy it.

I have almost all the books by this author on my TBR, and yet this is the first that I managed to read. And sadly it didn’t go as I was hoping. Mind me, this is a solid book but I was expecting to fall in love with it, even madly in love, and it didn’t happen. So yeah, it was a bit of a disappointment, but it is also true that I had almost unrealistic expectations here, so I think that it is partially on the book because some things didn’t really work for me so well, and partially on me, because sometimes expectations are our worst enemy. I would read the other books I have on my TBR by this author, but I don’t think I would continue this series.

My main problem here was that I am a character-driven kind of reader, and I couldn’t really connect with the characters there. In theory, Alys should have been exactly the kind of character I fall for, she is a thief, she is resourceful, and she is morally grey. What’s there is not to love here? Well… in part her being morally grey is due to the fact that she is obsessed, and I don’t have the best track record with obsession and characters, but if they are your thing, I think that you would find a really interesting case of it in Alys.
Sammish was a tad better, for me, I enjoyed her more, but even with her, I couldn’t really connect. There was something lacking, even if I can’t exactly pinpoint it. But at least I was more involved when she became more central to the story.
There are other characters, but I couldn’t really relate with any depth with any of them, even if my favorite was the most unique of them: in this book the city is itself a character, and in more sense than one! It was my favorite thing about the book, and it gives a whole new meaning to the “city as a character” thing. And it was brilliant. But it wasn’t enough to make me really enjoy the book.

We have also an interesting world, grim and not really happy, it is not a place I’d love to visit, to be honest, but it was interesting. And the author has a gift for showing the people and the small things. When you are reading the book you know that there are some main characters, obviously, because they are the ones who move the story along, but you know that this is also the story of everyone who lives in there. It is about the people, the poor, and the misfits. And this was a really interesting and peculiar thing. It isn’t a coral book, but sometimes it feels like it.
All things considered, even if this wasn’t the right fit for me, and I wasn’t impressed as a whole, it is a peculiar and original book, quite different for the others in the same genre, and if you are in for some novelty, you should def try this out!

And, last but not least, the plot. It is not a boring book, on this front, at all! We have intrigues and twists, and some of them are quite big. And even if this first book is quite chunky and full of happenings, you know that this is just an introduction and that things are going to get complicated (even more so, because let’s be clear, it is all twisted and complex in here already!) soon, and you know that you are in for an adventure if you would continue this series!!!

So, that’s all for today. And yes, even if in the end this was not my cup of tea, I have some hopes for the other series by this author. And if you are in for something different and are okay with a touch of grim, you should give this one an opportunity!

I absolutely loved the Dagger and the Coin series- it’s one of my favourites- so I was quick to request an arc of this. I could not empathise particularly with the characters and this was previously one of the authors’ great strengths. Maybe it’s unfair to make the comparison but it can’t be helped! Having said all this, the world building and excitement established by fine writing make this still a very good read.

A girl trying to uncover who murdered her brother in the city of Kithamar. A street rat, raised in the slums of the city, she'll need to use all the skills she's learnt as a thief to survive to discover the truth.

The writing is utterly captivating, richly describing this city in such a way that you can't help but be wrapped up in the sights and the smells. It almost takes on a life of its own, and Daniel Abraham isn't afraid to spend time building it up and going into detail about anything and everything that makes up this micro world, adding layer upon layer of lore and history that really sells this city as an ancient community. I can honestly say I do t think I've ever experienced a story quite like, besides perhaps The Gutter Prayer, which centres the city itself in such a pivotal role.

All of this description and world building does mean that the plot is very slow as a result. Chapters and chapters are spent on the descriptions with very little in the way of plot development, often even going off on a tangent about the local area our characters are in at any given time instead of driving the narrative forward. And while I do love lore and fantasy cultures, I still need a plot to keep me engaged. I also found that I couldn't really connect with main character Alys all that well. The depiction of grief is great, but there's almost a disconnect between Alys and the reader. As though we're seeing her as an observer and not really examining what's going on inside her head aside from a few very poignant comments.

An interesting read, that really wants to immerse the reader in the city of Kithamar, but I can't help feeling that the descriptions overshadowed the plot most of the time.

My review is on GR and Black Dragon Books

3.5*

I’ve had Daniel Abraham’s books on my TBR for a long time and never manage to get to them. Age of Ash presented an opportunity for me to read one of Abraham’s books without committing to a full series.

Age of Ash is book one in the Kithamar trilogy and was a bit of a mixed bag for me, though I will say, just in case you don’t read the full review, that Age of Ash gets stronger as we progress. Early on I thought I was heading towards a 2.5/3* book and a series I would not continue, however, I am eager to read book 2 next year, which will make or break this trilogy for me. I have high hopes given the how Age of Ash engaged me more are we progressed.

In Age of Ash, we follow Alys, a member of a thieving crew, who becomes resolute in her determination to avenge her brother’s murder. This takes her on an emotionally painful journey and down a dark path that pushes her away from her friends, including Sammish, our second POV, who does her best to support Alys through her grief.

Alys’s family background is complex, and this is developed throughout the story, as are the backgrounds of other characters, though, for me, this happened too slowly—as I mentioned in the opening Age of Ash picked up around 30-40% then again around 60%. That said, particularly once we learn more about Kithamar, it’s evident that Abraham has built a complex and well-thought-out world, which promises much more in book 2.

Age of Ash is a story filled with darker themes and you shouldn’t go into reading it expecting rainbows, it’s certainly a book for those who prefer dark fantasy, not so much in the murder and violence, but more so in the psychology of the key characters, though Abraham handles this very well and his prose certainly has beauty.

I do worry that some will DNF this before the 30% mark and I wouldn’t blame them. I probably would have had I not had an arc, but as I mentioned earlier, I am glad I stuck with Age of Ash. This is one of those books that lays a lot of groundwork and will be better appreciated once the trilogy is complete.

I had high hopes for this when I started reading it because the prose is absolutely beautiful, I thought this I’d a five star book for sure but then nothing really happened. It is infinitely readable but it is very much a book about a fictional city. It difficult to make a connection with a made up city and do it there must be interesting characters driving it. There are characters but we hardly get any of them, there little to no dialogue half the time, I don’t really get a real sense of who any of them were. They were all in their separate cells and it was mostly internal exposition with maybe one or two pithy one liners to round out the scene. My preference is for character driven novels so I wrestled to care about this very much, it is the writing that makes it readable but hopefully the next book will have some actual plot and character.

Daniel Abraham is one of those authors that has been recommended to me for a long time, so I was thrilled to get an ARC of his latest series opener… and promptly put it off until I was in the mood for epic fantasy. Having now read it; however, I’m struggling with what to say, so apologies to anyone who recommended his work wanting my opinions.

Age of Ash is not a bad book, for anyone wondering. Abraham is a talented writer and I enjoyed his various turns of phrase and found myself easily able to visualise Kithimar, the city at the centre of this story, as well as the cast of characters. While it starts off a little slow, there’s also plenty of action in the final third, where some of the decisions taken previously start to pay off.

But my problem is that, in a golden age of fantasy novels, Age of Ash did the bare minimum to capture my attention, and no more. Kithamar is well-described, but it feels like basically any other pseudo-medieval fantasy city. It probably doesn’t help that we only see a small snippet of the city: the grime and disease ridden alleys that are home to society’s poorest, and a few nobles’ houses. I found it really hard to situate any of the politics happening in the city within a broader world, or to care about Kithimar’s fate.

Similarly, the main characters Alys and Sammich are well written, and the moments when their respective interests bring them into conflict are some of the best scenes in the book, as the reader can understand both characters’ perspectives that have led to their inevitable falling out. But they still feel like generic scrappy thieves, with nothing to differentiate them from any other thief characters… making this book a hard sell when there are so many books out there, all telling very similar stories.

While this all sounds negative, I will in fact be reading the sequel. Abraham has indicated he will be retelling the events that take place throughout the year this story is set in from other perspectives, and it may well be that this series is one where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. I’ll give it a second chance – but book two is going to have to really blow me away.

There's something about being in the company of highly emotive people who are grieving that will always be uncomfortable to be around and Daniel Abraham captures that well in Age of Ash. It doesn't make for an easy read. It's a well told story with believable characters that populate an interesting world and the exploration of grief makes this unlike the usual fantasy fare. Its not fun though. Doesn't try to be. Doesn't want to be. It wants to drag you through the hopelessness of grief and the irrational behaviors that grow from it. Bridges get burnt.

I suspect that many of the eyes that The Expanse show will bring to this new series will be disappointed with the tone here because grief isn't cool. So adjust your expectations, if possible.

3 and a half stars rounded down.

My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the eARC.

3.75 ⭐. I really enjoyed this more as i got towards the end. It definitely feels like one that will improve with sequels. The plot may have felt a bit slow at times but I think the world building and writing were great. I didn't feel super connected to the characters but I enjoyed the slow exploration of grief amongst the more fantastical elements. The villain was also quite a different one than usual which makes for a nice change from cookie-cutter villains.
I look forward to where this series will go.
Thank you to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed reading Age of Ash but I didn't love it as much as I wanted.
It is basically an epic fantasy where our main character is the city Kithamar. However, we follow the story of Alys which I didn't found interesting enough since Alys wasn't a character I liked. I liked more Sammish who is just so precious.
The book has great character development and exploration of grief, family, loyalty and friendship.
I really liked the writing style of the author and I want to learn more about the world and the magic system. I loved the setting as it felt so real.
The thing that I didn't like was the pacing which I found slow but I am intrigued to continue with the series.

Absolutely awesome new story by Daniel Abraham that completely lives up to the publicity it's been receiving.
I eked it out slowly over a number of days because I didn't want the story to end. Every single character in this book is vividly drawn - no matter who they are, you feel as though you are right there with them, living in the medieval, magical city of Kithamar, you can smell the streets, hear the noises, feel the heat of the sun on your skin and you experience the story as though you were standing alongside the characters. There are thieves, slums, palaces, mysterious ladies, powerful princes and courtiers, and a demon who claims to be the soul of the city. If you love Game of Thrones this book is for you. I can't wait for the next installment!

It seems a long time ago now that both Rob Bedford and I were first singing the praises of Daniel Abraham*. Although he has more recently been known as James S. A. Corey, one of the co-writers of the Expanse novels, turned into a very successful television series, we first noticed him with his fantasy novels – The Long Price Quartet and the Dagger and the Coin series.

It is therefore with pleasure that I turned to the first in a new Fantasy series, Age of Ash.

From the Publisher: “Kithamar is a centre of trade and wealth, an ancient city with a long, bloody history where countless thousands live and their stories unfold. This is Alys’s.

When her brother is murdered, a petty thief from the slums of Longhill sets out to discover who killed him and why. But the more she discovers about him, the more she learns about herself, and the truths she finds are more dangerous than knives.

Swept up in an intrigue as deep as the roots of Kithamar, where the secrets of the lowest born can sometimes topple thrones, the story Alys chooses will have the power to change everything.”

Whilst it can be said that we’re travelling along well-trodden paths here, there’s a lot to like. This is a low-grade fantasy novel on the whole. What I mean by that is that it is a story of petty theft and poverty in the main, rather than a story that deals more uplifting qualities such as honour and valour. Although the book begins with a royal funeral, the book goes back to an earlier time to show how we get to that point and focuses more on life on the streets.

Throughout we get the idea that Kithamar is a big city (and the maps at the front suggest this too, admittedly.) Clearly there is much to describe and much going on in this sprawling urban area, but Daniel keeps the focus tight by mainly concentrating on Alys. When Alys’s older brother Darro is killed, which may have been Alys’s fault, she goes on a hunt determined to find the cause and the killer. This leads to her becoming a gangster-like adversary on the streets of Kithamar. With her friend Sammish, Alys searches the streets looking for answers.

However, Darro’s death may be only one death amongst others in a power struggle, involving the cousin of the recently-enthroned Byrn a Sal. Arcane practices mean that this struggle seems to involve a silver knife which Darro had.

In terms of the bigger picture, what Alys has got herself involved in by accident is a clandestine war between opposing political factions that in turn are associating with certain gods and goddesses. An attempt to usurp the prince and create a change in power may be being covertly nurtured.

Where does this one score?

The setting is impressively vivid and the descriptions of the city, when they are given, provide an impressive image of life in Kithamar. Daniel is quite unremitting in his descriptions of the city of Kithamar as it changes through the year, so much so that the setting is almost a character in itself as we see things change from Autumn to Winter and then Spring. Admittedly, for all of the beauty created by the change in the seasons (and the weather!) much of the book shows us that Kithamar is not usually very pleasant – most of the colourful descriptions of the city concentrate most on the depravation and squalor than the baroque lifestyle of the rich and famous.



Where Daniel scores as per usual is his characterisation, and this is perhaps the book’s strength. The characterisation can be nuanced and pretty complex. In particular, Alys and her friend Sammish show clearly what it is like to struggle, and what the harsh lifestyle of living in poverty has done to many of Kithamar’s people. Alys finds that in order to discover what happened to Darro she has to become like he was, with a brutal gangster-like presence. This, of course, contrasts with the opulence of the wealthier groups, although brutal yet covert assassination is still part of the political game.

On the downside, I felt that less strongly written was the role of those involved in the political side of the novel. Whilst such imperial shenanigans are clearly an important part of the plot, and I suspect something that will become more important in later novels, it is not until the last part of the book that those elements are explained, and even then they feel less strong than those scenes in the grubby end of the city.

I also felt that the pace of the story was variable. Whilst there is undeniably progression through the story to the quite exciting (yet a cliff-hanger) conclusion, I must say that there were points in the middle where not a lot seemed to be happening and the pace became slower, to the point where I began to lose interest a little. There are points where we get exposition dumped into the plot, in that James-Bond-villain kind of way. This lower key progression of plot is pretty much through the whole book. If you come looking for big epic battles, you will be disappointed. This is not that sort of Fantasy novel.

But I quibble. There’s a lot to like here, for all my issues, and it must be said that Age of Ash is different to Abraham’s other Fantasy series. Age of Ash is a very good example of those fantasies focused on the unpleasantness behind the gleaming facades of a sprawling city. Whilst it may not be quite as violent or as unpleasant as, say, Joe Abercrombie’s books, the overriding impression at the end is that Kithamar, and the people within it, is a complex tapestry of life – even if it is not a place you want to hang around too long in. I suspect that we may have much more to discover in future books.



*It’s actually about 15 years!

Aunque generalmente nos guste que la fantasía sea original, no es menos cierto que algunas veces resulta reconfortante encontrarse con una obra que tenga cierto regusto clásico, ya que nos retrotrae a nuestro pasado lector, donde quizá las cosas nos parecían menos complicadas. No obstante, para que este sortilegio temporal funcione, es necesario que la obra en cuestión sea entretenida, y me temo que Age of Ash no ha conseguido compensar su falta de originalidad con una trama absorbente, con lo cual se queda a medio camino de ningún sitio.


Como digo, la historia es muy convencional. Los protagonistas son delincuentes callejeros en una grandiosa ciudad que se buscan la vida como pueden aliviando a los transeúntes menos espabilados de la carga de sus riquezas que se verán envueltos en una conspiración que afecta al gobierno de toda la ciudad, casi por casualidad.

La historia es demasiado típica en este sentido, porque ya hemos visto demasiadas veces a “niños de la calle” que se meten en problemas por su propia naturaleza y porque los ricos y poderosos los consideran carne de cañón para sus batallas por el poder. Reconozco que la forma de perpetuarse en el poder de las autoridades de la ciudad si es más original, pero es que el resto de lo que pasa ya lo hemos visto una y mil veces. Además, el estilo es ciertamente enrevesado, lo cual no favorece en nada la lectura de una obra que no es precisamente corta.

El autor explora de manera certera las relaciones familiares y el dolor por la pérdida de un ser querido, cuando intentas llenar ese hueco que ha dejado en tu corazón y que permanecerá por siempre vacío. Pero no es menos cierto que hay otras relaciones entre personajes que suenan un poco impostadas, como si hubiera que “insertar” una cuota de amor y obsesión en esta capítulo y de violencia con despecho en este otro. A veces, sonaba demasiado artificial a mis oídos.

No puedo recomendar Age of Ash porque no me ha resultado lo suficientemente interesante, pero si hay otros lectores que tienen otra opinión al respecto estaré encantada de recibir vuestros comentarios.

Fantasy needs a good setting to come alive. Imagine the Discworld without Ankh-Morpork or Realm of the Elderlings without the life and culture of the Six Duchies. For great stories you need that sense you’re in an actual place where the geography, history, and culture of those living there impacts those who live in it in a multitude of ways. In Daniel Abraham’s ambitious and extremely interesting novel Age of Ash we get the first of a series that will explore one huge storyline but across three different stories with each volume interesting characters and their own plots in unusual ways. The first story in The Kithamar triloigy is a story of revenge, loss and intrigue that sets up the stories to come in a fascinating way.

KIthamar is one of the most powerful cities comprising so many quarters and levels of society from Auth Thorn’s crime dens, merchants buying the city urine for industry and a multitude of religions. Its previous ruler Ausai a Sal has fin ally died and a new Prince has taken control but underneath this normal change in society a wave of activity has been unleashed because everything that was supposed to have happened according to tradition did not. One of the most powerful nobles and members of a religious order the Lady Andomaka is seeking a powerful tool that has gone missing. In the depths of the notorious Longhill district the cunning thief Alys finds that her brother Darro (another ambitious thief) has died in mysterious circumstances and asks her best friend Sammish to help his killer. Elsewhere a mysterious woman from outside the city seeks her son. These quite unusual people are all about to be caught up in each other’s lives for magic, murder, and another chapter in a city’s bloodthirsty history.

What immediately jumps out in this story is Kithamar itself. Abraham works incredibly hard in this volume to give the reader a sense of place. This is not one big stage set. It has got its old and new quarters where houses are made of stone versus wood; it’s a melting pot of various communities from outside and in some gorgeously written flowing scenes we get to move around from place to place and in each scene soak up what this city is. For a brand-new fantasy setting by the end of the first volume you know it’s make-up, its culture and even its slang. It’s a city of various factions living around each other and occasionally crossing paths. The nobles are fascinated that so few of the working class know who the most powerful people in the city are while the poor know the faces change regularly but it will not impact their lives. Palace intrigues happen in one place while for other parts of the city the focus is on the caravans coming with fresh food and in others its various crim plots to make a quick killing in more ways than one. There is a glorious sense of depth and life to this place which really stands out and makes this alone well worth a read.

The storyline for this volume is very much focused on Alys and Sammish’s interactions and in particular with what is going on in the palace. Initially we think this will be more Alys’ tale of revenge and here we get a young girl startled to lose her brother unexpectedly and very quickly trying in his footsteps to find a killer…or perhaps in her case more accurately make him come alive by living his life. We get a young woman trying to escape Longhill dressing differently and stylishly, enjoying crime and violence a little too much and perhaps getting in a little too deep. We soon see Alys as less a main lead and more a very damaged young woman getting herself too deep in intrigues she would normally never even know about. Sammish who often gets labelled as a mouse that no one sees ends up the more interesting character initially acting out of unrequited love for Alys but in her investigating Darro’s murder she stumbles on a bigger story and has to decide what is right and wrong herself. Certainly, the most moral character we will meet in this amoral city she shows reserves that you would never expect upon first meeting her, and you soon end up really hoping she survives. Overall I really liked this arc of character development and their swinging fortunes and allegiances as they both grow up fast in a very unforgiving city

The royal intrigue I think sets up the other main stories to come. We soon notice that some characters with their own battles and secrets appear briefly and then seemingly vanish in this story. I suspect their tales are for the future volumes. The story of who Amdomaka works for and why she needs a powerful object opens up a tale of magic, gods and games within games being played that move what could have easily been labelled a grimdark tale into the realm of epic fantasy with big stakes. I got a huge sense of more stories and revelations to come that will explain what actually happened.

My one reservation is that there is an equally ambitious idea to tell the city’s story over one year; here I think perhaps due to this story performing a lot of the groundwork for the wider trilogy that there is a pacing issue. The turn of the seasons provides a effective stylistic change in theme and atmosphere to match changes in story and character’s development, but these plots don’t really have a good enough reason to take a year to evolve. There isn’t quite enough going on here to justify the long timeframe and they city doesn’t feel quite that big that by six months the characters still had not found out what was going on. This does mean there is often a lack of momentum being built but I read this very episodically and that made it a more manageable experience and in the last third this really picks up again. Hopefully the reasons for the gaps will become apparent in the next round of stories.

I completely applaud Age of Ash for ambition and not being afraid to do something different in fantasy. The sense of place also achieved here is also amazing and really makes you experience life in this city that until you open the book you’ll have never heard of. Epic fantasy fans who love worldbuilding and exploring a sense of place as well as those who love plots of intrigue should come running for this one. Highly recommended!

I found it exciting, gripping, and riveting. i loved it since the first pages even if it's quite slow at the beginning.
There's an amazing world building and great characters, there's the promises of an excellent series and I can't wait to read the next story.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

3,5 stars final rating. The prologue was…so freaking confusing, so it made me very hesitant to continue reading this book. I‘m glad I pulled through though. Most of the time I wasn‘t very invested in our main characters but sometimes I was. At the beginning we learned about a characters trait and I liked how later it was actually shown that this character had this flaw, although it made me facepalm a few times. But what really got me was the story about the city and it‘s rulers over the years ever since the city was „born“. This aspect makes me excited for more anf bumped my rating up, sadly there was not very much of it but it was also a short book in comparison to what I usually read. I have to say I quite liked the writing. After the prologue I thought I would struggle a lot, but I didn‘t and it was quite enjoyable writing to read! Looking forward to the next book!

Age of Ash starts the Kithamar fantasy trilogy set in an ancient city state where two peoples who once were enemies now live more or less peacefully together, though not as equals. The ruler has died unexpectedly and much too soon, and the book sets out to tell how and why this happened.

This is the first book by Abraham written as Abraham that I’ve read. I loved his urban fantasy series The Black Sun’s Daughter written as M. L. N. Hanover, and while I’ve not read the Expanse books, I love the TV version. Both made me expect fast-paced, character-driven fiction with lot of action. That’s not what I got.

The pace is glacial, and I never became pulled into the world and the story. The book is filled with unnecessary scenes and characters who made random or one-time appearances. There’s a lot of descriptive language, but none of it makes the characters feel like real people. They’re described from above, their emotions told not felt, which is a great weakness for a story that relies on the characters.

Alys in her grief for her brother came across as irrational and selfish, and I spent much of the time just wanting to slap her. Sammish was more interesting, but her slavish attachment to Alys made her work against her best interests. The host of secondary characters and all the minor one-timers who were given their own chapters mostly felt irrelevant, even when they weren’t.

Still, it’s a fairly good book. If you cut it to third of its length, it would even be an interesting book. There was a good closure for the characters at the end, and nothing to entice the reader to continue with the series. I think I’ll leave it here.