Age of Myth: Book 1 of the Legends of the First Empire

The first volume in Sullivan’s prequel series, set 3,000 years before his Riyria epic fantasy books, is an uneven effort that peters off after an intriguing opening. In “the days of darkness before the war,” men live in fear of the Fhrey, gods who reside across the Bern River. Raithe of the Dureyan clan and his father, Herkimer, have ventured onto the gods’ lands, crossing the forbidden river in search of a place to live, farm, and hunt. Their trespass is quickly detected, and they’re confronted by an immortal. After Herkimer refuses to surrender a cherished family sword, the confrontation turns violent, the god kills Herkimer, and Raithe avenges his father’s death by slitting the god’s throat. He’s shocked that the immortal does not recover from the wound, and the ramifications of a man actually having killed a god drive the rest of the plot as the Fhrey begin a campaign of revenge. The bloodshed and political machinations are mild by grimdark fantasy standards, and the occasional modern phrasing is jarring. Agent: Laurie McLean, Fuse Literary. (June)