Shadow of a Dead God (#1) by Patrick Samphire – Review | Blog Tour

A magical murder mystery.

WHAT’S THE BOOK ABOUT

It was only supposed to be one little job – a simple curse-breaking for Mennik Thorn to pay back a favour to his oldest friend. But then it all blew up in his face. Now he’s been framed for a murder he didn’t commit. So how is a second-rate mage, broke, traumatized, and with a habit of annoying the wrong people, supposed to prove his innocence when everyone believes he’s guilty?

Mennik has no choice if he wants to get out of this: he is going to have to throw himself into the corrupt world of the city’s high mages, a world he fled years ago. Faced by supernatural beasts, the mage-killing Ash Guard, and a ruthless, unknown adversary, it’s going to take every trick Mennik can summon just to keep him and his friend alive.

But a new, dark power is rising in Agatos, and all that stands in its way is one damaged mage…

Shadow of a Dead God (#1) by Patrick Samphire – Review | Blog Tour

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK

Shadow of a Dead God by Patrick Samphire features a down-on-his-luck mage attempting to solve a magical murder mystery.

It has splendid world-building. How a mage summons his magic is intricately detailed. Further, the fictional city of Agatos is vividly described thus showcasing the author’s attention to detail.

Moreover, there is plenty of magic and chaos which create a sense of urgency. Nik keeps bumbling into disaster after disaster. This coupled with the conspiracies that the high and mighty are hatching against each other make the plot thick with tension. Nik is an impractical man who always lets his emotions rule his actions rather than reality. As a result, it’s almost painful to watch him suffering the consequences of his decisions. Although this moves the plot forward, I found the plot meandering. Shadow of a Dead God is undoubtedly an original tale, however, I would have liked it to be more fast-paced.

Overall, I liked this tale. Recommended for fantasy lovers.

Shadow of a Dead God (#1) by Patrick Samphire

BOOK DETAILS

Genre: Fantasy || Pages: 462 || Published on April 1st 2021 by Five Fathoms Press

Many thanks to The Write Reads Tours for organizing this blog tour. Many thanks to the publisher for my copy of the book. This does not affect my opinion on the book. I opted to provide an honest review on my blog.

AUTHOR BIO

Patrick Samphire

Patrick Samphire is the author of the adult fantasy novels SHADOW OF A DEAD GOD and NECTAR FOR THE GOD, as well as the middle grade novels SECRETS OF THE DRAGON TOMB and THE EMPEROR OF MARS. He has also published around twenty short stories and novellas.

Patrick has been writing stories since he was fourteen years old and thought it would be a good way of avoiding having to sit through English lessons at school. He was absolutely convinced that he would be famous by the time he was eighteen, but sadly, even infamy has eluded him.

He lives in Wales, surrounded by mountains, with his wife, their sons, and their cat.

Author Link(s): Website || Twitter

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