Never Die: A Mortal Techniques novel

Yes, yes, yes!
What a ride!

First, let’s talk about the audiobook narrator. Kim Bretton did an excellent job. While a couple of her male voices (yes, she has several, and most are great!) leave a bit to be desired, overall her voices are amazing! But where she really shines is in her tempo changes. She knows just what reading speed is appropriate for each scene and absolutely nails it!

I’ll admit that at the start of the story I was pretty confused and didn’t really understand what was happening.

I can’t speak to the accuracy as I don’t know a lot about it, but based on content I’d say there is a strong eastern mythology influence at work here. Between the monsters, the magic system, and the culture differences there was a lot to take in.

There is a lot of terminology that I don’t rightly understand and had to piece together via context throughout the story. Particularly the titles each warrior has. I was several chapters in before I realized Emerald Wind and Century Blade were people and not things.

I honestly would have enjoyed a deeper dive into the characters, Cho in particular as I find her fascinating.

But what we have is a fast moving, almost thriller-eske story that flies by without feeling rushed. There’s not a lot of time spent on internal monologue or introspection, but with the setup of this story it works beautifully.

And speaking of beautiful, let’s talk about the writing for a moment. There are a handful of instances of clunky phrasing and some passive voice that doesn’t seem necessary, but elsewise the writing here is gorgeous.

It’s mostly of the simple, straightforward variety that I absolutely love. I’m not a fan of flowery, lyrical language and there is very little of that here. What little there is seems to have been included for emphasis in a way that works wonderfully.

Although, as I mentioned, there’s not a lot of time spent on introspection, there is still some excellent characterization.

Every warrior has a trademark technique that is uniquely theirs, and seems custom tailored to their personality. Or perhaps their personality conformed to the needs of the technique. It’s difficult to say with certainty.

Similarly, every character has at least one or two quirky personality traits that really makes them stand out as an individual.

Now, at the start the story seems extremely straightforward and, it must be said, a little silly and simplistic. Very easy to sum up in one sentence.

However, there’s so much nuance, so many twists, and so much depth added throughout the story that I can’t bring myself to type that simple sentence.

This is a story that will make you laugh. You’ll want to strangle at least one character. You’ll hate at least one. You’re going to wring your hands in frustration. And in the end, your heart will break for these characters.

And at least one of the twists is going to hit you like a ton of bricks, leaving you dazed and unsure what to think or how to feel.

It’s unusual for a twist to catch me competely unprepared, but one of these did so and it was glorious!

This book has the kind of explosive ending that readers dream about. All the promises made throughout the book come to fruition, even the ones you didn’t realize were being made until you see them being fulfilled. Every disparate thread is weaved into a complex tapestry that can’t help but blow your mind.

I’m normally the first to admit that no book can be for everyone, but I’m really struggling to come up with a type of reader who wouldn’t enjoy this book.

Okay, here’s one. If you insist on major character arcs, if you thrive on characters starting weak and growing strong, then this probably isn’t the book for you. The whole quest is about gathering the greatest warriors in the world to fight an impossible battle.

Also, if there is no part of you that is even open to Eastern-themed fantasy or chi as magic (basically), then this probably isn’t a good choice.

For everyone else, READ THIS BOOK!

Finally, full disclosure.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the author and am voluntarily leaving this honest and unbiased review.

Never Die is a sword & sorcery adventure, set in a Japanese-inspired fantasy world. Samurai, kung fu, haunted bamboo forests, and yokai all blend together into a world as original as it is fresh. Plot-wise, the story follows a young boy who’s recruiting heroes to kill a corrupt emperor. But there’s a catch. To make the heroes serve him, they must first die, then be brought back to life.

At its heart, Never Die is an ensemble piece about a band of misfit heroes coming together to seek redemption for past failings. The cast is wonderfully diverse, each with their own unique magical powers, and each with their own unique way of viewing the world. All of the characters are amazing and I could easily read entire stories set just from each of their perspectives.

While the story’s shocking ending initially disappointed me, the more I considered it, the more I liked it. It’s an incredibly brave ending, and while it could’ve perhaps been foreshadowed a touch more, I realised that it was perfect for the story’s tone.

Overall, this is a story about redemption, set in a fantastically fresh and inspired setting. Highly recommended to anyone wanting a fast-paced read (I burned through this in only a few days).

Easy reading with interesting characters that I never learned enough of to in short time I had them. The ending sequence is quite compelling, if certain parts of it could have been avoided by the characters stopping to ask questions. The story draws heavily on the idea of in universe legends and stories, which makes the the lack of questions asked by characters fitting. We are experiencing the inuniverse birth of a new legends, and the characters act appropriately for a legend being told around a campfire.

NEVER DIE is a stand-alone novel by popular grimdark novelist Rob J. Hayes (The Ties That Bind, Best Laid Plans, Drones). I’ve always been a fan of Rob J. Hayes and will recommend all of his books to those who want an awesome dark fantasy story. I think he stands up there with Ben Galley and Mark Lawrence for stories that are just plan good. Never Die isn’t quite up there with the Best Laid Plans series but is certainly as entertaining as Drones. I also applaud the book for having a non-Western setting with this having a Chinese/Japanese fantasy kingdom as its premise.

The premise is a young boy has the power to raise the dead. The shinigami (Death Note) have given him the power to restore a person to life once and heal them once. He makes the offer to a pair of warriors who died both attacking as well as defending a town. From there, he proceeds to recruit a number of other SEVEN SAMURAI-esque heroes before setting out on his quest: to kill the corrupt Emperor of the Ten Kingdoms.

Rob J. Hayes clearly enjoys his homages and you can pick up his love for both wuxia (Chinese martial arts) and chambara (wandering samurai) films. I enjoyed all of his characters in the book ranging from Itami Cho (The Whispering Blade) to Zhihao Cheng (The Emerald Wind) to Iron Gut Chen. They are a fabulous mixture of heroes, villains, and amoral mercenaries that play off of each other in an ever-entertaining way.

This isn’t quite as grimdark as Rob Hayes other works and the protagonists include some genuine heroes. It’s just they’re balanced against some genuinely awful people in the party. Itami Cho is a character who could easily be a non-Western version of a paladin. Really, you can tell the author is a bit more comfortable writing The Emerald Wind because he’s the same sort of amoral scumbag who headlines the majority of his work. Nevertheless, I liked Itami a great deal more.

The action is wonderful with elaborate descriptions of each protagonist’s specialized skill against demons, monsters, humans, and fellow super warriors. This reminds me a good deal of an anime with a master monk, a leper with a rifle, super swordsmen, and a necromancer boy. That isn’t a criticism, though, because it’s a very good anime. Whole sections of the books are taken up by fight scenes that remain beautiful and exotic.

The book ends in a fascinating and bittersweet way which I think precludes any sequels but is still a satisfying emotional conclusion. About my only problem with it is I’m not sure how to justify a few elements about the timescale given The Emerald Wind meets with an ex-girlfriend and her father early on but to talk about that more is to potentially judge in spoilers.

So, do I recommend Never Die? Yes, very much so. It’s a book I finished quickly and found to be a lot of fun. It’s not an especially “meaty” book and a lot of it is really just a straight forward journey to the Big Bad and then a fight with him but that’s sometimes all you want from a story.