Storytelling was outlawed. Magic had all but vanished.
That all changed when the woman in black came to town.Branded with the black stamp at a young age, Brent thought he would end up a vagrant like his father. His craft was telling stories, but the Order had long forbidden any weaving of tales. When Brent sees the woman in black, she leads him into a menagerie of tunnels beneath the earth where … of tunnels beneath the earth where his life falls into the nauseating, but beautiful, mist of the dead.
He finds friendship in Rho, a young woman who hides her face with a tree branch while roots and vines bow to her every whim. Together, they embark on a journey to explore the world, escape the watchful eyes of the Order, and discover the woman in black’s secrets.
For thousands of years, the mist and the tunnels were under the sole guardianship of the Council of Mist Keepers. But as new monsters enter the mist, and magic is forced out of the shadows, the Council searches for young blood to join their ranks and Brent’s next in line.
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The story has the vibe of a dark Grimm fairytale. It also has an interesting premise.
But the typography and overuse of regional dialect snapped me out of the story too often (the first should never be noticed and the second should never be overwhelming.)
I liked the idea of the tunnels and Mist – and especially the library.
Brent… I had trouble bonding with him. Sure, he’s a storyteller (which is great), but I just didn’t like him. Which, of course, made reading the book difficult.
The cursing pulled me out of the story too many times. Christof was a pain from the start. I liked Caroline and Rho, but they weren’t enough to keep me hooked. I started speedreading a third through… Interesting worldbuilding, though.
Trigger warning: religious zealotry, excessive cursing, abuse.
*I received an ARC from the author and this is my honest opinion.
I definitely enjoyed reading this book. It’s always exciting to follow along on a debut author’s journey, and I’ve eagerly soaked up the excerpts and illustrations Barrison has been generous enough to share as part of her pre-publication process.
Funnily enough, while I initially fell for Brent from the snippets posted on tumblr, when I actually started reading, I found I really connected with Rho. She’s quite intriguing, and has both an inner and outer strength that is perfectly tempered with her gentle and kind character. Rho was really the highlight of this novel for me, and she is a wonderful complement to Brent, who is determined to give up on himself from the very first chapter.
The prose was easy reading, which sucked me right into the world of the book, and I was never bored at any point. The novel moves along at quite a fast clip, allowing some down time here and there, but never lingering in any one place for too long, moving the reader along with the characters through each next adventure (some rather more bizarre than others!)
I did find the worldbuilding to be a bit confusing at first, but the more I read, the more was revealed, until I felt—for a time—that I also lived in Rosada, and understand this strange, and yet oddly familiar, world. There are a lot of characters and places, but the only ones I really struggled to remember were the Council—and I think that’s because of how sinister most of them seemed, blending together as a sort of faceless “bad.”
And speaking of the Council—while the Order were ostensibly the “villains” of the novel, lurking in the background, and pulling the shady strings of Brent and Rho’s lives, I found the Council—with their contradictory and obsfucatory ways—to be just as, if not more, unsettling. I felt terribly for Brent through much of the book, running from one bad situation headlong into another, all the while surrounded by people who professed a desire to help him, and never quite sure who to trust.
Brent’s powers were pretty cool, his abilities regarding stories something I think any storyteller can relate to, and the way the novel ended—wow! I’m highly intrigued about where his path will take him next.
Overall, I had quite the entertaining time reading this novel, and I think other fans of fantasy will have a wonderful lark indeed in this strange little world Barrison has created.
The Mistkeeper’s Apprentice, the debut novel of E.S. Barrison, introduces us to two unforgettable characters as they journey to learn the reasons behind their unique gifts and where their place in the world is. Brent has the powerful gift of storytelling in a world where stories are outlawed and treated as contrary to the beliefs of those around him. Branded, he walks the thin line between being accepted into society, or being tossed into the pit with the other undesirables. Two strange women enter his life within a short timeframe and upend his world in ways he never thought possible considering the down-trodden, black and white life he is accustomed to under the heal of the Order.
The characters in this novel come to life as you read with strong and unique voices all their own. It was easy to keep the characters apart, as you learned about them at a pace that was perfect for how this story is put together.
The world-building is creative, with each detail revealed in an order that left you interested and entertained, but was never an info dump. As a writer myself, this is how world-building done properly looks. Each location used was as unique as the characters, however clever dialogue and pieces of information snuck into the main text clearly allow us to imagine the world shared by those trying to survive the Order, a group who holds religious sway within the world of this book.
The plot flows nicely and at a rapid pace that is masterfully done purposefully, a pace that the main character Brent is all too aware of as he grumbles about it within the book to himself and to some of his new allies. This was a pleasant source of comedy amongst the seriousness of the world, which pared quite nicely with the first mistkeeper he happens across.
“What’s so-why are you laughing? Your name is Caroline!”
“At least it has multiple syllables. Brent.”
Overall, it was a solid book, easy to pick up and read. It sets up the story in a manner that is easy to digest, and gives a highly imaginative world that you cannot help but give voice to in your thoughts while reading. It invests you in the characters, and leaves you with questions that you actually want answered. If I were to have a complaint, it would be that it is a series and that I must wait to find out how Brent adapts to his newfound future and destiny. I can only hope that it will be as entertaining and fun a read as the first book has proven to be.
If you are a fan of the style and prose of Piers Anthony, this is a book you will certainly be interested in. And any others who just enjoy a good fantasy book that is easy to pick up and difficult to put back down…you will love The Mistkeeper’s Apprentice.
I was provided an ARC copy of this novel by the author, E.S. Barrison . It was a delight to read, and I sincerely appreciated it.
It’s 2AM, I just finished this book and I have so many feelings right now!!!… Holy hell. The ending. My jaw. Dropped. The fuck. Open.
This is a very unique story and it was more than I was expecting it would be. From beginning to end, this was (is) such an amazing and fun read! I ended up reading from 10 PM to 2 AM because I kept telling myself “just one more chapter then bed” … Then I noticed that I had just under 100 pages left of the book, so obviously I said “Abandon sleep and finish the book!!” ..which I did and regret absolutely nothing.
Negative feedback:
First I would like to cover the really bad part which include trigger warnings–>
Condoning and normalizing sexism, sexual assault, rape, insults and name flinging as a form of showing love or jest.
First I’ll cover the former.
I really didn’t like that the grandmother kept telling Bria that sexual harassment, almost rapes and sexual assaults were her fault and it is because she is drawing attention to herself that these things keep happening. That is bullshit.
Now for the latter.
There are constant name callings toward people that aren’t “normal”, mostly towards the main character Brent. He is called idiot, dolt and all sorts of rude names.
Finally, it was a bit annoying that 2 of the characters kept repeating that everything was their fault, but it didn’t take away from the story. The characters and scenes were so well written that I often found myself imagining the story play out as I read it, I absolutely love books that you can do this with.
I was provided with an eARC of The Mist Keeper’s Apprentice by the author E.S. Barrison for my honest opinion and review. Thank you for the opportunity.