Forging Divinity (The War of Broken Mirrors Book 1)

Forging Divinity is an engaging romp through a brand new world with its own factions and magic. A hapless (though not helpless) young man wanders into a city in search of answers about his birth parents and the troublesome sword they left him. He shortly finds himself arrested by one faction, freed by the agent another, then helped by yet a third. All the primary characters have their own backstory and motivations, some of which are disclosed by the end of the story and some of which are left mysterious. The story moves quickly, the magic makes sense (temporary enhancement or use of one ability leads to a related weakness), and the characters are believable.

Were it possible I would deduct half a star for the occasional missed word and the fact that this felt more like a prologue than a full story, however I had enough fun reading it that I'll round it up instead of down. Some readers may feel let down by the fact that the characters are still a bit remote at the end, however I personally liked that I am left speculating. I certainly wish another book existed already and will be picking up the next book in the series when it is available. While I checked out the book through Kindle Unlimited I would not regret spending a few dollars on it and may yet pick it up more permanently if the series lives up to its initial promise.

Kept me guessing. At times I would be rewarded by foreshadowing and at others not. There is plenty here to build on and I do want to know what,comes next. Who really are these characters and what really are their motives. No deep emotional connections are made...yet.

The story moved quickly, and had a fun and engrossing magic system that you discovered more about as you read. In that way it reminded me of a Sanderson novel. The main characters were all fun, and the action scene was enjoyable.

*Note: this review overlooks editing mistakes in the book*
I thoroughly enjoyed this first novel in the series. Andrew demonstrates a keen attention to detail, and the action sequences are exhilarating as well as being well choreographed. I genuinely cared for the characters, and I love the exploration of the question "what does it mean to be a god?" Fantasy fans are missing out if they don't pick up Forging Divinity.

I was immediately impressed with the author's writing style and was quickly pulled into the book. Andrew Rowe has created an immersive world filled with compelling characters.

In Forging divinity, powers tied to ‘dominions’ which are in turn associated with other planes, are wielded by sorcerers who use them in diverse and intelligent ways. These are further associated with different pantheons of gods, devotion to whom shapes the ways in which these powers are used. As more was revealed about these gods and the motivations of the characters and the nations who serve them, it became clear that there was a real depth to the worlds that serve as the backdrop for this story.

Each character was distinct and kept me interested. I enjoyed Forging Divinity and would recommend it to you if you are looking for an entertaining mixture of swordplay, sorcery, intrigue, and well thought out character interactions.

The story line is entertaining with just enough variation to keep your interest. There can be tedious sections where you just have to plow through details that you really don't need to get to the continuing story line, but the book ends and you immediately want to read the next in the series.

Honestly this might be the worst written book I've ever sludged all the way through. The author send to be only enamored with his own voice dive every character speaks with the same one. The language is hipster modern though it's a fantasy setting, the plot has truck size holes, the characters are so flat it shows contempt for the reader. I listened to most of this on audible. The narrator was fair but flippant. If I hadn't been driving for 18 hours, and I was reading a hard copy, it would have been tossed in the trash

This world is filled with rich characters and great stories. The story takes you up and around twists and turns you didn't see coming and had me gripping my chair wanting more. Its a spectacular book that takes a new twist on fantasy. Great characters, cool magic, and intrigue!

Honestly this might be the worst written book I've ever sludged all the way through. The author send to be only enamored with his own voice dive every character speaks with the same one. The language is hipster modern though it's a fantasy setting, the plot has truck size holes, the characters are so flat it shows contempt for the reader. I listened to most of this on audible. The narrator was fair but flippant. If I hadn't been driving for 18 hours, and I was reading a hard copy, it would have been tossed in the trash

This world is filled with rich characters and great stories. The story takes you up and around twists and turns you didn't see coming and had me gripping my chair wanting more. Its a spectacular book that takes a new twist on fantasy. Great characters, cool magic, and intrigue!

Writing was a little rough at places, and the romantic angle seemed both forced and rushed. Aside from that, though, I absolutely loved it. The world is rich and the mechanics were fantastic. In line with the author's stated interest in internal consistency, the magic felt like a real thing with an actual set of mechanics behind it. I also greatly enjoyed the story as a whole.

Loved it, though it did have some details that were hard to understand without going back and highlighting key details. But other than that great book, would recommend it to anyone that likes a Elder scrolls or a magical based fiction style book.

Dear Andrew, interesting and entertaining story. I enjoyed reading your story and look forward to reading the next book in the series. I didn't give 5 stars because some of your story got bogged with foo much detail at times making reading the story somewhat tedious. I highly recommend reading this book to anyone interested in reading a good story.

A unique magic system, the author has come up with something I haven't seen before and it's fascinating. Now the story, an intriguing mix. I docked it a star because I feel things were "well yeah the villain did that" a bit too often, too many elements, not enough to tie together. And the dynamic between the characters was not quite fully realized. While the author kept them from just going "yay team!" I felt they were a bit too pushed together. But overall it kept me engaged and I'm looking forward to the next book.