The Night Angel Trilogy - The Way of Shadows

I started reading this series because it popped on the recommended list. I have enjoyed many other fantasy books such as Robert Jordan's series. The story and plot pulled me in and I would have liked to see how it ended. The constant repetition of the f word finally became too much, however, and I had to stop reading it. I would not recommend it to anyone who finds vulgar language offensive.

To be up front - I read Weeks' "Lightbringer" (trilogy) first, and loved it, and so I was very disappointed with this series - though to be honest, I only made it through half the first book. Light bringer wrote women very well. Way of Shadows? Not at all. It was, honestly, a bit disgusting.

Every woman in the book is first described in terms of physical appearance (either an old hag or sexy beauty). She is either a literal "whore" with lose morals (never mind the fact that the men in the book all pay for their services -- yet nevertheless insult the whores by calling them whores, standing on their oh-so-high-pedastels), or a perfect AngelBeautyGoddess who renders moral advice (but doesn't talk all that much - except to gossip about boys). Or she is the SexySeductressAssassin. Who also has loose morals. In Weeks' world, women are proprietary fodder hoping for marriage (and they are whores if they develop romantic relationships outside their loveless arranged marriages) or plain old pay-for-it whores.

I put the book down about halfway through when a father tried to arrange to give his business to an adopted son - rather to one of his three daughters. He's rather marry one of them off to the adopted son.

This book GRATED especially after Gamergate etc. It plays right into the narrative of geeky boys objectifying women (and worse).

Brent must have learned his lesson, though -- Lightbringer features many female perspectives, who have all the foibles, emotions, motivations, and strengths as the men. I recommend that series to anyone who is either (1) female or (2) actually friends with a female. This one? STAY AWAY.

So, this is a book I've had my eyes on for a while, but hadn't gotten around to picking up because of my never ending pile of books to read. My roommate, however, loves this series about as much as I love Mistborn (which, you may know, is a lot) and kept telling me to give it a shot. When I got the complete trilogy for my birthday, I knew it was the perfect time to give them a go.

Way of Shadows starts off following a young street rat named Azoth, who, in an attempt to protect himself and his friends, gets himself apprenticed to Durzo Blint, the best wet boy in the city. The book follows Azoth- later called Kylar- as he learns how to be a wet boy (a wet boy is, basically, an assassin). Besides Kylar and Blint, though, there are plenty of other characters that are followed, and each will play an important role in the next era of their world.

Let me start with my two major problems with this book: the character growth and the world building. There are so many characters in this story that I had a hard time keeping track of them all. They would be thrown in at random moments and then described as being very important to either the story or the world and I was always left wondering why we either found out about them so late in the game, or why they weren't developed enough. The characters that all had narrating chapters were rather bland, and didn't have defining features in their personalities, just their pasts. So while it wasn't horrible, it felt like weak writing that made it hard for me to really connect with anyone. The world building was in the same vein- there was so much world to build, that it almost felt like the author had become lazy as he wrote and didn't feel the need to let the reader know what something was before it became central to the plot. While in some cases that can work well, it shouldn't be left to every single aspect, especially the mythology, which was never explained well and really should have been. Again, not terrible, but not the best strategy for an epic fantasy novel.

The strongest part of the writing was the dialogue. It was so good, so smart and quick, that I couldn't keep my eyes off the page during these scenes. It added to the quick pace of the story, even though several years pass over the course of it.

I liked the plot as well, though it didn't wow me. My roommate assures me that this is more of an origin story than anything else, though, and that the next two books advance things much more. I trust her opinion on the matter. The ideas behind it, and the way everything wrapped together, was well done, though, and it did tell a good story.

I will start off by saying, like other reviewers, that this is actually my least favorite of the series. Not because Way of Shadows is a bad book, but because the other two are just better.

My main issue with this book is that the focus of the story ends up shifting away from Durzo and Azoth/Kyar to focus on the political figures. When reading the first book, I was expecting an assassination story, but it ends up being almost ancillary to the world at large.

However, I liked it enough to read the second book (and subsequently the third as well), where the non-assassin characters begin to actually be interesting and fun, and not just something to trudge through so you can read more about the deathly arts.

This is a solid, fun read, but you are better off treating it as more of an epic than a story about assassins. There is a hell of a lot going on, and the killers-for-hire aspect is less important than the title and description implies, especially as the story moves along.

This book is such a rehash of old ideas and situations and so poorly written that I could not even finish it, and it was a $1 download! The initial setup was promising but Weeks takes every cliched step you would expect. Its almost like reading a fanfic book. The characters were all wooden, cardboard cut outs of real people, they act just like you expect and without any real depth. Really people? All the glowing reviews? Giving this book a 4-5 star is like saying the taco i had for lunch was good so I am going to give it a 5 star review. No, the taco was just ok. It doesn't get 5 stars. Thats why the store has 1-5 stars, so we can rate books on a scale.

Orphan street kid has it rough (check, been there), apprentices to a gruff but caring rogue (cough, han solo), orphan street kid has latent power that makes him special and wonderful (check, cough luke skywalker), latent power (gosh what a surprise!) finally shows itself at the end and shows the boy to be a powerful jedi, um, I mean magic user.

And worst of all, the writing was amateurish, juvenile, predictable, uninspiring and even filled with a few modern slang terms I can't believe and editor didn't catch.

Folks, try Robin Hobbs, or George R.R. Martin or early Ray Feist or early Terry Brooks or newcomer Ken Scholes - anything but this.

Book Info: Genre: Dark epic fantasy
Reading Level: Young Adult
Recommended for: older YA, fans of dark epic fantasy who don't mind typical tropes
Trigger Warnings: murder, killing, assassination, violence, rape (mostly M/M), torture, mutilation, stealing, slavery, cannibalism, infidelity

My Thoughts: The beginning of this book is pretty typical epic fantasy fare, other than the fact that our hero is an antihero. But Azoth is an orphan, he's taken in against the odds by a powerful man who learns that Azoth is more than he appears, rising up from his poverty-stricken roots, etc. And, of course, the love interest that is forbidden. Still, once Kylar is on the scene, things heat up and I found myself tearing through the pages to find out what happened next. So don't let the typical trope throw you off from reading this book if it sounds like something in which you are interested.

However, I was astounded by the sloppy editing on this book. It was released through one of Hatchett's publishing groups, and editing errors were heavily scattered through the book. There is a part where Azoth calls another character by his first name in a familiar manner, even though he has not yet met that character and really doesn't know much about him. And there are a lot of missing words from sentences. I'm amazed that a professional editor working for a major publisher would be so sloppy. If that will bother you, keep it in mind.

Still I did enjoy the book, despite how dark it often is. If you like dark epic fantasy, antiheroes, and don't mind the typical tropes and editing problems, then check this one out.

Series Information: The Night Angel Trilogy
Book 1: The Way of Shadows
Book 2: Shadow's Edge
Book 3: Beyond the Shadows

Disclosure: I purchased the omnibus edition of the trilogy for myself. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: For Durzo Blint, assassination is an art-and he is the city's most accomplished artist.

For Azoth, survival is precarious. Something you never take for granted. As a guild rat, he's grown up in the slums, and learned to judge people quickly—and to take risks. Risks like apprenticing himself to Durzo Blint.

But to be accepted, Azoth must turn his back on his old life and embrace a new identity and name. As Kylar Stern, he must learn to navigate the assassins' world of dangerous politics and strange magics—and cultivate a flair for death.

This is a well written book with some beautifully descriptive insights. However, the content is disturbing. The only reason I kept reading after the first (of many) insinuations of child rape is because he didn’t go into details.

The problem with having deeply disturbing content in a book is that its all that people will remember about your book I’ll probably remember this was a good book, but I will simultaneously remember that it had disturbing content that made me uncomfortable and overshadowed the book. After reading this book I’m left with a vague, yucky feeling that makes me wonder if it was worth reading at all.

I am the sort of person who doesn't finish boring books, I put them down because they get in the way of reading other better books. I did manage to finish this one.

The Good: The author manages the reader's knowledge of each character's knowledge pretty well, and several surprises in the story are from us not knowing what the point of view characters know. Most of the time this works and is entertaining. There are plenty of twists and plenty of action.

The Bad: The story hinges a few times on some poorly developed juvenile romances. Sex is dealt with in a really weird way, prude and kind of explicit all at the same time. When a certain character was revealed to be a virgin, I had an involuntary eye-roll and actually said "Oh come on" out loud.

Over all it was okay. The book does strange moral gymnastics to keep you thinking of a pair of assassins as the good guys, and the writing sometimes reads as if the author is explaining his choices to an incredulous editor, but if you like fantasy you'll be okay.

I have read all of the currently released Lightbringer series (books 1-4) by Brent Weeks and, while waiting for the fifth installment, decided to try reading these books authored by him that were released earlier. Overall, I found The Way of Shadows to be not quite as polished or as much of a "page turner" as the Lightbringer series. I would attribute that to this being his first major book ( I think) and therefore was likely a learning experience; he also probably has different editors now that he is quite successful. Still, not too bad and I plan to read the other two books in the series. I'm interested to see in which novel he starts creating the clear and very captivating prose as seen in the Lightbringer series.

I've been thinking about writing this review for days but I kept putting it off because I wasn't sure how exactly I wanted to convey my feelings about it. There are some books that even once you are done reading, you just want to stop and absorb before trying to explain it to someone else. This was one of those for me. Ever since I saw this book recommended me to by the store, I was curious about it but I kept putting off getting it I finally picked it up while coming home from a vacation to give it try and I'm immensely glad that I did so. It was one of those books that I just clicked with from early on. When thinking about how to rank a book, I ask myself a few questions. Could I put the book down even when I was tired and ready for bed? Did it ever surprise me enough to make my mouth drop open and reread a section to make sure it said what I thought it said? Did I want to reread the book after I'd finished? Did I find myself pulling for the characters and conflicted about their problems and decisions?

There's a lot of things that go into my rating, obviously, but this book answered all of the above with a resounding yes. I couldn't put the book down, I even found myself wanting to come home from work not to play video games or watch tv but to find out what happened next. The last night I planned to read a chapter or two because I was exhausted and ended up staying up until almost one a.m. to finish the book. As for wanting to reread the book, I seriously considered starting it a second time right after finishing it the first because I didn't have the next two yet. The only book that I've ever done that with was A Game of Thrones. I refrained this time only because I'm planning on getting the others soon.

I loved a lot of things about this book but there were also some things that detracted from it enough to keep it out of the five star range for me. First of all, as a reader who shared many favorite authors, I can see some borrowing that I'm sure is unintentional. Particularly from Martin and Jordan. Even if it's just names or something similar from their worlds, I feel that Weeks is still finding his feet as an author in this book and breaking away from the books he loves to find his own voice. They weren't blatant or annoying, just nuances that I happened to notice. Also, I wasn't crazy about the timing of the book. From one chapter to the next, years could pass which I found a bit of a poor tactic. Things happened in those years that shaped our main characters that we as the reader aren't privileged enough to know so it leaves holes in our understanding of the character. The important events are highlighted, true, but sometimes those small events are as important as the major ones. Though, I understand it's impossible to chronicle so many years and keep a decent length book, even in fantasy.

The story is gritty and dark at times which, personally, I love. I'm always pleased when an author isn't afraid to injure main characters or have unexpected things happen to people. Though I do feel he balanced it fairly well with things working out miraculously which also keeps the book from being a five star for me. I would definitely recommend this book.

Cenaria is not a place you’d like to grow up – but the backstreets, of the worst district, of the most corrupt city in the world, is the place Azoth does. Ruled by a weak, arbitrary king, and effectively run by the Sa’kage, the underworld criminals, Cenaria is rotten to the core, the very epitome of a dog-eat-dog world, and it leaves its mark on many of the characters.

Azoth, orphaned, surviving on the streets in a gang run by a boy who uses rape and cruelty as a means to control other children, is both moulded by his early experiences, and yet defies them. It is the fear and terror of his childhood, the raping of one friend, the deliberate maiming and scarring of another, that drives him to apprentice to Durzo Blint, the best wetboy in the city. The sheer misery and terror of these children’s existence is enough to make a reader want to cry, and this is important, because it’s this background that makes us forgive Azoth’s future as a trained killer.

Blint refuses to train Azoth unless he can kill the boy who tormented him; the nasty piece of work, or ‘twist’ as is the slang in the book, deserves everything he gets and more, but it isn’t an easy task for Azoth. When he completes his task, if too late to save his friends Jarl and ‘Doll Girl’ from their own torments, Blint takes Azoth in, gives him the name Kylar, and teaches him the black trade of death and all the lessons that go with it. Assassins have targets; wetboys have deaders. A wetboy cannot love. Life has no value. Despite the lessons Blint teaches him, Kylar cannot move past the basic decency that led him to share his meagre food with his street-friends. Though he learns to kill, surely, he cannot always take the actions Blint would take, or urges him to take.

Durzo Blint is, at first blush, irredeemable, corrupt, cold-hearted. But the author gives us enough clues to know the man is not as cold and callous as he’d like us to believe, but rather only desperate to ensure everyone does believe he is cold and callous. Bitter experience has taught him love is weakness; if you love someone, they can be used against you, hurt to make you comply. It’s not that Blint doesn’t care; it’s that he dare not let anyone know he cares, and most especially not his enemies.

These two are supported by a host of other characters; Momma K, the retired whore pulling the strings of the city; Count Drake, an example to Kylar that one can turn away from the darkness; Elene, Kylar’s childhood friend ‘Doll Girl’; Logan, the impeccably ethical heir to Duke Gyre; the duke himself; the king, and his family; the prophet, Dorian Ursuul, and his friends, desperate to divert an horrific future; and the God-King Garoth Ursuul, architect of that future.

Of them, Elene and Logan are two least affected by the corruption in Cenaria, but while I admire and like Logan, Elene annoys me. Logan always tries to do the right thing, but doesn’t necessarily expect others to live by his code. Elene, who knows she has been saved from a life of prostitution, poverty and cruelty only by Kylar’s sacrifices, presumes to judge him for the deeds he has committed in making those sacrifices. Where Logan comes across as a pillar of morality, Elene appears only self-righteous and judgemental, and expecting all to live according to the word of her One God. It is hypocrisy to be simultaneously grateful for the life one has, and judge another for the acts committed to give one that life.

The events of the book centre around six magical artefacts called ka’kari, made to fix people who would otherwise be brilliant mages, but who are ‘broken’ and have no way to access their power. As a side effect, the ka’kari also grant immortality. The God-King wants one to extend his rule into eternity; Durzo, blackmailed by the God-King who takes his lover, and later his daughter, hunts one to try and save their lives; Kylar inadvertently calls one to himself because he is broken, but would give it to Durzo if he could. Everyone seems to want it, and no one can get their hands on it, and the price is paid in blood by many.

And so, Durzo and Kylar, loving each other like father and son, are driven against each other. Durzo must take the ka’kari to save his daughter, but doing so means the death of Kylar. Kylar would give it to him if he could, but he can’t, and he must stop Durzo’s end-game or watch his best friend, Logan, die.

Which is the better wetboy? Can either bring themselves to kill the other? What are the secrets Durzo hides, about himself, about Kylar? What is the secret of the ka’kari? What is the conflict between Momma K and Durzo? Plots within plots weave about plots, intrigue within intrigue. Keeping up with all the schemes, who is on whose side, who is betrayer or betrayed, will keep you on your toes and turning the pages.

Though the book is not perfectly written (it is a debut novel), the story is compelling enough, the characters likeable enough, despite all their flaws, and undeniably real enough, to immerse you in the story and have you hanging on to know what happens next.

The emotional importance of Kylar’s and Blint’s relationship and affection for each other could have been cranked up a notch to add to the conflict, but admittedly that’s difficult to do when both are trained killers who conceal their emotions. Nevertheless, a must-read fantasy book, especially if you like assassins!

I really struggled with this book to begin with. The writing felt YA in style but the content was very mature and dark in places, and the two didn't sit easily together. There were also areas of poor editing, especially the use of repetitive words or phrases close together, something I wouldn't have expected from a novel published by one of the major publishers. The characterisation also felt a little erratic, as if the author hadn't quite settled on exactly who each character was.
But
After a couple of hundred pages things began to gel. The story came together, I finally cared about what happened to Azoth / Kylar, and the political intrigue sucked me in.
The book isn't without faults, the author tends to introduce things late into the story which have never been mentioned before as a means of escaping particular situations, and there's a particularly leery description of a 15-year-old girl that did't sit well with me, but the story hooked me and I raced to finish the book in just a few days.

This was such a fantastic book! It started out a little weakly with some very stereotypical characters - the poor, goodly collection of orphans ruled over by the foul, villainous Rat and his crew gave the feel of a Disney movie. Luckily, that didn't last, so for anyone who might find this initial set-up discouraging, please read on!

THE GOOD

Well thought-out storyline. There is a LOT going on in this series, even just in the first book. It may start out a little slowly, but by the end of the book, there is a great tension. A couple of times, my jaw dropped a bit. You wind up getting engrossed in the action, and I couldn't get this book off my mind. There is a ton of background information that is meted out in just the right doses without too many info dumps. Entire cultures, complete with histories, religions, etc. exist, and as a reader you can tell that the author is one of those who knows what every single one of his characters had for breakfast that morning.

Well-done grittiness without losing that last bit of hope. This is a very dark book and a very dark series. Rape, prostitution, murder, poverty, torture, and abuse are rampant. Children are forced to live in terrible conditions and lead lives of hunger and despair. The king is an utter prat who cares nothing for his people, even his own children. There aren't many glimmers of hope in this book, but there is just enough that it doesn't lose the oppressive grittiness of the story, but also doesn't allow the gloom to overshadow any joy a reader might get from these pages.

Some great characters. My top two characters: Logan Gyre and Durzo Blint. It would be easy to make these characters into boring cardboard cut-outs, but instead they are very likable and interesting. They are characters who try to do their best with each path they are set upon, but are flawed, and not in superficial ways that somehow also manage to make them endearing. Most of the other characters are well-done, too, if not a little too stereotypical: Elene, for example, never grows beyond her role of the sweet, innocent childhood darling. Jarl, on the other hand, has taken the cards he was dealt and built a house out of them. He's another character that I ended up loving when I expected him to just sort of fade into the background. Kylar, although he was the main character, went a bit back and forth for me. Sometimes he seemed just a bit over-the-top, but I really enjoyed watching him bluster his way through some of his training. He had a sharp wit that sometimes was a little too good, getting him and others around him into trouble and resulting in some very real and very severe consequences.

THE BAD

Excess of characters. I work at a bookstore and while I frequently recommend this book to people who are browsing the fantasy section, I usually warn them about the fact that there are a lot of characters in this book, and with all the revelations and betrayals and such, it can be difficult to keep track of them.

Female characters - I love a strong female character. This book has none. Women in this series are essentially valued according to their sexual ranking. Nearly all of the female characters are either sluts or prostitutes, and not one of them has a thimbleful of brains. Even Vi, who fortunately has a better role in the second book, is introduced as a huge threat to Kylar in terms of wetboy skills, but the first time we meet her, she is using her body as a distraction. In this series, it seems like sex is the one and only weapon any woman possesses, or else they are the victims of sexual abuse.

Lack of description - while you get a good feel for what sort of person each character is, I found that I couldn't really picture the majority of them physically. Very little is done to give you an idea of their appearance, or there will be a single feature or two that gets harped on far too much and that is the only thing that sticks out.

Random bits of real-world references. While Weeks has definitely created a world all his own, there were a lot of real-world references that detracted from the story. The biggest one that stuck out for me was the use of the commonly-known St. Francis of Assisi quote, "Preach always; if you must, use words." Especially when used by Count Drake who follows the One God and a religion that is very much like Christianity, this sort of overlap between the world that the reader lives in and the world that the characters live in pulled me out of the story.

The love twists. Too many and most of them are completely unnecessary. This is a great book without all the sappiness.

Despite the drawbacks, I really enjoyed this series. I love a book that really grabs me and gets under my skin so that whenever I'm not actively reading it, I'm thinking about it and counting down the hours left before I can leave work and read it some more. Can't wait to see how the series ends!

Growing up in the nastiest alleys and streets of Cenaria dreaming every minute of better life is how Azoth lives. Day by day wishing for the "wetboy" Durzo Blint to apprentice him so Azoth can escape this dreadful life of fear of being beat up everyday if you don't pay your share of the dues and also to take care of his best friends Jarl and Doll Girl.

It's a dark journey for this young boy to have the weight of so much on his shoulders, watching after Doll Girl whom he feels responsible for and leading a group of rag tag homeless kids against people in his own guild let alone all the others trying to take over their territory. Azoth must destroy his enemy, provide a better life for Doll Girl and somehow get the lands deadliest assassin Durzo Blint to notice him and be willing to apprentice him. And that's all before he reaches his teen years.

"The Way of Shadows" is a rich full book of the life of Azoth later to be named Kylar and his journey to becoming a "wetboy" so he can escape reality. The plot twists are many and the character development is really strong. The relationship between Azoth and Durzo is a special one fraught with love, appreciation, jealousy and master/apprentice dynamics. Durzo becomes like a father to Azoth and trains him to become the best "wetboy" around. Azoth struggles with the solitary life of an assassin and his love for Doll Girl whom he must abandon to keep her from danger but also provides for her in secret. Sacrificing his life to make sure she has one. It's a love story.

The characters in Azoth/Kylar's life are very well defined and you develop feelings for them. From his best friend Jarl from the life he left behind to Logan the Prince and soon to be King whom Kylar at this point befriends out of necessity. The double life Kylar must live between lower noble to assassin provides plenty of intrigue and a cast of characters that add a lot of flavor to the book especially Momma K.

You have all the great things that go in a good fantasy book in "The Way of Shadows" and very little of anything negative. I don't want to give anything away in this review but suffice it to say it's a must read fantasy book. For Brent Weeks first novel this is a very strong effort and I can't wait to get to the other two books in the series.

Find out more about Brent Weeks at www.brentweeks.com

The Way of Shadows: The Night Angel Trilogy: Book 1

This review was originally posted here: http://clubfantasci.wordpress.com/2012/09/29/the-way-of-shadows-by-brent-weeks-review-by-david-lowry/

The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks

The Way of Shadows is the first book in The Night Angel Trilogy. The second book is Shadow's Edge and the final book is Beyond the Shadows. This was the first published book that Brent Weeks has written. After writing this trilogy, he has gone on to start a new series titled Lightbringer, which includes The Black Prism and The Blinding Knife, due out in the Fall of 2012. He as also written a short story that ties into The Night Angel Trilogy titled "Perfect Shadow", dealing with a main character in the trilogy. The Way of Shadows is published by Orbit and released October 2008.

It has been a hard life for Azoth and his two friends, Jarl and Doll Girl. The slums of the Warrens is no place for the three children, but it's their only home that they've known. What makes it worse is the guild that they belong to doesn't make life any easy for the three children. The leader is slowly dying and his second, a vile boy named Rat, is quickly assuming the role of leader. The only way that Azoth hopes to escape this life is to become an apprentice to Durzo Blint, Cenaria deadliest and most respected wetboy, otherwise known as assassin. But Blint doesn't take apprentices, but offers Azoth a chance. All he has to do is sever himself from his old life, by killing Rat. But things don't go as planned and Azoth's friends pay a price for his hesitance. Now with a drive, Azoth goes through with it, but now assumes a new identity, Kylar Stern. Now, under Blint's watchful eyes, Azoth now Kylar, has to learn how to become the perfect killer.

Criticisms:
1) Background. There is a sever lack of background when you first start The Way of Shadows. This is rather common in most fantasy novels with a new world, but it is still a problem. There were a lot of things that were brought up that didn't have any context and were never really explained. There were a lot of political information that is never really explained and only tossed at you without having any idea why. A lot of other nations are mentioned, but once again, the reader has no idea what kind of society, people, and customs it has, but it seems like you should know. That's the main problem with this issue. Everything that is mentioned feels like you, as the reader, should know what it is. But you don't know because you are entering into a new world without any knowledge of anything in it. The best example is when an object called the ka'kari is brought up. They are never really described and aren't really given any real tangible background to what they are. There is some history given, but it's brief and does leave a lot left unsaid. What do they do? Why are they important? These questions aren't answered until the end, and even then they are still vague. There is a point to this with Kylar just learning about them as the reader does, but it feels so foreign and alien that it's hard to grasp. All in all, it would have been helpful if things were better described, but still left vague enough that the reader can understand what such-and-such is without feeling so left in the dark.
2) Time. There is one bothersome thing in The Way of Shadows and it deals with time frames. Sometimes days come across as through they last forever, while at others, they are extremely short. This causes a very unique problem for the reader. You don't know the time frame of a lot of things that happen, even when it's stated. Setting aside the jumps in time, there were a few events that felt like they lasted a lot longer than they should have and others that felt like they were shorter. It's one of those problems that are rather hard to explain. Usually, one can get the feel of how time passes in a novel through the writing and clues within it. Here, it felt like time was random. There never felt there was an accurate passage of time. Then you have the time jumps. In The Way of Shadows, there were quite a few years that pass by in a blink. It was handled rather well, but it still didn't feel right. The things that were skipped over felt like they should have been included, such as Kylar's training with Blint. It's shown, but only for a little while and then we have a time jump to when he's fourteen, another to when he's about eightteen, and one final jump to when he's around twenty. The problem is these jumps happen back to back and only last maybe a few pages in length. There could have been more of a focus on how Kylar is dealing with his training, but it just jumps ahead. It just seemed like it happened overnight. Thankfully, towards the end of the novel, this problem does become less noticeable, but it still is there.

Praises:
1) Characters. The Way of Shadows is one of those rare novels that have a lot of characters and all of them are interesting and surprisingly developed. It's quite rare to have so many characters that all feel important in one way or another. Setting aside the names are just dropped once or twice, everyone who had a line or two really were interesting and surprisingly likable. It was hard to find anyone in the novel that you didn't have feelings towards, rather it be love or hate. All the characters, from main characters to minor characters, made themselves surprisingly memorable. Another credit to the writing is that all the characters were distinctive and that none of them seemed to blend into one another. Everyone had a distinct personality and characteristics that made them unique. As for the two main characters, Kylar and Blint, they were fantastic. Truth to told, talking about them in any detail would ruin the story. However, they are everything that you want the main characters to be; likable, complex, and interesting. Kylar and Blint really had everything and are some of the best characters you'll likely find. The Way of Shadows really shines with its characters and that makes it that much more enjoyable.
2) Story. The Way of Shadows has a very complex and interesting plot. On the surface, the plot is only about Azoth and how he becomes a wetboy under the tutelage of Blint. But there is so much more to this story than just that. There is a vast amount of side plots and side stories that keep you interested and pulls you deeper into the world. The story also doesn't focus on fighting, like most fantasy novels do. Instead there it focuses more on intrigue and characters. It relies more actions. There is a good amounts of fighting and combat, but doesn't carry the story. This really does deserve to be read because the is so much going on, but it's all easy to follow and enjoy.
3) Themes. There are some basic light and dark themes in The Way of Shadows that are used very well. The story has this very interesting play on light and dark elements. The darker elements of the story really do stand out and make this feel like a very gritty novel. Make no mistake, this is a dark novel with a lot of dark imagery and subjects. There are very few happy moments that they really do stand out. It's surprising to look back after reading this novel and realize that there was a lot of good that came out of the bad. It may be hard to spot, especially seeing how things unfold later in the novel, but they are there and they are good. It's an interesting duality with these two concepts, and they play off each other surprisingly well.

Side Notes:
1) Extras. There is a very interesting interview with Brent Weeks at the end of the novel where he gives insight to what influenced him and a lot of other things.
2) Cover Art. If there is one thing that really bothers me about book covers it has to be the generic, bland pose shot on a plain background. It's not interesting, it's not eye catching, and it comes off as extremely lazy. The cover of The Way of Shadows is all these things. It's a generic pose on a white background. Nothing else is going on. It doesn't catch your eye and there is nothing on the cover to make you interested in picking up this book. The only positive thing that I could mention is the purple smoke coming off of Kylar, but that just seems lazy. The cover art is as overly simple, uninteresting, and as lazy as you can get. For comparison, look at the covers for the France, Spain, and Russian versions. The French version looks dark and gritty, and it works. The red of Kylar's pants really stands out and draws your eye in. The Russian version may look plain, but there is something actually going on in the picture. Finally, the version from Spain does the pose shot right. It looks cool and makes you wonder who that is under the mask. Honestly, I would have preferred any of these covers over the bland, generic, lazy, boring cover that most of the editions have.

Overall: 4/5
Final Thoughts:
The Way of Shadows is a fantastic way to start a series, but it still has a few hiccups. One of my biggest issues with any novel is when there is a severe lack the background of the surrounded world and when names, places, and things are thrown at you with little to no explanation. It really does turn the reader off because everything that is mentioned seems alien to them. It would have been nice to find out what some of these things meant. Another problem that the book has is with how random time felt. It may be a personal thing, but I found it hard to believe the in how time was passing. Days felt like they lasted forever, while others went by quickly. This is also a problem that is really hard to explain. It's easy to explain how the book jumps from year to year within a page, and it does do that, but the way events unfolded felt random. Thankfully, these issues don't really take away much of the enjoyment of the novel overall. The characters are where The Way of Shadows shine. There is a vast amount of them, but they all came off as interesting and developed, even if they only appear for a page or two. It's surprising how quickly you may like or hate someone within a few sentences. Then you have the amazingly main characters of Kylar and Blint. These two really stole the novel, and made it something special. The story itself was a complex, enjoyable ride from start to finish. There is so much going on in this novel that you don't know what side is up from down, but it's all very understandable and that's something that hardly ever happens with complex narratives. Then you have the simple, yet very surprising take on light and dark themes in this story. On the surface, The Way of Shadows is an incredibly dark story that doesn't end on a very happy note. However, when you reflect on what you've read, you see a lot of hope and good in some of the events. It's something that I didn't expect after reading The Way of Shadows. When all is said and done, is The Way of Shadows worth checking out? Of course it is. It's one of those novels that you must read.

An excellent start for the Night Angel trilogy. The first book of this trilogy, begins with the life of an apprentice assassin, Azoth. He grew up in a slum area, infested with thieves, whores, and all the filth of the society. His regular life as a petty thief and pick pocket changed when he met the real deal, a professional assassin, who later accepted him as an apprentice. Without the knowledge, that his apprenticeship would change his life forever, and made him into the pivotal point of the destiny of his kingdom.

I read this book after I read The Black Prism. The creation of the world and magic system is not as good and as complex as the world in The Black Prism, remembering that he wrote this series before he wrote The Black Prism (Light Bringer series). The magic system does not depart too far from the mainstream fantasy, even though I admit that Weeks added some original concepts in it, such as the "conduit". But I guarantee you, the magic is not a bore.

The character, which is an assassin (or more precise, a wetboy), is also nothing new in the fantasy world. But again, Weeks is original in creating the psyche of the underworld, the world of beggars and petty criminals. It is eerily realistic. You would imagine the underworld of our today society like the one described by Weeks in this novel.

Even though Weeks did not really create a whole new system, I think Weeks can be very original. He used a lot of "big words". He even made a pun out of it in the novel (hey, what do you expect, he is an English teacher). He also borrows a lot of foreign culture in our world in creating this fantasy world, including the vocabulary. He borrows heavily from Japanese Ninja culture in forming the world of the assassin, which I think is very realistic. The assassin is indeed a ninja, without using the word in this novel.

Final verdict, a strong 4 stars, not yet to be a fiver. Will definitely finish the entire series. And by this book, I am convince that Brent Weeks is my new favorite fantasy writer.

I really enjoyed this book. There's a lot to it. A lot of politics in particular and I confess that I did not do all that well with keeping the political stuff straight. I think if I had, I would have enjoyed it even more because I know all that backstory was important. But you can read and enjoy this book without paying too close attention to the politics. The story is excellent on its own, even without the level of detail the author tries to impart.

There are several places in the book where whatever I desperately did not want to happen actually did happen, and I admit that I shouted at the author in my head a few times, but in many ways, that's the mark of a good story. Those things needed to happen. And the payoff for it all is exactly what you want. In fact, if you never chose to read another book in the trilogy, you could put this book down and be happy. That said, I am looking forward to reading the next book to see what the author does.

The descriptions of the fights here are expertly done, and there's the right level of detail so you can really "see" what's happening, and feel it, without being overwhelmed. There's enough misdirection that you never are totally certain until the end who did what and there's one spectacular twist that I never saw coming.

So read this. Don't worry if you don't follow along with all of the politics, and know that it doesn't matter too much in the end. The real brilliance of the book is the characters and they shine through even without knowing all of the politics.

When I do read fantasy fiction, my preference is for kind of dark and grimy and small scale, with a touch of humor and weirdness -- Fritz Leiber's Lankhmar stories are probably my favorites in the genre. I picked this first in the "Night Angel" trilogy up after having heard it was pretty dark and gritty compared to most. Having just finished the 650 pages, I will concede that it is indeed dark and gritty (the author appears to have been highly influenced by George Martin's propensity to kill off major characters), but it ultimately didn't do much for me and I'm not bothering to continue with the next two books in the series.

It starts very promisingly, with an adolescent boy crawling in the mud under a tavern for loose copper coins to pay his guild dues. The whole introduction very effectively portrays the brutal reality of what a slum existence could mean to a child in a fantasy-setting city. It continues to be promising as we meet the "wetboy" (kind of an assassin/hitman with magical skills) who we know will become the boy's mentor. All that table setting is pretty engaging and has a dark and realistic tone to it.

The scope of the story then starts to expand to the nobility and royal family of the nation, and beyond to the geopolitics of neighboring empires, and before long there is talk of various legendary artifacts, there is a seer of sorts, a prophecy, and generally far too many trappings of the traditional fantasy epic -- leavened with a fair amount of the kind of detailed combat scenes that I'm sure my 12-year-old self would have loved. I guess I'm just ultimately not a fan of the Jungian "Hero's Journey" storyline, and prefer my tales to stay in the gutter, rather than the castles. I also have a hard time caring when the protagonists are both so thinly drawn and so absurdly powerful and skillful that they are invincible to all but others of their ilk. It's the same reaction I have to almost all superhero movies -- when two shallow but tortured demigods start battering each other and throwing cars around, I start to yawn.

There are some interesting elements to be sure -- I definitely liked the different varieties of magic and how they seemed to work, and there are some well thought-out set pieces scattered here and there. But it's ultimately just not my cup of tea. And while it's not something I generally notice, my guess is that female readers might find the book especially bothersome, as just about every single female character is either literally a whore, or a saint, or prone to betraying the men in their lives.

I must have picked up this book at Barnes and Noble a dozen times before I finally decided to buy it. It always looked interesting, but it seemed like an unusual choice for me. It's an urban dark fantasy with very little romance and very little paranormal - not my typical first choice. Now that I've read it, I wish I had picked it up sooner! I loved it! It is going to be tough to write a summary about this book without giving away any of the MANY secrets of the book, so I apologize in advance if this is a little more vague than I normally write.

Azoth has lived in the streets all his life. He has no knowledge of his birth parents, he only knows the "family" of street kids he lives with. They live on stolen money and food, and find protection from the rest of the world by sticking together. Unfortunately there is a bully in his group named Rat who often makes their lives miserable. Rat extorts money from the younger kids and beats/rapes those who do not bring him their weekly tithes.

Azoth is determined to protect his friends from Rat, but in order to do so, he has to learn to fight. Risking his own life in the process, Azoth pursues an apprenticeship with Durzo Blint - the most dangerous assassin to have ever lived. But, becoming an assassin means that he will have to cut all ties to the very people he is determined to protect.

Almost ten years later, Azoth is living under the name Kylar Stern. By day he is a poor member of the upper class, close friends with the 2nd most powerful heir in the kingdom, and living with a decent supportive family. By night, Kylar is deadly. He is not however, able to make use of the magical powers he was born with. His magic remains dormant inside him.

As the story unfolds from here, every chapter reveals a new secret about the main characters and their purpose in the world. The whole story culminates to a deadly battle, with all of the major players being scattered in different directions. I was blind-sided constantly by the twists and turns in this story. Literally, this is all I can say without revealing any spoilers.

Admittedly, I did not become absorbed in this story until about 1/3 of the way into the book. Early in the story I felt like too much time was spent in Azoth's childhood when nothing was really happening. If you were going to put down the book without finishing it, this would be the only place I could see that happening. Eventually it becomes clear that the beginning was very important to understanding the dynamics between the children as they grow into adults. So don't give up early in the book! The magical people and battles don't come in to play until the 2nd half either, but you will not be disappointed when the action finally starts.

At this point, I am so absorbed in the story and so emotionally invested in the characters, that I am literally running to my mailbox every day to see if the next book in the series has arrived yet. I haven't ever read anything else like it, so trying to make a comparison would be pointless. I loved the book and would highly recommend it.

I am probably about 1/8 through the book and am really looking forward to finishing it. On that note, this is a review solely based on the first 130 pages, with NO SPOILERS. I promise. I will also be updating this review once I have completed reading the book.

I spent maybe two hours last night reading the first portion of this book and was gripped by the storyline. However, my major gripe thus far has been with the editing. WHO ON EARTH EDITED THIS BOOK!? They should be fired! I have found myself re-reading portions because it seems like whole paragraphs have been removed where a new chapter should have started. But, rather than start a new chapter they skipped that and just made it a new paragraph. I have also read a few reviews on here (I was curious if anyone else had any gripes with the editing) and people complain about the random switch offs between characters. This is done in a Robert Jordan like fashion where something awesome will be about to happen.. Then you go into another storyline and have to deal with some boring stuff before you can get back to the good stuff. This also seemed to be the only real strategy that they used to change chapters (my own problem with it). The editor (and somewhat author's fault) seemed to really dislike using chapter changes for anything except changing characters. So, you'll end up with one paragraph that the protagonist is going to sleep in, and the next paragraph they are sparring. I've spent half my time reading doing a re-reading to make sure that I didn't just skip 10 pages that explained how something was led up to.. This is probably my biggest problem, so far. It definitely messes with the flow of the book if you have to re-read portions and then draw your own conclusions because it was poorly written/edited.

Edit:

Alright, I finished the series. I would recommend this to friends. The Author got better as the books go on, and he seems to have fleshed out his writing style quite a bit during the interim. I still feel as though this is the three book version of the wheel of time. You can tell that the author got a lot of inspiration from Robert Jordan. However, this is still a good series, and a good attempt for a first go at creating a trilogy. I look forward to seeing how Brent weeks develops his ability to tell a story, and write. Also, many of the problems mentioned earlier are a lot more spaced out and rare in the later books. The first one is definitely a book that should have been edited quite a bit more. I am going to give this series 4 stars for a good first attempt. I upped this from my 3 star rating because it was entertaining to read despite a few oversights in the story, and methods of telling it.

Incredible action, jaw dropping suspense, throw in some romance, and have it take place with a bad *** lead character. I loved every page of this book and could not stop reading. I only got two hours of sleep the night I finished this fantasy masterpiece. The characters in this book jump out of the page at you and while I was reading, it felt as though I was in that world. Such vivid detail and terrific plot elements throughout. Jump into this one and prepare for a wild, fantastic ride. I particularly enjoyed the way "magic" works in this world, brand new and exciting. I'm glad there are two more books because I want more of this story!

The Way Of Shadows is a brilliant first novel for Brent Weeks, his skill at writing his characters is only eclipsed by a few of the top Fantasy writers. Not only are Weeks's characters great the story as whole is amazing considering this is Weeks's first novel, the world is well fleshed out with great nation building and a new look at magic, but my favourite parts are the action sequences, they're fast paced and well thought out and you can definitely tell that Weeks has a martial arts background.

Amongst my favourite characters are Azoth later Kyler who dreams of leaving the slums and never being afraid again. Azoth finally gets his chance when his a given an apprenticeship to the famous or infamous Wetboy(magical assassin)Durzo Blint and learns this trade of killing. Along the way Blint introduces Azoth to many of his friends like Momma K the leader of the Pleasures Guild a tough and robust woman who teaches Azoth how to blend into polite society, and also Blint's long time friend Count Drake who will teach Azoth that there is more to life than the fame of being the best assassin there is, Drake will teach him it is possible to love even in the hardest circumstances. After many years of training and hard work Azoth is ready to take his first contract and his new name, and just in time as the armies of the God King march across his country putting all he loves at risk.

I usually shy away from assasin books... something about them tends to ruin my suspention of belief. while this book does trigger that at times (the wetboys dont seem to ever lack for work how many people can a small group of elite assasins be hired to kill?) I thuroughly enjoyed the book and am searching for the second one (i passed it over the first time as i was unsure i would like book one)

having said that I would like to temper all of the gusshing reviews with a bit of negative.

While the subject matter is definatly mature the writing style often leaves the impression of a teenager eagerly telling about a weekend party. not that it lacked depth... it just "sounds" a bit young

The author also has to work on his transitions... there were times where i a couple pages into a chapter and had to go back because i was totaly lost as to whos point of view i was reading from. I often found it hard to immagine what was happening because he does not always give a full description the first time we meet a character. he often uses the writing technique of simply giving you information from the characters level of familiarity and letting the story fill in the blanks later. Only it may be half a book before you fully grasp the full description or implication of something.

trust me its not a horrible thing but i found it annoying at times.

lastly if your an avid fantasy reader like myself you may get a touch of dejavu when reading through the first half of the book as he seems to borrow from many other writers. not steal or purger... but you can reccognize where he got ideas from. As an example The "island race" or seafaring race in the story are similar to the seafaring race in "Song of Ice and Fire" (black sailors who often go nakked on their ships)

once again its not a horrible thing. but its noticable.

Like i said I look forward to the next book and I look forward to following this writers career as he grows because if this book was any indication Brent Weeks is destined for a long wonderful career.

I literally just finished reading this book. I enjoyed it and there was a lot of action but I felt like the book left a lot of unanswered questions. Now sometimes, unanswered questions are a good thing in a book, they give me just enough information that I can't wait to read the next book. In this case, with the exception of the main plot, the sub plots left a lot to be desired. I felt like a lot of the sub-characters weren't given enough story time for me to be interested in them. They seemed to be mentioned every now and then but then nothing was ever given in detail to develop them.

Also, the speech in the story was a bit awkward. The book would switches from old style speech to modern speech, it was a bit jarring at times.

When I finished the book, it felt like the story had literally just began. The story revolves around the main characters who have something called Talent (magic) but by then end of the book, I still don't have much of a grasp about how the talent can be used and the "history" of talent.

I will finish the series but only because I like to finish what I started. I had high expectations when I read this book due to all the outstanding reviews. Though I don't regret reading this series, I am a bit disappointed. I hope the next few books will be a bit more rewarding.

This book was refreshing.I do not want to gush and take with a grain of salt the authors anecdote in the book about how well received it is.

Fantasy often falls into familiar rhythms and sometimes a work comes along to break them. Here we have a tale that twists things about so that you are left unsure, even in the final cadence of how things here turn out. Those twists will keep you engaged and surprise you.

We have seen works that start with the world viewed through the eyes of children, and this tale starts that way. Some of the adult concepts given to children who have yet to reach puberty, in a world that does not have the modern medias onset of accelerating the maturing of our children, seems a little too much, but by the end of the tale this is forgotten.

Some devices are a little too pat, where our protagonist hero perhaps gains too many advantages too offset the hard tasks he will face. Or that the spider at the center of the web of evil that our hero ultimately is poised against continues to increase in its corruption.

Then action sequences might also be too many as the conclusion nears its end. There should be a balance between action and character development. But these are really minor quibbles for as the novel continues the whole is a really good read. Well worth the effot and worth reading again for delving into its nuances.

To me, five stars isn't just the best. It's the kind of thing you'll go back to over and over. I've read the whole series before and just started re-reading it. It's been four years, and it's just as good the second time. Not only is each book excellent, but the trilogy is very well planned out. Like he wrote them simultaneously instead of one at a time.
I highly recommend this book and this trilogy to anyone who enjoys a well written, exciting, heart wrenching, magical story about good people in bad places. It can be pretty gritty at times, but he doesn't go into too much detail (depending on your own experience, I suppose). Just enough to show you how screwed up the people are and then move on with the story. The writing is so good, you never feel like you're reading a book. You may put it down at the end and think, "Wow I have a crazy good imagination. Wait, didn't I buy a book recently?" Easily worth twice as much as they charge.

The story is fairly simple in essence, but it's engaging and it's very well managed by the author. I found some of the coincidences that come out later in the book a bit hard to swallow at times, but certainly nothing unforgiveable. There was sometimes a sense of the author trying too hard to surprise the reader. I won't say any more on that to avoid spoilers.

I also had some problems with the writing now and then. It's not a particularly literary book - it's written very openly and simply. On the whole it's written very well, but I found some hiccups in the writing that could have been better editted. Things like, "He picked up the jug of water and poured a glass of water." Word repetition like that can be distracting to the reader.

However, regardless of these small gripes, I greatly enjoyed this book. There's good stuff about the life and training of an assassin, heaps of action and intrigue and characters that you can really understand and care about. To me, that's quality storytelling.

I'd readily recommend it to fantasy fans. There are two more in the series and I'll certainly pick up the next one.

Seeing all of these five-star reviews makes me question readers' low standards. This novel has a fair enough plot and an intriguing premise, but the writing is simply painful to slog through. Though the first third of the book focuses solely on the protagonist via his perspective, the latter portion of the book jumps around from one insignificant character's viewpoint to another's, dragging out a single day of action for chapter upon chapter of dry narrative. As for the narrative style, this is cliched fantasy at its worst, where Weeks relies upon the technique of telling a character's thoughts about a situation, then retelling them, then telling them once more with a few regurgitated cliches again, only to have the character question whether he should take a different approach. This is agonizingly slow, and for a book that sort of sells itself as action and intrigue in print, it delivers little of it.

What makes this even more painful to get through is the fact that there ARE plenty of wonderful works of fantasy that take their time to develop characters in a realistic fashion. I actually prefer that sort of book, styled after Tolkien's rich approach to characterization, but Weeks manages the character-driven novel no better than one based on action. If you want fantasy with a brain, this isn't it; try Joe Abercrombie, George R.R. Martin, or Patrick Rothfuss for a far greater reward.

I was somewhat suprised at people who 1 star'd this book saying the writing was bad. I have to strongly disagree. I do not think the writing style is poor, nor is its execution. What it is, is contemporary. Some people need sword and sorcery to have an "old" feel to it, and thus they did not give it a proper chance.

I believe what Brent Weeks has created here will become a very prominent selection of fantasy literature. Its a very well thought out plot, with many twists and turns (in a good way), and characters who are actually interesting. Its a long book series of long books, which is to be expected with a fantasy epic.

I won't give a summary because its done about 100 times in the reviews, but if you like Sword and Sorcery fantasy stories, buy this. Its a very well done book.

My only complaint is regarding the use of japanese names for weapons. I understand that in Weeks world, there is a country that is supposed to be asian. But for some reason seeing japanese words kind of threw me off. But that is a very small complaint about a very good book.

Wow! Wonderful start to an absolutely fascinating world. In a kingdom where the king really has little to no power but is too dumb to even realize it. Instead the government is controlled by a mafia type of ruling system that uses assassins as a primary means to solve their problems or advance in structure. Azoth is an 11 year old orphan boy with no family or background. He barely survives the streets and yet still gives what little he has to his only two friends. Horrible, horrible things happen to his friends and Azoth blames himself. He sacrifices himself to save others and so the story begins.

Amazing to realize that this is this author's first novel. It was superbly done. The world created and all its characters were unique and well-rounded. There was even a romance added. What I enjoyed the most about this book was the interaction between characters. Despite turmoil and devestating circumstances, to still believe in each other was actually very heartwarming. I thought this aspect was a nice contrast to all the hurt and death.

I would recommend this excellent book to any and all readers.

For me, this has been the first fantasy-fiction novel in about 10 years I have had trouble putting down. The characters are rich and their motivations believable. The story is a bit "formulaic" for Kyler who goes from nobody to ultimate assassin but you are so drawn in by his plight you hardly notice.

Life is hard, and Weeks has really captured that struggle in a way that makes you feel nothing but put compassion for even some of the less noble characters.

I could go on and on but this author and novel has the drama and realism of R.R. Martin with the action and sense of plot purpose that R.A. Salvatore brings to his works. The result is 600 pages that left me headed back to the book store to buy the rest of the triology and research his other works.

With no hesitation a five star novelist!

This was really a pretty good fantasy novel. I was pleasantly surprised, and I'll now be buying the next two books in the trilogy to see what happens next.

This story is Dark Fantasy and focuses on wetboys, which are assassins, and the main character is being tutored by the most famous wetboy in the city in Durzo Blint. The main character starts off in the Warrens, the poorest part of the city and is in a thieves type of guild, where most people end up who do not have a home. But the main charcter after being taken in by Blint gets his former life killed off and he now takes the name of Kylar. He poses as a petty noble and learns the way of being a wetboy. Now this is what the story seems to be, but it morphs into something much larger in the last third of the book that starts to make the story epic, and leaves open possabilities for the next book in the series.

- Great stuff here, I easily recommend it!

This book was fun, riveting, and well developed especially the characters. The characterization in this book was incredible. They were all deep and they all had convictions, morals, and personalities that made this book an amazing read. I loved the plot.

This book is about a kid named Azoth that is an orphan that lives in the Warrens or the slums of Cenaria. He will do anything to get out of there including becoming an assassins apprentice. Durzo is an assassin without conviction or at least that's what everyone thinks. He runs into Azoth and decides to take him as an apprentice. Then one da all hell breaks loose in Cenaria and a war inside the city has rendered everything in ruins and Azoth aka Kylar is the only one who can save it. As I said a great plot with a lot of twists and turns and a lot of well developed subplots.

This is the first book I read by Brent Weeks, and it's truly a journey through an action-packed world. The Magic system is intriguing but vague, and it definitely has that "this is the best side quest in an Elder Scrolls game" feel to it. There are tons of plot lines to follow, and sometimes it gets lost and confusing with the fantasy elements, but the action and character development are spot on. If you are looking to dive into complex characters in a fantasy world that is lower on Magic, this is a great read!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Azoth as an assassin in training is a little timid, and a bit helpless, but his mentor Blint makes up for that weakness strong will and unflinching adherence to the way of the wetboy (assassins with special powers). There is murder, mystery, magic, and more in this book, and I loved every word. What reviewers say on here is true though, at times the book will cut to a viewpoint that seems unimportant and boring, it does take a bit away from the flow of the story. I only minded this a few times, when we were transported to placed we haven't heard of and had to read about people we didn't know, that ended up not having a big part in the plot. That is definitely not a reason to not read this book. If you decide to read this book you are in for an epic journey of a boy who doesn't really want to be an assassin, who is forced to get over his old life and assume a new role. You will get to follow a boy who is eager to please his master, even when his master may seem to be on the wrong side of things. I can not wait to read the rest of this series, what a great start!

I enjoyed this book - it was good. But it was disappointingly amateur which kept it from being great.

The world building was good enough barely to give context to the main characters, but gave no detail about the countries to the "north" and "south". The foreigners were extremely 1-dimensional plot props. I always feel like foreign countries important enough to come wreak great evil in your country could at least be given a decent map and decent motivation (some true dimension would be even better).

The characters all suffered from a lack of ability to communicate - even with the reader. So while they were not quite 1-dimensional, they didn't get past 2 dimensions. We were told who they were like but they didn't show it themselves much. ---SPOILER -- Kylar was in love with Elene while admittedly knowing nothing about her. Blint didn't want to die, didn't want Roth to win but would kill Kylar for Roth but wouldn't kill Kylar, ... what? --- END SPOILER --- For characters that were all coincidentally "super intelligent," there were way too many times in the book where I thought why don't you just ... "insert easy, smart option that was totally missed here".

The magic was interesting but also underspecified. Like those movies with infinite rounds fired and no reloading scenes. We were never clear on the boundaries of the magic for any particular person or scene. This allowed magic to too often be a convenient prop that made the story building lazy.

The prose was full of holes and vastly underestimated the memory and intelligence of the user. ---- SPOILER -- "Oh no, my ka'kari is way over there" - but you called it to you 2 chapters ago. "Oh no, I'm in such pain but whoa my mind just cleared for no reason" ... Umm ok. "Ooops I don't want to get killed by wytches so I'll take a one way trip to a hole of cannibals where no one leaves or gets real food." said no one with sense, ever (except the super intelligent Logan). ---- END SPOILER ---

Overall entertaining but missing key elements and with those annoying plot jerks across plot holes that make no sense.

The flaws of this book are numerous. First and most obvious is the quality of prose, which was amateur. More than once, I had to reread a line to figure out what the author meant--not a good thing when the style is as straightforward and no-funny-business as in Way of Shadows. In addition to that, I could see a notable difference between the quality of writing in the first half of the book and the second. Beyond the technical sentence-stringing aspect of quality, there was also a great deal of "tell" as opposed to "show" happening. Irksome for reasons I'll get to in a bit.

Also a problem for me was the number of characters given viewpoints. As other reviewers have mentioned, this is particular annoying as a reader. Bottom line is that, in the thick of the action at the end of the book, I don't give a rip about some random woman on a boat from whom we only hear once. I really don't. And I'd prefer not to have the narratives of the main characters interrupted just so some random character off doing something can get his time on stage. To me, this is another sign of amateur or inexperienced work, since a writer ought to be able to tell the story, entire plot and all, without needing random viewpoints--especially not the amount Weeks employs.

Another issue I had was with the dialogue. While I want to give Weeks a huge high-five for creating dialogue that actually acknowledged how people change how they talk depending on whom they're talking to... I had trouble believing that the young kid characters would be talking like the young kid characters of our world today, complete with 'likes' and 'totally' and elongated 'soooo'. It threw me out of the story more than once.

Furthermore, the worldbuilding had me confused for pages and pages. I couldn't keep the names of countries and ethnicities straight, especially because there was no rhyme or reason to the naming of things. Here we have something with a Germanic name an then we have something with a French name and then an attempt at an Arabic name and we musn't for'get the' pre'sen'ce of' lots' of a'pos'tro'phes' ev'ery'where'.

And because I guess I'm just itching to get flame comments, I further took issue with the plot. It was going so splendidly, this slum kid apprenticed to the by-his-own-moral-compass assassin. Had a nice plot arc, Azoth becoming an assassin in more than just profession. It was juicy and wonderful in its simplicity, and that was what kept me reading after the first chapter (with which I was less than impressed.) But then, halfway or so through the book, Weeks turns on Epic Fantasy Mode and suddenly there are invading armies and Godkings and prophecies (ugh) and Capitalized Nouns and destiny and weapons of mass power and ancient heroes.

I've read all that crap before, two and a half dozen times or thereabouts. What I hadn't read was the story of this particular boy, Azoth, becoming an assassin in the apprenticeship to this madman Durzo Blint. That's what I wanted. That was what was so juicy to my mind. But I didn't get that, I got the epic-ized fantasy instead, with Weeks turning the route of many fantasy authors nowadays who somehow feel a compulsion to make everything grandiose and, well, epic. Which is not to imply that The Night Angels couldn't have become more epic-like, but in the first book? At the expensive of so much potential deliciousness? Sigh.

Now, before all the flames come: for all the novel's flaws, I kept reading. One reason is that I'm disinclined to let any book go unfinished. Another is that the author's enthusiasm and love of the story is evident (more than I can say for Sanderson and some of his books, which to my understanding were merely "practice" for others.) The main one is because the story is so damn good; I found the arc of Azoth becoming an assassin and the dynamic between him and Blint highly compelling. Perhaps that's why I'm so strongly opposed to the epicification of the story, as it came at the expensive of my favorite aspect.

I read somewhere that Weeks is regarded as having excellent characters. I both agree and disagree. Agree because I was invested in Azoth/Kylar and in Blint and in the relationship between them. Agree because I believed the other characters as well, and Weeks didn't merely assign traits and tropes in some formulaic fashion. Agree because given the writing style and the fast pace, it's amazing the amount of character that got packed in. Disagree because while the depth of character was there, it never came out and went to work. We never felt the depth of Blint or Kylar, just told at best. Made me sad, all that potential gone untapped just to get a plot-stuffed, epicified story.

In the end, my expectations for Way of Shadows were wrong. I was expecting a court intrigue with Kylar in the mix of things, the story of him and Blint, the sideplots worked in to add further depth, etc. I was disappointed when I got otherwise. But the potential of the characters and the enthusiasm with which Weeks writes give me hope for this new author. He could be a major contender for a ruling spot in fantasydom, if he gets his writing up to speed and starts choosing depth instead of shallow surface plots and cheap pacing tricks.

It took me quite a while to get into this story. In fact, I was almost halfway through the book before I decided to stick with it. I found Brent's writing style to be heavy-handed and if possible, overly descriptive at the beginning.

Once I got into the story, I enjoyed it although I spent a good deal of time frustrated with the majority of the characters. I also found it frustrating that it took almost the entire book to find out what the difference between a "wetboy" and an "assassin" was. To save you some time, a wetboy is an assassin with magical powers.

I will eventually get around to reading the others books in the series, but they aren't at the top of my list. (And don't even get me started on the cover, which is one of the worst that I have seen in some time!)

Night Angel: Way of the Shadows is a richly textured, multi-layered fantasy crowded with characters who have substance and cast shadows. It is a coming of age story played out against a backdrop of politics and magic, The first of Brent Weeks' epic story cycle, it compares favorably to George R. R. Martin's "Song of Fire and Ice" books in terms of complexity and world-building.
The relationship between an orphan "guild rat" and a master assassin named Durzo Blint is at the heart of the story, but both Durzo and the boy have lives that connect to a web of other people. Durzo warns his apprentice that "love is a noose," but by the time they meet, it's already too late for the boy to heed the warning.
This is an epic story filled with darkness and cruelty but also stuffed with terrific characters, great friendships, large themes and genuine emotion. The early chapters are especially grim, and almost unbearable at times, but also familiar to us--the fantastical extension of Dickens' version of poverty. This world is not sentimental and those who escape the pull of the Warrens are grateful for their reprieve.
The world-building here is outstanding, on a par with Frank Herbert's Dune or J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth, or the afore-mentioned George R. R. Martin's Seven Kingdoms. There is very real magic here, with "talents" that range across many different disciplines and mages that must hide their magic. There are places where a fan of the genre can almost identify the author's influences (because they're the classic books every fan has read) and he hits all the tropes and memes out there. Which is not a bad thing.
This is a "Chosen One" story, filled with humble beginnings and magical artifacts, and impossible loves, and politics both personal and grand. The chance for betrayal is everywhere and not necessarily because those doing the betraying are traitors
The characters here are richly dimensional and both men and women are heroes and villains. Some are even both. And unlike a lot of fantasies where even the magical creatures all seem to be white and blonde, there are characters with darker skins (like Jarl) and ambiguous sexuality. Women are just as likely to run things in this book as men, and no aspect of society is denied them.
There are families by birth and blood but also by necessity (like Jarl, Doll Girl, and Azoth). Durzo lives by the concept that "love is a noose" and yet he loves his apprentice and allows the king to manipulate him in order to protect his daughter.
The politics of the backdrop are convoluted in the way that actual politics are convoluted. The identity of the Shinga--the one who controls the criminal network that dominates the realm--is a true revelation and comes out of nowhere the way a good secret should.
Bad things happen to good people. Little children are mutilated, good women are murdered, people die and are hurt and are ruined. And yet, nothing feels gratuitous.
There is sex and there is death and there are magic swords and mad Godkings and well, just about everything you might want in a fantasy.
And when you're through--there are more books to read.

a friend originally sent me this trilogy and highly recommended it. As I got reading I couldn't put it down again. It was a steady read with characters that developed more and more as the books progressed. Book 1 is a great start to the twists and turns and occasional surprises that occur through this series. I strongly recommend anybody looking for a good fantasy read to pick up these novels and have a go. I really don't think you'll be disappointed as Brent is an excellent author.

I usually shy away from assasin books... something about them tends to ruin my suspention of belief. while this book does trigger that at times (the wetboys dont seem to ever lack for work how many people can a small group of elite assasins be hired to kill?) I thuroughly enjoyed the book and am searching for the second one (i passed it over the first time as i was unsure i would like book one)

having said that I would like to temper all of the gusshing reviews with a bit of negative.

While the subject matter is definatly mature the writing style often leaves the impression of a teenager eagerly telling about a weekend party. not that it lacked depth... it just "sounds" a bit young

The author also has to work on his transitions... there were times where i a couple pages into a chapter and had to go back because i was totaly lost as to whos point of view i was reading from. I often found it hard to immagine what was happening because he does not always give a full description the first time we meet a character. he often uses the writing technique of simply giving you information from the characters level of familiarity and letting the story fill in the blanks later. Only it may be half a book before you fully grasp the full description or implication of something.

trust me its not a horrible thing but i found it annoying at times.

lastly if your an avid fantasy reader like myself you may get a touch of dejavu when reading through the first half of the book as he seems to borrow from many other writers. not steal or purger... but you can reccognize where he got ideas from. As an example The "island race" or seafaring race in the story are similar to the seafaring race in "Song of Ice and Fire" (black sailors who often go nakked on their ships)

once again its not a horrible thing. but its noticable.

Like i said I look forward to the next book and I look forward to following this writers career as he grows because if this book was any indication Brent Weeks is destined for a long wonderful career.

I literally just finished reading this book. I enjoyed it and there was a lot of action but I felt like the book left a lot of unanswered questions. Now sometimes, unanswered questions are a good thing in a book, they give me just enough information that I can't wait to read the next book. In this case, with the exception of the main plot, the sub plots left a lot to be desired. I felt like a lot of the sub-characters weren't given enough story time for me to be interested in them. They seemed to be mentioned every now and then but then nothing was ever given in detail to develop them.

Also, the speech in the story was a bit awkward. The book would switches from old style speech to modern speech, it was a bit jarring at times.

When I finished the book, it felt like the story had literally just began. The story revolves around the main characters who have something called Talent (magic) but by then end of the book, I still don't have much of a grasp about how the talent can be used and the "history" of talent.

I will finish the series but only because I like to finish what I started. I had high expectations when I read this book due to all the outstanding reviews. Though I don't regret reading this series, I am a bit disappointed. I hope the next few books will be a bit more rewarding.

This book was refreshing.I do not want to gush and take with a grain of salt the authors anecdote in the book about how well received it is.

Fantasy often falls into familiar rhythms and sometimes a work comes along to break them. Here we have a tale that twists things about so that you are left unsure, even in the final cadence of how things here turn out. Those twists will keep you engaged and surprise you.

We have seen works that start with the world viewed through the eyes of children, and this tale starts that way. Some of the adult concepts given to children who have yet to reach puberty, in a world that does not have the modern medias onset of accelerating the maturing of our children, seems a little too much, but by the end of the tale this is forgotten.

Some devices are a little too pat, where our protagonist hero perhaps gains too many advantages too offset the hard tasks he will face. Or that the spider at the center of the web of evil that our hero ultimately is poised against continues to increase in its corruption.

Then action sequences might also be too many as the conclusion nears its end. There should be a balance between action and character development. But these are really minor quibbles for as the novel continues the whole is a really good read. Well worth the effot and worth reading again for delving into its nuances.

To me, five stars isn't just the best. It's the kind of thing you'll go back to over and over. I've read the whole series before and just started re-reading it. It's been four years, and it's just as good the second time. Not only is each book excellent, but the trilogy is very well planned out. Like he wrote them simultaneously instead of one at a time.
I highly recommend this book and this trilogy to anyone who enjoys a well written, exciting, heart wrenching, magical story about good people in bad places. It can be pretty gritty at times, but he doesn't go into too much detail (depending on your own experience, I suppose). Just enough to show you how screwed up the people are and then move on with the story. The writing is so good, you never feel like you're reading a book. You may put it down at the end and think, "Wow I have a crazy good imagination. Wait, didn't I buy a book recently?" Easily worth twice as much as they charge.

The story is fairly simple in essence, but it's engaging and it's very well managed by the author. I found some of the coincidences that come out later in the book a bit hard to swallow at times, but certainly nothing unforgiveable. There was sometimes a sense of the author trying too hard to surprise the reader. I won't say any more on that to avoid spoilers.

I also had some problems with the writing now and then. It's not a particularly literary book - it's written very openly and simply. On the whole it's written very well, but I found some hiccups in the writing that could have been better editted. Things like, "He picked up the jug of water and poured a glass of water." Word repetition like that can be distracting to the reader.

However, regardless of these small gripes, I greatly enjoyed this book. There's good stuff about the life and training of an assassin, heaps of action and intrigue and characters that you can really understand and care about. To me, that's quality storytelling.

I'd readily recommend it to fantasy fans. There are two more in the series and I'll certainly pick up the next one.

Seeing all of these five-star reviews makes me question readers' low standards. This novel has a fair enough plot and an intriguing premise, but the writing is simply painful to slog through. Though the first third of the book focuses solely on the protagonist via his perspective, the latter portion of the book jumps around from one insignificant character's viewpoint to another's, dragging out a single day of action for chapter upon chapter of dry narrative. As for the narrative style, this is cliched fantasy at its worst, where Weeks relies upon the technique of telling a character's thoughts about a situation, then retelling them, then telling them once more with a few regurgitated cliches again, only to have the character question whether he should take a different approach. This is agonizingly slow, and for a book that sort of sells itself as action and intrigue in print, it delivers little of it.

What makes this even more painful to get through is the fact that there ARE plenty of wonderful works of fantasy that take their time to develop characters in a realistic fashion. I actually prefer that sort of book, styled after Tolkien's rich approach to characterization, but Weeks manages the character-driven novel no better than one based on action. If you want fantasy with a brain, this isn't it; try Joe Abercrombie, George R.R. Martin, or Patrick Rothfuss for a far greater reward.

I was somewhat suprised at people who 1 star'd this book saying the writing was bad. I have to strongly disagree. I do not think the writing style is poor, nor is its execution. What it is, is contemporary. Some people need sword and sorcery to have an "old" feel to it, and thus they did not give it a proper chance.

I believe what Brent Weeks has created here will become a very prominent selection of fantasy literature. Its a very well thought out plot, with many twists and turns (in a good way), and characters who are actually interesting. Its a long book series of long books, which is to be expected with a fantasy epic.

I won't give a summary because its done about 100 times in the reviews, but if you like Sword and Sorcery fantasy stories, buy this. Its a very well done book.

My only complaint is regarding the use of japanese names for weapons. I understand that in Weeks world, there is a country that is supposed to be asian. But for some reason seeing japanese words kind of threw me off. But that is a very small complaint about a very good book.

Wow! Wonderful start to an absolutely fascinating world. In a kingdom where the king really has little to no power but is too dumb to even realize it. Instead the government is controlled by a mafia type of ruling system that uses assassins as a primary means to solve their problems or advance in structure. Azoth is an 11 year old orphan boy with no family or background. He barely survives the streets and yet still gives what little he has to his only two friends. Horrible, horrible things happen to his friends and Azoth blames himself. He sacrifices himself to save others and so the story begins.

Amazing to realize that this is this author's first novel. It was superbly done. The world created and all its characters were unique and well-rounded. There was even a romance added. What I enjoyed the most about this book was the interaction between characters. Despite turmoil and devestating circumstances, to still believe in each other was actually very heartwarming. I thought this aspect was a nice contrast to all the hurt and death.

I would recommend this excellent book to any and all readers.

For me, this has been the first fantasy-fiction novel in about 10 years I have had trouble putting down. The characters are rich and their motivations believable. The story is a bit "formulaic" for Kyler who goes from nobody to ultimate assassin but you are so drawn in by his plight you hardly notice.

Life is hard, and Weeks has really captured that struggle in a way that makes you feel nothing but put compassion for even some of the less noble characters.

I could go on and on but this author and novel has the drama and realism of R.R. Martin with the action and sense of plot purpose that R.A. Salvatore brings to his works. The result is 600 pages that left me headed back to the book store to buy the rest of the triology and research his other works.

With no hesitation a five star novelist!

This was really a pretty good fantasy novel. I was pleasantly surprised, and I'll now be buying the next two books in the trilogy to see what happens next.

This story is Dark Fantasy and focuses on wetboys, which are assassins, and the main character is being tutored by the most famous wetboy in the city in Durzo Blint. The main character starts off in the Warrens, the poorest part of the city and is in a thieves type of guild, where most people end up who do not have a home. But the main charcter after being taken in by Blint gets his former life killed off and he now takes the name of Kylar. He poses as a petty noble and learns the way of being a wetboy. Now this is what the story seems to be, but it morphs into something much larger in the last third of the book that starts to make the story epic, and leaves open possabilities for the next book in the series.

- Great stuff here, I easily recommend it!

This book was fun, riveting, and well developed especially the characters. The characterization in this book was incredible. They were all deep and they all had convictions, morals, and personalities that made this book an amazing read. I loved the plot.

This book is about a kid named Azoth that is an orphan that lives in the Warrens or the slums of Cenaria. He will do anything to get out of there including becoming an assassins apprentice. Durzo is an assassin without conviction or at least that's what everyone thinks. He runs into Azoth and decides to take him as an apprentice. Then one da all hell breaks loose in Cenaria and a war inside the city has rendered everything in ruins and Azoth aka Kylar is the only one who can save it. As I said a great plot with a lot of twists and turns and a lot of well developed subplots.

This is the first book I read by Brent Weeks, and it's truly a journey through an action-packed world. The Magic system is intriguing but vague, and it definitely has that "this is the best side quest in an Elder Scrolls game" feel to it. There are tons of plot lines to follow, and sometimes it gets lost and confusing with the fantasy elements, but the action and character development are spot on. If you are looking to dive into complex characters in a fantasy world that is lower on Magic, this is a great read!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Azoth as an assassin in training is a little timid, and a bit helpless, but his mentor Blint makes up for that weakness strong will and unflinching adherence to the way of the wetboy (assassins with special powers). There is murder, mystery, magic, and more in this book, and I loved every word. What reviewers say on here is true though, at times the book will cut to a viewpoint that seems unimportant and boring, it does take a bit away from the flow of the story. I only minded this a few times, when we were transported to placed we haven't heard of and had to read about people we didn't know, that ended up not having a big part in the plot. That is definitely not a reason to not read this book. If you decide to read this book you are in for an epic journey of a boy who doesn't really want to be an assassin, who is forced to get over his old life and assume a new role. You will get to follow a boy who is eager to please his master, even when his master may seem to be on the wrong side of things. I can not wait to read the rest of this series, what a great start!

I enjoyed this book - it was good. But it was disappointingly amateur which kept it from being great.

The world building was good enough barely to give context to the main characters, but gave no detail about the countries to the "north" and "south". The foreigners were extremely 1-dimensional plot props. I always feel like foreign countries important enough to come wreak great evil in your country could at least be given a decent map and decent motivation (some true dimension would be even better).

The characters all suffered from a lack of ability to communicate - even with the reader. So while they were not quite 1-dimensional, they didn't get past 2 dimensions. We were told who they were like but they didn't show it themselves much. ---SPOILER -- Kylar was in love with Elene while admittedly knowing nothing about her. Blint didn't want to die, didn't want Roth to win but would kill Kylar for Roth but wouldn't kill Kylar, ... what? --- END SPOILER --- For characters that were all coincidentally "super intelligent," there were way too many times in the book where I thought why don't you just ... "insert easy, smart option that was totally missed here".

The magic was interesting but also underspecified. Like those movies with infinite rounds fired and no reloading scenes. We were never clear on the boundaries of the magic for any particular person or scene. This allowed magic to too often be a convenient prop that made the story building lazy.

The prose was full of holes and vastly underestimated the memory and intelligence of the user. ---- SPOILER -- "Oh no, my ka'kari is way over there" - but you called it to you 2 chapters ago. "Oh no, I'm in such pain but whoa my mind just cleared for no reason" ... Umm ok. "Ooops I don't want to get killed by wytches so I'll take a one way trip to a hole of cannibals where no one leaves or gets real food." said no one with sense, ever (except the super intelligent Logan). ---- END SPOILER ---

Overall entertaining but missing key elements and with those annoying plot jerks across plot holes that make no sense.

The flaws of this book are numerous. First and most obvious is the quality of prose, which was amateur. More than once, I had to reread a line to figure out what the author meant--not a good thing when the style is as straightforward and no-funny-business as in Way of Shadows. In addition to that, I could see a notable difference between the quality of writing in the first half of the book and the second. Beyond the technical sentence-stringing aspect of quality, there was also a great deal of "tell" as opposed to "show" happening. Irksome for reasons I'll get to in a bit.

Also a problem for me was the number of characters given viewpoints. As other reviewers have mentioned, this is particular annoying as a reader. Bottom line is that, in the thick of the action at the end of the book, I don't give a rip about some random woman on a boat from whom we only hear once. I really don't. And I'd prefer not to have the narratives of the main characters interrupted just so some random character off doing something can get his time on stage. To me, this is another sign of amateur or inexperienced work, since a writer ought to be able to tell the story, entire plot and all, without needing random viewpoints--especially not the amount Weeks employs.

Another issue I had was with the dialogue. While I want to give Weeks a huge high-five for creating dialogue that actually acknowledged how people change how they talk depending on whom they're talking to... I had trouble believing that the young kid characters would be talking like the young kid characters of our world today, complete with 'likes' and 'totally' and elongated 'soooo'. It threw me out of the story more than once.

Furthermore, the worldbuilding had me confused for pages and pages. I couldn't keep the names of countries and ethnicities straight, especially because there was no rhyme or reason to the naming of things. Here we have something with a Germanic name an then we have something with a French name and then an attempt at an Arabic name and we musn't for'get the' pre'sen'ce of' lots' of a'pos'tro'phes' ev'ery'where'.

And because I guess I'm just itching to get flame comments, I further took issue with the plot. It was going so splendidly, this slum kid apprenticed to the by-his-own-moral-compass assassin. Had a nice plot arc, Azoth becoming an assassin in more than just profession. It was juicy and wonderful in its simplicity, and that was what kept me reading after the first chapter (with which I was less than impressed.) But then, halfway or so through the book, Weeks turns on Epic Fantasy Mode and suddenly there are invading armies and Godkings and prophecies (ugh) and Capitalized Nouns and destiny and weapons of mass power and ancient heroes.

I've read all that crap before, two and a half dozen times or thereabouts. What I hadn't read was the story of this particular boy, Azoth, becoming an assassin in the apprenticeship to this madman Durzo Blint. That's what I wanted. That was what was so juicy to my mind. But I didn't get that, I got the epic-ized fantasy instead, with Weeks turning the route of many fantasy authors nowadays who somehow feel a compulsion to make everything grandiose and, well, epic. Which is not to imply that The Night Angels couldn't have become more epic-like, but in the first book? At the expensive of so much potential deliciousness? Sigh.

Now, before all the flames come: for all the novel's flaws, I kept reading. One reason is that I'm disinclined to let any book go unfinished. Another is that the author's enthusiasm and love of the story is evident (more than I can say for Sanderson and some of his books, which to my understanding were merely "practice" for others.) The main one is because the story is so damn good; I found the arc of Azoth becoming an assassin and the dynamic between him and Blint highly compelling. Perhaps that's why I'm so strongly opposed to the epicification of the story, as it came at the expensive of my favorite aspect.

I read somewhere that Weeks is regarded as having excellent characters. I both agree and disagree. Agree because I was invested in Azoth/Kylar and in Blint and in the relationship between them. Agree because I believed the other characters as well, and Weeks didn't merely assign traits and tropes in some formulaic fashion. Agree because given the writing style and the fast pace, it's amazing the amount of character that got packed in. Disagree because while the depth of character was there, it never came out and went to work. We never felt the depth of Blint or Kylar, just told at best. Made me sad, all that potential gone untapped just to get a plot-stuffed, epicified story.

In the end, my expectations for Way of Shadows were wrong. I was expecting a court intrigue with Kylar in the mix of things, the story of him and Blint, the sideplots worked in to add further depth, etc. I was disappointed when I got otherwise. But the potential of the characters and the enthusiasm with which Weeks writes give me hope for this new author. He could be a major contender for a ruling spot in fantasydom, if he gets his writing up to speed and starts choosing depth instead of shallow surface plots and cheap pacing tricks.

It took me quite a while to get into this story. In fact, I was almost halfway through the book before I decided to stick with it. I found Brent's writing style to be heavy-handed and if possible, overly descriptive at the beginning.

Once I got into the story, I enjoyed it although I spent a good deal of time frustrated with the majority of the characters. I also found it frustrating that it took almost the entire book to find out what the difference between a "wetboy" and an "assassin" was. To save you some time, a wetboy is an assassin with magical powers.

I will eventually get around to reading the others books in the series, but they aren't at the top of my list. (And don't even get me started on the cover, which is one of the worst that I have seen in some time!)

Night Angel: Way of the Shadows is a richly textured, multi-layered fantasy crowded with characters who have substance and cast shadows. It is a coming of age story played out against a backdrop of politics and magic, The first of Brent Weeks' epic story cycle, it compares favorably to George R. R. Martin's "Song of Fire and Ice" books in terms of complexity and world-building.
The relationship between an orphan "guild rat" and a master assassin named Durzo Blint is at the heart of the story, but both Durzo and the boy have lives that connect to a web of other people. Durzo warns his apprentice that "love is a noose," but by the time they meet, it's already too late for the boy to heed the warning.
This is an epic story filled with darkness and cruelty but also stuffed with terrific characters, great friendships, large themes and genuine emotion. The early chapters are especially grim, and almost unbearable at times, but also familiar to us--the fantastical extension of Dickens' version of poverty. This world is not sentimental and those who escape the pull of the Warrens are grateful for their reprieve.
The world-building here is outstanding, on a par with Frank Herbert's Dune or J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth, or the afore-mentioned George R. R. Martin's Seven Kingdoms. There is very real magic here, with "talents" that range across many different disciplines and mages that must hide their magic. There are places where a fan of the genre can almost identify the author's influences (because they're the classic books every fan has read) and he hits all the tropes and memes out there. Which is not a bad thing.
This is a "Chosen One" story, filled with humble beginnings and magical artifacts, and impossible loves, and politics both personal and grand. The chance for betrayal is everywhere and not necessarily because those doing the betraying are traitors
The characters here are richly dimensional and both men and women are heroes and villains. Some are even both. And unlike a lot of fantasies where even the magical creatures all seem to be white and blonde, there are characters with darker skins (like Jarl) and ambiguous sexuality. Women are just as likely to run things in this book as men, and no aspect of society is denied them.
There are families by birth and blood but also by necessity (like Jarl, Doll Girl, and Azoth). Durzo lives by the concept that "love is a noose" and yet he loves his apprentice and allows the king to manipulate him in order to protect his daughter.
The politics of the backdrop are convoluted in the way that actual politics are convoluted. The identity of the Shinga--the one who controls the criminal network that dominates the realm--is a true revelation and comes out of nowhere the way a good secret should.
Bad things happen to good people. Little children are mutilated, good women are murdered, people die and are hurt and are ruined. And yet, nothing feels gratuitous.
There is sex and there is death and there are magic swords and mad Godkings and well, just about everything you might want in a fantasy.
And when you're through--there are more books to read.

a friend originally sent me this trilogy and highly recommended it. As I got reading I couldn't put it down again. It was a steady read with characters that developed more and more as the books progressed. Book 1 is a great start to the twists and turns and occasional surprises that occur through this series. I strongly recommend anybody looking for a good fantasy read to pick up these novels and have a go. I really don't think you'll be disappointed as Brent is an excellent author.

At 11 years old Azoth has only ever known the poverty the warrens of Cenaria and his friends in the gang he lives with. All this is about to change when he decides that apprenticing himself to the famous wetboy Durzo Blint is the only way he can make a real life for himself, but to do so will require him to prove he is capable of the assassin's life.

Azoth proves to be a talented apprentice - and while his trade is horrible both Azoth and Durzo prove to be interesting and strangely likeable characters. Being the first book in a trilogy this is obviously a set up novel, but the author writes the story well enough that I kept picking up the book wanting to know what would happen next.

I'd heard on the grapevine that this is a good series and so far I'm glad I picked it up. I'm currently in the middle of the second book and so far the series has continued to hold it's quality and tension. If you like a good character driven fantasy with a nice dose of magic then this is recommended.

Cenaria may be governed by an unpopular king but it is ruled by corrupt and conniving guild leaders (the Sa'Kage). It has maintained its independence largely because it is not worth the trouble of invading. That is about to change as the Godking of Khalidor, its northern neighbor, turns his imperialistic eye upon the land in search of a magical relic (the mystical Ka'Kari). Against this backdrop, a destitute young guild rat is to become apprentice to the most feared and renowned wetboy (think magical assassin) in the city. A tale of friendship, murder, love, war, magic and betrayal unfolds at an often dizzying pace.

There is a lot to enjoy in "The Way of Shadows." Though an action fantasy (and it is one of the more action-packed stories I have ever read), it is equal parts mystery and court intrigue. It is an intelligent yarn. The main characters are circumspect and vividly rendered (admittedly a few characters are clichéd role players). I enjoyed the introspection and internal struggles of the characters, even if it crossed the threshold into melodrama on occasion. The world is complex and although the reader's knowledge is left purposefully vague it appears quite obvious that the author knows the world well and is quite sure where the story is going. Readers who want everything given them up front may be frustrated at times. Whole characters remain the merest of shadows through the end of this first book - even characters with pivotal roles. Cryptic prophecies drop hints of what has gone before and what is yet to come, but they are obscure. Little is spoon-fed the reader (as an avid fan of Ericson's Malazan series, I'll take your cryptic). The dialogue was frequently clever and humorous (as an example, when the renowned wetboy hesitates to relinquish his weapons before a meeting, a bodyguard says to him, "Why don't you pretend not to be a threat, and we'll pretend we're the reason.").

The book could not rise above three stars for me, however, for one primary reason: it felt too scripted. The most glaring example is in the story's use of magic. The power seems uniquely able to accomplish anything needed at a given time. You need three ships swallowed into the sea... done. A wytch (what is up with that spelling?) is going to kill you unless his horse kicks him... done. Suddenly there is no limitation and instead of watching a believable albeit fantastical story unfold I realize I am subject to the author's every whim. As a non-magical example, a promised letter holding key information (in)conveniently becomes illegible just before coming into our protagonist's hands. If the author is being purposefully vague and chooses not to reveal something, fine. Puzzles and mysteries can be entertaining. But if he claims he is about to reveal something and then rips it away, I feel cheated and resent it. Without some understood boundary the author is willing to submit to, it becomes an exercise in getting jerked around. Some readers may enjoy this... not me.

So though there was some very good work here, I am unsure if I will continue the series. I just don't trust the author to play straight with me.

Way of Shadows is a page turner for sure. The main characters are great but the others aren't very fleshed out. The plot is the best part of this book, though a few events feel extremely contrived. My biggest complaint is that the writing is salted with present day vernacular and sometimes comes across like a drunken sailor at the mall. I found myself thrown out of the story repeatedly by language that is out of character from the rest of the story. Worth reading since Way Of Shadows was a fun book but be warned that the style isn't going to be for everyone.

"The Way of Shadows" is fresh, furious, and fun to read. Which is totally surprising when you see what kind of planet the inhabitants of the book populate!

The main character starts life like Oliver Twist, meets his Fagan, and later takes over the business. The world depicted here is bleak and war-torn. Cities fight for more cities; criminals battle kings to take control of businesses and crime; the people live in houses made of cardboard that floats on a sea of rotten water.

We follow the main character (he goes through too many name changes to keep this review succinct) as he wends his way through the wretched world, growing up to become a trained assassin lacking only the key to unlock the magic that's inside him. The book takes a long time to get to the magic, and the magic is never really explained or believable. It just seems to come and go as needed. What makes this book shine are the fight scenes, tightly choreographed and scripted as though written by a team of Hollywood scriptwriters.

Weeks follows the traditional fantasy genre pitfall of having most every character in the beginning grow up to become a major force as an adult. That's what prevents me from giving this book a 5-star rating. I was expecting something more original from Weeks since the rest of the book is so good.

Part "The Lies of Locke Lamora," and part "The Furies of Calderon," this is well worth reading.

No matter how many there are, assassin books are great escapist fiction. The idea of unilaterally meting out death to fictional characters who (for the most part) deserve it without actually having to struggle with the obvious legal-ethical issues is one that seems to never wear out.

This book captures the gritty realities of a middle-age era fantasy world and balances it fairly well with the larger than life conditions (magic, advanced metallurgy and herbology, etc) necessary to support the genre. Other points in its favor is that it is suitably violent without being gratuitously so and it does not get too bogged down in long explanations regarding the reality the author is trying to create (how magic works, the history of the place, how the economy functions, the state of its education and science, etc).

The biggest downside is the angst-ridden introspection and hand-wringing most of the main characters indulge in to a huge degree. "Am I, is he, is she, a horrifying amoral villain or a selfless saint, I just can't figure it out..." or "Yes, I did these good things, but I did these horrible things too, how could anyone love me or forgive me, oh-oh-oh." You can't avoid some moral examining, as it is unavoidable (and even desirable) when dealing with a theme in which killing and crime play such an integral part. However, too much of a good thing... We all know killing is bad, but if we really wanted to be constantly beaten over the head with this fact we would not have bought a book in which the protagonist is an assassin.

Some of the action sequences are also rather long, but not to the point of being detrimental.

All in all a very good book that pretty much comes off as advertised (a huge virtue in and of itself).

Azoth wants to escape his life as a guild rat and decides being the apprentice to the best Wet Boy in the city is the only way to defeat his nemesis before he, or those he loves dear are killed. The best Wet Boy in the city has never taken an apprentice and he's not about to start now. Still, he gives Azoth a task, five days to kill his tormentor - can he do it?

I have a confession. I bought this book based on the cover, nothing else. Hadn't heard of Brent Weeks, knew nothing about the story, just happened to stumble across it leading up to Christmas.

Boy am I glad I did. Set in a decidedly fantasy stage this is a new author with the take on the assassin - sorry - Wet Boy story. This first book shows us the incredibly brutal life of being a guild rat and sometimes things can get just a bit too heavy when the dead bodies are lain out in the cold light of day.

Political intrigue doesn't hamper the story of this book as it can in others, and the machinations of the Kings and Queens keep things humming along quite nicely. A new life, banishment, magic and wizardry all make for a very engaging read and if you are after a taste of something new in Fantasy then I highly recommend you give The Way of Shadows a turn.

Recently I've decided to take the approach to fantasy that I took when I was 13: judge a book by its cover and by randomly opening it and checking the writing style. If both of these criteria are acceptable, then I would read it. I'm doing this now because I want to see what's new in the genre--and no, vampires are not new. What I want to see is the new worlds that authors are creating, worlds like Amanda Downum's or, in this case, Brent Weeks's. Recently I've only been following up recommendations from friends or reading fantasy that is well known to be good, and as a result I haven't investigated many new authors--a fact I hope to rectify. So, as I did with Downum, I saw Weeks's covers, saw they were all packaged together, and with a muttered "eh, what the hell," bought them.

The world is amazing. Weeks pays a lot of attention to the culture of his world, working it in both blatantly and subtly. Also, the book has a map! Yay maps! I can tell what is going on!

Weeks opens the story with Azoth, a 10-year-old street rat who relies on his child guild for survival. Within the guild he is closest to Doll Girl and Jarl, the former a small girl needing protection and the latter a fore-thinking youth who stores up money for a better life. When Rat, the guild leader, takes Jarl to be his sex-toy, Azoth tries his best to apprentice himself to Durzo Blint, the best "wetboy" in the city. (A wetboy is an assassin, but with magical powers in addition to the skill set you would expect any assassin to have.) Blint initially refuses Azoth, but ultimately gives him a choice: Kill Rat and become an apprentice wetboy, or continue living life as it is.

Azoth is loathe to kill Rat but does so once Doll Girl becomes a victim of Rat's cruelty. Having killed Rat, Azoth becomes Blint's apprentice and his training begins.

We follow Azoth's training rather sloppily: his daily chores, getting along with Blint, coming to terms with killing--all is your typical "becoming an assassin" montage. Chapters wizz by and Azoth becomes Kylar, who in turn rockets from childhood in one chapter to teenage-hood in another, abruptly resting as a 20-year-old a few chapters after that. It's a bit easy to tell that Weeks wanted a montage and was excited to get to the meat of the story. The abruptness doesn't necessarily take anything away from the story, but it certainly stands out.

Kylar, now an adult, delves into intrigue and love, both of which prove fatal. If there's one thing Weeks has proven himself to be good for, it's plot twists--actual plot twists that are well thought out and surprising. None of the twists are forced, and they are actually what saved the book for me, since I had started to lose interest around the middle. Fortunately it picked up again shortly thereafter, and I was able to sail through it to the end.

(NB I'm not going to describe the plot for the middle or the end of the book; the middle because it was less than interesting, and the end because I would give too much away.)

One thing that bothered me about the book was the coarseness of the writing. Swearwords, ill-placed sentences, gruesome sex innuendo; coarse is definitely the correct word for it. I understand that he was using the swearing, violence, and sex to get a point across, but I often felt that it was unnecessary. When it comes to brutal murders or rape scenes, I naturally assume that it "sucks to be that guy." I don't need it drawn out. As for the ill-placed sentences (interjections of sarcasm and thought, mostly), that's an issue that an editor should take care of.

Overall, well done. I'm currently reading the second book, and like it well enough thus far. I hope that the plot continues to thicken, and am excited to see where Kylar goes next.

I read a wide variety of books and gravitate to series and trilogies, buying the entire series at once. I have recently been on a fantasy kick that included Trudi Canavan's Black Magician's Trilogy and Karen Miller's Godspeaker Trilogy. I picked this book up because the name and cover were compelling. Upon reading the back cover I knew I had to give this trilogy a read.

I fell in love with this book by the fifth chapter. It is compelling with a touch of the essentials (magic, romance, intrigue, darker tone, and vengeance!) I would recommend this trilogy to anyone who has a slight interest in fantasy books. In fact, I have already passed my books along to my sister and she loves it as well!!! This is definitely a MUST READ!

Starts off great with a strong hook. You quickly feel attached to the protagonist and hate the antagonist. The climax is very long (100+ pages) which is good as it is exciting and a page-turner. Read the first two books and MAY read the final once I take a break and accept that the trilogy is not what I expected. Book one starts strong but as more elements are introduced it begins falling apart and getting silly. Book 2 has almost no action for first 200 pages. The magic and talent system is undeveloped. Was looking for a badass Assassins Creed crossed with Game of Thrones type series but once the talent and magic was introduced I lost interest. Often feels like author wrote entire series free-hand without drawing out a major plot for the story or characters, just wrote one word at a time. In the end, it is very little about assassinations but blurps of vengeance.

Had the series continued on the path it was for the first 100 pages it would have had been much more interesting to me.

I had a friend who once kept wondering why a band's first album would be so great and then the follow-up albums we be so mediocre. In the end, he decided that the band had spent many years working and re-working their best songs until they had started getting noticed and signed. I've never really been able to apply that philosphy to books before, because it seems that a writer's ability often gets better with each book. The author's also probably heard alot of feedback about what worked and what didn't work.

the store reviews led me to this book, and I was AMAZED at how good this was for a first book. Really. AMAZED. This is a fun book with alot more plot than your run-of-the-mill orphan becomes a hero.

Frankly I was turned off by the cover. I'd seen the cover for the Awakened Mage books and when I looked it up on the store it got pretty weak reviews. So I saw this book at the store and kept thinking it was the same book - or at least part of the same series. It wasn't until I looked closer did I realize that these are not related at all. A shame that the publisher picks similar covers for different author's work.

If you like Mistborn, you'll like this book. Both books touch on a great back story, a great magic system, and alot of action.

I had a blast reading this book and I highly recommend.

The Way of the Shadow surprised me in a good way. I expected an action-filled novel, and it didn't disappoint on that count. But most characters had sufficient depth to make the story much more compelling and harder to put away. It's difficult not to have sympathy for Skylar, and his master, Blint.

Some sections were a bit too rushed, and some actions by characters what more difficult to believe, but never to a point that it would really annoy me. The story has a good pace throughout, and a certain sense of tension is constantly in the air.

Weeks has built a largely believable world with some fascinating, dark and gritty magic that won't blow you away but surely will keep you engaged. I shall definitely pick up the sequel.

The first half of the book was great. Intriguing plot, good writing, rounded characters. But gradually it became cluttered with too many POVs, that popped up randomly for a scene or two, then disappeared for half of the book again, only to emerge again once they were completely forgotten.

Worse, in the last third or so the author tries very hard to deny everything he had established until then, for the sake of a 'twist'. It didn't work for me - in fact, in killed any interest in the story and the sequeil. For example, Blint. We see him think about Momma K - we see it from Blint's perspective, we see what he thinks/feels - only to find out, in the final "revelation" that it was not true at all, that it was in fact exact opposite. It changes Blint's motivation, undermines everything he did so far.

Blint changes from the accomplished and extremely skilled assassin (hate the word 'wetboy', it sounds as if he was wearing a nappy) to a mystic, legendary, ancient creature. This change was completely unnecessary and falls flat, as despite his legendary awesomeness, he simply gives up when a real problem appears. His apprentice tries to talk him into fighting the enemy, but he refuses. From the perspective of the character, it makes no sense; the decision is purely a deus-ex-machina, Blint has to fail to make room for the real hero of the trilogy. There is absolutely no doubt how the confrontation between Blint and Azoth/Kylar will end, which makes the final fight quite boring. And when the three magicians with the ancient legendary weapon joined the mess, I found myself skipping whole pages.

Another thing that made me lough out loud, when it wasn't supposed to was the sudden, immediate love between the new king and his new wife, and their fate. I am supposed to believe that the main villain, who enjoyed killing people, who was implied to be a cannibal, suddenly failed to slit someone's throat? Really?

It's bad writing. Bad narration. I'm glad I had it borrowed from the library and didn't actually waste my money on this.

I really loved this book. I've read a lot of fantasy, and I'd rate this up there with the best I've read. I don't want to spoil the plot, so I'll try to give a recommendation on what kind of book to expect, and what kind of reader will like it.

Where I'm coming from: I like most of Terry Goodkind and Robert Jordan. Also Brandon Sanderson, Feist, Eddings (all good main characters with special abilities and fast moving plots...for the most part). I do not like George RR Martin (too little magic, too many characters I didn't enjoy reading) or Tad Williams (worthless main character with no special abilities, lots of traveling descriptions).

This is an action packed book, but don't mistake that to mean there is no character development. There is, and plenty of it. You'll like this if you want a strong male lead character who has unique abilities, and is integral to the main plot. One thing to note though is that I didn't really like the first 30 pages, so try to soldier on to at least page 50 if you don't like the beginning (a lot of unfamiliar terms and unnecessary architecture descriptions thrown at you really fast, plus child abuse...yeah I know it sounds bad but it is worth it to keep reading).

I read this in 2 days and literally could not put it down when I wanted to do something else-- to the detriment of my health. Needless to say I'm looking forward to picking up the next one when I have a day or two to spare.

This was an excellent assassin/fantasy novel, and an engaging start to what I hope will be an equally engaging trilogy. The story deals with some very dark issues (slavery, homelessness, starvation, child abuse, prostitution, torture, murder, etc.) and, like George R. R. Martin, Weeks isn't afraid to kill off characters you've become attached to.

Personally, I usually *hate* that.

I'm a huge fan of romance novels (which, by definition of the genre, *have* to end happily ever after), and yet I was still a fan of this novel. It takes a talented author to get an overly empathetic and sentimental reader like myself to enjoy a book as dark and depressing as this... And Weeks does so by balancing out the darkness with rays of hope, bits of redemption, and love in all its forms.

The book is action-packed, full of political intrigue and moral dillemas, and I literally COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. I bought it Monday night and had to finish it before going to bed on Tuesday night. I highly recommend this novel if you're a fan of George R. R. Martin, Robin Hobb, or Lynn Flewelling, or just looking for a good fast-paced, adventurous, dark fantasy.

I'm pretty excited about you. Have been searching for a very long time for something good and sorry to say I ignored your books because I thought they might be crap (excuse me, sorry, just being realistic here). I have finished this book and only just started the second and not only are they ALL THREE NICE AND FREEKIN FAT, but if the next two are anything like this first one I will have some very enjoyable bookie nights in store for myself. This is good stuff, people. The best I've read in way too long a time. Thank you Mr. Weeks, for restoring my faith in fantasy and new authors. And yes, I read your acknowledgements and your afterward, you betcha baby-- I read it all. Will NOT pass up anything you write, nor should anyone else who enjoys fantasy or a great read. Now, let's see you in hardcover, that's the ticket. Nothing better than the smell of a new fat hardcover bookie with killer artwork on the front. Oh, and plenty of monsters, magic, and fantastic skill in making it all come alive. I love this stuff. I'll be waiting....

I've been interested to try reading some of Brent Weeks's work since he was suggested to me almost a year ago. I mentioned my interest in the author to my brother and his wife and for Christmas they got me the entire Night Angel trilogy and The Black Prism. This worried me a bit at first to have four new books by an author I wasn't sure I liked. My fears were quickly put to rest when I began this book.

The world of Midcyru is brilliantly created. It feels very real and believable, for a magical fantasy world. The characters (even the minor ones) are painted quite well and I found myself growing attached to almost all of the characters in the book, which is not something that usually happens. I think it's because Brent Weeks understands people in a way few authors do. When I'm reading, I feel like all of the characters are human. None of them are above basic human emotions and instinct and none of them are so minor as to be written without it.

I don't really have the time to write a lengthy review, but I'll suffice to say that I loved it and can't wait to continue the series later. If you're a fan of fantasy novels, I highly recommend this book.

After reading the glowing reviews here and then picking up the trilogy I was expecting a bit more than what this turned out to be: a formulaic coming of age fantasy novel. Azoth is a young orphan who is part of some kind of criminal orphan guild. How exactly the orphans make their money is never explained. They don't beg, sometimes they steal, sometimes they rob merchants, sometimes they crawl around in the mud under bars looking for coins, sometimes they hang out with a prostitute. Unfortunately the leader of the orphan guild rapes most of the orphans so it's not as idyllic a lifestyle as it sounds.

Anyway, Azoth is determined to escape from the orphan guild for the above-mentioned reasons, and he sees his way out by apprenticing himself to a powerful assassin--the most feared assassin in the city, Durzo Blint. Durzo Blint gives him a task before accepting him: he must kill the orphan-raper. Unfortunately Azoth takes too long to murder the orphan rapist and first his best friend then the younger girl he protects get brutally attacked. After "Doll Girl" gets cut up Azoth kills "Rat" and Durzo accepts him. Yes, these are really the characters' names.

The characters in this novel, aside from having horrible names, were mostly one dimensional. The king is weak and insipid. Logen (one of Azoth's friends) is strong and noble. Doll Girl is pure and sweet. Rat is evil. Azoth dithers and feels conflicted. The most interesting character is Durzo Blint, who is angry and bitter about his decision to allow his ex girlfriend to die in a fire. There are many, many minor characters who serve no apparent purpose and have no real identifying characteristics. You are guaranteed to forget who is who.

The action sequences in this novel are not very well described. Generally the main characters just appear and kill everyone with complete ease. It's the fantasy novel equivalent of a Batman comic where all the foes get laid out with a few scenes full of "POW" and "WHAM". The main characters are so powerful that the conflict becomes less interesting. There are also big logic gaps in the novel. For example, when we first meet Azoth and Doll Girl Azoth is 11 and Doll Girl is five. However, ten years later Azoth is 20 and Doll Girl is 17. There are other inconsistencies where there's no apparent way for a character to know what he does.

I managed to get through this novel but was not that impressed and do not plan to read the other two in the trilogy.

It was an entertaining read, almost a page turner.
However, I could not escape a feeling that although, all the right ingredients were present, such as mages, swords, bows, kings, etc., it didn't feel like a fantasy, more like an adventure story.
Too much of freely disposed magic. When you have so much of it, the magic looses its "magic" element. A very confusing history of the world. If not confusing then very little of it, so it is difficult to understand some things that happen because we don't understand the background of characters or history of places.
When Joe Abercrombie's the First Law trilogy was published, people were raving about how gritty and bloody it was. I agree, but The Way of Shadows is a lot worse or should I say "better"? A significant amount of flying intestines and spilled blood. There are a few heart wrenching moments intermeshed with love.
Not bad, all in all. A good read but as a fantasy it lacks some depth. Hopefully, it will improve in the next two books. I am willing to give the trilogy a chance.

On to the book two of the Night Angel trilogy, Shadow's Edge

There's not a whole lot I can say that other haven't already said. After going through page one of the reviews, the only thing I can add that others haven't said is the interest in characters. Now, some have said the characters are bad. That's not entirely true. It's just that 96% of characters are boring when they're compared to the main characters. If these people were in their own books, they would be good characters. But being in a book with people who are far more interesting than you is a massive handicap. Not to mention, some of the plot lines literally go nowhere which leaves you wondering what was the point of it being here at all. I'm currently half-way through the second book and my opinion about both is the same. If you read this series, focus on Azoth/Kylar, Logan, Durzo, and Momma K. They're the only people in this book that the plot revolves around. In the second book, focus on Kylar, Logan, and Vi.

A 677 page first novel usually makes me cringe, but this one came highly recommended so I gave it a try. I liked it so much that halfway through the first book I bought the entire the series. Weeks has crafted a truly believable world packed with rich, interesting characters. The heroes are great, but the villains are even better, their interplay absolutely riveting. The book has amazing pacing; despite its length this tome practically reads itself. The author's gritty style adds a layer of authenticity far beyond what one might expect given his limited experience; clearly the guy did his research. As a professional book reviewer who frequently gets paid to read self-published drivel, I'm tremendously impressed by this debut novel. Despite some rather adult themes and graphic violence I cannot recommend it highly enough. I can't wait to start on the next one. Overall it's a truly fantastic job!

Lawrence Kane
Author of Blinded by the Night, among other titles

Not a bad story, but I feel that borrows a lot of elements from the Mistborn series (young slumdog gets saved from a miserable life to be trained to fight while political instability between noble houses makes the city vulnerable to an invasion by outside forces). The magic is not terribly interesting or well-explained in this book, unlike in Weeks' Lightbringer series (which I would highly recommend reading).
The story is good enough for me to want to read the other books, which appear to be rated more highly among reviewers.

The author's debut trilogy starts with the story of a corrupt city with a mad ruler and a criminal organisation that really run the city. This organisation is kept in place by assassins of exceptional ability.
Into this mix we have a young man who is reluctantly accepted as an apprentice by the top assassin, not realising the sacrifice this will need as he puts his entire previous life behind him.
Year later the kingdom is in danger of collapse and it looks like master will be set against apprentice....
This is well written, thoughtful and moves at real pace. There are twists and turns as we race to the conclusion of a very satisfying novel. Excellent stuff.

Like so many others I picked up this book to pass the time waiting for GRRM to publish. Well, I'm over half-way through the second in this series and I LOVE IT! Yes, it even made me forget GRRM....

Weeks really knows how to write-- especially dialogue. The characters seem real, different, and interesting. There is so much going on in the book you can't get bored. Kylar/Azoth is a very human good guy who also just happens to be an assassin. Sound too weird to swallow? Well, it's not. Like Martin, Weeks knows how to develop characters who aren't always perfectly good or bad, but rather human, making us like them all the more. He also doesn't hesitate to snuff a character if need be.

I love the new world Weeks has created and feel like there are endless possibilities for future novels. (I'm really hoping he is writing more RIGHT NOW. This minute. More!)

So, my advice is to take the book slowly, there are only 3 of them, and they are hard to put down....

So I picked this book up because it was about assassins, and I love books about assassins (there are too few books about assassins, really in my opinion). I didn't really expect much more than a standard fantasy - if I was lucky.

Turns out I was very lucky indeed. I should have guessed, since he thanked me in the last paragraph of his acknowledgments, called me "quirky" and said we'd get along fine together. :) Brent Weeks is a terrific new talent, and if I had to choose an author he reminds me of, it would be George RR Martin. Intense depth in his world-building and characters, a head-spinning amount of intrigue and politics...and yeah. You're running to keep up the whole time you're reading, and you're loving every moment of it. Weeks isn't shy about killing characters either, nor is he afraid of putting them into some horrific situations. I had to read one particular section twice to be sure he was really doing that. As soon as I finish writing this review I'm buying the last two volumes of this trilogy.

I've always enjoyed fantasy books and all the various sub-genres, but lately I've been constantly disappointed. Everything blurred together, not a single book stood out with originality or managed to make me feel involved. I'd pick up a book...and set it down later only to find I really didn't care if I ever picked it up again. Brent Weeks broke the drought, he pulled me in, immersed me into the story and I gobbled it up greedily. Thankfully. Like a starved man given free reign at an all night buffet.

The Way of Shadows is the first of a trilogy, which you've probably already figured out by now. DO NOT BE PUT OFF BY THE PRINTED DESCRIPTIONS!!! I was, it's why it took me so long to finally say, eh...to h*ll with it, and read the blasted thing anyway. Thank goodness I did. The descriptions here on the store and other websites just don't do it justice. They make the book sound bland and boring. IT ISN'T.

It is a coming of age story, you've read those before. But Brent Weeks manages to combine realism and fantasy, the story literally sucks you in so that even though it's four o'clock in the morning and you have to get up in two hours...you still have to force yourself to put the book down. I didn't want to quit reading, and I can't wait to start the second book of the series.

Okay, now that I've raved about how great the book is, let me tell you a little what it's about while trying not to give away. It starts by showing us a very gritty, very real life of the common streetrat and the struggle our main character deals with just to survive. Desperate steps must be taken, but exactly what those steps are and what the consequences will be remain a mystery. It's masterfully weaved storytelling by Brent Weeks.

Think...ninjas mixed with fantasy-story assassins. There are parts of the book that brought to mind the Kushiel series, Robert Jordon's Wheel of Time series, and even Tolkien...no surprise given who Mr. Weeks names as his influences. There is romance, tragedy, action packed fighting sequences that never once went over my head or bored me with knit-picking details. There's every type of humor you can imagine and fantastic characters who seem -real- instead of drably shallow and two dimensional.

The point of view changes often, something not everyone enjoys, I know, although I loved it. It gave me a chance to get to know characters intimately, to understand the true depth of the plot and exactly what this or that action really entailed. What was a great tragedy for one character might be what allows another to even dare to hope and the reader is caught delightfully in the middle. I'm still not sure who the real villains or heroes in this series will prove to be and the mystery is wonderful.

It's complex, interesting, impressive, and a definite page-turner. There's something in here for everyone...mystery, intrigue, drama, romance, magic, and a new delightfully constructed world and culture. In the beginning, there is some brand new vocabulary and vague references that left me confused, but I eventually caught on. The sheer number of characters mentioned and involved can be daunting, but Mr. Weeks manages to pull them and their storylines together impressively well. It's also a long book, but I like that. The ending wasn't rushed, the story is given its proper due and unfolds at a constant, pleasant pace that never once left me bored.

It's worth reading. It's worth buying. Mr. Weeks...thank you. I'll be reading more and I can only hope the second book is as good as this one was.

-Kat-

coworker loaned me this book with his recommendation.

This is your typical assassin with a heart story. There is an element of magic thrown in, a dash of destiny, and just a hint of enduring love. It was interesting enough that I wanted to finish the book, but not interesting enough to want to read the sequels.

If you're a fan of this story type, I would recommend it. Just be warned that it's 645 pages.

storyline is intriguing, but Paul Boehmer is a TERRIBLE NARRATOR and really ruins the flow. i cannot see myself gettign thru 3 books with the struggle i am having with the first. too bad, Weeks tells a great story.

Week's while not being original is engaging. This point more than any others is what I look for in a book. So many fantasy stories fail at this point. They have an original idea and fail to make it stick. Week's approach is more interesting. He took a cliche and he made me care. The orphan boy. The wise, but bitter older figure. Evil kings and god kings. All are pretty much standard tropes in fantasy. But at no point did I lose interest. The action and the pacing of the book pull you along,and while there are touches of world building being attempted, it is whizzed past in favor of story.
I do enjoy world building, it makes the world richer, but the lack does not feel lacking. It feels purposeful.
For the younger reader, mid to late teens. Older people will likely roll their eyes.

I purchased the 3 in 1 trilogy and did not get off of the couch for 5 days. Brent Weeks will be on my must read list in the future. Great fast paced story about an orphan that begs to be apprenticed by the master deader Durzo Blint. First he must prove to Durzo that be will be willing and able to do a "kill". From there Kylar feels Durzo is a friend and a father and is trained for years. There are many characters in the story and each one is woven into the story beautifully. I think Brent Weeks set the bar for himself very high. Just hoping his other stories will be as good. If you like this genre it is similar to Scot Lynch in 'The Lies of Locke Lamora' and Patrick Rothfuss 'The Name of the Wind'.

This book was is really good! It has enough detail that it gave me a good feel for the main character but not so much that it was irritating. Sometimes that is a fine line to balance and Mr. Weeks did a great job.

The story line takes a number of unexpected twists and turns and there's just no way you can figure it out--just have to go along for the ride.

There are bits that are maybe not appropriate for teens, but it's not trashy which is pretty unusual these days. One of the best reads I've had in a while.

This one of the worst books I've ever read. I gave up 2/3 of the way in. Bad writing, bad characterization, thin plot....I could go on. I do not understand all the glowing reviews for this book. I wish I went with my first hunch (based on reading the beginning which was chock full of horrible writing) and skipped but I figured with all the 4 and 5 star reviews it must get better. It does not. Not even a little. Be warned.

This is a pretty good series. Weeks does a good job with character development, even though I often got tired of the Azoth/Kyler at times. The story line flows well and pulls the reader in. He does a good job of developing the antagonists to the point that the reader really dislikes them. The thing that I enjoyed most about the story was that just when I thought I had the story line figured out, the storyline or plotted changed direction or followed a line that I had not considered.

Overall, a good read that I would recommend to anyone.

This book has so much potential but fell short for me. The concepts and the ideas are amazing and pretty original but they are never explained fully or if they are, they are only partly so. An example of this is the term 'wetboy'. This term is introduced fairly early in the story but is never 100% explained. When it is explained, it's only in small chunks that cause you to want to go back and read what you already learned to see how it ties in with what you already know leaving you to realize that it doesnt tie in at all. You find out a short way into the book that the difference between an assassin and a wetboy is magic. Further on you find out each magic user has certain strengths in the magic but then you are never told who has what strengths.

Oh this story has magic in it? Only when there's a battle and never during common use or how it effects the daily lives of everyone. You also never learn its limitations or the rules of the magic itself. You also never find out exactly what the differences are between the different types of magic that seem to only exist commonly in other kingdoms. In the main setting, it almost seems like people only think about and remember magic exists only when it's right in front of their noses. It clearly wasn't thought through all the way. When I first read about the magic, I thought it was only knowledge held in certain closed circles and used in circumstances where normal methods would be impossible, but later you find out that there's an entire history of magic users and artifacts (some of these artifacts are crucial to the story but you're never told why they were made in the first place or what importance they hold now) and there's a complete other kingdom built on magic and ruled by a godking (who you can only assume is extremely magically powerful since its never explained).

All of these things aside, my biggest grief with this book are the characters. The only character I was ever made to care about throughout the story was the main one, Azoth. The story is told from the perspective of many characters but everytime the story is told through the eyes of someone else I was left wondering, why is this person or any of the people I just saw important? Even when I was introduced in the beginning to Jarl and doll girl who are the closest friends of Azoth at the start of the story, you're never told how they became loyal friends, why they remain friends, what does Azoth get out of their relationship, or why does Azoth feel responsible for them. You're expected to accept most situations, no matter how ridiculous it is that they arrived there, and be fine with it.

Most books that I have read that include instances that don't make much sense, I always feel that I can go back and see what I missed or sometimes I can simply overlook it. But when every page has something so obviously wrong with it, it makes it hard to get into the story completely without being snapped right back out of it to wonder how someone who just fell from a window in a tower was able to grab a ledge further down and then swing back up through the window and get back into the fray.

The funniest thing. I searched for a new book to read in the fantasy section and stumbled on this. Loved the cover, so bought the book on a whim. As I have a degree in English, I hated the fact that Brent Weeks over uses the verb "to be" - and probably could use a better editor. But the fact is that the story drew me in and I ended up buying the whole trilogy!

I don't know if I'll buy any of the other books that Brent writes, but I thoroughly enjoyed this series. Yes it is very violent - but hello, it's about assasains, so what do you expect?

I had heard many things about this trilogy and Brent Weeks, all of it good. I didn't Know if it was for me or not. Not always into the assassin thing. I checked out the audio book from my local library. I found myself listening to it at every chance I got. I was enthralled by the story and characters. So much so that I bought the trilogy with my X-mas gift card. I can't wait to read the rest of Kylar's story.

I like this book. Excellent dark beginning. Great character development. Storyline, A+. I think two things kept me from giving it a 5 star: (a) lack of explanation on the magic and (b) overly sensational. (A) I'm a skeptic by nature, so with fantasy, I really need some logic behind out magic works. This book doesn't give you any explanation. In fact, no history whatsoever. (B) Jumping up walls. Glued to ceilings. Invisible. Destroying 20 magicians with one swoop. You get the idea.

But overall, Brent is a great writer. You do enjoy the word flow and story.

Enjoy.

There is so much bad fantasy out there it is quite refreshing to read something new, something different, something fun, and something that is only going to be 3 books.

Based on reading the 1st book: the world is cool, the politics and history are interesting, and the magic is believable.

Most importantly there are great characters and unlike some books, bad things sometimes happen to these great characters.

George RR Martin brought life back to epic fantasy. I have been looking for good fantasy since, since now even Martin's last book disappointed. Rothfuss was great but who knows how long for his next book, Jordan's wheel of time dragged on and on, I could not get into Erikson, and Ruckley's Winterbirth was a near miss (it was almost good). Brent Weeks shows great potential and this series started off great.

Weeks puts the reader in a gritty, harsh, world and creates interesting characters you care about. There are some cool themes and ideas, and some great scenes (like Logan in the Maw with its sinew-chewing horrors). The books are fast-paced and have enough action to keep you entertained. The books steal a bit from existing works (like Hobb's Farseer Trilogy), but also contains enough originality to be unique.

One drawback is that it reads like Weeks kind of makes up magic as he goes along ("Oh so now Blint has that power too? Oh, that's possible in this world too hu?"). But his world and its magic become consistent and make sense by the end. It was also fairly predictable, and the main character's internal struggle got a little old.

But all-in-all I feel confident dark fantasy fans will like The Dark Angel. I enjoyed these books and missed the characters when I was done.

I bought the Night Angel Trilogy not knowing if it was any good. I was desperate for a book I figured I might as well buy all of them at once. I was not disappointed. The story is great and very involved. The characters are highly developed and the world is very well thought out.
The only reason I gave the book a 4 star rating is because there were parts that were pretty gruesome. I skipped paragraphs because some of the descriptions were just too much for me to read.
I would not recommend this for young kids or for the faint of heart, but it's a good story and I'm excited to read the others.

I went into this book expecting something different, namely drawn-out characters with depth. However, this book reads more like a video game without even a good backstory to keep it interesting. The characters are one-dimensional, the story flat and some of the twists are quite farfetched. But it is well-written in terms of language flow, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for an uncomplicated fantasy book with fast paced, well-written action scenes.

OK, bad timing for this book - hard on the heels of too many juvenile fantasies. See my reviews of Croggon, Goodkind, Kay, Paolini,Taylor, or references to Jordan, Feist, Brooks - just for a start...

Sure, this is a slight variation in the Teen fantasy genre (although `assassin fantasy' is probably a well established sub-genre by now). He's got plusses and minuses that I could go through according to this standard - as I have with the earlier ones I just listed - but this time I'm just going to have a more specific rant about one area of this book which is pretty common, almost definitive, of this sort of fantasy. Oddly it's not anything to do with the fantastical - dragons or magic swords or faux-medieval settings or whatever - it's more about a failed attempt to mix genres, deliberately taking some of the gloss off the classic/heroic/larger-than life model.

We are meant to see the raw human side of our (problematically stereotypically superlatively talented/dangerous/shrewd/magical etc.) characters and settings, portrayed not as mythic, but as hard-bitten realism. Some of these guys (particularly, say, Goodkind, Kay and Taylor) set themselves up as going beyond the shiny archetypes of Tolkien's noble settings, and dealing with the gritty, dark and complex aspects of violence and sexuality. They would see their characters as being more layered than merely heroic, acknowledging their inner demons, trauma and struggle. We don't just trot by the poor villagers or the slum area of the city, but are confronted with stench and homelessness and abuse.

This may not have to be bad - although I'm not sure. One problem is that if you keep the larger-than-life aspects - the peerless fighting skills, the eon shaking magical abilities or artefacts, dragons for goodness' sake - this is no longer our world. Some elements of our mundane world just make no sense and jar in these contexts: if you are the one true prince, blooded in battle, touched by the gods and the only hope to turn back the numberless hoards of chaos descending on the ancient citadel, you're not going to work to the same motivations as the high school kid who's reading about you. You don't have to to be: Gandalf is `realistic' to his world - only a demigod (or earth-walking angel) could do what he does, and while he feels fear, joy, pain, fatigue, he is different given his powers, experience and responsibilities. The more I read of the books I'm carping about here, the more I'm impressed by, say, LeGuin's Ged, a magician who starts like the characters in these books - headstrong, playing with his abilities to impress, unaware/unconcerned with how his actions affect others - but then radically changed by his experience, by the real fallout of his choices. He matures - not something that can be said of the eternal teenagers of the books I'm bitching about here. Wolfe and Gemmell deal with this differently - but ably - creating heroes that might not mature or change, but have legendary personalities as essential to their legendary feats and prowess as their washboard abs; if you dump an everyman character on a hero, he could never have become a hero. Yet, for example, despite years of gruelling training and phenomenal gifts, Azoth emerges with the same insecurities, motivations and reactions.

But putting aside the issue of whether you even can successfully mix earthy realism with fantasy realms, my real beef is that these guys can't actually do earthy realism. Different story in SF - where you can get an outstanding author like Iain Banks who can write a character based straight ahead novel like Espedair Street, then turn around, add his middle initial, and play with the galactic scope of the Culture series. And the `earthy' bits enrich the mind-bending stuff, such as the exploration of third and first world responsibility, seen in both genres (e.g.The Business and Inversions). One of the greatest improvements in SF since the early days is the (general) development of character depth. I'm sure there's stuff out there, but I have not seen the same trend in fantasy. Definitely not in this fantasy. To put any of these supposedly developed characters in a novel would be laughable. Likewise Tolkien's - but they were always designed to be larger than life. Rather than coming across as subtly flawed and more human, rather they're childish - in contexts (and at ages) where childishness is implausible. Similarly the mean streets: here Weeks' ludicrously over the top opening of blood and sexual abuse has much more in common with the nonsense of Harry Potter's exaggeratedly vile step-family (one of the weaker elements of that series) than with, say, Walter Mosley's gritty urban sketches. I'm not saying there aren't places that brutalise children, where life is cheap and abuse commonplace. But I am saying these authors haven't lived in them, don't really know anyone who has, and only imagine TV/movie stereotypes of prostitutes and criminals.

Generally the novels I've read that impress me, and here by `novel' I'm meaning character based books (as opposed to, say, horror/crime/pirate/whatever `novels'), are set in contexts that the authors are familiar with. So Lodge's people are academics, Hornby's central characters age with him and live in the UK, Eliot and Austen have much to say about marriage and class. Whereas the fantasies I most enjoy are deliberately in a different dimension to the everyday, consciously drawing on mythic realms, and containing characters that could rub shoulders with Arthur or Ulysses. I don't know if Banks is a musician, but I am, and the aforementioned `Espedair Street' moves very comfortably within the band setting. But for Weeks or Kay or Goodkind et. al. to think they can present insights into the effects of, say, sexual abuse, is just insulting.

I think part of the appeal to teenagers relates to comments I made relating to Eddings, unfavourably comparing him to Voight, for grooming his audience's ego in thinking a superficial view is a profound one. The Guardian Film Show review of `The Fault in our Stars' really resonated with what I'm getting at. The reviewers bridle at the film's claim that, `This is the truth' - supposedly going beyond cliché about the tragedy of dealing with cancer - while airbrushing, even accessorising this awful disease - which seems to barely even inconvenience our two A-list attractive leads: they're not fatigued, their lifestyles aren't shaped around extended, debilitating treatments, and they look just great!

So if going for truth, do some research, or draw on your genuine experience. If going for fantasy, you can leave that behind. Just don't hand me derivative cliché and call it truth.

This happens at a plot level as well as a character one. The point of no return for me (i.e. when I shut the book and moved on) was where supposedly mega-assassin Azoth tries to inconspicuously get into a private function, nobles only, using a constructed alias, to have access to his target. On the way in he even ducks back into his carriage briefly to avoid being recognised by a colleague. And then he has a massive public fight with one of the, say, top five celebrities in the city. I was waiting to read how this was something he carefully engineered as part of a clever strategy ... but straight after he's just decked the king-in-waiting in front of everyone ... he thinks something like, "OK, better get back to work now. I'll just go melt invisibly into some shadows." !! This is, and I never thought I'd have a chance to say this, even dumber than Tom Clancy having the President's son as the top secret assassin, doing a hit in the bathroom of a café where he's just drawn particular attention to himself by spilling drinks all over the place. There's other clangers too (e.g. apparently super-player Momma K has always known about Azoth's messianic importance, yet inexplicably left him in constant danger of dying from malnutrition or commonplace assault). There's Donaldson/Cherryh style tortured melodrama treating every conversation or interaction as climactic. There's annoying repetition of the terms `wetboy' and `deaders', mistakenly thinking they hold more currency and impact than `assassin' and `target'.

There's other books I should be reading.

The Way of Shadows is book one in Brent Week's Night Angel series. This was one of those books I picked from the bookstore at random. I'd never heard of Brent Weeks or the series. All I knew was it was sitting in the Sci Fi/ Fantasy section and was about an assassin. I bought the entire trilogy in one shot, hoping that I would at least find it mildly engaging because otherwise I had just wasted 20 bucks that I probably should have used for gas money. Not only was I pleasantly surprised, I was hooked.

Azoth is trying to eke out a meager existence as a street rat. His attention is focused on not getting beat into a bloody mess and trying to make sure he and his two friends don't starve to death on the stinking streets of the Warrens. But he has dreams beyond the slums. If he could land an apprenticeship with the most deadly assassin in Cenaria, Durzo Blint, then he would never have to fear anything ever again.

We watch as Azoth grows both in age and skill. He learns to navigate the seedy underbelly of his rotted homeland and, under Durzo's ruthless tutelage, he becomes an important piece in the dangerous game played by those with money and power. But Azoth, later given the alias Kylar, must learn the hard way that being a professional killer means forfeiting pieces of your humanity one by one.

A young boy born into destitution must face constant peril and rigorous training at the hands of a mysterious master so that he can come into his full and daunting potential, and be revealed later to actually be far more than his miserable beginnings suggest. Heard some variation of it before? Eragon, Rand al'Thor, Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, the list goes on. Not that there is anything wrong with it. There is a reason the bulk of the world knows at least a couple of those names. It's a story that works. However, despite the familiarity of the plot, Weeks throws in large helping of thrilling action, complex characters, and some raw emotions to make it feel new again.

The Way of Shadows is most definitely a dark fantasy. There is plenty of blood and graphic imagery. The setting is grimy and deplorable. The characters are flawed, some way more seriously than others. Weeks sets you down right in the middle of the dark alleys but he doesn't leave you without some light in the night. Through the muck, there is still honor and compassion. Kylar, who makes a very good living on murder, is a likable character. And he's by no means the only one.

There is a strong influence of George R. R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire in The Way of Shadows. The multiple point-of-view characters, the struggles of a kingdom in the midst an ineffectual leader, the best and worst of what it means to be human living side by side. It also means you might want to watch which character you get attached to. So far, the characters of the Night Angel series have not been subjected to the same high mortality rate as the Song of Ice and Fire, but I have a suspicion that this may charge.

I give The Way of Shadows an 4 out of 5. I docked a point for the semi-formulaic plot. I fully intend to read the rest of the series, which continues in Shadows Edge and concludes in Beyond the Shadows. I will also be on the lookout for more novels from Weeks who revealed in an interview that though the Night Angel trilogy is complete, we have not seen the last of Kylar and his world.

For those of you who have already enjoyed the Night Angel series, I would suggest you take a look at the previously mentioned series, Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin. The series its quite the epic fantasy and begins with A Game of Thrones.

"Assassination is an art, milord. And I am the city's most accomplished artist." - Durzo Blint, The Way of Shadows

Like so many others I picked up this book to pass the time waiting for GRRM to publish. Well, I'm over half-way through the second in this series and I LOVE IT! Yes, it even made me forget GRRM....

Weeks really knows how to write-- especially dialogue. The characters seem real, different, and interesting. There is so much going on in the book you can't get bored. Kylar/Azoth is a very human good guy who also just happens to be an assassin. Sound too weird to swallow? Well, it's not. Like Martin, Weeks knows how to develop characters who aren't always perfectly good or bad, but rather human, making us like them all the more. He also doesn't hesitate to snuff a character if need be.

I love the new world Weeks has created and feel like there are endless possibilities for future novels. (I'm really hoping he is writing more RIGHT NOW. This minute. More!)

So, my advice is to take the book slowly, there are only 3 of them, and they are hard to put down....

So I picked this book up because it was about assassins, and I love books about assassins (there are too few books about assassins, really in my opinion). I didn't really expect much more than a standard fantasy - if I was lucky.

Turns out I was very lucky indeed. I should have guessed, since he thanked me in the last paragraph of his acknowledgments, called me "quirky" and said we'd get along fine together. :) Brent Weeks is a terrific new talent, and if I had to choose an author he reminds me of, it would be George RR Martin. Intense depth in his world-building and characters, a head-spinning amount of intrigue and politics...and yeah. You're running to keep up the whole time you're reading, and you're loving every moment of it. Weeks isn't shy about killing characters either, nor is he afraid of putting them into some horrific situations. I had to read one particular section twice to be sure he was really doing that. As soon as I finish writing this review I'm buying the last two volumes of this trilogy.

I've always enjoyed fantasy books and all the various sub-genres, but lately I've been constantly disappointed. Everything blurred together, not a single book stood out with originality or managed to make me feel involved. I'd pick up a book...and set it down later only to find I really didn't care if I ever picked it up again. Brent Weeks broke the drought, he pulled me in, immersed me into the story and I gobbled it up greedily. Thankfully. Like a starved man given free reign at an all night buffet.

The Way of Shadows is the first of a trilogy, which you've probably already figured out by now. DO NOT BE PUT OFF BY THE PRINTED DESCRIPTIONS!!! I was, it's why it took me so long to finally say, eh...to h*ll with it, and read the blasted thing anyway. Thank goodness I did. The descriptions here on the store and other websites just don't do it justice. They make the book sound bland and boring. IT ISN'T.

It is a coming of age story, you've read those before. But Brent Weeks manages to combine realism and fantasy, the story literally sucks you in so that even though it's four o'clock in the morning and you have to get up in two hours...you still have to force yourself to put the book down. I didn't want to quit reading, and I can't wait to start the second book of the series.

Okay, now that I've raved about how great the book is, let me tell you a little what it's about while trying not to give away. It starts by showing us a very gritty, very real life of the common streetrat and the struggle our main character deals with just to survive. Desperate steps must be taken, but exactly what those steps are and what the consequences will be remain a mystery. It's masterfully weaved storytelling by Brent Weeks.

Think...ninjas mixed with fantasy-story assassins. There are parts of the book that brought to mind the Kushiel series, Robert Jordon's Wheel of Time series, and even Tolkien...no surprise given who Mr. Weeks names as his influences. There is romance, tragedy, action packed fighting sequences that never once went over my head or bored me with knit-picking details. There's every type of humor you can imagine and fantastic characters who seem -real- instead of drably shallow and two dimensional.

The point of view changes often, something not everyone enjoys, I know, although I loved it. It gave me a chance to get to know characters intimately, to understand the true depth of the plot and exactly what this or that action really entailed. What was a great tragedy for one character might be what allows another to even dare to hope and the reader is caught delightfully in the middle. I'm still not sure who the real villains or heroes in this series will prove to be and the mystery is wonderful.

It's complex, interesting, impressive, and a definite page-turner. There's something in here for everyone...mystery, intrigue, drama, romance, magic, and a new delightfully constructed world and culture. In the beginning, there is some brand new vocabulary and vague references that left me confused, but I eventually caught on. The sheer number of characters mentioned and involved can be daunting, but Mr. Weeks manages to pull them and their storylines together impressively well. It's also a long book, but I like that. The ending wasn't rushed, the story is given its proper due and unfolds at a constant, pleasant pace that never once left me bored.

It's worth reading. It's worth buying. Mr. Weeks...thank you. I'll be reading more and I can only hope the second book is as good as this one was.

-Kat-

coworker loaned me this book with his recommendation.

This is your typical assassin with a heart story. There is an element of magic thrown in, a dash of destiny, and just a hint of enduring love. It was interesting enough that I wanted to finish the book, but not interesting enough to want to read the sequels.

If you're a fan of this story type, I would recommend it. Just be warned that it's 645 pages.

storyline is intriguing, but Paul Boehmer is a TERRIBLE NARRATOR and really ruins the flow. i cannot see myself gettign thru 3 books with the struggle i am having with the first. too bad, Weeks tells a great story.

Week's while not being original is engaging. This point more than any others is what I look for in a book. So many fantasy stories fail at this point. They have an original idea and fail to make it stick. Week's approach is more interesting. He took a cliche and he made me care. The orphan boy. The wise, but bitter older figure. Evil kings and god kings. All are pretty much standard tropes in fantasy. But at no point did I lose interest. The action and the pacing of the book pull you along,and while there are touches of world building being attempted, it is whizzed past in favor of story.
I do enjoy world building, it makes the world richer, but the lack does not feel lacking. It feels purposeful.
For the younger reader, mid to late teens. Older people will likely roll their eyes.

I purchased the 3 in 1 trilogy and did not get off of the couch for 5 days. Brent Weeks will be on my must read list in the future. Great fast paced story about an orphan that begs to be apprenticed by the master deader Durzo Blint. First he must prove to Durzo that be will be willing and able to do a "kill". From there Kylar feels Durzo is a friend and a father and is trained for years. There are many characters in the story and each one is woven into the story beautifully. I think Brent Weeks set the bar for himself very high. Just hoping his other stories will be as good. If you like this genre it is similar to Scot Lynch in 'The Lies of Locke Lamora' and Patrick Rothfuss 'The Name of the Wind'.

This book was is really good! It has enough detail that it gave me a good feel for the main character but not so much that it was irritating. Sometimes that is a fine line to balance and Mr. Weeks did a great job.

The story line takes a number of unexpected twists and turns and there's just no way you can figure it out--just have to go along for the ride.

There are bits that are maybe not appropriate for teens, but it's not trashy which is pretty unusual these days. One of the best reads I've had in a while.

This one of the worst books I've ever read. I gave up 2/3 of the way in. Bad writing, bad characterization, thin plot....I could go on. I do not understand all the glowing reviews for this book. I wish I went with my first hunch (based on reading the beginning which was chock full of horrible writing) and skipped but I figured with all the 4 and 5 star reviews it must get better. It does not. Not even a little. Be warned.

This is a pretty good series. Weeks does a good job with character development, even though I often got tired of the Azoth/Kyler at times. The story line flows well and pulls the reader in. He does a good job of developing the antagonists to the point that the reader really dislikes them. The thing that I enjoyed most about the story was that just when I thought I had the story line figured out, the storyline or plotted changed direction or followed a line that I had not considered.

Overall, a good read that I would recommend to anyone.

This book has so much potential but fell short for me. The concepts and the ideas are amazing and pretty original but they are never explained fully or if they are, they are only partly so. An example of this is the term 'wetboy'. This term is introduced fairly early in the story but is never 100% explained. When it is explained, it's only in small chunks that cause you to want to go back and read what you already learned to see how it ties in with what you already know leaving you to realize that it doesnt tie in at all. You find out a short way into the book that the difference between an assassin and a wetboy is magic. Further on you find out each magic user has certain strengths in the magic but then you are never told who has what strengths.

Oh this story has magic in it? Only when there's a battle and never during common use or how it effects the daily lives of everyone. You also never learn its limitations or the rules of the magic itself. You also never find out exactly what the differences are between the different types of magic that seem to only exist commonly in other kingdoms. In the main setting, it almost seems like people only think about and remember magic exists only when it's right in front of their noses. It clearly wasn't thought through all the way. When I first read about the magic, I thought it was only knowledge held in certain closed circles and used in circumstances where normal methods would be impossible, but later you find out that there's an entire history of magic users and artifacts (some of these artifacts are crucial to the story but you're never told why they were made in the first place or what importance they hold now) and there's a complete other kingdom built on magic and ruled by a godking (who you can only assume is extremely magically powerful since its never explained).

All of these things aside, my biggest grief with this book are the characters. The only character I was ever made to care about throughout the story was the main one, Azoth. The story is told from the perspective of many characters but everytime the story is told through the eyes of someone else I was left wondering, why is this person or any of the people I just saw important? Even when I was introduced in the beginning to Jarl and doll girl who are the closest friends of Azoth at the start of the story, you're never told how they became loyal friends, why they remain friends, what does Azoth get out of their relationship, or why does Azoth feel responsible for them. You're expected to accept most situations, no matter how ridiculous it is that they arrived there, and be fine with it.

Most books that I have read that include instances that don't make much sense, I always feel that I can go back and see what I missed or sometimes I can simply overlook it. But when every page has something so obviously wrong with it, it makes it hard to get into the story completely without being snapped right back out of it to wonder how someone who just fell from a window in a tower was able to grab a ledge further down and then swing back up through the window and get back into the fray.

The funniest thing. I searched for a new book to read in the fantasy section and stumbled on this. Loved the cover, so bought the book on a whim. As I have a degree in English, I hated the fact that Brent Weeks over uses the verb "to be" - and probably could use a better editor. But the fact is that the story drew me in and I ended up buying the whole trilogy!

I don't know if I'll buy any of the other books that Brent writes, but I thoroughly enjoyed this series. Yes it is very violent - but hello, it's about assasains, so what do you expect?

I had heard many things about this trilogy and Brent Weeks, all of it good. I didn't Know if it was for me or not. Not always into the assassin thing. I checked out the audio book from my local library. I found myself listening to it at every chance I got. I was enthralled by the story and characters. So much so that I bought the trilogy with my X-mas gift card. I can't wait to read the rest of Kylar's story.

I like this book. Excellent dark beginning. Great character development. Storyline, A+. I think two things kept me from giving it a 5 star: (a) lack of explanation on the magic and (b) overly sensational. (A) I'm a skeptic by nature, so with fantasy, I really need some logic behind out magic works. This book doesn't give you any explanation. In fact, no history whatsoever. (B) Jumping up walls. Glued to ceilings. Invisible. Destroying 20 magicians with one swoop. You get the idea.

But overall, Brent is a great writer. You do enjoy the word flow and story.

Enjoy.

There is so much bad fantasy out there it is quite refreshing to read something new, something different, something fun, and something that is only going to be 3 books.

Based on reading the 1st book: the world is cool, the politics and history are interesting, and the magic is believable.

Most importantly there are great characters and unlike some books, bad things sometimes happen to these great characters.

George RR Martin brought life back to epic fantasy. I have been looking for good fantasy since, since now even Martin's last book disappointed. Rothfuss was great but who knows how long for his next book, Jordan's wheel of time dragged on and on, I could not get into Erikson, and Ruckley's Winterbirth was a near miss (it was almost good). Brent Weeks shows great potential and this series started off great.

Weeks puts the reader in a gritty, harsh, world and creates interesting characters you care about. There are some cool themes and ideas, and some great scenes (like Logan in the Maw with its sinew-chewing horrors). The books are fast-paced and have enough action to keep you entertained. The books steal a bit from existing works (like Hobb's Farseer Trilogy), but also contains enough originality to be unique.

One drawback is that it reads like Weeks kind of makes up magic as he goes along ("Oh so now Blint has that power too? Oh, that's possible in this world too hu?"). But his world and its magic become consistent and make sense by the end. It was also fairly predictable, and the main character's internal struggle got a little old.

But all-in-all I feel confident dark fantasy fans will like The Dark Angel. I enjoyed these books and missed the characters when I was done.

I bought the Night Angel Trilogy not knowing if it was any good. I was desperate for a book I figured I might as well buy all of them at once. I was not disappointed. The story is great and very involved. The characters are highly developed and the world is very well thought out.
The only reason I gave the book a 4 star rating is because there were parts that were pretty gruesome. I skipped paragraphs because some of the descriptions were just too much for me to read.
I would not recommend this for young kids or for the faint of heart, but it's a good story and I'm excited to read the others.

I went into this book expecting something different, namely drawn-out characters with depth. However, this book reads more like a video game without even a good backstory to keep it interesting. The characters are one-dimensional, the story flat and some of the twists are quite farfetched. But it is well-written in terms of language flow, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for an uncomplicated fantasy book with fast paced, well-written action scenes.

This book, and in fact the whole series, is an entertaining, quick read with witty dialogue and a good balance of dagger-in-the-dark assassin antics, subtle and interesting magics, and political/conversational intrigue. Azoth is a likeable hero you can easily become invested in, and Durzo is the right kind of mysterious and sarcastic. Very enjoyable read!

OK, bad timing for this book - hard on the heels of too many juvenile fantasies. See my reviews of Croggon, Goodkind, Kay, Paolini,Taylor, or references to Jordan, Feist, Brooks - just for a start...

Sure, this is a slight variation in the Teen fantasy genre (although `assassin fantasy' is probably a well established sub-genre by now). He's got plusses and minuses that I could go through according to this standard - as I have with the earlier ones I just listed - but this time I'm just going to have a more specific rant about one area of this book which is pretty common, almost definitive, of this sort of fantasy. Oddly it's not anything to do with the fantastical - dragons or magic swords or faux-medieval settings or whatever - it's more about a failed attempt to mix genres, deliberately taking some of the gloss off the classic/heroic/larger-than life model.

We are meant to see the raw human side of our (problematically stereotypically superlatively talented/dangerous/shrewd/magical etc.) characters and settings, portrayed not as mythic, but as hard-bitten realism. Some of these guys (particularly, say, Goodkind, Kay and Taylor) set themselves up as going beyond the shiny archetypes of Tolkien's noble settings, and dealing with the gritty, dark and complex aspects of violence and sexuality. They would see their characters as being more layered than merely heroic, acknowledging their inner demons, trauma and struggle. We don't just trot by the poor villagers or the slum area of the city, but are confronted with stench and homelessness and abuse.

This may not have to be bad - although I'm not sure. One problem is that if you keep the larger-than-life aspects - the peerless fighting skills, the eon shaking magical abilities or artefacts, dragons for goodness' sake - this is no longer our world. Some elements of our mundane world just make no sense and jar in these contexts: if you are the one true prince, blooded in battle, touched by the gods and the only hope to turn back the numberless hoards of chaos descending on the ancient citadel, you're not going to work to the same motivations as the high school kid who's reading about you. You don't have to to be: Gandalf is `realistic' to his world - only a demigod (or earth-walking angel) could do what he does, and while he feels fear, joy, pain, fatigue, he is different given his powers, experience and responsibilities. The more I read of the books I'm carping about here, the more I'm impressed by, say, LeGuin's Ged, a magician who starts like the characters in these books - headstrong, playing with his abilities to impress, unaware/unconcerned with how his actions affect others - but then radically changed by his experience, by the real fallout of his choices. He matures - not something that can be said of the eternal teenagers of the books I'm bitching about here. Wolfe and Gemmell deal with this differently - but ably - creating heroes that might not mature or change, but have legendary personalities as essential to their legendary feats and prowess as their washboard abs; if you dump an everyman character on a hero, he could never have become a hero. Yet, for example, despite years of gruelling training and phenomenal gifts, Azoth emerges with the same insecurities, motivations and reactions.

But putting aside the issue of whether you even can successfully mix earthy realism with fantasy realms, my real beef is that these guys can't actually do earthy realism. Different story in SF - where you can get an outstanding author like Iain Banks who can write a character based straight ahead novel like Espedair Street, then turn around, add his middle initial, and play with the galactic scope of the Culture series. And the `earthy' bits enrich the mind-bending stuff, such as the exploration of third and first world responsibility, seen in both genres (e.g.The Business and Inversions). One of the greatest improvements in SF since the early days is the (general) development of character depth. I'm sure there's stuff out there, but I have not seen the same trend in fantasy. Definitely not in this fantasy. To put any of these supposedly developed characters in a novel would be laughable. Likewise Tolkien's - but they were always designed to be larger than life. Rather than coming across as subtly flawed and more human, rather they're childish - in contexts (and at ages) where childishness is implausible. Similarly the mean streets: here Weeks' ludicrously over the top opening of blood and sexual abuse has much more in common with the nonsense of Harry Potter's exaggeratedly vile step-family (one of the weaker elements of that series) than with, say, Walter Mosley's gritty urban sketches. I'm not saying there aren't places that brutalise children, where life is cheap and abuse commonplace. But I am saying these authors haven't lived in them, don't really know anyone who has, and only imagine TV/movie stereotypes of prostitutes and criminals.

Generally the novels I've read that impress me, and here by `novel' I'm meaning character based books (as opposed to, say, horror/crime/pirate/whatever `novels'), are set in contexts that the authors are familiar with. So Lodge's people are academics, Hornby's central characters age with him and live in the UK, Eliot and Austen have much to say about marriage and class. Whereas the fantasies I most enjoy are deliberately in a different dimension to the everyday, consciously drawing on mythic realms, and containing characters that could rub shoulders with Arthur or Ulysses. I don't know if Banks is a musician, but I am, and the aforementioned `Espedair Street' moves very comfortably within the band setting. But for Weeks or Kay or Goodkind et. al. to think they can present insights into the effects of, say, sexual abuse, is just insulting.

I think part of the appeal to teenagers relates to comments I made relating to Eddings, unfavourably comparing him to Voight, for grooming his audience's ego in thinking a superficial view is a profound one. The Guardian Film Show review of `The Fault in our Stars' really resonated with what I'm getting at. The reviewers bridle at the film's claim that, `This is the truth' - supposedly going beyond cliché about the tragedy of dealing with cancer - while airbrushing, even accessorising this awful disease - which seems to barely even inconvenience our two A-list attractive leads: they're not fatigued, their lifestyles aren't shaped around extended, debilitating treatments, and they look just great!

So if going for truth, do some research, or draw on your genuine experience. If going for fantasy, you can leave that behind. Just don't hand me derivative cliché and call it truth.

This happens at a plot level as well as a character one. The point of no return for me (i.e. when I shut the book and moved on) was where supposedly mega-assassin Azoth tries to inconspicuously get into a private function, nobles only, using a constructed alias, to have access to his target. On the way in he even ducks back into his carriage briefly to avoid being recognised by a colleague. And then he has a massive public fight with one of the, say, top five celebrities in the city. I was waiting to read how this was something he carefully engineered as part of a clever strategy ... but straight after he's just decked the king-in-waiting in front of everyone ... he thinks something like, "OK, better get back to work now. I'll just go melt invisibly into some shadows." !! This is, and I never thought I'd have a chance to say this, even dumber than Tom Clancy having the President's son as the top secret assassin, doing a hit in the bathroom of a café where he's just drawn particular attention to himself by spilling drinks all over the place. There's other clangers too (e.g. apparently super-player Momma K has always known about Azoth's messianic importance, yet inexplicably left him in constant danger of dying from malnutrition or commonplace assault). There's Donaldson/Cherryh style tortured melodrama treating every conversation or interaction as climactic. There's annoying repetition of the terms `wetboy' and `deaders', mistakenly thinking they hold more currency and impact than `assassin' and `target'.

There's other books I should be reading.

The Way of Shadows is book one in Brent Week's Night Angel series. This was one of those books I picked from the bookstore at random. I'd never heard of Brent Weeks or the series. All I knew was it was sitting in the Sci Fi/ Fantasy section and was about an assassin. I bought the entire trilogy in one shot, hoping that I would at least find it mildly engaging because otherwise I had just wasted 20 bucks that I probably should have used for gas money. Not only was I pleasantly surprised, I was hooked.

Azoth is trying to eke out a meager existence as a street rat. His attention is focused on not getting beat into a bloody mess and trying to make sure he and his two friends don't starve to death on the stinking streets of the Warrens. But he has dreams beyond the slums. If he could land an apprenticeship with the most deadly assassin in Cenaria, Durzo Blint, then he would never have to fear anything ever again.

We watch as Azoth grows both in age and skill. He learns to navigate the seedy underbelly of his rotted homeland and, under Durzo's ruthless tutelage, he becomes an important piece in the dangerous game played by those with money and power. But Azoth, later given the alias Kylar, must learn the hard way that being a professional killer means forfeiting pieces of your humanity one by one.

A young boy born into destitution must face constant peril and rigorous training at the hands of a mysterious master so that he can come into his full and daunting potential, and be revealed later to actually be far more than his miserable beginnings suggest. Heard some variation of it before? Eragon, Rand al'Thor, Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, the list goes on. Not that there is anything wrong with it. There is a reason the bulk of the world knows at least a couple of those names. It's a story that works. However, despite the familiarity of the plot, Weeks throws in large helping of thrilling action, complex characters, and some raw emotions to make it feel new again.

The Way of Shadows is most definitely a dark fantasy. There is plenty of blood and graphic imagery. The setting is grimy and deplorable. The characters are flawed, some way more seriously than others. Weeks sets you down right in the middle of the dark alleys but he doesn't leave you without some light in the night. Through the muck, there is still honor and compassion. Kylar, who makes a very good living on murder, is a likable character. And he's by no means the only one.

There is a strong influence of George R. R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire in The Way of Shadows. The multiple point-of-view characters, the struggles of a kingdom in the midst an ineffectual leader, the best and worst of what it means to be human living side by side. It also means you might want to watch which character you get attached to. So far, the characters of the Night Angel series have not been subjected to the same high mortality rate as the Song of Ice and Fire, but I have a suspicion that this may charge.

I give The Way of Shadows an 4 out of 5. I docked a point for the semi-formulaic plot. I fully intend to read the rest of the series, which continues in Shadows Edge and concludes in Beyond the Shadows. I will also be on the lookout for more novels from Weeks who revealed in an interview that though the Night Angel trilogy is complete, we have not seen the last of Kylar and his world.

For those of you who have already enjoyed the Night Angel series, I would suggest you take a look at the previously mentioned series, Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin. The series its quite the epic fantasy and begins with A Game of Thrones.

"Assassination is an art, milord. And I am the city's most accomplished artist." - Durzo Blint, The Way of Shadows

This was a wonderful read if you can be patient while parts of the story get set up. I get a Game of Thrones vibe, add magic, and follow an Arya-like character. I enjoyed the foil of the various characters and that each battle isn't just miraculously won. It suggests complexity and a storyline that isn't entirely predictable. Darkness, intrigue, and worthy villains.

This series is very good, but a few pointers...

For the first few pages, you could be fooled into thinking this is a YA (young adults) book. The cover art looks YA, but it's mainly the fact Brent Weeks writes in modern prose, he does not use ye olde english. Also the names of characters are horrible. For example, a madam in the seedy quarter of the city is called 'Momma K'. The rest of the character naming does not get much better and seems out of place in a fantasy world.

This trilogy has gotten no respect or love from the fantasy blogging world, and I suspect for the above reasons, a false perception this is a lightweight YA book.

Do not let that put you off. In fact Brent Weeks is one of the most intelligent authors out there and this series is an absolute blast. This is quite different to your normal fantasy series. There is no world building whatsover, the focus is on characters and story. There is no intricate descriptions of the cities or clothes and customs. It is all about story, emotion and fast paced action.

The inaugural novel "The Way of Shadows" introduces a child beggar Azoth and his legendary idol, the wetboy (a Talented assassin) Durzo Blint, in "The Night Angel Trilogy", an exciting but cliché fantasy. A young Duke Logan Gyre later becomes a character of interest, providing three individuals to follow with damaged characters in a realm the author obviously has great passionate. Unfortunately the mysterious magic is not fully explained. And what's up with the cheesy cover art?

The confusing world has unclear political agendas between the assorted kingdoms, the specific reasons for the animosities aren't fully clarified though the Duke and his father deal with the political atmosphere. The editing gets pretty poor, shortly into Chapter 44 the author uses the word "that" seven times in a span of three sentences, which greatly detracts from the reading flow. Similarly the timeline abruptly jumps, the next chapter is several months after the prior one without a break in the novel such as a "Part 2" or "6 months later". The electrifying assassinations and combats contrast badly with the suddenly overwhelmingly powerful characters involved in the final battle.

A better detailed map of the significant terrains and comprehensive appendix including the many characters would have been useful.

Thank you.

here is a reason for why fantasy is my one true love, I may cheat on fantasy but I always come back and I love it the most. This book I got from googling "fantasy authors who write like Raymond E Feist and Robert Jordan". This series I was told I would like if I liked Feist and Jordan. The truth, I did like it, and I can see Feist in it. So thank you google.

This is not a pretty book, right there in the beginning the harsh reality of street kids is shown and it is horrible beyond imagining. Kids hurting kids. Azoth is a thief grown up in the slum and who knows he has no real future. One night he encounters the mysterious Durzo Blint, the greatest assassin, or wetboys as these masters are called. He sees a way out and after some events he seeks Durzo out and he is given an ultimatum. He begins his training and Azoth dies and he severs all ties with his past. Even with Doll Girl who he only wants to see saved. As Kylar Stern, a noble, he has a new path.

As I said, the beginning is harsh and raw. It sets the tone, because he does kill people in later life. And he is not some nice assassin who only kills the wicked. He kills those he is told to kill, and if someone innocent crosses his path that person dies too. Still I have to like Kylar, he is a hero, the way he wants to save poor Doll Girl, and the rest of the gang. And he is likeable, more so than his master Durzo. But then he has been a killer for a much longer time.

This is the kind of fantasy that I enjoy, magic, darkness, war, a lot going on. Yes perfect for me. Epic fantasy that left me wanting more. The kingdom is in turmoil and to the north there is a shadow, a godking who wants more. Which means war, and political intrigue and assassinations.

Weeks has created a nice world where cultures has mixed and in the city where this takes place 9 rule the underworld, and I like his creation. The wetboys are also interesting because they all have talents, magic.

The first part of thsi book was amazing and I was swept away, the second part wasn't as good. Do not get me wrong, it was still good, just not that I can't stop, go away all who wants to disturb me amazing. I think it might have been because I got a bit upset with a certain person who accused Kylar of something he didn't do. And because the second part mostly took place around one fatal night. While the rest of the book moved along. Still, yes the whole book was great anyway. Don't think otherwise.

Read one review where he was called a sadistic genius, but let's not go all George RR Martin on him now, I didn't see him like that.Yes he kills people, but not everyone like the king of character massacres. But he does dare to kill off some people in this book, that is true.

Great fantasy, how I love amazing fantasy, and wonderful characters. I want to read more by him! I wish I could convert everyone to fantasy readers, there is truly no better genre to read. Fantasy rocks my socks off, yes go read this series.

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner: Fantasy :D
Reason for Reading: My own copy.
Final thoughts: I just came back from the bookstore, I had them order me book 2. That pretty much sums it up.

This book pulls you into the series very effectively, it's exciting and has great pacing and style. I must admit that the series is more visceral than a lot of fantasy I have read. I wasn't really bothered too much by it though. What did bother me was the apparent lackadaisical attitude of the editorial department. There were more typos than I have ever seen in a series and several types I had wtf moments where I was thinking, Wait, wtf does that mean and what is going on?!@$@#!@" The only way to get past this was just to keep reading and see what happened next to understand. Besides these mistakes, the author has shown himself to be the new bastion of creativity in the published fantasy world. His characters are dynamic and relatable, his story believable and thrilling, and his writing style gripping. However, the magic system is somewhat lacking and he can't seem to decide who the bad guy is and by the third book the ending just kind of seems tacked on to a 2000 page saga.

I bought this book, because I did what i usually do with a book, which is read the first few pages, whilst in the store. From that i can usually tell if i'll enjoy it or not. I was hooked in by the believable and gritty first chapter, in which you are thrown into young Azoth's life as a guild rat.
Azoth is likeable, albeit a bit foolishly and unrealistically chivalrous. However, opposing some people's opinions that he is cliche and forgetable, i thought Azoth's journey interesting, relatable and emotional. On the topic of him being cliche- a poor boy who is a goody-goody becoming a hero, who would want to read about an unlikeable nobody who stays poor. The plot is good, and it is the start that holds the most promise, although it is pretty clutered.

This brings me onto the major flaw in the book, which prevents it from being a fast-paced, tight and elegant novel. The problem is, that Weeks tries to show the reader, in-depth political scenes and side-plots, which seem on the whole, needless and only damages the flow of the story. The many, many side characters, with names you can't even begin to remember, seem to have no relevance, other than to try and show the complex political side of story, and Week's fantasy world, however, all they do leave the reader in bewilderment, and I found myself often having to flick back pages to see if i'd missed something, or reading over scenes, as they were not memorable enough. Some of these little side-scenes are interesting, but on the whole the characters in them have little depth, so therefore the reader doesnt really care if (when) something happens to them, as you have no real understanding of their purpose in the first place.

It seems Weeks has tried far too hard to encompass these scenes in an attempt to explain to the reader, the back-story of his world, and make it appear believable, but he crammed so much needless characters and scenes in there, that it all seems a bit disorganized, as your thrown from one perspective to another, with no real idea who the new character is, or what their purpose is. You want to be shown more of Azoth, his motives, his feelings, his regrets, his progression, rather than the other cardboard people.

So, overall it has great potential, and the main reason it warrants praise is the likeability of characters like Azoth and Doll girl, or Blint, but it lacks the refinement and tightness that would have made it a flowing story.

I know a book is good when I find myself unable to put it down. Few books compel me to read them like that, and this was one of them. The writer creates an interesting world for the reader. Although there are similarities to other fantasy settings, I found this one to be original and very enjoyable.

However, the author has injected some dark and controversial themes into the plot. Prostitution, child abuse, sexual molestation, and murder are commonly referenced and sometimes explicitly detailed throughout this book and the sequels. This is not done gratuitously, but rather is done to develop characters and engage readers. What else would you expect from a book about an assassin?

For fantasy lovers, don't hesitate to pick this book up. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.

I love great books about assassins and this one is no exception. Book one of the Night Angel Trilogy,The Way of Shadows had wonderful characters, a great setting, and a storyline that kept me glued to my chair for the duration of the book.
Azoth(Kylar) is the main character, who goes from guild rat to assassin in this action packed novel. Trained as a master assassin by the best in the game, Durzo Blint, Azoth must give up everything to accomplish the unexpected.
The fight scenes are brilliantly handled and smooth, fitting in with the dialogue. Mr. Weeks does a wondeful job with the flow of the book, which in my opinion, is key to a good strong story. I really can't wait for the next one.

I use 3 Stars for some what better than average for the genre.

This has a good job of world building as the author doesn't stop and explain things they just happen so we have characters appearing out of no where and entering the story with nominal introduction. Nicely drawn characters but not really compelling for me. The dialogue starts kind of stiff and stilted but improves through the book. But there are too many POV and they switch too often. The plot lines are rather linear and coincidental with this being a first book of a trilogy. Frankly IMHO it isn't another Lord Of The Rings. The characters are not compelling enough nor the plot coherent enough.

Overall a decent read and interesting.

By the time I'm writing this review, I'm already well into book 2, but I still felt the need to go back and review this one!

After a long time of fighting my way through unoriginal fantasy, The Way of Shadows definitely stood out. Not only is the world unique and incredibly well-developed, the plot keeps twisting in a way that makes it impossible to know quite what will happen next.
The only reason for this book getting 4 stars from me, instead of 5, is that it actually got a little too complicated at times. It's the kind of book you have to finish in one sitting, because it's way too easy to feel lost if you put it down for too long! There's a pure overflood of characters(Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, since all of them are deep and interesting) and on top of the rather complicated plot, it got hard to keep track of everyone. It's the first time in years I have had complains about too many great characters!

To put it short: The Way of Shadows is an excellent and unique read, but not an easy one! Your mind WILL be put to work here.

To start with, I read a lot of books 2-5 a week. This series is a great series. Between myself and my sons, we have read these books so much, the bindings are starting to wear out. It has a great plot, great characters, and a seemingly disconnected story all blends in and ties up neatly. All I can say is buy the first book and give it a read. Brent will give you one hell of a ride. Last thing, read the acknowledgement at the end. You know you want to now.

The Way of Shadows is a good book. It's no feat of literary mastery, but it's an entertaining ride through a new and exciting universe that effectively introduces the reader to Kylar Stern and the world of Midcyru.

Brent Weeks has a fantastic imagination and his inventiveness is apparent from early on in the book. Veteran fantasy readers will notice fairly soon that this is not a "knock-off" fantasy book that steals another author's world and writes a new plot within it. There are a lot of really cool concepts here that are explored for the first time in a unique way.

The action and plot construction are also first-rate. Weeks clearly had a vision for this epic tale that develops on course from the first page of Book 1 through the last page of Book 3. The story never meanders aimlessly or wastes time with any kind of upholstery.

The character development is above average, especially after the main characters come of age in the first book. There's a little bit of "fast forward development" that goes on before that point but its easily forgiven.

There are also some fairly aggravating flaws that come out in Weeks's writing - first, he's just average at writing dialogue. There are a few "emotional" moments in the Way of Shadows where some statements are unrealistic or cheesy. This seems to get better, as does Weeks' writing in genereal, in the later books.

Second, and by far the most annoying, is that the author has a habit of lapsing into 20th century syntax and vernacular for a sentence every hundred pages or so. It doesn't happen very often, but when it does it literally makes me want to put the book down. Thankfully, as the series goes on these incidents occur less and less, and it only happens once or twice in Book 3.

Third, there are times when characters draw conclusions, solve mysteries, and take action to solve problems without any sort of background development (e.g., some secret power will make itself available just as it becomes necessary, but it hasn't been addressed at any point prior to that moment). It's not that the action is completely implausible, it's that it wasn't addressed before. This is more an editing complaint than anything else.

Ultimately, all three of these issues could have been solved if the book had a better editor. They aren't deal-breakers either.

I say all these things while feeling that The Way of Shadows is really a very good start to a series that is one of the best epic fantasy tales around. It certainly has its flaws, but its a great, great story that demands to be read. Each book in the series is better than the last, and taken as a unit they are supremely entertaining.

If I could I'd give this book a 2 1/2 star rating, nestled right in the middle. I was torn between the 2 star rating and the 3 star rating. I'm confused whether to recommend it or not. It's certainly not the worst book I've ever read, but neither is it great. It starts off with nice potential, but it never exactly...gets there. I'll explain.

***SPOILERS***

1) The characters. Some have promise. They each started out with an interesting characteristic. Durzo isn't your dashing hero on a white horse, though he's a main character and clearly plagued with moral issues. Logan Gyre has a quick temper that rends him looking a little foolish. Jarl is a victim of child sexual abuse and becomes a homosexual manwhore. Momma K is the "top courtesan", though she's older and well passed her prime. Doll Girl is such named for her beauty, but marked with ugly scars early on in her childhood. Promises. What's bad is these promises aren't fulfilled. You learn so little about them despite the book being over 600 pages. You don't get a sense of them being "real people". They're simply there and their unique characteristics are never expanded on, aside from Durzo, but even that is mostly him moping.

Another qualm with the characters are the females. Remember Doll Girl with the ugly scars? She's still referenced as being beautiful numerous times throughout the book. There's even a point after she's older where the couple she works for has constructed a painting of her naked in ecstasy, which they have hanging in the hall of their home (eh?). Not to mention she seems to be in constant peril of being raped. She's not the only one. Every female character has large breasts or great cleavage. In fact, I think their breasts are mentioned more often than anything else. The breasts are even mentioned when the man in question is in danger. At one point, Kylar, the main character, is being attacked by a female assassin (or female wetboy). Her knife is to his neck, but she doesn't kill him nor does he try to fight for his life. No, instead they go into a flirty discussion. This has left me wondering, being a woman, do men really think of sex even at the point of a painful death?

Not only are the female characters all about sex, they're weepy and overly emotional. All of them either break into tears, break into a sudden fit of anger, or both. Not one of them have any real importance to the plot at all, though Momma K started out that way...only to disappear throughout the last half or so of the book.

2) The magic. When magic is first explained, or "Talent" as they call it in the book, it's explained as having limitations and being different for each person. I'm not a fan of magic in fantasy because a lot of the times it's god-like, but I enjoy it if it's done well. This intrigued me. What also excited me was the fact Kylar was "broken" in his own Talent and couldn't use it. I'm all for heroes with flaws who aren't decked out and need to find other means to go about doing things. I couldn't wait to see how it played out.

Again, promises. As far as I can see with what magic comes into play, there's no difference for anyone. They're all sprouting fireballs and numerous spells depending on what situation they need it for. How? Who knows. The "limitations" would be they use up their energy...which appears to be continuous itself. Kylar then found a way to break through to his Talent and in doing so, he became uber powerful. So powerful he even dies...and comes back, completely healed from all wounds. Ouch.

3) The story. A childish king. A ruling council behind the shadows. A distant kingdom planning to come and overtake the throne. Nobles plotting among themselves and against one another. Murder. Backstabbing. Political intrigue. It had the ingredients for the recipe, but that's as far as it got.

It's fast-paced. A lot of information you gather is from characters breaking into sudden explanations. The writing itself is pretty bad and makes certain things come across awkwardly. For instance, Kylar is being attacked in his room. He calls out for help. The count enters, ready to defend him, but the attacker gets free by jumping out the window. That's the end of it. Never again is the attack mentioned. Does the count ask if he's all right? Does he check to see if he's hurt? Does he go after the attacker, or yell for his guards to do so? Does he ask who it was, what they were doing there, what had happened? No, instead, immediately after, he simply stands there at the doorway where he'd first entered and tells Kylar his life's story. Yes, really.

In all, I think my recommendation would depend. If you don't care for deep characterization, complicated plots, talented writing and description, and just want an entertaining read, then you'll probably like it. If you're looking for something like Hobb, Martin, or Lynch, then you probably won't.

This book arrived within the time I expected. It did have wear around the edges and binding. Im giving it more stars though, because a thick soft book like this is great when it has seen some experiences and is not totally brand new. The story itself is fantastic and engaging. If your into assassins, this is the book you want.

Having been a long time reader of Science Fiction books I feel Brent Weeks has the potential to become one of the best SciFi story tellers ever if he continues writing books of this quality. I am just an everyday Joe who loves to sit back in my easy chair, pick up a book and get mentally enraptured and involved in the stories I read. I read for the joy of a good story. A great author can take over my mind and build a picture of his characters down to the color of their skin, eyes, their smiles, emotions, frowns, thoughts and even the dirt on their clothing and under their fingernails. He/she can send me into their fantasy world with all the colors, details, and brilliance and even smells in that world. This author built a motion picture in my brain as clearly as if I had been sitting in a movie theater. The characters were all well developed and I still carry around an image of them to this day, weeks after completing the books.

Each book in the series could be read individually or in line and still come across as a delightful experience, for those of us loving, descriptive writing, flowing story telling, exciting sequences and continuous action. The story line in this series is easy to follow and actually quite an intriguing concept. Rather than telling you the plot of the story let it suffice to say that the main character begins as a child barely existing in apalling poverty and the harshest of realities, becomes a protege to a demanding master Assassin and then moves on to become the new master........welllllllll..... It includes deep gripping emotions, plenty of action, love, binding friendships, intrigue, honor, treason, tragedy, and gripping details in an easy to read transcript. The well woven story and plotline and the intwining of the characters from the beginning to the end is amazingly easy to follow. But you need to read this series to truly see this author's brilliant ability to keep you on your toes and going without sleep night after night as you don't want to put down his books in the The Night Angel Trilogy.

I give this book and the others in the series a 5 Star + as seen from the eyes of avid consumer of many, many science fiction novels.

First, my gripes. The dialogue and story in the beginning seemed almost dumbed down to me. I thought I had picked up a young adult novel as Weeks seemed to be spelling everything out for a younger reader who wouldn't be able to draw from experience to make connections about the story. Also the story could be a bit confusing at times as Weeks seemed to jump around quite a bit; not just from character to character but also even while we were still in the viewpoint of a single character.

Having said that I finished the book the day after I bought it. As you read more the characters become terribly engaging and you have to keep reading to find out what happens next. It's a great story and I can't think of a time where I thought it dragged once. There are such highs and lows in the book and I couldn't believe how much I came to care for each one of the characters. Weeks writes a terrific and vivid story and I highly reccomend this series.

After some research, I decided to purchase this book. Glad I did. It was exciting and suspenseful. A few times there was dialogue that was just out of place, and vulgarity seemed forced in for shock value. It made no sense. But such minor infractions were overcome by the interesting story taking place. The action scenes are very well done. The world building and character development were paced correctly. Azoth and Durzo are excellent characters. The plot was intriguing and filled with a few surprises. It was difficult to put the book down at times. I wanted to see how this tale ended and so the desire to read on was ever there. I should caution that there are some rough scenes involving youths in this tale.

I think this is a pretty good start for Mr. Weeks.

When I picked up this book, number one of three, I was so hooked that I bought the 3 in one edition, the big book with the three parts. I love the pace, it's always interesting, fast and deep. Many writers fill their stories to make the book 4-5 hundred or more page. This here is what just became one of my top favorite books/writers. Love the book, love every aspect and technique used to keep readers immersed in the story. Just loved it, five stars from me Brent!! Here's to a healthy career and many books to write.

Since becoming a professional author and a new father, my (drastically reduced) personal reading time has become very precious to me. For the first time in my life, I find myself dropping books after 100 pages if they don't grab me, and like a magician in the audience of a Vegas show, I'm more likely to notice the author's sleight of hand than be wowed by the illusion.

But Weeks impressed me right away, and even showed me a new trick or two along the way. I was immediately drawn to Azoth's plight, empathizing all the more for Weeks' pull-no-punches portrayal of the realities facing of children forced into orphan street gangs. From there we meet a rich cast of characters who drive the narrative, making you care for them despite their personal failings and the hard choices they must make to survive. Add to that a creative magic system and some kickass ninja action, and you have a real winner.

The best thing is, you can tell Weeks is just getting started, and will get better and better as he goes. I'm very much looking forward to reading the next books in the series.

This books series starting with this book was remarkably engaging. The plot was excellent and the character development was very good as well. Of course I'm a sucker for any story that starts out with orphans somewhere in the mix. But Tiny Tim as an assasin trainee? Wow, better watch your back Mr Scrooge! Ok, so my own limited hilarity aside, this book packs so much punch you'll be spitting up teeth by the end of it. It grabs ahold of you early and never really lets you go so you might as well order all three books in the trilogy at the same time.

Unfortunately, I loaned out this book to a coworker and she got fired a couple of days later so I'm going to have to repurchase, but that's fine as it's a little reward for Brent Weeks in writing such an amazing novel.

I corresponded a bit with the author and he seems like a really nice down to earth guy. The only other author I've known to be like that was L.E. Modesitt Jr.

What I love most about this book (and the whole trilogy) is that it doesn't bore you with pages long descriptions of buildings and clothing, the pace is fast and it keeps you on your toes.

Mr. Weeks is not one to spare you details though. He won't go on and on `telling' you about it but he will show you. His descriptions of some events are not romanticized as we see in many novels, so be prepared for some disturbing and realistic views of living in the streets.

The story is about Azoth, a street kid desperate to get out and not be afraid anymore. He will do anything to get out, including apprenticing under the scariest person in the city, Durzo. However, convincing Durzo to take him in isn't an easy or safe task.

Character driven, excellent twists and highly addicting, this story will pull you in and won't let you go until the very last page.

I have a friend who said I would like this book. Over and over. I haven't had the free time to spare. One day I picked it up at Barnes and Noble, took it home and read it in a day and a half. Thank you Brent Weeks for writing this book. It was a weekend well spent.

'The Way of the Shadows' is first book in a new trilogy by Brent Weeks. And surprisingly enough all three books have been released consecutively one month apart in Oct., Nov. and Dec. 2008.

This is a very good, exciting tale; replete with interesting characters, battles, magic, love and unexpected twists and turns.

*Minor SPOILER*

This is the tale of Azoth (soon to become Kylar) who we first meet as a struggling street urchin. Although he doesn't know it, he has a very special and highly coveted talent for the dark arts of stealth and assassination. This leads him to become the apprentice of one Durzo Blint, THE chief assassin of the day, and thus the real tale begins.

*End SPOILER*

Yet for all the 'potential' this book had, it also has some drawbacks that I find difficult to overlook; some concerns to follow...

1.) I found the author tried to use techniques familiar to those of us that follow the 'Ice and Fire' series of George R.R. Martin; i.e. sudden, unexpected changes to the plot and also to seemingly 'stable' characters; except the skills of Mr. Weeks, in presenting these changes in direction and circumstance, are not nearly as well refined as GRRM's.

2.)There were many instances where either good or bad events were presented with an opposite 'not so good or not so bad' comparative statement. For want of a better description, 'every cloud has a silver lining'.

I'll give one example of many...While Kylar was enduring a beating at the hands of his main foe, the author wrote, and I quote from page 620...

"His eyelids were lined with crushed glass. His optic nerves were being chewed by little teeth. And after his eyes, every tissue, sinew, muscle and organ marinated in misery in its turn. He was screaming. But his mind cleared."

Well, I guess we can be thankful for the 'clearing of the mind' because he survive to fight another day.

3.)Profanity/Vulgarity. Although not overly used, but when used, was often done with questionable taste; uttered in places that required a little 'sensitivity'. One got the feeling of a amateur writer going for 'shock' value.

An example, near the very end of the book...Kylar has saved (yet again) his love, Elene, and wishes for them to be together (she's loves him but is morally hesitant because of his previous shady deeds and the fact he's an assassin). A quote, from page 644...

"He couldn't say a damn thing right...'I think you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, Elene. And the purist. And the best. But I'm not asking you to f***."

I mean, is this how you sweet talk the girl you've loved since childhood? This is the type of writing that I find hard to believe would get past the editor.

4.)Although generally well written, I had a sense of the prose needing a little more polish and refinement; a good editor would be a definite asset to Mr. Weeks. Hopefully, the subsequent books in the series will show the needed changes.

Conclusion:
A very interesting fantasy/adventure story featuring lots of action and intrigue. It just needed some improvements in a few areas to take into the big leagues; but as it is...3 Stars.

Ray Nicholson

This book was recommended to but I struggled with it. It was clunky reading - one of those books I had to take breaks from, here because of awkward structure. There's some amazing ideas and interesting things but sometimes it's confusing and frustrating. If you stick with it, it does get better and each book in the series improves.

This novel's climax is abrupt and not everything that happens at the end of the book is adequately set-up beforehand. Characters in this novel lack the grit and believable self-interest of the first book and don't really undergo any significant development over the course of the story. In all, this is an extremely disappointing conclusion to a story that began very well. At the beginning the world was interesting an the characters developed in believable ways, but by the end the details of the world are glossed over and is instead replaced with a lot of talk about the feelings of characters who have become cardboard cutouts of themselves. When I think of how good this series could have been compared to where it went I can only feel profound disappointment.

I admit I selected this book based on the pretty/awesome cover art. It drew my eye in the crowded bookstore and for that i'm thankful. It begins with a boy scavanging for coins in the crawlspace under a bar. He then witnesses a professional Wetboy (killer)do his work on a roomfull of guys. This was enough to convince me to head to the checkout counter. There are two clices that appeared right away. Orphans and sci-fi/fantasy with wierd terminology. Neither of these should turn you off to the book. Azoth's roots as an orphan are important to the plot and well fleshed out in his personality. The terminology has a purpose too. Magic being Talent and "Talented" Assassins being Wetboys was explained well and adds to the story. I found the word wetboy kind of annoying though. I thought he could have invented a cooler word for killers that "never miss." This book has great sword fights, magical battles and shadowy stealth. Any ideas that Weeks has for his trilogy are either original or so well written it felt original. The politics of the book are equal to the scheming of Dune. No character is without motivation for his or her actions and behave in realistic ways. Two notes: the author uses somewhat crass descriptions I found odd. I think he actually used the word "fart" to describe a smelly cave. There are also graphic and adult themes. All of it is off screen or implied but gruesome violence is in there.

I liked the book. I'm eventually going to purchase the other parts of the trilogy and read them to see how the author wants to further develop his characters. I've got to say, it takes a lot of courage for an author to fearlessly remove characters throughout a story. It keeps you wondering how many pawns are on the board, and who are the true power players.

Sci-Fi/Fantasy genre fans will like this one.

This is the year old debut novel from fantasist Brent Weeks. The story is built around young Azoth, a poor street kid who is part of a guild of petty thieves. In this Dickensesque beginning, guild membership is the only way to survive on the street and quick witted, big hearted Azoth just gets by with enough for himself and his two closest friends while avoiding the attentions the of malodorous guild enforcer, Rat.

Azoth has a plan. That plan is to find a way, by money or deeds, to apprentice himself to legendary wetboy Durzo Blint. A wetboy is a highly trained assassin with some innate magic (called Talent) that enhances his deadly skills. "An assassin's contract is for a target," quips Durzo at one point, "A wetboy's contract is for a deader. That's because our target is already dead. We don't fail." That is what Azoth wants: To not be afraid, to be able to take care of his friends.

In structure the book works much like Orson Scott Card's formula of adding fantastical elements to a Dickens-like tale. In an interview Weeks reveals that his wife works with abused children and some of that darkness bleeds onto the pages of Azoth's story. The writing style is workmanlike with moments of near-brilliance, but if not for the use of profanity and the inference of horrific child abuse, the story would read much like a YA novel.

The main flaw of the a novel is that Weeks obviously has so much to tell the reader - so many ideals - that at times he loses focus to wander down another path only to return and slam A Reveal or character decision that feels like a stumbling contrivance. The inclusion of many contrivances rob the story of its impact. There are times when decisions made by characters, plans laid by the bad guys, and entire side arcs seem only to exist in the world of contrivance. As the novel goes along there is very little that seems like an organic decision from the protagonists or antagonists. The reader is repeatedly told exactly how a character feels and the agony he is suffering from those feelings. But those feelings only works as something the author is telling the reader in order to skip more advanced development. Actions and depth of feeling never reach any level of realism. And that holds the story back.

As the reader is picking at the main flaw, he is left distracted and not absorbed in the story. And that allows for the reader to find other loose threads - other flaws - that might have otherwise been hidden by full absorption. The use of startling modern sounding youth vernacular is something, though it did not happen with great regularity, I still found jarring:

If an effort to remind the reader of the youth of the protagonist and a supporting character, Azoth (now called Kylar) challenges the young Lord (and future friend) of a powerful family to spar. The end of the exchange is, "It would be my great pleasure Your Dukliness." Your Dukliness? Jarring. There is also the use of modern anti-grammar filler, "like," sometimes when portraying youthful dialogue. But not all the time. It gets, like, confusing.

There is also the addition of a character whose sole purpose, it seems, is to be able to further the plot without the need of cause or narrative within the structure of the story. This character - a seer or a meister, or a god - is given little back story, is the leader of a whole host of other criminally thinly fleshed out supporting characters, and ultimately causes the actions that lead to the most pivotal events in the book. These characters, whose past actions are obviously of immense magnitude with regard to the future of the story, are given barely any treatment in the story arc of the first novel.

Also:

The magic system doesn't work nor seems consistent. One moment Talent seems outside the realm of typical fantasy - obscure and dense - and the next a mage is preparing a fireball or losing a spell due to broken concentration while casting (an exchange that felt like a tired re-tread of every Forgotten Realms book ever written).

In summation the idea behind the story is captivating. It might not be genre breaking, but it is not that different from a work like Patrick Rothfuss' beyond magnificent The Name of the Wind (Kingkiller Chronicles, Day 1). Where a book like WIND excels with a seemingly organic character where every dialogue and decision exudes realism and conscious choice from its characters, Weeks' characters flounder in a narrative where the author has them act for the sake of the story, but one never feels they are acting for themselves.

All I will say, besides that this is a terrific trilogy that inspired me to keep writng what I love instead of what others expect, is that the scope of this world makes it less fantasy and more historical fiction. There are zombies and magical artifacts that spice up the story but the best quality of it is that it felt real. Brent didn't paint an idyllic world of fairies and goblins; he presented plausible cultures in a fantastical world. Because of that this story is deep, and every fantasy reader I know was addicted to it. PS Brent likes killing charcters. You'll stay up for hours reading furiously, praying that they live. That is the best recommendation I can give a fantasy book

This was a good, fun, exciting story. It's an entertaining romp through a fantasy world which should be familiar to any fans of the genre.
I wanted to give this book 5 stars, based on the overall story, but there were a few points where the author so frequently used the "he said" tag that it became annoying to a high degree. I want to read the next two books, but those conversation tags are just so irritating, I'm not sure if I can tolerate them again.

Dark and gritty fantasy that's well-written indeed. I wasn't 5 pages in and I already cared about the whole deal. It chronicles the experiences of a street kid who becomes an assassin to escape the general wretchedness of life on the streets. Fair warning, it's quite dark about street life; not to the 'gruesome detail' point but to the 'this is an ugly way to live' point.

Despite other reviews that claim the writing lacks, I found it quite acceptable to my English Major's eye. It is certainly better written then many books in the preternatural fantasy genre that are out there.

After finishing the first book, I pre-ordered both of the others, a thing I rarely do. I am kind of hard to impress, and I have a very tight book budget.

I have grown frustrated with the fantasy genre and its preference for series that should have ended at the third installment. I won't even pick up a series unless I see the end of it is already in print. There are series I have started in high school that still aren't done 20 years into the future. I got lucky with this book. It is part of a series that has an end and it was very refreshing. The best thing about this book is that even though it is part of a trilogy, the ending is still satisfying and of course, the full series appears to be in print so I don't have to wait until I can no longer remember the characters to enjoy it!

This was a wonderful book, taking some original approaches, and inventing an engrossing universe that left me wanting more. There are some good characters that highlight interesting moral dilemmas. I flew right through the other two as well.

This is very Assassin's Creed meets Skyrim, which is precisely why I loved it. The characters were complex and fascinating, the plot was beyond creative, and the writing style was brilliant. Brent Weeks is on my Top Five Authors List.

At first glance this book looks childish to me and I almost didn't buy the trilogy, but after hearing so many good reviews, I did.. and I'm glad I did! Wow, this book is adventurous and twisted - and a lot of characters die. I know that sounds wierd but in so many books I read of characters that just keep on living and living and it's just good to read something that when the main characters get in twists, they might actually die. Excellent book and I'm halfway through the second which, so far, is just as good. Read it.

When I picked up this book, number one of three, I was so hooked that I bought the 3 in one edition, the big book with the three parts. I love the pace, it's always interesting, fast and deep. Many writers fill their stories to make the book 4-5 hundred or more page. This here is what just became one of my top favorite books/writers. Love the book, love every aspect and technique used to keep readers immersed in the story. Just loved it, five stars from me Brent!! Here's to a healthy career and many books to write.

Since becoming a professional author and a new father, my (drastically reduced) personal reading time has become very precious to me. For the first time in my life, I find myself dropping books after 100 pages if they don't grab me, and like a magician in the audience of a Vegas show, I'm more likely to notice the author's sleight of hand than be wowed by the illusion.

But Weeks impressed me right away, and even showed me a new trick or two along the way. I was immediately drawn to Azoth's plight, empathizing all the more for Weeks' pull-no-punches portrayal of the realities facing of children forced into orphan street gangs. From there we meet a rich cast of characters who drive the narrative, making you care for them despite their personal failings and the hard choices they must make to survive. Add to that a creative magic system and some kickass ninja action, and you have a real winner.

The best thing is, you can tell Weeks is just getting started, and will get better and better as he goes. I'm very much looking forward to reading the next books in the series.

This books series starting with this book was remarkably engaging. The plot was excellent and the character development was very good as well. Of course I'm a sucker for any story that starts out with orphans somewhere in the mix. But Tiny Tim as an assasin trainee? Wow, better watch your back Mr Scrooge! Ok, so my own limited hilarity aside, this book packs so much punch you'll be spitting up teeth by the end of it. It grabs ahold of you early and never really lets you go so you might as well order all three books in the trilogy at the same time.

Unfortunately, I loaned out this book to a coworker and she got fired a couple of days later so I'm going to have to repurchase, but that's fine as it's a little reward for Brent Weeks in writing such an amazing novel.

I corresponded a bit with the author and he seems like a really nice down to earth guy. The only other author I've known to be like that was L.E. Modesitt Jr.

What I love most about this book (and the whole trilogy) is that it doesn't bore you with pages long descriptions of buildings and clothing, the pace is fast and it keeps you on your toes.

Mr. Weeks is not one to spare you details though. He won't go on and on `telling' you about it but he will show you. His descriptions of some events are not romanticized as we see in many novels, so be prepared for some disturbing and realistic views of living in the streets.

The story is about Azoth, a street kid desperate to get out and not be afraid anymore. He will do anything to get out, including apprenticing under the scariest person in the city, Durzo. However, convincing Durzo to take him in isn't an easy or safe task.

Character driven, excellent twists and highly addicting, this story will pull you in and won't let you go until the very last page.

I have a friend who said I would like this book. Over and over. I haven't had the free time to spare. One day I picked it up at Barnes and Noble, took it home and read it in a day and a half. Thank you Brent Weeks for writing this book. It was a weekend well spent.

'The Way of the Shadows' is first book in a new trilogy by Brent Weeks. And surprisingly enough all three books have been released consecutively one month apart in Oct., Nov. and Dec. 2008.

This is a very good, exciting tale; replete with interesting characters, battles, magic, love and unexpected twists and turns.

*Minor SPOILER*

This is the tale of Azoth (soon to become Kylar) who we first meet as a struggling street urchin. Although he doesn't know it, he has a very special and highly coveted talent for the dark arts of stealth and assassination. This leads him to become the apprentice of one Durzo Blint, THE chief assassin of the day, and thus the real tale begins.

*End SPOILER*

Yet for all the 'potential' this book had, it also has some drawbacks that I find difficult to overlook; some concerns to follow...

1.) I found the author tried to use techniques familiar to those of us that follow the 'Ice and Fire' series of George R.R. Martin; i.e. sudden, unexpected changes to the plot and also to seemingly 'stable' characters; except the skills of Mr. Weeks, in presenting these changes in direction and circumstance, are not nearly as well refined as GRRM's.

2.)There were many instances where either good or bad events were presented with an opposite 'not so good or not so bad' comparative statement. For want of a better description, 'every cloud has a silver lining'.

I'll give one example of many...While Kylar was enduring a beating at the hands of his main foe, the author wrote, and I quote from page 620...

"His eyelids were lined with crushed glass. His optic nerves were being chewed by little teeth. And after his eyes, every tissue, sinew, muscle and organ marinated in misery in its turn. He was screaming. But his mind cleared."

Well, I guess we can be thankful for the 'clearing of the mind' because he survive to fight another day.

3.)Profanity/Vulgarity. Although not overly used, but when used, was often done with questionable taste; uttered in places that required a little 'sensitivity'. One got the feeling of a amateur writer going for 'shock' value.

An example, near the very end of the book...Kylar has saved (yet again) his love, Elene, and wishes for them to be together (she's loves him but is morally hesitant because of his previous shady deeds and the fact he's an assassin). A quote, from page 644...

"He couldn't say a damn thing right...'I think you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, Elene. And the purist. And the best. But I'm not asking you to f***."

I mean, is this how you sweet talk the girl you've loved since childhood? This is the type of writing that I find hard to believe would get past the editor.

4.)Although generally well written, I had a sense of the prose needing a little more polish and refinement; a good editor would be a definite asset to Mr. Weeks. Hopefully, the subsequent books in the series will show the needed changes.

Conclusion:
A very interesting fantasy/adventure story featuring lots of action and intrigue. It just needed some improvements in a few areas to take into the big leagues; but as it is...3 Stars.

Ray Nicholson

This book was recommended to but I struggled with it. It was clunky reading - one of those books I had to take breaks from, here because of awkward structure. There's some amazing ideas and interesting things but sometimes it's confusing and frustrating. If you stick with it, it does get better and each book in the series improves.

This novel's climax is abrupt and not everything that happens at the end of the book is adequately set-up beforehand. Characters in this novel lack the grit and believable self-interest of the first book and don't really undergo any significant development over the course of the story. In all, this is an extremely disappointing conclusion to a story that began very well. At the beginning the world was interesting an the characters developed in believable ways, but by the end the details of the world are glossed over and is instead replaced with a lot of talk about the feelings of characters who have become cardboard cutouts of themselves. When I think of how good this series could have been compared to where it went I can only feel profound disappointment.

I admit I selected this book based on the pretty/awesome cover art. It drew my eye in the crowded bookstore and for that i'm thankful. It begins with a boy scavanging for coins in the crawlspace under a bar. He then witnesses a professional Wetboy (killer)do his work on a roomfull of guys. This was enough to convince me to head to the checkout counter. There are two clices that appeared right away. Orphans and sci-fi/fantasy with wierd terminology. Neither of these should turn you off to the book. Azoth's roots as an orphan are important to the plot and well fleshed out in his personality. The terminology has a purpose too. Magic being Talent and "Talented" Assassins being Wetboys was explained well and adds to the story. I found the word wetboy kind of annoying though. I thought he could have invented a cooler word for killers that "never miss." This book has great sword fights, magical battles and shadowy stealth. Any ideas that Weeks has for his trilogy are either original or so well written it felt original. The politics of the book are equal to the scheming of Dune. No character is without motivation for his or her actions and behave in realistic ways. Two notes: the author uses somewhat crass descriptions I found odd. I think he actually used the word "fart" to describe a smelly cave. There are also graphic and adult themes. All of it is off screen or implied but gruesome violence is in there.

I liked the book. I'm eventually going to purchase the other parts of the trilogy and read them to see how the author wants to further develop his characters. I've got to say, it takes a lot of courage for an author to fearlessly remove characters throughout a story. It keeps you wondering how many pawns are on the board, and who are the true power players.

Sci-Fi/Fantasy genre fans will like this one.

This is the year old debut novel from fantasist Brent Weeks. The story is built around young Azoth, a poor street kid who is part of a guild of petty thieves. In this Dickensesque beginning, guild membership is the only way to survive on the street and quick witted, big hearted Azoth just gets by with enough for himself and his two closest friends while avoiding the attentions the of malodorous guild enforcer, Rat.

Azoth has a plan. That plan is to find a way, by money or deeds, to apprentice himself to legendary wetboy Durzo Blint. A wetboy is a highly trained assassin with some innate magic (called Talent) that enhances his deadly skills. "An assassin's contract is for a target," quips Durzo at one point, "A wetboy's contract is for a deader. That's because our target is already dead. We don't fail." That is what Azoth wants: To not be afraid, to be able to take care of his friends.

In structure the book works much like Orson Scott Card's formula of adding fantastical elements to a Dickens-like tale. In an interview Weeks reveals that his wife works with abused children and some of that darkness bleeds onto the pages of Azoth's story. The writing style is workmanlike with moments of near-brilliance, but if not for the use of profanity and the inference of horrific child abuse, the story would read much like a YA novel.

The main flaw of the a novel is that Weeks obviously has so much to tell the reader - so many ideals - that at times he loses focus to wander down another path only to return and slam A Reveal or character decision that feels like a stumbling contrivance. The inclusion of many contrivances rob the story of its impact. There are times when decisions made by characters, plans laid by the bad guys, and entire side arcs seem only to exist in the world of contrivance. As the novel goes along there is very little that seems like an organic decision from the protagonists or antagonists. The reader is repeatedly told exactly how a character feels and the agony he is suffering from those feelings. But those feelings only works as something the author is telling the reader in order to skip more advanced development. Actions and depth of feeling never reach any level of realism. And that holds the story back.

As the reader is picking at the main flaw, he is left distracted and not absorbed in the story. And that allows for the reader to find other loose threads - other flaws - that might have otherwise been hidden by full absorption. The use of startling modern sounding youth vernacular is something, though it did not happen with great regularity, I still found jarring:

If an effort to remind the reader of the youth of the protagonist and a supporting character, Azoth (now called Kylar) challenges the young Lord (and future friend) of a powerful family to spar. The end of the exchange is, "It would be my great pleasure Your Dukliness." Your Dukliness? Jarring. There is also the use of modern anti-grammar filler, "like," sometimes when portraying youthful dialogue. But not all the time. It gets, like, confusing.

There is also the addition of a character whose sole purpose, it seems, is to be able to further the plot without the need of cause or narrative within the structure of the story. This character - a seer or a meister, or a god - is given little back story, is the leader of a whole host of other criminally thinly fleshed out supporting characters, and ultimately causes the actions that lead to the most pivotal events in the book. These characters, whose past actions are obviously of immense magnitude with regard to the future of the story, are given barely any treatment in the story arc of the first novel.

Also:

The magic system doesn't work nor seems consistent. One moment Talent seems outside the realm of typical fantasy - obscure and dense - and the next a mage is preparing a fireball or losing a spell due to broken concentration while casting (an exchange that felt like a tired re-tread of every Forgotten Realms book ever written).

In summation the idea behind the story is captivating. It might not be genre breaking, but it is not that different from a work like Patrick Rothfuss' beyond magnificent The Name of the Wind (Kingkiller Chronicles, Day 1). Where a book like WIND excels with a seemingly organic character where every dialogue and decision exudes realism and conscious choice from its characters, Weeks' characters flounder in a narrative where the author has them act for the sake of the story, but one never feels they are acting for themselves.

All I will say, besides that this is a terrific trilogy that inspired me to keep writng what I love instead of what others expect, is that the scope of this world makes it less fantasy and more historical fiction. There are zombies and magical artifacts that spice up the story but the best quality of it is that it felt real. Brent didn't paint an idyllic world of fairies and goblins; he presented plausible cultures in a fantastical world. Because of that this story is deep, and every fantasy reader I know was addicted to it. PS Brent likes killing charcters. You'll stay up for hours reading furiously, praying that they live. That is the best recommendation I can give a fantasy book

This was a good, fun, exciting story. It's an entertaining romp through a fantasy world which should be familiar to any fans of the genre.
I wanted to give this book 5 stars, based on the overall story, but there were a few points where the author so frequently used the "he said" tag that it became annoying to a high degree. I want to read the next two books, but those conversation tags are just so irritating, I'm not sure if I can tolerate them again.

Dark and gritty fantasy that's well-written indeed. I wasn't 5 pages in and I already cared about the whole deal. It chronicles the experiences of a street kid who becomes an assassin to escape the general wretchedness of life on the streets. Fair warning, it's quite dark about street life; not to the 'gruesome detail' point but to the 'this is an ugly way to live' point.

Despite other reviews that claim the writing lacks, I found it quite acceptable to my English Major's eye. It is certainly better written then many books in the preternatural fantasy genre that are out there.

After finishing the first book, I pre-ordered both of the others, a thing I rarely do. I am kind of hard to impress, and I have a very tight book budget.

I have grown frustrated with the fantasy genre and its preference for series that should have ended at the third installment. I won't even pick up a series unless I see the end of it is already in print. There are series I have started in high school that still aren't done 20 years into the future. I got lucky with this book. It is part of a series that has an end and it was very refreshing. The best thing about this book is that even though it is part of a trilogy, the ending is still satisfying and of course, the full series appears to be in print so I don't have to wait until I can no longer remember the characters to enjoy it!

This was a wonderful book, taking some original approaches, and inventing an engrossing universe that left me wanting more. There are some good characters that highlight interesting moral dilemmas. I flew right through the other two as well.

Brent Weeks has given us a fine start to the Night Angel Trilogy, THE WAY OF THE SHADOWS. I dark story full of interesting characters and magic and assassins. Not for everyone but a brilliant start to a fun read. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Plenty of reviews here if you need details. I greatly enjoyed Durzo Blint, Azoth as Kylar Stern, Elene, all the characters are rich and interesting.

Many other reviews have described the good and the bad aspects of this book. I read the full three book series, but can still only give them 3 stars. As others have said, these books are in need of editing. But so are most trilogies these days. The plot is engaging, but suffers from an over abundance of characters and complexities. The worst part of the book in my mind is the rather horrific descriptions of child abuse and violence that are graphically laid out. If the book had been more tightly constructed and with less gratuitous gore, I would have liked it much more.

Before you purchase the audiobook, make sure you listen to the sample. The narrator reads Prince of Thorns as if it was a Young Adult novel. Very difficult to enjoy. Of course, many people who listen to the audiobook will enjoy the narrator's voice -- I did not.

I read the single book trilogy and had a very difficult time putting any of these books down. I am glad they were all written before I started to read them because the waiting would have been difficult. The characters are richly developed and there is non-stop action.Plenty of surprises along the way. These books were as enjoyable as any by Terry Brooks or Terry Goodkind.

Beyond the Shadows is the third book of the Night Angel Trilogy. This book focuses more on a realm in chaos and the tough decisions that the leaders must make in order to restore order. There's still plenty of action because the rulers don't see eye to eye. This book also focuses more on character building than the other books.

Plot
The story continues for the characters from the other books. I won't list who they are because some are dead and I don't want to spoil anything. After Shadow's Edge, the realm is left in chaos and rulers are struggling to gain power and restore order. Sacrifices must be made, people must be led, and battles must be fought.

Characters
The characters in this book are excellent. The author does a great job at making sure they read like real people with real emotions. The story is full of characters that you'll love and despise. In this book, the relationships between the characters grow.

Writing Style
The writing style is pretty accessible to just about anyone. It's pretty simple. The action scenes are also well written and easy to visualize. The Chapters are about three to seven pages long, and you'll find yourself reading five to ten Chapters per sitting. In the near 700 pages, there are a few nonsensical sentences and lines of anachronistic dialogue. But these are easy to overlook because the story and characters are very good. The author, Brent Weeks, does a great deal of world building, but never sacrifices the fast pacing of his book to do this. The world is vast and deep and there's just enough detail for the reader to 'get it.'

Dialogue
The dialogue does a great job at portraying the relationships between the characters. Brent Weeks also writes what the characters are thinking as they are speaking. It becomes clear that some characters say things to further their own selfish goals or trying to inspire others to make the world a better place. Some of the dialogue feels like modern day slang, and seemed out of place, but this is easy to overlook.

Maturity
This book is not as brutal as book 2, but it's still for mature audiences because there's language, violence, gore, and sex.

If you want a fast paced, epic adventure, in an original fantasy world, then you should pick up the entire trilogy. The writing style may be too simple or anachronistic for literature fans, but fans of popular fantasy should enjoy these books. Most fans of GRRM would like these books.

Overall, this is a fun trilogy to read. The world is interesting, the action is exciting, and the characters are good. It doesn't feel like a classic, but the trilogy is very entertaining.

The characters are wooden (as has been said), and uninteresting. It was clear from very early on that despite Blint trying to pass himself off as the very best of the best ... he was flawed and full of contradictions. It was difficult to respect anything he tried to say or teach Azoth. Then the author's need to cram as much history/politics/blather in at weird times was confusing at times ... I found myself stopping and checking to make sure I didn't skip a page or paragraph because it had changed so suddenly.

On top of that, the story jumps all around, which made it difficult to figure out what was going on for at least half the book. Blint and Momma K kept saying Azoth was smarter than expected, but he really wasn't that bright. Nearly every one of his realizations came after the fact or in the middle of a situation that could have been avoided if he'd gotten the point earlier or because someone got tired of waiting for him to "get it" and just explained it to him instead. I'm definitely leery about picking up book 2.

I bought this book on a whim at an airport for a vacation. People say don't judge a book by its cover but I think I might have done, the cover is very striking!

The story I found difficult to get into at first. The changes in characters and the story didnt grab me and I found the writing not to be the greatest. The characters didnt seem to be to real to me. But as the story went on I enjoyed it more. The romance in it felt a little predictable. Having said that, it was enjoyable overall and some parts were really nicely worked out.

Not bad. The opening is a good hook, but it degenerates to a standard fantasy story. I'll try to break it down here. *STORYLINE SPOILER ALERT*

Bad:
-Love for love's sake. People fall in love and stay that way, for little reason.
-The evil wetboy and apprentice kill innocent people, but it has no apparent affect on the story or the chivalry the main character has. It looks like the killings were used to set up a "broken hero" storyline.
-The main character becomes nearly unstoppably powerful with cliched magic (light saber, "Venom" suite from spider man, etc), but in the next scene, he can't/won't/doesn't use any powers.
-In fact, half of the story is about someone being amazingly powerful, but in the next instant, cannot defeat a angry cat.
-Lots of ninja/Japanese cliched culture in the story, though Japan does not exist.
-Lots of sex or sexual tension, with the vast majority of women having movie star looks and builds. Too much detail making sure we know the female has certain physical attributes.
-Lots of Deus Ex Machina in there.

Good:
-First few chapters were good.
-Plot was not bad, though it may changed a few times.
-A few of the characters were interestingly flawed, giving them real depth

Again, this is not a bad story. It's just for young adults or adolescents, really. The prime story is always about sex, courting, and attraction.

This is my new favorite series (although I've only read the first book so far), displacing Song of Ice and Fire and the Malazan series. Interesting characters, lots of action, complicated moral and ethical conflicts. Highly recommended, provided you are ok with violence.

I was blown away by this book, it started very slowly and was hard to follow in the first chapter, but I kept reading. A few chapters in I became enthralled, the characters were amazing and the story was full of plot twists and turns that for once I never saw coming! I bought this book looking for a quick read, I finished it in 2 days and ordered the other 2 immediately! I highly recommend this book to anyone!

this trilogy...it is epic and original, gritty and touching, and ultimately moving with a cast of characters so rich they jump from the page into your imagination. I am giving it as a set for Christmas to multiple people :) you know how some things are so thrilling you wish you could go back and do them again for the first time...well that's how I feel about this series.

Some of the reviews of this book have commented discouragingly about changing viewpoints from character to character, and scenes that seem to not fit with the whole...believe me if you read the whole trilogy you will be glad the author included these. They make the world richer and more vivid, and Weeks gets that truth is always different when seen from different perspectives and through different values. It also keeps the plot interesting as he weaves so many individual stories that you don't always know how they will fit together, what is fate, what is coincidence or what is a tragedy of irony. Like i said...Loved it!

One of the best books I have read in a while. I read about a book a week, and a book this good comes by maybe 2-3 times a year, and I generally don't buy books that rate less than 4 stars on the store. The story is amazing, fast, dark, gritty, and exciting. If your a fan of fantasy you owe it to yourself to read this book it is simply outstanding.

In The Way of the Shadows, Weeks creates an entirely different - and believable - world. It's thick with suffering, intrigue, deception, and characters so colorful (and real) you feel what they feel and want what they want.

This book is worth your time, but not for the faint of heart - some of the descriptions of abuse are very vivid.

I will not repeat the plot and characters over, as so many do. I will say this, I am a woman. For the women out there, I read mostly supernatural urban romance. I am a bit prejudiced against male authors. Whew. I got that off my chest. I took a chance and read this book on a friend's suggestion. Book one has a lot of world building as the characters come to life, stick with it. Book two. Awesome, awesome, freaking awesome. Book three, great scenes, great ending, ties everything together well, but I feel like the ending may have been just a little rushed. Terrific trilogy. If you like your stories to have closure then you will enjoy this book. Get them all though, because otherwise you will throw a fit if you don't have the next one. Read it. From one woman to another.

I would never have thought to find myself reading a book of this "genre" since nearly every one i had picked up before that had a ninja-like man on the cover proved to be a horrid disappointment. I started reading this from the advice of a friend and was totally captivated by the characters. The dark plot, at the beginning was almost a turn-off, but the book is so well written that it constantly pulls you back in. There are plenty of times where you may think you see where a plot is going only to be completely thrown when something totally unseen happens; the characters truly know how to manipulate a reader's interests. With incredible characters that you can't help but get involved in, and a TRUE page turner story line, I would recommend this novel to anyone I had a book-conversation with!!

Of all the books I have read in the past few years, this has been by far one of the most entertaining. There are so many different elements of suspense that keep you going and hints of characters that prove important in later books. It is obvious that the trilogy itself was written at one and probably intended to be treated as one big book instead of three separate ones. The characters you can identify with and each one has a story you can appreciate. The only character I disliked was Elene (you'll see why in the second and third books), but beyond that it was highly enjoyable. It starts with many loose ends, but in the final book, they are all tied together in a way that is just perfect. I definitely recommend this book to anyone.

This is the first time I've commented on anything, but I felt it was necessary. I fell in love with this series from the very first page. I loved the characters, the plots, and how all the stories manage to intertwine with each other. This author is amazing and I love his style of writing, so much so that I've completed the first of his next series. I'll keep this review short, just to let whom ever is reading this to know that this book/series is a masterpiece and you should really give it a read. There, thats my vote.

What can I really say about this last trilogy that I haven't already said about the previous two novels? Honestly not much! These books are just that good, for a first time author Weeks has created a masterful debut Fantasy series. As with the previous two novels this book is written brilliantly with Great in depth characterization and a beautifully set back drop.

The story has progressed a great deal from the second novel, there is a new Queen in Cenaria, alas for her nation she proves to be a corrupt incompetent who only cares for her own power. The true King Logan is off hunting the last of the God Kings armies while his friend Kyler tries to warn him that he is marching into an ambush that could destroy him and any hope for the future of Cenaria. As for Kyler he will learn the bitter truth of his immortality he must also figure out a way to save a nation and restore a King to his throne, along the way he will meet old friends and older enemies.

All in all I can honestly say this is one of the best debut Fantasy trilogies i've ever read, if you're stuck for something to read then this will definitely make you sit up and think. Brilliant trilogy!

My husband read these books and raved about them! This book is well written, gripping, honest, hard, and emotional. I loved this trilogy and loved being brought to true emotional outbursts in public (shocked gasps, and holding back tears - my husband admits too). The only aspect I hate is that Brent Weeks is a new author! I'm almost finished with the third book and am searching for more by this author. Ahh! Nothing more!?

Please, please read this trilogy, it is raw and wonderfully thrilling. Kudos to a fantastic new author. Mr. Weeks I applaud you!

When I read this blurb, I thought, “Wow! This sounds so cool! I can’t wait to read it!” And then I did, and wow, was I disappointed.

I made it three chapters in before I had to give up. This book is so riddled with cliches and tropes (for characters, plot, world, EVERYTHING) it made me dumbfounded. It almost seemed like a parody. Every part of the story was so predictable, so easy to guess, so unentertaining that I couldn’t make myself finish the story. I don’t even know if I can get too far into it just because I tried to purge the bit of story I read from my brain. The writing was okay, but not nearly enough to get me through the story. I’m so glad I didn’t read the whole thing.

Brent Weeks has given us a fine start to the Night Angel Trilogy, THE WAY OF THE SHADOWS. I dark story full of interesting characters and magic and assassins. Not for everyone but a brilliant start to a fun read. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Plenty of reviews here if you need details. I greatly enjoyed Durzo Blint, Azoth as Kylar Stern, Elene, all the characters are rich and interesting.

Many other reviews have described the good and the bad aspects of this book. I read the full three book series, but can still only give them 3 stars. As others have said, these books are in need of editing. But so are most trilogies these days. The plot is engaging, but suffers from an over abundance of characters and complexities. The worst part of the book in my mind is the rather horrific descriptions of child abuse and violence that are graphically laid out. If the book had been more tightly constructed and with less gratuitous gore, I would have liked it much more.

Before you purchase the audiobook, make sure you listen to the sample. The narrator reads Prince of Thorns as if it was a Young Adult novel. Very difficult to enjoy. Of course, many people who listen to the audiobook will enjoy the narrator's voice -- I did not.

I read the single book trilogy and had a very difficult time putting any of these books down. I am glad they were all written before I started to read them because the waiting would have been difficult. The characters are richly developed and there is non-stop action.Plenty of surprises along the way. These books were as enjoyable as any by Terry Brooks or Terry Goodkind.

Beyond the Shadows is the third book of the Night Angel Trilogy. This book focuses more on a realm in chaos and the tough decisions that the leaders must make in order to restore order. There's still plenty of action because the rulers don't see eye to eye. This book also focuses more on character building than the other books.

Plot
The story continues for the characters from the other books. I won't list who they are because some are dead and I don't want to spoil anything. After Shadow's Edge, the realm is left in chaos and rulers are struggling to gain power and restore order. Sacrifices must be made, people must be led, and battles must be fought.

Characters
The characters in this book are excellent. The author does a great job at making sure they read like real people with real emotions. The story is full of characters that you'll love and despise. In this book, the relationships between the characters grow.

Writing Style
The writing style is pretty accessible to just about anyone. It's pretty simple. The action scenes are also well written and easy to visualize. The Chapters are about three to seven pages long, and you'll find yourself reading five to ten Chapters per sitting. In the near 700 pages, there are a few nonsensical sentences and lines of anachronistic dialogue. But these are easy to overlook because the story and characters are very good. The author, Brent Weeks, does a great deal of world building, but never sacrifices the fast pacing of his book to do this. The world is vast and deep and there's just enough detail for the reader to 'get it.'

Dialogue
The dialogue does a great job at portraying the relationships between the characters. Brent Weeks also writes what the characters are thinking as they are speaking. It becomes clear that some characters say things to further their own selfish goals or trying to inspire others to make the world a better place. Some of the dialogue feels like modern day slang, and seemed out of place, but this is easy to overlook.

Maturity
This book is not as brutal as book 2, but it's still for mature audiences because there's language, violence, gore, and sex.

If you want a fast paced, epic adventure, in an original fantasy world, then you should pick up the entire trilogy. The writing style may be too simple or anachronistic for literature fans, but fans of popular fantasy should enjoy these books. Most fans of GRRM would like these books.

Overall, this is a fun trilogy to read. The world is interesting, the action is exciting, and the characters are good. It doesn't feel like a classic, but the trilogy is very entertaining.

The characters are wooden (as has been said), and uninteresting. It was clear from very early on that despite Blint trying to pass himself off as the very best of the best ... he was flawed and full of contradictions. It was difficult to respect anything he tried to say or teach Azoth. Then the author's need to cram as much history/politics/blather in at weird times was confusing at times ... I found myself stopping and checking to make sure I didn't skip a page or paragraph because it had changed so suddenly.

On top of that, the story jumps all around, which made it difficult to figure out what was going on for at least half the book. Blint and Momma K kept saying Azoth was smarter than expected, but he really wasn't that bright. Nearly every one of his realizations came after the fact or in the middle of a situation that could have been avoided if he'd gotten the point earlier or because someone got tired of waiting for him to "get it" and just explained it to him instead. I'm definitely leery about picking up book 2.

I bought this book on a whim at an airport for a vacation. People say don't judge a book by its cover but I think I might have done, the cover is very striking!

The story I found difficult to get into at first. The changes in characters and the story didnt grab me and I found the writing not to be the greatest. The characters didnt seem to be to real to me. But as the story went on I enjoyed it more. The romance in it felt a little predictable. Having said that, it was enjoyable overall and some parts were really nicely worked out.

Not bad. The opening is a good hook, but it degenerates to a standard fantasy story. I'll try to break it down here. *STORYLINE SPOILER ALERT*

Bad:
-Love for love's sake. People fall in love and stay that way, for little reason.
-The evil wetboy and apprentice kill innocent people, but it has no apparent affect on the story or the chivalry the main character has. It looks like the killings were used to set up a "broken hero" storyline.
-The main character becomes nearly unstoppably powerful with cliched magic (light saber, "Venom" suite from spider man, etc), but in the next scene, he can't/won't/doesn't use any powers.
-In fact, half of the story is about someone being amazingly powerful, but in the next instant, cannot defeat a angry cat.
-Lots of ninja/Japanese cliched culture in the story, though Japan does not exist.
-Lots of sex or sexual tension, with the vast majority of women having movie star looks and builds. Too much detail making sure we know the female has certain physical attributes.
-Lots of Deus Ex Machina in there.

Good:
-First few chapters were good.
-Plot was not bad, though it may changed a few times.
-A few of the characters were interestingly flawed, giving them real depth

Again, this is not a bad story. It's just for young adults or adolescents, really. The prime story is always about sex, courting, and attraction.