Book Review - Divinity’s Twilight Rebirth by Christopher Russel
Divinity’s Twilight Rebirth was an epic genre mash up of fantasy, military, sci-fi and horror elements that sets the stage for something spectacular.
The year is 697 After the Battle of Har’munth, an epic battle between three godlike brothers that divided the world. Only the war never ended, not really. As Scion is sealed in a tomb protected by creatures of your nightmares the world is split into three nations, each with the ideals of one of the brothers at its head. But the ancient power in the heart of Har’munth has never forgotten the events of all those years before and is ready to unleash itself on the world. Weakened, it will have to use the bodies of others to exact its revenge, and it is willing to use as many as it takes.
As tensions rise between different belief systems, it is up to a new band of unlikely heroes to step up and find their place in the world, all while trying not to kill each other first. These students, not yet graduated are about to get one hell of a lesson in politics, magic and technology as they remind themselves, they are all on the same side. This book has a character for everyone, from the coming of age character, the unlikable, brooding character with a back story and a few that just kick ass along the way.
Divinity’s Twilight Rebirth has a lot to take in, but there are several places where it shines; the worldbuilding starting with an EPIC prologue, the genre blending, and the enhancement of magic all kept me turning the pages.
The world is really the star of the show here. The prologue introduces the reader to the dark history of the world we are now experiencing. From the get-go, we know we are in for a world that has been well thought out, and has a dark and sordid past. I will say, the initial prologue can seem convoluted at times, be sure to check out the shortened version for a much easier and snappier read in my opinion. The worldbuilding aspects of this story starts off strong and just gets better; Russell has done a phenomenal job of creating a world which feels rich, dangerous, and homely all at the same time. We experience so much in this debut from insane battle fields full of advancing technology enhanced with magic, hometowns with regular run of the mill grocery stores that house some overly friendly owners and the slums of lives past were being fast and cutthroat was the key to survival. Everywhere we went there was something new to discover and it was a wonderful experience.
Another thing I really enjoyed here was the genre blend. The author has used elements from a handful of genres and mashed them together in new and exciting ways. Horror elements were explored as we uncovered terrain, making for some anxiety inducing travel moments. The advancement of technology and introduction of air ships and weaponry mixed with the magic being used to enhance them gave us a great mix of fantasy/sci-fi and even a little steam punk. We also had a military esk theme underpinning the plot as the three sides fought for control and pushed their agendas onto others, creating the devastating war we are now witnessing. This book really had it all and it was so much fun.
I will say, character driven readers may have a harder time getting into this first instalment of the Divinity’s Twilight saga as I feel they fell a bit flat. There were some horrific events which could have been gut wrenching that I was able to shrug off and carry on with the next page without a second thought. However, I have heard some great things about book two really picking this aspect of the story up.
This is the type of debut which excites me as a reader, the author has some interesting ideas and isn’t afraid to explore them. I am looking forward to the next part of this series which I hope to get to soon!
