The work week begins. I quickly slip into my business suit and head back into the office to save a few innocent people. But while I try to fool myself into being excited about the grind, deep down, I’m not, so I’m going to escape dreary reality by reading some great books.

This week I’ll be finishing up two novels I started last week while adding an older novel I’ve been wanting to read for a while.

The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne #1

Publisher: Tor (January 14, 2014)

Length: 480 pages

“In The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley, the emperor of Annur is dead, slain by enemies unknown. His daughter and two sons, scattered across the world, do what they must to stay alive and unmask the assassins. But each of them also has a life-path on which their father set them, destinies entangled with both ancient enemies and inscrutable gods.

Kaden, the heir to the Unhewn Throne, has spent eight years sequestered in a remote mountain monastery, learning the enigmatic discipline of monks devoted to the Blank God. Their rituals hold the key to an ancient power he must master before it’s too late.

An ocean away, Valyn endures the brutal training of the Kettral, elite soldiers who fly into battle on gigantic black hawks. But before he can set out to save Kaden, Valyn must survive one horrific final test.

At the heart of the empire, Minister Adare, elevated to her station by one of the emperor’s final acts, is determined to prove herself to her people. But Adare also believes she knows who murdered her father, and she will stop at nothing–and risk everything–to see that justice is meted out.”

About the Author:

After teaching literature, philosophy, history, and religion for more than a decade, Brian began writing epic fantasy. His first book, The Emperor’s Blades, is the start of his series, Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne.

Brian lives on a steep dirt road in the mountains of southern Vermont, where he divides his time between fathering, writing, husbanding, splitting wood, skiing, and adventuring, not necessarily in that order.

Author Information:Website | Twitter

Praise for The Emperor’s Blades

“A complex and richly detailed world filled with elite soldier-assassins, mystic warrior monks, serpentine politics, and ancient secrets. Readers of Sara Douglass’s Wayfarer novels and George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series should enjoy this opener.”     — Library Journal

“Filled to the brim with history, lore and potential…a modern epic fantasy mixed in with a nice dose of Lovecraftian weirdness.”                                                                                           — io9

“Familiar ingredients come to life in the hands of a promising new master chef.”                — Locus

Purchase the book at Amazon.