Book Review: A Time of Courage by John Gwynne

A Time of Courage is book 3 in the Of Blood and Bone series by John Gwynne. It's the final book that's set in The Banished Lands. 

Customary plot: 

Heroes shall rise and fall, the earth shall be stained red, and the fate of the Banished Lands will be decided once and for all in A Time of Courage, the final book in acclaimed fantasy author John Gwynne's Of Blood and Bone trilogy.

The demon king Asroth has been freed from his iron prison. Now, alongside his dark bride Fritha, he plans to conquer the whole of the Banished Lands.
 

In the shadows of Forn Forest, Riv and the surviving Ben-Elim desperately search for a way to unite those who remain against Asroth's vast army.
 

Far in the west, Drem is with the Order of the Bright Star, besieged by a demon horde. Their fragile defenses are on the brink of shattering, but they know that it is better to fight and die than to live without hope.
 

And across the Banished Lands, armies are heading south, to settle ancient grudges and decide the fate of humanity.

Of Blood and Bone
A Time of Dread
A Time of Blood
A Time of Courage
 

The Faithful and the Fallen
Malice
Valor
Ruin
Wrath

 

My review:  

 

This book jumps in right where the previous book ends. So much action. 

 

In the beginning of the book, Meical and Asroth are freed from their Starstone gaol, in Drassil's great hall.  

 

The action doesn't slow down at all. By the time you're half ways through, you've had several bloody battles, and have lost some characters.  

 

At about the 2/3 mark, you come up to the main battle. The battle to end all battles. And, boy does it start off with a bang. We lose some characters during this battle, just like during the smaller battles earlier on in the book. 

 

Continuing on towards the 3/4 mark, you find out that that big battle wasn't it. There's another battle brewing.  

 

What a battle that was! It was brutal. So much action. So much action. So many lives lost. I won't say who died or who survived. That is up to the reader to find out. I don't, and wouldn't want to deny anybody that. The ending was fitting. There was actually a sort of happy ending. 

 

I really enjoyed my time reading about The Banished Lands. It was quite the journey. 

 

This is a 5 star book. The entire series is. All 7 books are. If you like a good bloody fantasy, this is definitely the series to read. 

 

 Thank you John Gwynne for writing two great and wonderful series. 

 

Truth and Courage