Why read The Darkwater Legacy series by Chris Wooding
Introduction
The Darkwater Legacy by Chris Wooding is a series published by Gollancz, the same publisher that works with Brandon Sanderson. On the day of publishing the post, the series includes two books, The Ember Blade and The Shadow Casket; on the blurb for the first book there is a reference to the fact this is going to be a trilogy. Both published books are quite lengthy, with more than 800 pages each (in fact, they are both listed in my chunky books post, here!). At the time of this post, I read The Ember Blade and enjoyed so much that I gave it 5 stars!
The author
Chris Wooding has been writing for two decades (if not even more) and his focus is on pretty unique stories (I remember reading Retribution Falls, the first book in the Tales of the Ketty Jay series, focusing on a crew flying an airship; in essence, a steampunk fantasy series). I might want to spend a little bit more time in his fantasy worlds, as both books I read have detailed and multifaceted world building.
The Darkwater Legacy - the cool stuff!
Going back to the main subject of this post, The Darkwater Legacy is a modern take (including the taste and prose) of traditional fantasy themes, encased in a pretty complex world building and a beautifully drawn map.
The blurb of the first book is quite faithful to the expectations of the story. There are many interesting and typical fantasy tropes, with a sprinkling of myth and folklore. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I am convinced that there are a few parallels to King Arthur and Merlin, not to mention Excalibur itself!
One of the key themes of this story is the coming-of-age story of a chosen one, whose life starts with a pretty comfortable (almost idyllic) life that transforms into a nightmare within a few moments. To add depth to the story, the cast of main characters do not necessarily get along and this adds dynamisms in the interaction between characters, allowing for their personalities to be further explored and developed.
A fun trope that is explored (and essential to the development of the story) in an engaging and appealing way is the two facets of the same coin of a land under occupation (with the world designed to keep Aren, the protagonist, and his people down and under control) and consequent and subsequent escalation into rebellion.
This world - and this is what the blurb does not cover, for an otherwise pretty accurate blurb - also has magic; specifically, magic through druids. In my opinion, this world is designed after a mystical England of King Arthur and Merlin. And to give the book more depth, The Ember Blade contains one of my favorite portrayals of druids, with their power connected to nature, also represented by a wonderful pet attached to the druid’s hip.
Why should you read it?
In short, why should this story be on your TBR? The answer depends on whether you enjoy classic fantasy with a modern take; if yes, this is most certainly a story for you. If not, and yet you like complex world building and interesting characters, this is still a book for you!
I know I have a plan to return to this world in the next months; ideally I am able to re-read The Ember Blade before the end of the year and The Shadow Casket just a few days afterwards!
Outro
Did you read the Darkwater legacy so far? Did you enjoy it? Why should readers include it in their TBR? If you did not read it yet, are you feeling compelled to read it? Feel free to comment down below.
