Review: The Battle That Was Lost

• Title:
  • The Battle That Was Lost
• Author:
  • Michael S. Jackson
• Release:
• Format:
  • Hardcover ARC
• Series:
  • Ringlander

To start off with, I’m entirely new to this world, these characters, etc. Since I struggle to remember names, faces, and voices, it did take me a minute to follow along with who everybody was. Every character oozes personality, so it doesn’t take long to figure out who they are.

Every now and then, you get a scene set prior to the events of the battle which helps to fill you in on character backstory, as well as breaks up the fight scenes. It’s done in a different font, as well as italics, so it’s very easy to tell you’re in a different setting.

As the backstory scenes break up the fighting, it also serves to build tension. Things are occasionally worded in a way where it’s clear somebody was injured or killed, and it’s not apparent who. I loved this, as I’d go into the backstory scenes wondering what happened or who died. Only to forget about it, and get invested in the new scene. Only to be dumped back in the battle, dumbfounded by the revelation. I’ve railed against cliffhangers before, I fucking despise them. This right here, is cliffhangers done right.

The language in this novella is sure to upset the puritans and fuck them. As I said previously, the characters all ooze personality and a lot of it is the realistic dialogue and interactions. I rarely talk about characters in my reviews because people in general aren’t interesting to me. That’s not to say I’ve had enough time with these characters to be invested in their lives or really get to know them. But I can say it has left me very interested in getting to know more about them.

The combat scenes are beautiful. They cover the slashing and fighting less, focusing more on important characters and tactics, which is something I only now realized, rarely see in fantasy. It gives you enough of a taste to get invested in the battle, but not so much that you get exhausted by the endless fighting.

I don’t buy physical copies of every ARC I read. And I don’t buy into every series I enjoy. I can’t afford it and I don’t have the shelf space. I can already tell, that this is going to be one of those exceptions.

Note: This copy was provided to me free of charge as a physical review copy. The opinions stated in this review are mine and mine alone, I was not paid or requested to give this book a certain rating, suggestion, or approval.