Wonderful world building. A very different fantasy world. This one is not based in any way on the Tolkien mythos. It's raw and gritty and realistic. Realistic that is in any world that includes orcs. ;-) At first you can't imagine how any orc could be a sympathetic character but Morgan Howell totally pulls it off. A wonderful series. I loved all three books. ( )

This is a fantasy book that I downloaded for free almost seven years ago, and I’m sorry I didn’t get around to trying it sooner. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anybody talk about it, and it doesn’t seem to be very highly rated, but I actually really liked it. It’s not a book I’d recommend without reservation though; it’s pretty bleak.

The story focuses on a young woman named Dar whose family treats her terribly, culminating in the event at the beginning of the book where her family gives her away to the King’s army to serve as a slave to a regiment of Orcs. The story focuses on Dar’s adjustment to her new role, the threats she faces on a day-to-day basis, and her discoveries about Orc culture.

The men in Dar’s world don’t value women, and there’s a lot of brutality. Most things aren’t described in an explicit manner, but that doesn’t make the events any less disturbing. The story is told primarily from the perspective of Dar, but every now and then we would randomly jump into somebody else’s perspective for a few paragraphs. I really liked Dar, as well as some of the other main characters in the story, but I did think the villains were rather one-dimensional.

The story was told simply, and this book served as a great distraction that didn’t require excessive brain power while I was recovering from a cold. This is the first book in a trilogy, and there’s clearly more story to be told, but it didn’t end with any sort of a major cliff hanger. I plan to continue on with the next book right away. ( )

Absolutely fantastic, loved this book. I picked it up due to the cover, though the description didn't set me afire. I got totally caught up in it, devouring page after page as I wondered what would happen to Dar. She's an incredible strong character, full of spirit and stubbornness. The author beautifully balances Dar's strong inner determination with her realization that the world is an extremely harsh place for a woman in slavery during a military campaign. I can't wait to read the next two in the trilogy. ( )

I enjoyed reading this book. The heroine was smart and likable. There was enough suspense and adventure in the plot. The only part I didn't like was the way humans were portrayed. The book is about a world that is inhabited by humans and orcs. The orcs are simple and honest while the humans are greedy, cowardly, and disgusting for the most part. The men are especially bad while the women are enslaved by them and do not fight back. There were several humans besides the heroine that weren't too bad, but I felt that there were too few of them. At times the men were so evil that they seemed a bit two dimensional. ( )

I didn't realize men could be so all around shitty...everything's pretty much black or white in this one, but it's reasonably well-written and imaginative - it remains to be seen if I'm interested enough to continue with the series...Which brings me to complain about a modern publishing finagle: dividing one long story into three or four books (voila! a series) - advantage tradehouses and authors, tough luck readers. ( )