Friday Fiction: Master of Sorrows by Justin T. Call

You’ve heard the story before: an orphaned boy, raised by a wise old man, comes to a fuller knowledge of his magic and uses it to fight the great evil threatening his world.

But what if that hero were destined to become the new dark lord?

Master of Sorrows is the first in The Silent Gods series by Justin T. Call. This grim, coming of age fantasy will keep you absolutely intrigued with all its twists and turns, deaths, and betrayals. The story begins with Annev de Breth, a reluctant, anti-hero destined for greatness, though it isn’t certain whether that greatness will be achieved through good or through evil.

​“It is wise to fear what we do not understand.”

In the beginning, Annev doesn’t realize he is being sought out by wicked gods who only want to use him for his unbelievable magic abilities. As a baby, Annev was orphaned by the academy’s hands and eventually taken in by his pseudo father and mentor Sodar, where he attends that very same academy, Chaenbalu. Here, he is brought up to believe that all magic and its users are inherently evil. Chaenbalu trains its students to detect and retrieve very dangerous magic artifacts and at whatever cost necessary. In his training to become an Avatar of Judgement, Annev is pitted against the other students along with his friends in hopes of being able to leave the academy. If he fails, he will never leave Chaenbalu again and never be able to marry the one he loves, Myjun.

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