THE SEVENTH FRIEND BY TIM STEAD

Genre: Epic Fantasy

Source: Reading Addiction Virtual Book Tours in return for an honest review

Series: The Sparrow and The Wolf

Synopsis:
Hero. Monster. Saviour. Butcher. Madman. Recluse. Wolf Narak, the deadly and charismatic god of wolves, has earned all the names men give him, and since the climactic and bloody final battle of the Great War he has shunned the company of mortal men and withdrawn to his forest home. There he is troubled by dreams of blood and fire, tormented by memories of his own deeds.

But fate has not quite finished with the victor of Afael.

He receives an impossible message, and as he follows the trail a suspicion grows to a certainty within him. War is coming again, and Narak must leave his beloved wolves and once more take up his twin blades. Once again he must become the general of the six kingdoms, the terror of his enemies, a hero, a butcher, the bloodstained god.[Goodreads]

Holy Epic Fantasy! This book was such an amazing awesome surprise! The beginning takes awhile to get into and so I was really nervous, but this book blew me out of the water. It picks up and I couldn’t put it down. It contained so much world building and complex characters that kept pushing the story forward and not once did I feel like it was too much or boring.   I feel like I should include a warning that this review might not make sense because I tend to ramble and get all confusing when I absolutely love a book!

The Seventh Friend is a epic fantasy novel that follows the story of multiple players in the upcoming events in the land of Terras.  The looming threats of war  mimic the  events of 400 years before when Terras was invaded by the Seth Yarra. The 6 kingdoms must face their differences to join together and defeat the enemy. With the help from the Benetheon ( The Gods) ,the kingdoms face a great struggle.

While weaving together multiple different character arcs, Stead develops some fantastic characters that are dynamic and face so much internal struggle and personal growth. The characters are kickass, strong and full of personality and their own quirks. Although there were a few characters I dislike, you are made to feel that way about them and learn to grow on them as they evolve and change throughout the story. While the story continually switches from each main player in the events it also includes some secondary characters which was refreshing and also enjoyable. You really got to learn about the world from every angle and perspective.

Tim Stead put so much work into developing a complex world with great detail. He really thought through everything and every move that presented itself.  The kingdoms are so diverse and each has their own way of life, customs and qualities. The world is so well crafted with all character story arcs coming together and enhancing the depth of the world. Because it is an e-book there is no map, but Stead writes in a way and presents the world building in such a way that throughout the story you are reminded of the details and fact in a subtle way so you can follow along and know whats going on and where. (Also there is a map located on the authors website that he drew up!)

This book was action packed and Stead sure knows how to write a battle scene, they were descriptive and made you really be able to picture what was going on. Throughout the battle scenes he has me hanging on the edge of my seat with suspense and anticipation. He has an eye for details and cleverly wrote an amazing fantasy novel that is unique and intriguing. The Seventh Friend is the first in a  series and I absolutely can’t wait to continue on with this series. I highly recommend this book. It has quickly moved up on my favorites of 2014 and want more people to read this so I can share my love of this underrated and undiscovered epic fantasy novel. Even though I haven’t yet read any of the work, but it has been recommended to fans of Song of Fire and Ice by George R.R. Martin and those fans of Robin Hobbs work!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Tim Stead was born in the UK, lived in Hong Kong, London, Hampshire, and eventually moved to New Zealand. He wasted many years not writing, but now has the time to devote to it. He has written six books, three of which are available on Amazon (The Sparrow and the Wolf trilogy). The others will follow, as will editions for Createspace and Smashwords.He writes fantasy because it is so open to the imagination, which is half the fun, and also because it permits exaggerated explorations of humanity and all its excesses.
He is a former avid scuba diver, a former beekeeper, and a very poor skier, archer and fencer.
Torn between reading and writing, but writing is winning.He now spends most of his time writing, reading, planting trees, cutting them down, cutting them up, and trying to persuade people to read his books.

Website: http://www.timstead.info/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JE8OF8M