MALICE 🗡️- REVIEW

[@mikesbookreviews]

I read the entire series in April/May and feel confident in saying Malice is probably the least best of them. The series is that good.

[@JARHuygebaert]

You made me buy another book. Damn it

[@ReallyGoodandKind]

Eyyyy Mike good to see you. When you reading Malazan?

[@bbthrashcan4857]

@@ReallyGoodandKind he's starting on January 2021. He has a video on his channel about it so people can get to read along him.

[@mikesbookreviews]

@@ReallyGoodandKind Channel read along begins January 1st.

[@ihab2002ahmad]

Tell me if you've heard of prince of nothing otherwise you have to check it out. It's very grimdark, and especially the later books get very lovecraftian. I think you'll like it.

[@sanvadghokshe5320]

*Daniel gives a positive review to another fantasy book* My amazon cart : Don't you dare, don't you fu****g dare. Me : *Add to cart*

[@a_blitz]

*Wallet screams in anguish*

[@visheshaneja4600]

worth it.

[@atharvadeshpande4749]

Your Amazon cart (In CJ's Voice): Ah Shit! Here we go again!

[@robertdickson3619]

7.55 on Kindle..... Yup, good enough for me

[@gnamhcir]

@@a_blitz more like my bookshelves... speaking of which I need another... again

[@mad0813]

"Pretty tropey high fantasy." Say no more I'm sold.

[@darmokandjalad7786]

The lighting looks really good in this video!

[@thejohnsanger]

I’m so glad you got to Malice. To me they only get better and better. His follow up series is terrific as well. It’s definitely ok to take things already done and just do them really well. I love his books

[@ryan_17295]

Totally agree. It builds and builds and then gut punches. Author cruelty is definitely right

[@halion4487]

John Gwynne is amazing at building for 90% of the book, then the massive release of everything going to shit and things go wrong in the last 10%. It’s a great feeling. However, I feel the sequel are weaker in characters, mainly because they don’t change over the course of the series. Bleda is still quiet and contemplative, Riv is still hotheaded and rash, and Drem is still, well, Drem. The combat and plot are still superb, but the characters are much less developed imo

[@TheJavy]

Really appreciate the lighting! It's looking so crisp

[@christinacarter5018]

FINALLY!!! John Gwynne is one of my favorite Authors. He is an automatic buy. He also does a lot of reenacting and weapon collecting. He is very involved with understanding the weapons and strategies he chooses to use.

[@Khepriem]

We judge the pacing of all other media, but when it comes to fantasy books it seems us readers are expected to just deal with 10, 20, 100 pages that could have been cut because we've been taught that epic fantasy is supposed to challenge the reader. I think this status quo is actively harming the genre and I'm always really excited to hear of a book that's clearly been edited down for good pacing.

[@GrapplingBook]

I'm glad people are vocal about this.

[@gavasiarobinssson5108]

@@GrapplingBook Why? Cant there be different styles?

[@YourBlackLocal]

Honestly i don't think it's because they think it's challenging, i think it's just they don't want to get rid of these things they feel are unique to their Stories, even if they don't add anything.

[@GrapplingBook]

@@gavasiarobinssson5108 It's not about different styles, this is about fantasy books tending to be unnecessarily long when it could have been cut down to a much lower page count.

[@confusedwhale]

@@gavasiarobinssson5108: You can think of it as an act of self gratification on the part of the author. Droning on and on and on and on and on and o--- Think of the editor as a surgeon cutting necrotic flesh to prevent sepsis setting into the patient. So to does the editor expertly slice extraneous passages from the text to let the greater whole survive. At the end of Elantris, Brandon Sanderson talks about cutting a rando that was introduced too late into the book that would have muddied the whole if it were to be kept. The others talk about having an editor that wasn't as merciless as he/she should have been, or a publisher that required a higher word count than the author could fulfill without it feeling like an utter slog. So, it's not about style. It's doing the job. ... And no one wants to see the author masturbating on the page.

[@havokix]

Yeah I like the new "This is like:" section. Sets up comparisons and contrast discussion. Bet you that you'll love the slower paced beginning of malice on a re-read. Beginnings often struggle with pacing.

[@UH98561]

He picked up that book and I only wanted Daniel to spank it. I miss his DGPDBAB series

[@davidpo5517]

I would argue it's actually more of a PDGDBAB series... because I'm that guy right now.

[@atharvadeshpande4749]

@@davidpo5517 Lol I was about to do the Same because I am that guy too.

[@reading_faerie]

Yeah I want Daniel to spank books... too

[@voices4oppressed]

@@reading_faerie mhm! Seems like someone must be fantasizing not just spanking of books 😁😂 (fun intend)

[@rishabhdave5773]

I genuinely did not know about the whole lighting for good/bad books thing, now I'll be looking for it in future videos.

[@llamallama1509]

Glad I'm not the only one

[@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS]

My novel The Forgetting Moon gets compared to Malice almost more than any other book.

[@lordphinix3]

I've enjoyed the first 2 books of that series. Waiting on book 3.

[@benjaminmolina3456]

Hopefully, next moth I´ll get the sequel.

[@MrShaiya96]

hey, brian. we need the next book, yesterday

[@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS]

@@MrShaiya96 i turned it into my publisher back in January. then Covid19 hit and slowed everything in publishing waaaaaay down

[@lipeeefl]

@@B.LEE.DbrianleedurfeeREVIEWS nice, haven't read yet, but it's always a good thing to know how it's going

[@jujubean9063]

I don’t understand peoples distaste with tropes. All books have some tropes. It doesn’t bother me at all. I like fantasy tropes, it’s one of the reasons I read fantasy. Chosen ones, good vs evil, and all that delicious stuff is part of what I love about fantasy. Malice blew me away. It’s so well done and the tension was unreal. This is a masterpiece, in my opinion.

[@TheNerdyNarrative]

I held my breath until you said you liked it. It’s my favorite completed fantasy series that I’ve read. Malice is seriously focused on character development and some world building on the front end, but the rest of the series is action. I can’t wait to see what you think of Valour - it’s chock full of action, maneuvering and STRATEGERY!

[@Nasser851000]

0:00 you had us fooled there for a second XD

[@zollieberdy4405]

That intro was funny.

[@lightningtiger7721]

I read Malice a while ago, enjoyed it, and didn’t really pick up the sequels because the audiobook didn’t have any at the time. Now I have read Valor and am on Ruin. They do such a good job at delivering the promises of the first book so far. The characters feel more alive than ever to me and the action is still as stellar as ever.

[@Emma-sj6wp]

Daniel: MALICE! Me playing BotW: where?

[@SorcerersApprenticeReads]

I just started this, and I'm really struggling with the beginning, so it was good to see this review today and get some renewed optimism that it will be worth it.

[@bryson2662]

Thanks. I'm gonna put this on my TBR. Sounds great. Also I really want to say I appreciate all the effort you put into your videos. Also prose is a non-countable noun.

[@riakm921]

Fantastic review, I can definitely notice an improvement in your execution of them! I've had my eye on this series for a while now, I guess you've convinced me to bump it up in my TBR queue.

[@aysseralwan]

Yeah, I'm glad that a big booktuber is shining some light on this series. It's absolutely awesome and has a follow up trilogy around 130 years into the future which is as good as this series. I hope the fandom of the Faithful and the Fallen and John Gwynne will grow as a result

[@beedoo000]

I really like the "if you like X, you'd probably enjoy this" section. Could you maybe do a whole video focusing on the most popular/famous fantasy series and recommend ones with a similar "vibe" to them? Thanks for all your hard work, your reviews are definitely among my most-trusted on KZbin. So many reviews on here are just spoiler-filled book talks and give little to no explanation of whether or not I should pick up the book.

[@TheRebelGM56]

Great review! You are in for a ride when you continue the Faithful and The Fallen - it ranks among some of my favourite fantasy series and glad to hear you enjoyed this.

[@MagnetonJjungle]

Love the »if you like [x] ...« segment. You are allowed to keep it.

[@GallowglassVT]

One of my all time favorite series. It only gets better and the battles are amazing throughout.

[@christinacarter5018]

Same, I love this series. I, also, enjoyed the next series that takes place in the same world.

[@MrMustache-yn4zm]

Its a knock off of asoiaf

[@GallowglassVT]

@@MrMustache-yn4zm 1, didn't ask, 2, don't care.

[@MrMustache-yn4zm]

Its not even hiding how much it copies, its honestly embarrasing@@GallowglassVT

[@GallowglassVT]

@@MrMustache-yn4zm did you miss my reply?

[@pesvarunsathayerollno.2088]

The quality of your videos is ever increasing and I love the effort you put into each video. Keep up the good work man! And that intro was funny as hell😂

[@Tembrig]

Really enjoyed the last portion that you added in about the "if you like this, then you will like this". It really helps me decide whether or not I should bump it up higher on my reading list. So thank you for that!

[@Law-of-EnTropy]

"There's some author cruelty to the readers.." I'm in!

[@Noxturne09]

The Masochist in all of us jumps for joy

[@GreeneZonee]

Oh just you wait. This series gets so much better!

[@mischarowe]

I hope so. It's now on my TBR. Except for the slower start it sounds like I'll enjoy it very much. :)

[@jossecoupe446]

(Mini spoiler about a secondary character becoming a main character in the fourth chapter of book 2, not really that surprising but still) I read these books so long ago, but all I remember is... Maquin best boi. One of the few characters in fantasy that made me cry (besides Robin Hobb's characters). And I've heard that the sequel series is even better. Also a thing that I noted, in this series almost every chapter has dramaticesque endings, I remember going 'oooooooo shit' so many times.

[@dirkcrafford1814]

Came here to say this. Maquin is a character that will stick with you for a few years. Goddamn

[@Big993Mac]

I am glad you liked the book. Although it has some tropes, it kind of felt refreshing to me. The sequels are even a little bit better imo, only the first half of the third book can get a little tenacious, but the second half is outstanding with probably one of the best one on one swordfights ever written. You can look forward to that.

[@fatedhydra8074]

Just read that series a few months ago. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Kinda weird I just ordered the 1st book of his next series and here you are talking about malice. I heard it described as Wheel of Time lite. Not 100% sure of that....but was a very good read. And I also read the 1st 2 books of the Poppy War because of you. Thanks!! Really well done series.

[@Wildcamfire]

Got this a while back and had trouble getting through the first part, ended up completely forgetting about it but since I've now been told the second half gets better I'll give it another shot.

[@apollomckendric]

really like the segment comparing books to other books - helps put the review in context!!

[@Ablofluido]

I loved this book! I found the genre tropes very comforting in a way. Unfortunately, I felt the second in the series had too many events happen because the plot needed them to happen and it really turned me off.

[@godslittlestidiot2984]

this is the only book review I've seen I actually enjoyed. I'm glad to have found your channel! I saw your tier ranking fantasies and was glad to see someone with similar tastes after years here not finding anyone. I'm gonna have to get Malice.

[@kyklutch3530]

I liked this entire series almost as much as I like the Stormlight Archive, and I LOVE the Stormlight Archive. The series really starts slow and builds and gets betters as the books go on. If you like sword fighting, fun world building with mysteries that are explained as you go, and animals you will love this book. The relationships people have with their animals in this series is better written than most relationships between people in other books.

[@troyjennings3777]

Super happy your getting into John Gwynne and had a positive experience with Malice. The Faithful & Fallen series really got me back into reading fantasy a couple of years back. Just the action and the characters were exactly what I needed at the time. I hope you interview Gwynne down the road 😄

[@charlespeter5610]

You managed to slip in Oldboy in this video??? Bravo/10. I saw that you were reading this on Instagram around the same time I started it. Glad to see you enjoyed it about as much as I did. A lore video would be great because like you said, some of the beginning was a little confusing

[@seanpoore2428]

"......like that one shot take from old boy...." You have my attention o.o

[@lycoris8879]

If you read all of his first series, The Faithful and the Fallen, you should definitely read the follow up series. It's a trilogy and it's amazing. The follow up series is called Of Blood and Bone.

[@dracul74]

You really ‘nailed’ verbalizing my thoughts on this book. For example… didn’t love the beginning and prose wasn’t the highlight… yet the book just is excellent in its own right. Subbed.

[@TreySaunders88]

Love the segment at the end where you compare it to other books. I think that's great and will help me a ton personally making decisions

[@sernoddicusthegallant6986]

Daniel: "More giants in fantasy please!" Me, an intellectual: *THE LEGEND NEVER DIES*

[@cokeMONSTERps3]

It's an old one sir, but it checks out.

[@BrightnessKatyReads]

I really enjoyed Malice, I think one of the biggest things for me was how wholesome it felt for a gritty adult fantasy, it was very refreshing!!

[@apollomckendric]

the new lens is killing it - love the blurred background

[@sheyslibrary]

Really love the last segment of “if you like this, then you’ll like this”!

[@matthewbrown1151]

I like the segment at the end. Can tell what vibe the book will give you. I bought this one recently, looking forward to starting it

[@Jtobiwon]

You stopped mah hart in the beginning seconds haha! Just finished this series and Sir Gwynne is an instant favorite for me. It is tropey for sure, but he does it so well. The books keep getting better and better too. They've made me cry, laugh, and roar in excited praise. Can't wait for more reviews from the Banished Lands!

[@aaronclemons2287]

Read the whole series long ago, one of the best coming of age stories and cleanly written. It asks hard questions yet does not go all expanse beyond the individual.

[@wordsofclover]

So glad you loved this. It's one of my favourite series. I loved how John Gwynne played with the prophecy trope and how we grew with all the characters. I still think he has the coolest author photo of all time with his axe and his big dogs. I recently read The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan and really recommend as a high fantasy that plays with god tropes but in ways I haven't seen before. I don't know if you've read it but highly recommend if you haven't.

[@davidbrady2418]

Definitely like the recommendations segment at the end, keep em coming! Also, really enjoy the prevalence ratings, helps me understand what I'm getting into if I pick up the book

[@MattVickers]

There is a lot of development of those tropes you mentioned, Gwynne continues to keep it different. The Good vs Evil trope sees a lot more exploration in the follow-up series, too.

[@AdityaSingh-kx7eu]

Daniel PLEASE DO A VIDEO WHERE YOU TELL US THE MOST ESSENTIAL BOOKS EVER THANKS sorry for shouting

[@ShadowWolf1307]

He kinda already did. He made like 5 videos (bc of updates) ranking "all" fantasy series both from his perspective and from magazines etc, presenting and discussing their placement in the ranking system. If you want more information on them, most of them have a "why you should read" video (theres even a playlist on his channel with all of these vids) on a lof og these series. So yea, there you go Just use the search bar in the video section of his channel.

[@ThePsychoNyx]

I honestly feel like I’ve never read a fantasy with giants but have seen them so often in games and movies so excited to dig into this book I’ve had on my shelves for...a year... A lot of action scenes feel repetitive in how they can be laid out and copy pasted from other books so this sounds refreshing. Gimme all the PROPHECIES gimme ALL THE BAD PROPHECIES. Horror fantasy sounds incredible and I can envision the visuals being brutal and raw.

[@LJ-bw7lv]

Loved this series. Definitely gets better as you move on. Basic premise, but done so well.

[@madisongoodyear5040]

I’m so glad you’re reading this!! I read it along with Mike from Mike’s Book Reviews, and it was 🔥🔥🔥 sooo good. The series as a whole was one of my favorite reads of the year!

[@madisongoodyear5040]

And yes, it only gets better from here

[@kepler3.14]

Woaw. That is a beautiful cover. Me: judging books by their covers, morning, noon, and night.

[@DanielCifer]

Your visual quality just keeps getting better and better

[@markravetto4619]

"Old wolf" fans out there?

[@AshtheViking]

Maquin is probably my ideal man.

[@gincentbeeney]

Fav character. Love seeing his name above a chapter

[@KyleRodger.]

Maquin is the shit.

[@GallowglassVT]

Mark Ravetto Maquin is who Chuck Norris wants to be when he grows up.

[@markravetto4619]

@@GallowglassVT lol YES

[@christianelthorp8601]

Oh boy here I go adding to my TBR again

[@christiaannienkemper2419]

The series just gets better and better with each book.

[@jessicadifelice7849]

You just made me want to read this even more! I’ve been eyeing it for a while, but haven’t picked it up. I think I might have to prioritize this.

[@crisnice1]

loved the review. it's obvious the amount of work you put into organizing your thoughts. i didn't really vibe with the lighting but i don't really mind that type of stuff and i see others have enjoyed it so keep it up i guess

[@ChristmasLore]

He's grown so much in two years. I have difficulties now watching his earlier videos, he wasn't mature enough, nor well-read enough, then, to be taken really seriously. But he's constantly evolving, and since he's gone full time, with way more time to read, the channel has improved consequently. Will be there to follow his upcoming evolution.

[@ravenevermore7338]

This series is one of my favorites. I can't wait for you to finish and review them as a whole.

[@Spacecadet0730]

Perfect timing! I just started the series and am slogging through the first 1/3 of Malice with the setup. Its tolerable, and hearing you say the rest of the book is a worthy payoff makes it even better!

[@zaroc]

Oh boy if you enjoyed malice the story gets better and the characters are amazing

[@BrandonLemon375]

Yay! So glad you got around to this one! Personal opinion make it thru all first 4 books! Book 4 makes the seires! I koved each book but after the masterful wrap up in Wrath it was elevated to my favorites all time! John write some of the most intense battles!

[@shanin3808]

I’ve been curious about this series for a couple years, gonna add it to my TBR! If I ever finish WoT.... and then Mistborn...

[@danielnewton1414]

Great review !! Cannot wait till you get into the series !!! It seems like he really listened to criticisms that the first book received, the overall quality rose dramatically for the second book. Im confident that you'll be binging the rest of the series !!!

[@gnamhcir]

This just made me put this guy on my TBR lists, sounds like something I will definitely enjoy.

[@seabeast133]

Really happy you reviewed this book. My boyfriend really wanted to buy me the book but I was intimitaded by its size. (I've commited too much time reading books that go nowhere) I can honestly say I'll be picking this one up when I get the chance.

[@bookaholicgameaholicvlogah4191]

I’m thrilled you review this it’s such an awesome book and deserves all its praise and other people need to read it and enjoy its gloryiness

[@thefifth5hot]

Yes! Glad you’re reading this series. It’s one of the most underrated in the genre, I’d say

[@gabrielgurmail-kaufmann4803]

Holy moly I never realised you did green light for good book reviews I am MIND BLOWN

[@erinkidd6857]

Glad you liked Malice. It's one of my favourite series! His latest series is also pretty great. I know that Gwynne does viking reenactments in his spare time, so I do wonder if his own experiences help him to write such great fight scenes. He's super active on social media e.g twitter, goodreads, IG too

[@LegionOfNeil]

I'm completely surprised you didn't mention animals/beasts. I've read all 7 books, the 1st 4 twice. I think you'll really like where he goes from here.

[@Ryanosity]

Daniel's lighting gets better and better.

[@brettmurray2473]

Lighting in this vid way better than most recent news

[@MrPancake777]

One of my favourite series. Trust me, the series get much much better

[@TheEternalElir]

This is on my tbr and that intro had me worried for a second

[@FlashMac31]

"i dont have opinions on the Giants football team" so we do need to hear your opinions on the Giants baseball team :)

[@NoMereRanger73]

True! :)

[@RolandIronfist13]

damn the lighting and camera quality in this is real good

[@robbedoes77]

Well I know which book I'm picking up after Elantris & finishing my Witcher books :D - I read all 6 (or 7) of the Stormlight Archive books in two months or so, so sad to wait for the next ones... God that series is just so addictive!

[@KaraValmeyjar]

Well, looks like I've found my new book to read for the fall. Thanks, Daniel! :)

[@banaa9463]

Good review. This is on my TBR this month.

[@coleton7048]

Didn't know Daniel was such a film-buff that he could drop references like the long take fight scene in Oldboy. That's great.

[@MegaD96]

Dig the ”if you like x you’ll like y” segment!

[@amybremner3890]

Corbans perspective gives me huge Fitz (assassins apprentice) vibes. Love this review and love this book.

[@AshtheViking]

Very excited for you to continue the series. It only gets better. Characters: 9.5/10 And author cruelty... you have no idea.

[@OnixMint]

Bro that intro scared me 😂 I’m excited for you to read the next books. It’s really good!

[@wintersking4290]

Daniel, the good vs evil themes get interesting in the rest of the series. It's always a little easy to see, but there are some very interesting elements especially relating to a certain Nathair.

[@4juan8]

Video quality looks great, It really improved when you changed you lens

[@amandap7733]

I picked up Malice during a sale at my local book store because I loved the cover but I haven't started it yet because of what a Thic Boi (TM) it is, looks like I need to get going.

[@tylerblack301]

Welcome to the Warband Daniel! 🐺⚔️

[@narek23]

ay that lighting is LIT af tho

[@legatedrengr]

The Faithful and the Fallen series is amazing! It is basically my top fantasy series right now and Malice is actually the least engaging of the four books in it and it is still brilliant.

[@sahibahluwalia3361]

Loved the review, very insightful. Keep the content rolling!!

[@christianjaggie6069]

I have a feeling I'm going to love this because I absolutely love classic fantasy and tropy books lol