Hall of Smoke - Wyrms.de

paperback, 432 pages

Published Jan. 18, 2021 by Titan Books.

ISBN:: 978-1-78909-498-5

(1 review)

An epic fantasy featuring warrior priestesses and fickle gods at war

Hessa is an Eangi: a warrior priestess of the Goddess of War, with the power to turn an enemy's bones to dust with a scream. Banished for disobeying her goddess's command to murder a traveller, she prays for forgiveness alone on a mountainside.

While she is gone, raiders raze her village and obliterate the Eangi priesthood. Grieving and alone, Hessa - the last Eangi - must find the traveller, atone for her weakness and secure her place with her loved ones in the High Halls. As clans from the north and legionaries from the south tear through her homeland, slaughtering everyone in their path, Hessa strives to win back her goddess' favour.

Beset by zealot soldiers, deceitful gods, and newly-awakened demons at every turn, Hessa burns her path towards redemption and revenge. But her journey reveals a harrowing truth: …

An epic fantasy featuring warrior priestesses and fickle gods at war

Hessa is an Eangi: a warrior priestess of the Goddess of War, with the power to turn an enemy's bones to dust with a scream. Banished for disobeying her goddess's command to murder a traveller, she prays for forgiveness alone on a mountainside.

While she is gone, raiders raze her village and obliterate the Eangi priesthood. Grieving and alone, Hessa - the last Eangi - must find the traveller, atone for her weakness and secure her place with her loved ones in the High Halls. As clans from the north and legionaries from the south tear through her homeland, slaughtering everyone in their path, Hessa strives to win back her goddess' favour.

Beset by zealot soldiers, deceitful gods, and newly-awakened demons at every turn, Hessa burns her path towards redemption and revenge. But her journey reveals a harrowing truth: the gods are dying and the High Halls of the afterlife are fading. Soon Hessa's trust in her goddess weakens with every unheeded prayer.

Thrust into a battle between the gods of the Old World and the New, Hessa realizes there is far more on the line than securing a life beyond her own death. Bigger, older powers slumber beneath the surface of her world. And they're about to wake up.

2 editions

Michael Haider reviewed Hall of Smoke by H.M. Long (Hall of Smoke, #1)

My Review of Hall of Smoke

4 stars

Viking-inspired fantasy is right up my alley, so I was excited to jump into this one. It started a bit slow, but once it got going it really got going, and became harder to put down the closer I got to finishing it.

Through the first half of the book, I found myself actively disliking the main character, Hessa, and often found myself frustrated at the situations she found herself in. That changed quickly in the second half of the book, however, as she grew by leaps and bounds. She didn’t just become more powerful in battle, but she also grew as a woman, making incredibly hard decisions and pivoting in a completely different direction.

I’d highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys vikings, fantasy, strong female protagonists, and awesome dogs.