Jaeth's Eye

Name: Jaeth's Eye
Rating: 4 (7 reviews)
ISBN: 9781990762017

By K.S. Villoso

Publisher Description

A hero's daughter is caught between two brothers and a war involving a witch's beast. From the author of the critically acclaimed The Wolf of Oren-yaro rediscovers the epic adventure that pits old legacies against a necromancer's beast in a tale praised for its complex narrative, character development, rich worldbuilding, and a riveting conclusion.

Sume Kaggawa promised her father a dragon. Abandoned by an older brother who dreamed of grand adventures, she is the only hope left for a family fallen on hard times. A deal with a shadowy mage traps her in a conspiracy between greedy merchants and forgotten kings. For the chance to revive her family name and be everything her brother could never be, Sume must sign away her life and freedom--or forever doom her bloodline to failure.

Meanwhile, the mercenary Kefier finds himself chased down by former associates after a botched job leaves his friend dead. Already once branded a murderer, he crosses paths with his friend's sister Sume and the merchant-mage, Ylir. Their intertwined fates brings them to the crux of a conflict with the first fire-breathing dragon seen in the continent for decades. But the dragon may very well not be a dragon, but a demon hell-bent on corrupting those in its path...including the three running head-first into it.

The 5th Anniversary Edition of the debut trilogy from the author of the critically acclaimed The Wolf of Oren-yaro rediscovers the epic fantasy adventure that pits old legacies against a necromancer's beast in a tale praised for its complex narrative, character development, rich worldbuilding, and a riveting conclusion.

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Jaeth's Eye Reviews

4.0

tbhsunday

Created almost 2 years ago

Damzel

Created almost 2 years ago

“Edit: REREAD: July 2023 4.5 Stars* I think I appreciate this book way more the second time around. I took my time with this read and really tried to absorb everything given. There's a lot going on in Jaeth's Eye from multiple perspectives. You see more of the world outside of Jin-Sayeng, especially with trade happening between Jinseins and Dageians. You have a backdrop of politics and foreign policy between the two while also having characters from different parts of the world of Agan. The first character, Sume, is a merchant's daughter who grew up in Akki who goes to Fuyyu to earn money since her brother has been unresponsive. Ke-if is a mercenary for the Boarshind and also happens to be an escaped Dageian mage-thrall that was saved by Sume's brother Oji. You also have Ylir, the apprentice and face of Yn Garr Industries which gained prominence with foreign trade opening up. Dai and Hana, Sume's family, also have a couple minor chapters. It is a lot to take in but once you get into it, I think it's absolutely stunning. The political and social intrigue of how characters interact or see each other is great, learning lore of ancient mages, the horror scenes (and there is body horror galore), and the characters make this story great. It takes place over a couple years and sometimes things seem to be at a standstill in some chapters, but you learn something is always being done even if the characters aren't aware of it. I love Villoso's writing so much and how much she pores into Jin-Sayeng and the surrounding areas, the way she writes creatures and the lore of her world. I do have the same sentiment that there may be too many characters to bounce between in this book, but I appreciate it way more now than I did 2 years ago. ____________________________________________________________ 2021 Review: I definitely got more into this book after the half way mark and I can’t wait to read the next in the series! I think this book was easier to get into already being familiar with the world that the series is set in! It’s a multiple POV book between characters that seem to be connected by fate. This is set in a time before the events of Wolf of Oren-Yaro, where the agan is heavily present and I love it!! I love the world building, the lore, and the action. But, I feel with the amount of character’s pov and not spending enough time with each - I feel like I didn’t get attached as much to them. I still can’t wait to read the next in the series even with that aspect. Disclosure: I received Jaeth’s Eye as an ARC and I am voluntarily leaving this review.”

Kate Heceta

Created about 4 years ago

“This book is not for casual fans or beginner readers of adult fantasy. The exposition and infodump is a lot to take in. But if you can soldier on, you'll be treated to the K.S. Villoso standard: an adept hand at characters that feel like real, multidimensional people; and themes of rising up against oppression rooted in the women of the masses. For fans of https://yourtitakate.com/wolf-of-oren-yaro/ , this trilogy takes place in the same universe but is set about 40-50 years prior! Can't wait for the re-release of the second book of this trilogy!”

cassanette

Created over 4 years ago

“"But our lives are not ballads, timed perfectly to tune, a rhyme or a reason to each of our steps. Sometimes, the wind turns, and we go where we are taken. We make do. And there can be joy in that, too, believe it or not. There can be more than we can ever explain." A.K.A.: Everyone's dead. Or are they? (Jk everyone's doomed, have a nice suffering.) This book is a set up for a big adventure. It's good, it's so good. There's death, and drama, and mystery, and more death, and OH MY GOD WAS THAT AN ACTUAL DRAGON. (spoiler alert: yes) The world. THE WORLD. Okay, so, the world is confusing at times in this book but that's because it takes time and effort to establish a fictional world that feels alive. And this one does. Whatever praise you may have heard about this author's worldbuilding, it is 100% deserved. The main characters are another strong side of Jaeth's Eye. They do good things, and bad things, and make awful mistakes, which ultimately makes them so utterly and painfully human. The writing style is not flowery but it makes for an enjoyable experience. Definitely not for fans of purple prose and descriptions that take 2 pages before getting to the point, though. It's not a perfect book. The adjectives I've heard used for it (& the series as well) were 'messy' and 'overambitious,' and I can agree with them to some extent. One real complaint would be that action scenes are pretty chaotic, which does improve dramatically further in the series, and I found Chapter 12 in Act 2 very confusing. But nothing's really perfect, ever, and despite its shortcomings, this book was full of great things and definitely worth a reader's time. It takes patience and an open mind, but after finishing the series I can wholeheartedly say it's worth sticking with this one. 4.5 stars”

Julia Kitvaria Sarene

Created almost 5 years ago

“This one is a bit hard to judge. The start of the book is probably a 1-2 star for me - the end is a solid 4 star. This book really does reward patience! In the start you have no idea who is who, where we are and what is even happening. This cionfused state stays until way into the second half of the book. Things are happening that make no sense, or even seem to be a plothole - a lot of things happen off stage. Like in one scene you a character is imprisoned and likely to die - the next chapter has him free as a bird, without any explanation at all. The end manages to explain all of that and to bring all of the different POV strands together. It all starts to make sense and the bigger picture forms in your head! It was pretty amazing how the author can resolve this much things in such a short time. But I must confess that if I hadn't read this for SPFBO, and tried to finish everything that wasn't "really bad", I would never have made it to that resolution in the end. All the question marks above my head and especially the scenes that seem to make no sense at all would have made me give up way earlier. So all in all I'll go for a 3* rating.”