Book Review: Flesh and Fire: Book One of the Vineart War

Flesh and Fire: Book One of The Vineart War by Laura Anne Gilman

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Description: Fourteen centuries ago, all power was held by the prince-mages, who alone could craft the spell-wines. But the people revolted against harsh rule, and were saved by a demigod called Sin-Washer, who broke the First Vine, shattering the hold of the prince-mages.

In 1378 ASW, princes still rule, but Vinearts now make spellwines, less powerful than in days of old. Jerzy, a young slave, has just begun his studies to become a Vineart when his master uncovers the first stirrings of a plot to finish the work Sin-Washer began, and shatter the remains of the Vine forever. Only his master believes the magnitude and danger of this plot. And only Jerzy has the ability to stop it…before there are no more Vinearts left at all.

This review is based on a free copy received from the publisher.

Finn’s Review:

The premise of this novel is really interesting – a fantasy about wine. While I’m not a wine connoisseur, I know enough to make me dangerous. I found myself drawn in with the main character, Jerzy, and his transition from slave to a Young Vineart. So much so that I became discouraged when I got to the end of one of the chapters and at the beginning of the next found myself suddenly thrust in an entirely different place with different characters. It was a jarring transition that seemed out of place. By the end of that chapter I was on pace with those characters, only to be dumped back with Jerzy for the rest of the book – that was, until the last chapter where those characters reappeared. It gives you a sense of where the next book in the series will head, but again, it seemed out of place.

As is true with most fantasy books that are a “first in series” there were a few places where I felt as if I was being inundated with information, especially when it came to understanding the process for the spellwines. It’s information  the reader needs to have a good grasp on, so it’s understandable while it’s detailed so much. As is knowing that not every grape produced has enough magical powers to be made into a spellwine and could be just simply a drinking wine. Gilman’s writing style kept me interested enough to continue reading until the end of the book and I’m even willing to pick up the rest of the series as it is released just to find out how the story unfolds.