Book Review - THE FIRST ANCESTOR by JDL Rosell

 

(Title: The First Ancestor / Author: JDL Rosell / Publisher: Rune & Requiem Press / Publication Date: May 1, 2023 / Total Pages: 442)

Back Cover Blurb

She avenged the fallen. Rebelled against an empire. Commanded a titan itself. Now Leiyn must win a war against death incarnate. 

Oathbound to a deceased shaman, the ranger Leiyn ventures north with her comrades to fight alongside the Gasts in their ancestral war.

But this enemy is like none other Leiyn has faced. Ancient and malevolent, the very world bends to their dominion.

To overcome them, she seeks to discover a secret lost to time. A magic even dryvans fear. 

The true power of titans.

Leiyn must prevail, for the Gasts' war reaches far beyond the Veiled Lands. Should she falter now, the Gast nation shall fall, and all of Unera will soon follow.

Review

This is the second book in JDL Rosell's Ranger of the Titan Wilds series. Book one, The Last Ranger was a highly entertaining epic fantasy tale full of adventure, magic, and imaginative worldbuilding. THE FIRST ANCESTOR picks up pretty much immediately following the heart-stopping events that concluded the first volume. The Ranger Leiyn begins to grapple with the situation she now finds herself in, and at the same time must deal with an untrusting Gast faction that doesn't fully want to get behind her due to past misdeeds by Leiyn's people. It sets things up for quite an intriguing book two and I wasn't disappointed at all as Rosell always spins an entertaining and emotional story.

Things slow down a bit in this book and it's not as breakneck paced as its predecessor. This is understandable given the fact that there is a great deal of political maneuvering and a number of new elements to the story are introduced. But that didn't take away from my enjoyment at all because JDL Rosell has a special knack for dialogue that always keeps the reader fully engaged even when there may not be a lot of skull-cracking going on. I really thought that he did a great job of expanding a little more on not only the main character Leiyn, but also the supporting cast of Isla, Acalan, and a number of others. So I actually enjoyed the fact that the action pulled back somewhat and I got to know these characters a little better.

Another reason why I like this series so much is the fascinating locations that we get to visit. Rosell's map is vast and gorgeous, and we get to travel across it pretty extensively in this book, encountering some truly magnificent cultures with some highly unique characteristics and history. I loved visualizing the physical features of the various landscapes, topography, and ancient ruins. There's so much going on with the world-building in this one and it's a big reason why I'm a huge fan of Rosell's books. 

Ultimately I couldn't put this sequel down and it had me completely sucked in and under its spell the entire time. This author never disappoints so if you are looking for someone who puts out  A LOT of fantasy books in a relatively short period of time, then you should check out JDL Rosell. His output is frankly astonishing, especially when you consider that each and every book is different and brilliant in its own way. Do yourself a favor and read this series and then go back and pick up everything else by him. I guarantee that you won't be disappointed. I simply devour Rosell's books like candy and I believe you will too!

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