R.J. Barker | Fantasy Literature: Fantasy and Science Fiction Book and Audiobook Reviews

SFF Author: R.J. Barker

R.J. Barker is a softly-spoken Yorkshireman with flowing locks. He lives in the frozen north with his wife and son, and divides his time between writing and looking after his son.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE STORIES BY R.J. BARKER.

Age of Assassins: Intriguing world-building and an attempted-murder mystery

Age of Assassins by R.J. Barker

Let’s suppose, for the sake of argument, that you’re a fan of Robin Hobb’s REALMS OF THE ELDERLINGS — in particular, the FARSEER SAGA and FITZ AND THE FOOL books — as many readers are. Naturally, with Assassin’s Fate bringing the grand tale of Fitzchivalry Farseer to a close, you might feel a bit cast adrift, wondering where you might get your fix for “young assassin’s bildungsroman” paired with a deadly mentor and spycraft-disguised-as-theatre in an epic fantasy setting.

Jana Nyman´s rating: 4 | R.J. Barker | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Blood of Assassins: Steadily marching forward, one foot in front of the other

Blood of Assassins by R.J. Barker

It’s been five years since Girton Club-Foot was last in the kingdom of Maniyadoc, when he and his Master, Merela Karn, were tasked with untangling a royal web of plots, lies, and murder in R.J. Barker’s debut novel Age of Assassins. Now, terrifying Nonmen prowl the yellowed lands spreading chaos and anarchy, Girton’s friend Rufra is king of Maniyadoc, and both Aydor and Tomas have set themselves against Rufra in an effort to claim the kingdom for their own.

Jana Nyman´s rating: 4 | R.J. Barker | SFF Reviews | no comments |

King of Assassins: A clash of blades, magic, and dead gods

King of Assassins by R.J. Barker

Note: THE WOUNDED KINGDOM is intended to be read in sequence, and as such, some spoilers for Age of Assassins and Blood of Assassins will be inevitable as I discuss King of Assassins (2018).

Girton Club-Foot’s star has risen dramatically since we first met him — no longer a gawky and insecure fledgling assassin, he’s matured over the past two decades to become the Heartblade of King Rufra,

Jana Nyman´s rating: 4 | R.J. Barker | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Bone Ships: Slow start, spectacular end

The Bone Ships by R.J. Barker

Joron Twiner, an ineffective drunkard with low self-esteem, is the shipwife (captain, basically) of Tide Child, a bone ship made of the bones of a supposedly extinct species of sea dragons. When we meet Joron, he’s in port, sleeping off the booze, when a fierce woman named Lucky Meas attacks and easily subjugates him. As the new shipwife of Tide Child, with Joron as her second-in-command, she plans to whip the pathetic crew into shape and to redeem the reputations of both Tide Child and herself.

Call of the Bone Ships: The pace has picked up significantly

Call of the Bone Ships by R.J. Barker

Call of the Bone Ships (2020) is the second book in R.J. Barker’s TIDE CHILD trilogy. The first book, The Bone Ships, introduced Joron Twiner, first mate to a tough and effective sea captain named Lucky Meas. Sailing and politics collide when their disreputable ship Tide Child was assigned to find and protect the last of a valuable but possibly extinct sea dragon species.

SFF Author: R.J. Barker

Age of Assassins: Intriguing world-building and an attempted-murder mystery

Blood of Assassins: Steadily marching forward, one foot in front of the other

King of Assassins: A clash of blades, magic, and dead gods

The Bone Ships: Slow start, spectacular end

Call of the Bone Ships: The pace has picked up significantly

Subscribe to all posts:

You can subscribe to our new posts via email, email digest, browser notifications, RSS, etc. You can filter by tag, keyword, post author, etc. We won't share your email address with anyone and you can easily unsubscribe at any time.

Support FanLit

SFF Deals

Recent Discussion:

Subscribe to all comments: