The Madness Analog (A Matt David Thriller Book 1)

Interview with Carl Proujan, author of The Madness Analog

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I already mentioned about the rough writing, but it smooths towards the end. And, the characters are interesting, though I wasn't emotionally invested in them in the beginning. But, as the story progressd I was able to connect with them and their motives and actions.

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Mealing gives us strong female characters here in Sarine, Erris, and Correna. ArakJur, the guardian of the Sinari tribe was a good male character with strength that plays his part in the story. I suspect that we are yet to get the full cast in this starting point, but these characters didn't fall flat with the somewhat tedious worldbuilding. I'm very much interested to know more about their part in the big game.

The magic system is new and inventive, and I would credit the author in this. The beast magic, and the power of spirits connected to nature and the wild wielded by ArakJur and the tribes is pretty cool. The other magic linked to something called leylines or faith was complex which manifests in colours: There are also mysterious creatures called 'Kaas' linked to the leylines magic users, and, Zi, the mysterious companion of Sarine is very interesting, which I would like to know more about and his magical powers.

All in all, this was an interesting read, I wouldn't term it as entertaining, but, I'm curious about what is to follow in the later books. I think that the author perhaps pulled too much strings in worldbuilding which affected the pace of the story. It's not until some pages that the tempo starts to build up and the story progresses at a modest pace. I'm not yet sure about the minor twists and the open ending, where I expected a sort of blast, the ending was abrupt and the action not satisfactory.

I recommend this novel to patient fantasy lovers, who have the tenacity to go through slow plots, and vague easter-eggs that is littered in the story. For myself, I would definitely be waiting for the sequel to come out. Jun 09, Barbara Cerda rated it it was amazing. Impressions This is an epic and deeply ambitious read.

Military battles and the politics of civil war come to life in a fantasy world filled with magic. But this telling of war also includes love and betrayal that accompanies magic. The concept of tethering a leyline to bind paranormal powers is a fascinating concept. Also, the acquiring of spirit powers from slain beasts is an almost forgotten legacy from the original tribes of earth.

Each chapter of this book effortlessly explores the diversions between opposing cultures while magic seems to be the binding force. The transition from chapter to chapter and the development of storyline was, for me, extremely enjoyable. It kept this reader wondering how the main drivers of the tale could eventually come together and become heroines and hero. I felt the disappointment at the loss of friends and fellow soldiers.

I laughed at the ribald in your face language from wine laden lips. Putting aside the pain of loss and war, he learns how questioning the unquestionable becomes an important tool for survival. Three must rise This novel is about a fantasy world that finds its fated path darkened with civil war. The journey is also about the politics of court intrigue, love, and death. But soldiers and the resistance yearning for a renaissance are fighting in an enchanted world where magical shamans speak truth from gods. Streets and sewers run red with blood. And tribal guardians assume the power of the animal spirits they slay.

Evil takes residence in the hearts of the oppressed in the cities of the Gands and Sarresants. Three women from divergent cultures define the outcomes of this war between good and evil in a fantasy world in the grips of a fight that may never end. Who among the gods will survive and who among men will ascend to the Veil. Their weapons of choice are warding spells, binding powerful magic and the power of spirit guides.

Main Characters Sarine Thibeaux is a street artist inhabiting the slums call the Maw. A freebinder, she possesses innate and rare abilities. Inside her lies a hidden secret that will change and save her world. Born to a blacksmith and trained by the military, she becomes a formidable commander and leader of her world New Sarresant. He embodies the strength of his tribe and is the protector. His leadership balances the wisdom of the seer the Ka or shaman with the spirit powers of the beasts he slays. Llanara is the ambitious young Sanari woman.

David Mealing's work is as ambitious a tale as sand worms and desert planets. It is a long read…. Finely edited, the transitions and development of characters was spot on. Not just a good read…. Link to my blog: Woooowww I am super pleased I picked this up on Boxing Day! This was the one I was most dubious about, because of the exorbitant price, but I am so glad I gritted my teeth and did: D Right from the start, it was a 5-star. The whole magic system, the different types of supernatural elements, the multiple POV and different settings of all of the characters. The writing style was top notch, the character development and backgrounds and everyt Link to my blog: The writing style was top notch, the character development and backgrounds and everything.

Nothing wrong with this book. My only fault was that I picked up the audio for it around halfway through, and whenever I pick up the audio I always slip a little. Really regretting that I did that, but it's the only way I was guaranteed to finish this month: Apr 30, Care rated it really liked it. Soul of the World presents a meaty, magical epic series beginning set in a fantastical world with complex characters.

Sardine, a street rat raised by a charitable priest in the slums of Maw, finds her gifts - which she'd never particularly considered significant before - raising her to new heights and exploring new avenues of magic. Erris, a military commander, adapts new avenues of magic to protect her men and finds herself struggling with military devotion and thoughts of independence.

Arak'Ju Soul of the World presents a meaty, magical epic series beginning set in a fantastical world with complex characters. Arak'Jur, guardian of his tribe, goes on a journey of discovery himself and finds new spirits and magics along the way. All three come into contact with dangerous and questionable forces along the way as well as those who have been overrun by greed and ambition. The book is told in chapters that alternate in perspective between the main characters with interludes from secondary characters.

The work also prominently features strong women, not as an exception, but as a norm and natural, which I very much appreciated. I found the styles of magic found in the book compelling and very interesting, even as I was a little lost the entire time.

With so many focuses, it's hard to get a sense of what is actually important and where the book is going at times. But overall, a greatly written epic and an interesting foundation for a series, and I look forward to seeing where the books go. Thanks to the publisher for an ARC in exchange for a fair review!

Feb 06, Amandamyerson rated it it was amazing. Wow this book is amazing. Amazing world building and magic systems. David Mealing's "Soul of the World" is something of a surprise for me. I was completely unaware of it until it came out, but was intrigued by the premise, and pulled in by a review response that was overwhelmingly positive. While the book hit all the right notes for me, it ultimately came down feeling too "safe" for me to say it's a great book. It almost gets there, but just falls short. Fr David Mealing's "Soul of the World" is something of a surprise for me. French colonies, whom are currently at war with the Gand English colonies.

These colonies survive within a great barrier of magic that protects them from the beasts living in the wilds. Also living in the wilds are native tribes mired in tradition, who employ great spiritual protectors to protect themselves. These tribes have an uneasy peace with the "fairskins" living beyond the barrier, and far more complicated relationships between tribes.

I'm all for fantasy settings that stray away from medieval Europe, and what Mealing has constructed here is solid, and not exactly the focus of the book. Worldbuilding takes something of a backseat, allowing more room for the plot and characters. The book follows three main characters, as you can see in the blurb. Sarine, the resident "orphan with great power" living in New Sarresant; Erris, a commander in the Sarresant military; and Arak'Jur, a tribesman and guardian to his people.

The three are distinct from one another, and are likable and interesting to follow, but they are the first hurdle where "Soul of the World" fell short to me. Like many of this book's features, they're passable but don't excel. Vessels for the story, but they never feel like they drive the story forward. Instead they are almost wholly reactionary to the plots and ploys of the book's villains. I also don't feel like Mealing every goes far enough with developing them, especially as they exist outside of the plot.

He seems to have put the most effort into Sarine, as I could picture her living a life if the plot of the book hadn't started, but Erris and Arak'Jur are singular creatures, and I feel like I've barely gotten to know them. The side characters are interesting, but there are only a few stand-outs. I particularly liked the side characters in Arak'Jur's chapters, but I generally favoured his scenes over the others anyway. The villains are appropriately menacing, but again did little to distinguish themselves from many of the other dastardly villains of Fantasy fiction.

One of the book's stronger aspects is its magic, though I suspect this will be a point of contention for some people. There are three distinct magic systems here at least as far as the main characters employ; there are definitely more that feel similar enough to plausibly exist in the same universe, including some powers that overlaps, while also mechanically being varied and visually interesting. Sarine and Erris both employ the most common magic that involves manipulating leylines to different affects, depending on one's gifts; Sarine also has a mysterious spectral colour-changing reptilian companion by the way who seems to channel powersthrough her, although this magic is the one Mealing plays closest to the chest; Arak'Jur takes on key powers of the spirits of the Great Beasts that he protects his people from.

For example, all three have a power that make them physically stronger and faster. Some people, I think, will be turned off by this, but I think it works here; there's also good in-universe justification for more than one magic system. The magic allows itself for fun, easy-to-follow action scenes. The war scenes that Erris oversees were competently done, but the real star for me were the sequences where Arak'Jur would unleash his spirit magic to go toe-to-toe with a Great Beast or an equally threatening human. Well-described, easy to visualize, and not bogged down with too much detail.

The plot of the novel is, ultimately, lacklustre. You've probably read several books with the same broad strokes. Once again, it's serviceable, but it never really caught my attention. Like I said, the characters just felt too passive for me, without many active goals other than maintaining a status quo, so I didn't feel a momentum to the book. I went into this book ready to love it, but it never took itself one step further, didn't really employ any risks. It played its plot pretty safe, and so it just feels safe. That said, one thing Mealing does do that I'm surprised his editor let him get away with is using multiple POV breaks in interludes.

There are four parts to this novel, and sandwiched between each part are three interlude chapters each. That means there are twelve interludes, as well as two or three epilogues, each of these told from a perspective of a character we otherwise don't get perspective chapters from. This is ambitious for a debut novel, and I think it pays off. I, for one, love multiple perspectives, and these were my favourite parts of the book. I sat and read far longer than I had planned to once because I reached an interlude and wanted to see these chapters.

Each interlude feels like it builds on the lore of the world and the story, and also appear extremely significant to the plot--some will introduce characters who are about to arrive in the main plot, while others hint at characters that might be major players later in the series, while others take even broader strokes, pulling the scope of the novel even farther back so you can understand just how overwhelming the opposition to our heroes feels.

I will also give credit to Mealing for setting up plenty of intrigue and mystery. The book walks the line between "too much information for me to be curious" and "so little information I'm annoyed. David Mealing's debut is good, it's just not great. I would recommend it, generally speaking, and I think the series is going to go in a really positive direction, but I also think anyone would be justified in thinking it wasn't for them and not continuing on after this book. It plays a lot of familiar, safe notes and doesn't take many risks, but it's a competently crafted novel that could just as easily be your favourite book ever.

Could not put it down A gripping read. Looking forward to the sequel. Can't wait to come back to this world. This is a beginning of a new fantasy series that takes place in a world that feels similar to colonial United States. Two of the great nations, Sarresant and Gand, have colonies there, and are fighting amongst each other to gain even more land. The rest of the continent is inhabited by native tribes.

The story is divided among three POV characters. The first one is Erris, who is an officer in the Sarresant army. She is ambitious, driven, and a great strategist bound for a quick rise among her fe This is a beginning of a new fantasy series that takes place in a world that feels similar to colonial United States. She is ambitious, driven, and a great strategist bound for a quick rise among her fellow soldiers. She is also know as a full-binder, which means that she uses the leyline magic system. This is one of the three magic systems in the book. Its users can use different leylines to produce different results, whether it be making themselves or others stronger, disappearing, or something else.

This is also the reason the two nations are at war. Gaining more land also means gaining potential new leylines and with that new magic. The second character we follow is Sarine. She is a street artist living in New Sarresant. She earns money by sketching society events and selling the sketches on the market. She uses leyline magic, but she hides the fact.

The use of magic has to be approved by the king, the users marked as such, and the majority of them ends up in the army. Sarine wants none of that for herself, so she hides her powers. But leyline magic is not the only type of magic she possesses. She also has kaas magic, which means she has a reptile like companion called Zi, that lends her his power when she needs it.

He is a guardian of the Sinari tribe. He is one of their elders and his role is to protect his people from the wild beasts that roam the wilderness and present danger to them.

The more beasts he kills, the more powerful he becomes. The magic that the tribes use is known as the spirit magic. The world in which our three characters live is changing quickly. Erris, who spends a large part of her life on the battlefield, is coming to a realization that she is fighting a very cunning enemy and that the rules of the game are changing. Sarine, who has grown up as an orphan in New Sarresant, is a great observer and she sees the storm brewing in the city.

New people enter her life, and she will have to figure out what exactly their intentions are. The spirits that have guided the tribes for centuries seem to be giving them advice that might lead to an unnecessary war. As things escalate between the tribes, it will be up to him to try to calm things down and get to the bottom of the problem. During that time he will face many changes.

One thing that I really liked about this book is the way female characters were portrayed. They were strong, had minds of their own. They were independent, but capable of listening to other people's advice. All in all, they played a very important role in the book in general. My biggest problem with this book was the writing style. I found it to be pretty hard to get into. The book has a pretty steep learning curve. You are thrust into this world and have to figure things out for yourself. While the world itself is not that different from our own, the magic systems take some time to figure out.

The language of the book is dense. The sentences tend to be written in a pretty complicated style and it takes a lot of concentration to make sense of things. This was a pretty slow read for me. The ending had me really intrigued, so I will definitely be picking up the next book in the series.

Terrorism Fiction eBook, The Madness Analog, Gets Five-Star Review

Jul 07, Maddalena rated it really liked it Shelves: I received this novel from Orbit Books, in exchange for an honest review. Books have a mysterious way of catching my attention, and Soul of the World was no exception: What little synopsis was there was also quite intriguing, promising a world on the brink of both war and change, while unrest and social troubles are running rampant.

How could I resist? View all 3 comments. Jul 07, Jimmit Shah rated it it was amazing Shelves: Each of the three societies or systems has a character through whose eyes we see the story unfolding - Sarine, Erris and Arak'Jur. Sarine's storyline is filled with coming-of-age events: Sarine is instantly likable.

She sneaks into places where she is not allowed and lands into trouble for doing the right thing. Her pov is the key to the world building - it reveals all the three types of magical disciplines that exist in this world and the explanation is not cumbersome as is the case with many fantasy books with complicated systems. Oh and I like Zi! They are at war with Gand read England on multiple fronts. One of the fronts is the colonies in the new world where the two forces frequently crash. Erris is forced to innovate and think on her feet, as she is always outgunned and outnumbered by the enemy.

Her scenes with or countering the wily Gand general are particularly interesting. Her pov is important for a bit of the magical system but more for the nature of the forces that are aligned against the 'good' side. In the next book, hope to see some more personal development of Erris esp on the romantic side. The book also has tribal stories which are presented from the pov of Arak'Jur.

He is a guardian of the Sinari tribe but eventually becomes important for all the tribes. Although a lot of key developments happen in this pov which impact the overall story, I found this storyline to be a bit boring. The tribal culture and customs seemed too superficial - the author could have done better by reading a few books on Native American tribes. There is not much which differentiates one tribe from the other except the core magic, which I found to be a little weird.

Customs, which start with the same root, have a tendency to evolve especially if groups gain individual identity.

See a Problem?

I hope this flaw will be addressed in the next book. There a few non-pov central characters of which Reyne d'Agarre is going to be my 'looked-for' character in the next book. His back-story should be interesting. Overall Story Each character's story is kicked off with a differently paced scene. What seem like three separate threads moving on their own timelines, come together quite smoothly at the end, leading to a thrilling climax. I like the way the book ended and the reveals in the Epilogue. I like authors who shake up the character set.

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Worldbuilding Magic is at the core of the story of the book and seems to be the focus for the entire series. Epic fantasy generally goes beyond the magic and the world and has more elements of long-lasting events or cultural shifts. Coming books in the series will decide the final categorization, but so far the worldbuilding is a little shallow.

There is hardly any mention of the differences between the resources of the Old and the New world and what makes the colonies so lucrative. We don't see any major industrial or agricultural benefits coming from there nor is there any mention of the trigger for colonization. Hopefully this is clarified in the coming books. Promising beginning, some work to be done, but probably one of the top books for so far. May 28, Anya rated it really liked it.

This book has some issues with sexism and racism against the Native people and romanticize go colonialism and slavery.

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It's at the level where it wasn't so obvious that I stopped reading since there was a lot of good stuff. However I have an icky uneasy feeling and I am sure readers who are better at analyzing these things will outline the issues. That being said, the magic systems in this book are epic and the comparison to Sanderson and Rothfuss is quite deserved, which is coming from a huge fa This book has some issues with sexism and racism against the Native people and romanticize go colonialism and slavery.

That being said, the magic systems in this book are epic and the comparison to Sanderson and Rothfuss is quite deserved, which is coming from a huge fan who was very skeptical of those comps! There is lots and lots of complexity to the various types of magic so I'm not going to try to explain them except to say there are magical serpents: There are times that things dragged because of the details of battles that I just wasn't interested in, but otherwise the pacing was solid.

The setting is also cool in that it is inspired by French colonization of America, though with different labels. A major difference, however is that women are apparently completely equal in the colonies because they are expected to serve in the army, including in high positions, and seem to have all the rights of men. However, the Native culture is separated clearly into gender roles and while this is eventually addressed, it still paints a world of backwards and ignorant Natives with spirit magic compared to white colonizers.

Worse yet, at the very end we find out slavery is still part of the white culture with the appearance of a well-treated and exotic black servant who was expensive but worth the price according to his owner. So I'm very conflicted. There are some awesome things in this book but it feels like despite trying to be more inclusive than the fantasy genre has been historically, this just perpetuates stereotypes. Jul 04, James rated it it was amazing. I have a sickness. I love huge fantasy books that I can truly get lost in and escape the real world.

When I saw the book was over pgs long, and had a awesome plot description, I knew I had to take a chance. I was very much impressed with this debut by David Mealing! It seems like the buzz words for many readers are "diversity" and "more female protagonists". Well this book certainly delivers because two of the three main points of view are females and the third is based on Native American cul I have a sickness.

Well this book certainly delivers because two of the three main points of view are females and the third is based on Native American culture. I am a white male for anyone curious and I loved all of the characters! This book also has interludes after each "part" of the book which is the same structure as the popular Stormlight Archives series by Brandon Sanderson. The interludes give the reader a chance to see what else is happening in the world and is a very effective tool.

There are two things that mean the most to me as a reader. Did the plot entertain me?

Did the world feel real? A huge yes to both questions and I look forward to the next book in the series. As a ending note the author plans for this to be a trilogy, but if it does well there is a possibility for stand alones. I'm not a huge fan of books that jump between so many PoVs every chapter.

But this book was really good! Each character is so different and interesting that I didn't mind all the different PoVs I love a good magic system and this story hasn't multiple different magic systems that are all completely different and interesting from one another. Overall a very good book that I happened to stumble upon at Books a million and couldn't be any more happier with the find!

Sep 15, Jay Quietnight rated it it was amazing. Soul of the World is the first book in The Ascension Cycle trilogy. The characters are complex and endearing or despicable, depending who it is. The dialogue is smooth and really adds to the depth of the characters. I'm looking forward to the next book in this series! Aug 19, Nicole rated it it was amazing.

Review originally posted at Erlebnisse: Hvide for a copy of this book. Like, don't get me wrong: I expected that, honestly. When the book first came out a year ago, I heard only a little about it but was immediately interested I mean, read that blurb! Anything that says epic fantasy and is published by Orbit is something I'm going after, espec Review originally posted at Erlebnisse: But, of course, one thing led to another and somehow, I never got around to picking up a copy, even from my library.

Then, I get lucky enough to win!!! Hvide hosted, in honor of the second book coming out. After all of this good fortune, I knew it was a sign. This was a book demanded to be read. So, I gave in. I just finished the first book yesterday and I've been trying to be good about staying on top of ARCs this month, but there is no way I'll get the second book read and reviewed by tomorrow, when it comes out August 21st, But Lord knows I won't be making the mistake I made with the first book and wait so long to read it.

I'll have the sequel read by September, if I'm able to read as much as I hope. So, until then, let me gush about the first book. Soul of the World. If you like epic fantasy, you're going to love this book. It has everything you want from your traditional epic fantasy, except that all of it is Every aspect you expect from an epic fantasy is present in this book, but it's just so expertly told from an obvious master of the genre that you can't help but read this a breath of fresh air.

From the moment I started reading and I met our three main point of view, I was sucked into this immersive and detailed world, its complexities shown by how different the lives, cultures, situations and beliefs were for each of our main characters. The political structure is intense and complicated, but in a good way, complicating and pushing the plot forward as each of our characters have not only an idea about what needs to happen next, but they have a way to do it, too.

And they go after their beliefs and their hopes without abandon. It was impossible not to root for each of them and I definitely couldn't pick a favorite, between Arak'Jur, Erris and Sarine. Hell, I still can't. So imagine my dismay, when, I get to the middle of the book and suddenly, their desires start to seemingly conflict as their plotlines begin to weave together? And that's by far the strongest element of this book: Their depth is inspiring and honestly, I'd love to work with Mealing on how he creates such detailed, complex, three dimensional characters who, over the course of the entire book, grow and change and are challenged and I can feel it happening.

I was always drawn to support each of them, yet there were times when what I originally rooted for alongside them changed and I found that, by the end of the book, what I rooted for originally was no longer what I'm rooting for to happen in book two. I want to read more. Clearly, Baldacci is a master at his craft. Sean King and Michelle Maxwell are two extremely compelling, modern-day protagonists-- former Secret Service agents turned private investigators. The acclaimed eBook thriller which is available on Amazon. Read this glowing, and totally objective, professional book review of The Madness Analog..

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