#BlogTour-‘The Spider’ by Leo Carew

About the book…

After the critically acclaimed epic fantasy The Wolf’ comes THE SPIDER, book two in Leo Carew’s UNDER THE NORTHERN SKY series

A battle has been won, but the war still wages on . . .

Roper, the Black Lord of the northern people, may have vanquished the Suthern army at the Battle of Harstathur. But the greatest threat to his people lies in the hands of more shadowy forces.

In the south, the disgraced Bellamus bides his time. Learning that the young Lord Roper is planning to invade the southern lands, Bellamus conspires with his Queen to unleash a weapon so deadly it could wipe out Roper’s people altogether.

And at a time when Roper needs his friends more than ever, treachery from within puts the lives of those he loves in mortal danger . . .

WHAT REVIEWERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE BREATHTAKING WORK OF LEO CAREW:

‘The next George RR Martin‘ – Mail on Sunday

‘Imagine Game of Thrones rewritten by John le Carre . . . A marvellously accomplished debut‘ – Guardian

‘A work of extraordinary imagination and perhaps the most captivating first novel I’ve ever read‘ – Michael Dobbs, author of House of Cards

‘The Spider’ is available now in hardback,ebook and audiobook formats from publishers Widlfire Press-my grateful thanks to tour organiser Tracy Fenton of Compulsive Readers and Rosie Margesson of Wildfire for my gifted hardback review copy.

On that note….what a cover!! Both this and ‘The Wolf’ have eye catching designs that leave the casual observer in no doubt whatsoever that this book is rich, fantastical and so worth investing time and money in.

”I fear for the Black Kingdom.We have so many devious and powerful enemies.We are fewer year on year. And Bellamus’s tactics on Harstathur,and at the battle on the flood plains, show that they’re finding ways to fight us.Along with my usual prayers for my loved ones,for perspective,faith,and thanksgiving for all that I have,I pray for our kingdom.I truly fear for her.”

This is the crux of this difficult second novel-in it the author has to take the worlds created in book 1, build on them, invite new readers in and also advance the plot and Leo Carew does not just do this, he blows the reader away with the planning and intricacies of Albion. He has been there. He knows all his characters inside and out, and reading it you are so very happy to go along with him.

‘The Wolf’ was a smorgasbord of battle field scenes, death and war ending with Lord Roper defeating his southern enemies at the Battle of Harstathur, driving them back and reasserting his dominance and his domain. However, a great leader in warfare is not always a great leader outside of this and you can smell the unease in him of ‘what do I do next?’ He is almost willing the next battlefield into existence but firts he has to work out who to trust and this is a far from easy task.

Was his greatest mistake in leaving his enemy, Bellamus, alive? Northern King,(Lord Roper of the Anakim) versus Southern (Suthern) Queen Aramilla ably plied with ideas by Bellamus has the potential to come across as a Thrones/Tolkien-esque fan fiction but it absolutely does not. AND THERE ARE GIANTS!!Always there for a book with giants in!

I am a huge GRRM fan, less so of Tolkien who I personally find does not stand up to repeated re-readings. So when a book series comes along which is vaunted as being by ‘the next George RR Martin‘ you tend not only to be sceptical but also feel it’s a tad unfait to be labelled as such.

Again it’s only this reader’s opinion, but I actually find it more readable than ‘A Game Of Thrones’– to clarify, it took me mere days to read this whilst I am on ‘A Clash Of Kings’ and have been for months. Leo Carew dives straight into his story of intrigue, double crossing, warfare and the fall and rise of kingdoms. He’s not the next GRRM, he is the first Leo Carew and I would place bets on there being authors in the next couple of years being referred to as the new him.

Looking forward to volume 3 of the series and finding put what happens next , how will vengeance be wreaked and where. Who will survive this clash is anyone’s guess and I for one cannot wait for the next battle !!!

Highly recommended to any fan of epic fantasy, start with ‘The Wolf’, chased down with ‘The Spider’ and stick around for the third course !

About the author…

The third of four children, Leo Carew grew up in the centre of London, in the shadow of St. Paul’s Cathedral. Inspired by audiobooks, he developed a late interest in reading and began trying his hand at writing soon afterwards. It was at this time that he also developed a sneaking suspicion that the city was not for him and spent as much time as possible exploring remote areas. After school, this led to two formative months spent on expedition in the High Arctic archipelago of Svalbard.

Three years followed reading Biological Anthropology at Cambridge University, most of which was spent staring out of the window, dreaming about colder climates. Obligatory time with serious studying done, Leo returned to Svalbard – Old Norse for “The Cold Edge” – where he lived in a tent for a year training and working as an Arctic guide. During this time, he revisited a novel he had begun at the age of 12 and began reassembling it in the considerable space offered by 24hr darkness. A reluctant return to London to train as a doctor and pursue a career as an army medic followed, during which time he completed his first novel, The Wolf.

Leo currently lives in London, writing, studying medicine and breaking off as often as possible for an adventure somewhere cold and wild.

Links-https://leocarew.com/ 

https://www.compulsivereaders.com/

Twitter @leocarew1

@RosieMargesson

@Wildfirebks

@Tr4cyF3nt0n