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Brian D. Anderson
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The Vale: Behind The Vale Kindle Edition

by Brian D. Anderson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 182 ratings
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Thousands of years after the war of the ancients, a single bastion of human life survives - The Vale. And at its core the magnificent city of Troi. Here the mana flows from the great power station, bringing light and life to all. It is a beacon of hope in a sick and dying world. But all is not as it appears. Even as the Order of High Mages seeks to cure the land, sinister forces move to gain absolute control over The Vale and its citizens.
Drake Sharazi, disgraced Royal Guard turned bounty hunter, has been exiled from Troi to the surrounding provinces, where resources are limited and starvation is commonplace. It is in this squalor and poverty he believes he shall spend his remaining days. But after years of labor and suffering, he has been given the chance to go home; to return to the life he has longed for since the moment he left his beloved city. But he quickly discovers that the life he desires is built on a foundation of lies.
Now he must choose between what is right and what is easy. But what is right could cost more than he is willing to pay. And to save his home, he might have to destroy it…and all he has ever loved.
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  1. Book 1 of 3
    The Vale
  2. Print length
    326 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    January 31, 2018
  6. File size
    986 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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From the Publisher

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Mages, big guns, bounty hunters, and tough women--THE VALE is an edgy, punchy mix of genres full of action and magic." -- Kevin J. Anderson, New York Times bestselling author of the "Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I." Brian D. Anderson has introduced something new to the fantasy genre, a world that combines a certain post-apocalyptic air with just a dash of high fantasy. I was thoroughly entertained and I look forward to the sequel - Michael G. Manning
This is the second timeI've read it and both times I've read it within two days and haven't been ableto put it down. - James Tivendale - Fantasy Book Review

About the Author

Brian D. Anderson is the indie-bestselling fantasy author of The Godling Chronicles, Dragonvein, and Akiri (with co-author Steven Savile) series. His books have sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide and his audiobooks are perennially popular. After a fifteen year long career in music, he rediscovered his boyhood love of writing. It was soon apparent that this was what he should have been pursuing all along. Currently, he lives in the sleepy southern town of Fairhope, Alabama with his wife and son, who inspire him daily.
You can learn more at -
BrianDAndersonbooks.com

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B079J3YVYS
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Longfire Press (January 31, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 31, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 986 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 326 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 182 ratings

About the author

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Brian D. Anderson

Brian D. Anderson

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Brian D. Anderson is the indie-bestselling fantasy author of The Godling Chronicles, Dragonvein, and Akiri (with co-author Steven Savile) series. His books have sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide and his audiobooks are perennially popular. After a fifteen year long career in music, he rediscovered his boyhood love of writing. It was soon apparent that this was what he should have been pursuing all along. Currently, he lives in the sleepy southern town of Fairhope, Alabama with his wife and son, who inspire him daily.

You can learn more at -

BrianDAndersonbooks.com

http://briandandersonbooks.blogspot.com https://www.facebook.com/#!/AuthorBrianDAnderson

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
182 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the world-building interesting and the characters great. They describe the book as an entertaining, well-written story that combines science fiction with magic. Readers also mention the audiobook is well-narrated and keeps their attention.

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EnjoymentReadability
8 customers mention "Enjoyment"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the world-building interesting and the characters great. They also appreciate the surprise twists and turns.

"I enjoyed the surprise twists and turns. It me interested throughout the whole story. I'm looking forward to the next book...." Read more

"...I really liked the world building, the magic was interesting and I found the dual city concept coupled with the society to be a nice mix...." Read more

"...I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed the world he created and the characters he introduced in this first book...." Read more

"Entertaining story,good read!" Read more

6 customers mention "Readability"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book entertaining, well-written, and a great Anderson novel. They also say the audiobook is well-narrated and keeps their attention.

"...It was well put together. The narrator was wonderful" Read more

"...By halfway through I was speeding along through it. The audiobook was also well narrated and kept my attention, I made it through fairly..." Read more

"Entertaining story,good read!" Read more

"...It is a very well written story that combines the science fiction of machines and fantastic gadgets with the fantasy of magic and mythical races...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

Kitty
5.0 out of 5 stars It was a good story.
Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2019
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I enjoyed the surprise twists and turns. It me interested throughout the whole story. I'm looking forward to the next book. Author put a lot of thought into it as a result I'm going to follow this author. It was well put together. The narrator was wonderful
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Brittany hay
4.0 out of 5 stars I had read and enjoyed Akiri: The Scepter of Xarbaal
Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2018
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This was an author request, I had read and enjoyed Akiri: The Scepter of Xarbaal, so I was excited to give this one a go. I listened to this via audiobook (thanks for the credit, Brian) so please forgive any spelling errors.

---------------------

Plot:

In the opening of the book, Drake is living in the slums of the world known as the Providences, working as a ‘hawker’, (which is basically a bounty hunter) and spending much of his time in a seedy bar when he’s not working.

He takes jobs from less than reputable people, and his latest client doesn’t want to pay up and decides it would be easier to kill Drake. Since the MC isn’t just a standard hawker, and is actually an ex-Captain of the Guard to the King, he’s able to fend for himself pretty well. The assassination attempt goes poorly, and Drake ends up walking away from it.

The King, who has exiled Drake, asks for his help when his son is kidnapped by a group of rebels. It seems as though despite exiling Drake, he and the King have a decent relationship. The King apologizes for having to exile him, and swears he believes he’s innocent, and gets a little choked up about the whole thing. Drake believes if he can bring back Prince Salazar unharmed, or at least aid the King in a significant way by finding the band of rebels, he will be able to return to Troi – the last and greatest city on Earth.

The problem is, even if Drake manages to find Salazar, he may not want to come back with him. His father accused him of treason, and although he rescinded the accusation, the prince doesn’t know that yet. He would believe that his rescuer is bringing him to his death.

Drake has to team up with another hawker who he despises to try and find Salazar, and it’s a bloody and interesting journey. To make matters worse, someone from within is trying to sabatoge the mission, planting bombs and other things around Drake trying to ensure he dies before he completes the rescue.

Final Score: 11.75/15

--------------------

Characters:

Drake is pretty bitter about being an outcast forced to live in the Provincial Lands, a place where people die from hunger and are more or less the dregs of society. He’s pretty good at what he does and doesn’t seem to have any moral qualms about handing people over for a bounty, even if it means their deaths.

He has a long lost love that he’s had to leave behind when he was banished to the Provincial lands, and he’s reacquainted when he gets to Troi.

He seems to be fairly loyal to the King, despite the fact that he banished him. He was also friends with the prince who’s gone missing, so he not only wants to find him to possibly re-gain his place in Troi, but also because he was a friend.

I wasn’t sure if I liked him at first, but the more I got to know him the more I came around to him.

Final Score: 10.25/15

-------------------------

World Building

Exodus is the rebel group who’s been behind most of the civil unrest over the last couple decades. They are a secretive group that’s managed to stay outside the Kings grasp for a while, and likely has people stationed in the higher positions of the government.

Lots of different kinds of magic, flames, mind reading, healing, etc. It’s all fairly mysterious except for the fact you know it uses mana.

Guards have a vex crystals that helps them channel mana which prevents exhaustion and boosts some of their abilities. Mages without this have to use their entire bodies to channel mana, and it can be very exhausting. Having the crystal to channel the mana is extremely painful, but you never get tired.

The world is sort of post-apocalyptic, something happened long ago that nearly wiped out humanity. Troi is the last city left, and it’s also dual-layered, with the Lower City literally holding up the Upper City.

There’s a lot of modern tech, cars, phones tv and all of that. Drakes favorite weapon is his P37, and never goes anywhere without it.

The society is rather hierarchal, with peoples stations at birth having a big impact on how they can progress through society. A “level 6” is a lower station at birth, and are given poor jobs like sewer cleaning. The people living in Troi are rather removed from the rest of humanity that’s struggling along. They live in luxury, while most people are starving and dying by the hundreds.

Final Score: 11.25/15

---------------------------

Writing:

I felt like I wanted a little more from the prose, but it wasn’t something that was glaring – there were just a few overused words and sometimes there was a lack of description to help me visualize what was going on or what the character was experiencing. However, it read quickly and the prose pushed the story along well.

Final Score: 9.5/15

----------------------

Pacing:

I found the pacing to be smooth and consistent, there weren’t any lulls or ‘filler’ material. There was a nice pace of action through the book that was coupled with narrative and dialogue so it wasn’t moving at breakneck speed from one fight to the next. There were pretty high stakes towards the end of the book, and there was more than enough tension to keep my attention from beginning to end.

Final Score: 13/15

---------------------------

Originality:

I really liked the world building, the magic was interesting and I found the dual city concept coupled with the society to be a nice mix.

Final Score: 12/15

------------------

Personal Enjoyment:

I wasn’t sure at first if I was going to like this because I wasn’t connecting so much with the character, I’ve seen a lot of grumpy bounty hunters who are unhappy with their lives. However, once the main plot started to unfurl I became more and more interested. By halfway through I was speeding along through it. The audiobook was also well narrated and kept my attention, I made it through fairly quickly.

Final Score: 7.5/10

----------------------------

Audience:

Bounty Hunter main character
Single pov
Post-apocalyptic setting
Futuristic setting
Lots of magic with mages
Guns in Fantasy
Fast paced with lots of action

Final Score: 75.25/100 (less)
3 people found this helpful
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Paul Andrew Wandless
5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting world and great characters
Reviewed in the United States on May 8, 2018
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I enjoyed the Godling Chronicles and Akiri, so I thought I would give his Sci-fi/Fantasy book a try. I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed the world he created and the characters he introduced in this first book. I look forward to the next book in the series. Brian D. Anderson has become one of my favorite authors and I always keep an eye out for his new releases.
One person found this helpful
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Regulatorjones
4.0 out of 5 stars enjoyed the story
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2019
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Entertaining story,good read!
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Robert Gamble
3.0 out of 5 stars Good concept, interesting reveals but very bland characters
Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2018
I'm not really sure what to classify this book as. Maybe 'technomancer'? It's unusual in that the world the characters are in is a lot like ours in 'technology and comfort level' although this really only applies to the main city and things are worse as you go further from it due to the reduction of the strength of the mana streams that support everything. There are cars, guns, etc but all fuelled in some way by mana. At its core, the story follows a man called Drake who lived in the city and had a good life before everything was taken away and he became a hunter (can't recall what they're called in the book) for hire - basically a bounty hunter. He dreams of going back to live in the city.

The plot is somewhat interesting and there are reveals throughout (and the back of the book itself reveals that things are not what they seem) that would be very interesting in the hands of a master writer. And while I did finish the book and enjoyed it, it was kind of at the 'Pacific Rim' level where the world was cool, some of the reveals were fun, but the characters were mostly throwaways so it doesn't stick afterwards.

If you gave me dialogue for any of the characters out of context, I would have a hard time identifying them (unless they were talking about Manga Juice). I get the sense the author wants you to envision Drake as this hardened, cynical guy with a heart of gold who doesn't want to kill anyone. He certainly dwells on it a lot and demonizes another man who he thinks of as a hired killer. But Drake doesn't seem to mind killing when he judges it necessary even if the person isn't a 'bad guy'. And after he meets this 'hired killer' he almost immediately seems hellbent on killing him once he gets the chance, even though the other man hasn't really done anything to him.

Plus, the two most 'competent' characters in the book (Drake, and this other guy I've been discussing) sure screw up a lot on things that they should know better about (and often after the fact realize they should have been more careful).

There's a very clumsy, out of the blue setup of a potential villain (maybe? or is the character going to actually be who we thought they were all along) near the end who 'changes loyalties'. And it's unclear why the person who's receiving this loyalty would even do so and trust them to such an extent having barely known them at all.

Part of me really wants to read the next book, because the worldbuilding is intriguing, but I'm not sure I can handle the characters and the shallowness of their thoughts and motivations.
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S. K.
5.0 out of 5 stars great world building and a story I want to continue
Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2018
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Fast paced and this one I couldn't put down. To the point, great world building and a story I want to continue. My time is worth a lot to me and I don't like to waste it ,so I'm picking with what I read. Loved this and am on to the next one! Thanks Brian!
One person found this helpful
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PMHanlon1369
4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good, nice for a prequel
Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2018
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Mages, royalty, and bounty hunters all have their strengths all while the land and everyone in it suffers and dies. A crazy plan to heal the living wounds of the poor and disenfranchised all while the rich and powerful live fat and easy.
One person found this helpful
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Evan Thomason
5.0 out of 5 stars Another great Anderson novel!
Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2018
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"The Valley: Behind The Vale" lives up to Brian Anderson's Godling Chronicles and Dragonvein storylines in it's ability to pull you in and fall in love with the characters. It is a very well written story that combines the science fiction of machines and fantastic gadgets with the fantasy of magic and mythical races. I can't wait for more!
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Top reviews from other countries

Rky Mtn Canuck
5.0 out of 5 stars Good Story, some grammar issues
Reviewed in Canada on July 8, 2020
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I almost didn't read this series as it seemed more sci-fi than fantasy. But I enjoy this author's other series so thought I'd give it a go. Pretty good story but seriously, the grammar can be terrible. I enjoyed this entire series as far as the story goes. But the grammar is atrocious. I don't remember it being this bad in the first series I ever read, The Godling Chronicles. . Is it because of the transfer to Kindle? I want to believe so because otherwise the author better hire better copywriters. If you can deal with the bad grammar, this series is worth a read.
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M. Paton
5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic start to his new series! Brian D Anderson rocks!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 7, 2018
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Brian D Anderson is a Master World Builder, and excels at providing fast paced action, with believable and loveable characters - flaws and all. He also touches on controversial current topics within his tales, in a very imaginative way. This introduction to The Vale series approaches very relevant global environmental issues in a unique meld of Myth and Magic, and Urban Fantasy. Again, he makes it difficult to ‘spot the bad guy’, and we find ourselves empathising with those who appear to be beyond redemption. I really love this author’s books.
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James Tivendale
4.0 out of 5 stars Has all ingredients that make an excellent Final Fantasy-esque addictive fantasy thriller
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 27, 2019
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Although I read this for Fantasy Book Review's contribution to The Self Published Fantasy Blog Off it was a book that had been on my horizon for some time so I was thrilled when it was placed in our group. I am happy to announce that Behind the Vale was my first semi-finalist from this year's competition.

What is it with awesome bad-ass characters being called Drake recently? We had a Drake in Rob J. Hayes' - Where Loyalties Lie and Peter McLean's - Drake. Drake, the protagonist here is a 'hawker' who is a sort of bounty hunter who lives and takes assignments in the greyest, dirtiest, and most violent places in the world after being exiled from the Troi's Royal Guard for a crime he didn't commit. He is an engrossing main character who has a P37 army specification gun and a magic sword. In similar fashion to how Geralt does in the Witcher novels, he has a very necessary set of skills to complete many complex and dangerous tasks that other individuals would not even contemplate considering. That has been his life for nine years. That is until he is arrested one day after defending himself from an assassination attempt. He is taken to the local police station only to see his old comrade who is now head of the Royal Guard awaiting him and he has a request. The Prince of Troi, who was once Drake's best friend has been kidnapped. The Royal Guard has thus far had no success in tracking the heir and they need Drake's honed skills, intelligence and knowledge of these unsavoury areas to lead the rescue efforts.

The standard for top-tier Self-Published books is phenomenal. Behind the Vale fits into that category with ease. To the extent that Anderson's story is so well crafted, engaging, and original that TOR have signed him to release a trilogy for them in 2020. That's the future so let's discuss what we have here.

The action is presented in a near-futuristic world where most of the wealth resides within the main city Troi. Outside the city are very desolate and grim towns and settlements where times are truly hard and greenery and anything beneficial for survival just do not grow. The city has a stranglehold monopoly on these inhabitants whose lives aren't exactly rosy unless you are highly skilled in a certain field. Even further from the capital is an area that is unknown and is guarded by a magical structure known as the Vale. Presented as being similar to The Misery in Ed McDonald's Blackwing, nobody dares venture beyond the Vale as that is where grotesque monstrosities lurk. All the action takes place under a shimmering sky flowing with mana and magical capabilities that looks sort of like a spider's web through a kaleidoscope. Imagine looking at the sun with your eyes closed and seeing dots spinning and moving and dancing on the back of your eyelids and that is how I imagine the skyline is viewed here.

Some of the elements featured in Behind the Vale are very reminiscent of recent Final Fantasy or Star Ocean games such as monster battles, phenomenal magical capabilities, signature weapons, and infiltrating secret facilities where notorious experiments are taking place. That isn't where the similarities to JRPG's end, however. The cast of characters could be right out of one of the aforementioned games. The roguish lead-guy with a brutal past but a heart of gold, a long-lost love interest who all believe is out of his league, an assassin accomplice that he doesn't know if he can trust or not, a former employer who might just have it in for the hero, and a mysterious young girl who happens to be an expert hacker. The whole ensemble is neat, interesting, and their dialogue flows expertly. It is like reading a computer game but not in the sense of LitRPG as this is a really detailed and constructed fantasy world. A player isn't sucked from real life into it and we don't have endless levelling up, skill sheets or bonus enhancement choices like some LitRPG books do. There is nothing wrong with that genre but here the writing, action, and progression feel more organic and I, therefore, care more about the players and outcomes as I know this isn't a game and in this beautifully crafted world the consequences really do matter.

I won't discuss the narrative too much, however, this is the second time I've read it and both times I've read it within two days and haven't been able to put it down. There are moments of utmost excitement, shocks aplenty, betrayals from where you would least expect them and all the other excellent ingredients that make an excellent Final Fantasy-esque addictive and thoroughly enjoyable fantasy thriller. Remember the name. Anderson is going to be a big deal, so be one of the cool kids and read him before your friends do. Excellent work.
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Librarian
5.0 out of 5 stars Great series
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2018
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Really loved this book. Am totally into the Vale and its characters. Just hope that the next in the series is out very soon.
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