Review: Crisis of Fate

Crisis of Fate by Jesse Teller
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Review now live, at Grimdark Magazine

Crisis of Fate is the latest book from Jesse Teller, who seems to have a knack for telling character-driven tales set in a world that's often brutal and unforgiving. Perilisc isn't a land for the fragile, that's for sure.

While a standalone story at its foundation, Crisis of Fate also serves as a companion novel to the Madness Wars series, the events of the story occurring after the first book in the main series.

Raendal is having a bad day. Her lover was murdered while having sex with her during a dream rendezvous, her thieves guild is being subverted against her by treason from those she most trusted, an army bent on destruction is on its way to her city, and she can't sleep for fear of reliving the nightmare of the murder in her bed chambers.

What to do? Well, of course Raendal wants revenge. She'd like nothing more than to find and torture to death the man responsible for her world crashing down, if only she can track him down. Oh, and get around the fact that he's literally unkillable.

One thing to remember is that in Perilisc, the impossible is sometimes possible, at a price. Why, giving up one's soul is a sure fire way to get what you want, right?

If Crisis of Fate doesn't meet the definition of Grimdark, I don't know what does. There are lighter moments, believe it or not, and as we delve into the minds of Raendal and others, it's actually possible to feel empathy for these tortured beings. Teller has a talent for showing the agony that they go through on a human level, as well as the redemption they often crave, whether they're able to attain it or not.

As with other novels by Jesse Teller, Crisis of Fate is one that will stick with me for a while. I've reviewed some of his other books for Grimdark Magazine , which can be found on my reviewer profile page here.

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