Ashes of a Risen Empire: An Elmerïan Novella

Those who follow these reviews may recall that an issue I often have with novellas is the author doesn’t write for the format. Sometimes, they will try to cram too much story into its pages; sometimes, they don’t have enough to warrant more than a short story. After reading one of the longest books I’ve reviewed on this website this year (Whispers of a World Breaker; click here for my review), I was particularly curious about how one of the shortest, Corey Ratliff’s novella, Ashes of a Risen Empire, would fare. Coming in at just six chapters—compared to Whispers of a World Breaker’s fifty-six—this novella feels as though it has about the perfect amount of story for its page count.

At just 70 pages in paperback (or 87 pages in hardcover; at the time of writing, there is no Kindle version available), Ashes of a Risen Empire is a brisk read. It’s easily digestible; a book that most readers can comfortably finish in a single sitting. This novella lacks the complexity of the novel that precedes it, telling a brief tale that suits the novella format nicely. Instead of a sprawling epic, it’s a low key story that weaves an intimate tale about its protagonist.

Novellas tying into a series of novels occupy an interesting space. With less room to tell the stories, the author needs a hook to capture the reader’s attention, without it feeling lesser, by virtue of the lower page count. This is particularly pertinent when spinning out of a large epic fantasy, resulting in a novella that’s more than 500 pages shorter. One solution to this quandary—and the solution Ratliff takes—is to use the novella as a means of exploring a side character, telling a comparatively small story that doesn’t fit within the confines of the novels. The character in question is Tirian, a character who plays a small, but pivotal, role in Whispers of a World Breaker. Ashes of a Risen Empire explores Tirian’s character, providing insight into his motivations and information about his backstory.

In that novel, Titian is an enjoyable character, but the book doesn’t provide significant amounts of detail about him. In Ashes of a Risen Empire, Ratliff explores the character in more detail, and thereby ensures he can stand toe-to-toe with Whispers of a World Breaker’s lead character, Aric. Due to the novella’s length, Tirian isn’t explored in as much depth as Aric, but he remains a solid protagonist. The book also features a comparatively small cast, but each character is entertaining to read about.

Like Whispers of a World Breaker, Ashes of a Risen Empire is a dark, epic fantasy. It’s a book for mature readers, with situations and language geared towards an adult audience. Also like that novel, this novella shares its DNA with young adult books. This is a story about Tirian’s thirst for revenge, but it also captures the majesty of dragons and the relationship between these creatures and dragon mages. The portions showing the relationship create a sense of wistful innocence and serve to highlight the brutality seen within the novella.

The book’s prose and dialogue are clear and easy to follow. I would have liked more colour to the prose, something that would have added to the reading experience and immersed the reader into the story. The dialogue works more often than it doesn’t, with some of the comments between characters not feeling entirely natural. Each character has a distinct voice, setting them aside the others.

One area in which novellas based on preexisting book series often fall over is in their presentation and the attention to detail compared to full-length novels. Sometimes, the story is rushed with the purpose seeming to be getting a book out quickly. Others relate to the quality of the book’s editing. Ashes of a Risen Empire avoids both traps. The story is well thought out, and the same level of care has gone into the editing as with the full novel.

In Ashes of a Risen Empire’s back matter, the author states that the core series should be read in order, while the spin-offs can be read in any order the reader desires. Due to the standalone nature of the book, it works on its own merits without any prerequisite reading. While Ashes of a Risen Empire is connected to the mainline series, it also serves as a great introduction to the world for readers on the fence about committing to a full-length novel, and one that may convince them to dive into the series.

Ashes of a Risen Empire is a thoroughly entertaining novella that adds more colour to Ratliff’s rich world. While it may lack Whispers of a World Breaker’s depth, what transpires is a story that fits the book’s length. Although the prose and dialogue don’t always work for me, this novella comes together in a wonderful way. The book offers fans some additional material, while working well for those new to the The Elmerïan Chronicles.

Favourite Passage

The next morning, Tirian woke before the sky. In the distance, in the confines of the swamplands, birds sang their rejoice of another day alive. He sat still for a long while, eyes closed as he listened to nature’s wake. Soon, the humidity rose to an uncomfortable level. 

Opening his eyes, he sighed and looked up at the sky. If it was this hot and the sun had yet to crest the canopy of the marsh, he dared not to imagine how much sweat he was going to lose as they traveled inside the swamp. He thought of the elf. Today you die, bitch.

Ashes of a Risen Empire: An Elmerïan Novella, Chapter Four: “The Marsh”

Ashes of a Risen Empire: An Elmerïan Novella was provided by the author for the purpose of an honest review.

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Interested in purchasing Whispers of a World Breaker: Elmerïan Chronicles, Book 1?

Please find a link below; please note I do not collect any proceeds from the sale.

Ashes of a Risen Empire: An Elmerïan Novella (Elmerïan Chronicles)