“For readers of fantasy with a sociopolitical bent, this intriguing novel will be worth the time and focus required to reach its heart.”
– Publishers Weekly
“The Ingenious is a fantasy novel that throws you into a fascinating, intensely original world, filled with creatures, magic, and intrigue around every corner. Hyper-realism is used perfectly, showing us the gritty underbelly of a world that defies logic. I love the writing style with its focus on dramatic and grotesque descriptions. This is a novel that lives up to every expectation of a fantasy novel, and moves beyond with its brilliant use of setting and magic that feels both mystical and evil in turn.”
– Reviews and Robots
“Athanor feels vibrant and alive in a way few fictional metropolises do, literally pulsing and teeming with life as it travels through and around spacetime. Its constantly changing nature gives it the sense of a wild, beautiful, protean place, its danger as seductive as it is horrifying.”
– Barnes & Noble SciFi & Fantasy Blog
“I’ll be upfront: I loved The Ingenious. The world is fabulously weird and complicated, the characters are fundamentally flawed and broken… I loved that the world was crazy, and that the magic was mysterious and powerful, and that the story was often messy, chaotic, and exciting.”
– The Fantasy Inn
“Beautifully creative settings, highly imaginative magic, fast-paced action, and sympathetic heroes…The Ingenious is a spectacular, in the true sense of the word, novel.”
– Grimdark Magazine
“A wild, imaginative original fantasy story. Isten proves to be a fascinating protagonist.”
– The British Fantasy Society
“This is not like your average fantasy novel. Hinks’ ability to mix the wondrous with the monstrous would not have seemed out of place in either a Thomas Pynchon or William Burroughs novel. In a world being buried by faux medieval settings and kids with destinies, it’s refreshing to read something truly original.”
– Sci-fi-online.com
A compelling and richly characterful first step into an awesome new world. Athanor is a hell of a place to get lost. I hope Darius hurries up with the sequel…”
– Aaron Dembski-Bowden, New York Times bestselling author
“Visceral and intense, The Ingenious creates a world that is rich, vivid and enticing.”
– James Swallow, New York Times bestselling author of Nomad
“A deftly woven fantasy, rich in imagination and narrative flare and wrought in lyrical prose. Not to be missed.”
– George Mann, Sunday Times bestselling author
“Athanor joins the likes of New Crubuzon, Gormenghast and Ankh Morpork in the ranks of the incredible, crumbling, amazing and terrifying edifices of fantasy fiction. Every bit as rich and textured as the characters we follow through its shadowed and deadly streets, the city’s personality compels us through the book as much as the exploits of Isten and her companions. A plot that teases and intrigues as much as it investigates and explores makes The Ingenious a book that is both creative and fresh and yet resonates with genre familiarity. A lot of people are going to be Darius Hinks fans after reading this.”
– Gav Thorpe, New York Times bestselling author, and winner of the 2017 David Gemmell Legend Award for Fantasy
“An intriguing tale of a wandering city. Hinks’ prose is pure poetry.”
– Guy Haley, author of Champion of Mars
“Gritty and moving, with a healthy dose of horror – Hinks has woven a powerful and compelling fantasy – where worlds are at stake and entire cities will be laid to waste.”
– Justin Hill, author of Viking Fire
“A twisty, turny triumph of imagination, with a heroine you aren’t sure you should like, but soon grow to love.”
– Mark A Latham, author of the Apollonian Case Files series
“The Ingenious is a triumph of the imagination bursting with strange, terrifying sorcery and wondrous locations.”
– Cameron Johnston, author of The Traitor God
“The Ingenious is a wildly fantastic story. Take everything you think you know about fantasy fiction and throw it in the trash, because this story will take you to a new meaning of the genre. Hinks has taken the best of so many favourites and spun them in new ways with his own ideas that just makes the world, characters, and overall story so colourful and inviting.”
– Anike Kirsten, SF blog review
“This is world-building at its finest. Darius Hinks has managed to do something that few sci-fi authors seem capable of these days – create something new and fabulous.”
– lookingforagoodbook.com
“Although visually and conceptually dense, Hink’s writing still radiates tension and relentless action, making for an entertaining read.”
– Strange Alliances
“I found the story powerful and the writing beautiful, painfully beautiful at times when it seems as if Hinks was mixing the fugue-filled state of Isten within the storytelling.”
– Marie Croke, author of Woven Wood
Warrior Priest (winner of the 2011 David Gemmell Morningstar Award)
‘It’s beautifully written… Harsh, dark and with combat moments almost Gemmellesque, it’s a tale that will fulfil many a reader’s demands.’
– Falcata Times
‘Delivers on all fronts in a manner that’s nothing short of superb. If Jakob Wolff is called upon to defend the Empire in future books then I’ll be picking them up. Nine and a quarter out of ten.’
– Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review
‘He expertly handles both battles and intimate encounters, while creating well-rounded, full bodied characters… Warrior Priest is a worthy entry in the Empire Army series; an outstanding first outing from Darius Hinks.’
– Red Book Review
‘Another amazingly well-written instalment in the Warhammer Heroes Series.’
– The Founding Fields
‘Great prose and solid bloody combat alongside dialogue that will enrapture the reader as well as ensnare them into Darius’ own web.’
– Falcata Times
‘He brings to life the chaotic, dreamy debauchery of the life of a Chaos Champion – perversions and pleasures walk hand in hand in Sigvald’s world.’
– Floor to Ceiling Books
‘If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be Sigvald, this is the book for you.’
– Bell of Lost Souls
‘Sigvald is a brilliantly fast-paced, twisted tale of debauchery and vanity, from an author who has an engaging and addictive style.’
– Civilian Reader
‘There is intrigue and counter intrigue on almost every other page and Hinks had me hooked by it all.’
– Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review
‘An epic tale of curses, daemons, magic and a realm that is the inverse of every fairytale ever told. A promising start to a new series.’
– The Founding Fields
‘Mythic fiction as it should be, a high-magic, high adventure, with flawed, believable characters, a good story line and a decent, fast pace.’
– The British Fantasy Society