Reviewed by Ruffina Oserio for Readers’ Favorite

Forged by Betrayal and Blood by Helen Garraway opens the Celestial Throne series, a fantasy that brims with ancient magic, political intrigue, and a gritty redemptive journey. Vael Tor Arne, also known as the Butcher of Leif, is a disgraced soldier who has lived on the fringes of the empire, banished and haunted by a betrayal that destroyed not only his reputation but his family.

Farsolian warbands hunt Vael and his soldiers. His path leads to a lethal assassin, Disari, Sister of the Moon Blossom, whose mission to murder Emperor Talonm instead turns into an oath to destroy the oppressive sisterhood. When prophecies about the celestial dragons destined to protect the realm surface, Vael becomes the target of a sadistic warlord. Can he survive what is coming for him, protect his men, and find redemption?

Helen Garraway is a great entertainer, and her epic fantasy had me invested in her characters and how she explores their psychological wounds. Vael festers with survivor’s guilt and resentment, yet he is fond of his newfound family to whom he shows loyalty, especially Mort, the healer, and the protective Lars. Disari is another character who is grounded, struggling with the indoctrination by the Sisterhood and her desire for freedom. The setting is written with atmospheric detail, from the sanctuary’s stone archives to the Farsolian peaks and the snow that covers them. Forged by Betrayal and Blood is filled with action and scenes that test the human will.

Fans of Rebecca Yarros’s Fourth Wing and The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon will find familiar thrills in the elements of military fantasy and dragon mythology; however, Garraway distinguishes her work through its examination of the cost of honor and the haunting question of whether a man broken by bloodshed can ever be free.

Book Two, Bound by Scale and Blossom is on pre order. Tentative release date, December 2026.

If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my epic fantasy Sentinal series or the Romantic Fantasy SoulMist series. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and also Oathsworn, the prequel novella to the SoulMist series, and get notified when my next books are published.

By clicking the sign up button above, you agree to share your email address with the site owner and the newsletter platform provider to receive marketing, updates, and other emails from the site owner. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time.

By signing up to my newsletter, you agree to receive commercial information from Helen Garraway, located at 61 Bridge St, Kingston, Hertfordshire, UK (Data Administrator