Priest of Gallows by Peter McLean

4.5 stars out of 5

• All the work of the prior two books comes to fruition in this book especially, in my opinion

  • Outstanding plot

• “One murder can change the fate of a nation.”

• Political intrigue is at higher level here than in any other book

  • There is the neatest coup d’etat in fantasy - bloody but in the background, publicly smooth

  • Propaganda is used in effective ways here

• The ending of this book was the best in the series for me (including Priest of Crowns)

A few highlights

• Isle is a terrible character and beautifully realized

• Brother Blade - the ceremony and the initiation are outstanding performance

  • Sister Deceit; Brother Betrayal; Brother Truth; Sister Torment, Father Secrets and Mother Ruin

• In all books, including this one, there is a clever use of human vices and depravity to blackmail people

  • “Gold, power, influence. The levers that moved the world.”

Tropes that work for me

• Magic - it gets a little bit more fleshed out mostly via the description of a very troubled princess

• Slavery - while it is not called as such, this is another aspect of the social ramifications of war

• Development of weapons to prevent the next war (or to win the next war)

• Family and friends with a different angle: what happens to your closest family members and your friends when you push the envelop too far?

Book information

Priest of Gallows by Peter McLean

Book four in the War of the Rose Throne series

Published first on the 27th of May 2021

Published first by Jo Fletcher Books