A gripping and richly evocative historical fantasy, effortlessly blending the true fascinating history of the Mongols with gorgeous fantasy worldbuilding. Great characters make this hard to put down. Lovely!

I confess that I am entirely new to the historic nature of the Mongols and their invasion of Persia, but Stephen Aryan's The Judas Blossom masterfully draws you into this fascinating period. As the first book in The Nightingale and the Falcon series, it skillfully blends historical events with rich fantasy elements, making it accessible and engaging for readers unfamiliar with the era. The story follows multiple key figures: Kaivon, a conflicted Persian general torn between loyalty to his homeland and his forced service to the Mongol Empire; Kokochin, an ambitious and resourceful Mongol princess navigating the intricacies of political power; and Temujin, a ruthless Mongol general whose leadership is tested by shifting allegiances.

Aryan’s world-building is meticulous, breathing life into the brutal realities of war, while his exploration of cultural tensions and political intrigue keeps the narrative engrossing. The novel excels not only in its depiction of large-scale historical conflict but also in its deep character development, exploring themes of loyalty, survival, and betrayal. For a newcomer to this historical context, The Judas Blossom is an immersive, action-packed, and emotionally resonant entry into the world of epic historical fantasy, offering a vivid and compelling portrayal of the Mongol conquest of Persia. Another reviewer had mentioned how rare the world Aryan produces is very rarely seen and could not agree more. Not only should it be seen, but explored further, and I for one am anticipating his next book. 5/5.

My husband is a huge Stephen Aryan fan and persuaded me to give this series a shot, and I’m so glad I did. The Judas Blossom is such an epic historical fantasy.

I really enjoyed that we got to see an entirely new area of history and culture than usual in fantasy novels.
The multi POV storytelling was incredibly engaging and while there were definite cliff hangers at points that made me eager to get back to a certain character I never found myself struggling through any one certain POV to get to another.
This book was full of so many things that make a great historical fantasy. It was brutal, there were great action scenes, the characters were clever and intriguing. I enjoyed the political aspect of things as well.

I’m so I decided to come back to this one and read both it and the sequel. I can’t wait to see where the trilogy goes next.

“𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙮 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙨. 𝙊𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙨, 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙗𝙧𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙧𝙨. 𝙈𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙙𝙚𝙛𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙮. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙧𝙪𝙣 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙡. 𝙒𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪.”


🔥The book - 1st in The Nightingale and the Falcon trilogy - is a historical fantasy, based on the Mongol Empire's invasion of Persia in 1260 and follows the lives and treacherous journeys of four key figures in the heart of war.

Hulagu Khan, ruler of the Ilkhanate, is determined to create a single empire that covers the entire world. His method? Violence.

His youngest son, Temujin Khan, struggles to prove his worth in his father's eyes, unaware of a mysterious power that resides inside him.

The famed blue princess Kokochin, the last of her tribe, forced to become Hulagu's many wives, seeks purpose outside his harem.

Kaivon, the Persian rebel who despises the Mongols for the massacre of his people, joins Hulagu's retinue to erode his empire from within.

🔥This is my first novel by Stephen and I'm quite impressed by his craft. History and Fantasy are my favorite genres. He had beautifully blended it in this imaginative and sprawling epic, brimming with assassins, political factions, court intrigues, secret societies, and a mysterious magic system. Several creative liberties had been made to mold the plot, but the portrayal of historical eras, cultures, and empires was meticulous.

🔥The entire story was narrated from the abovementioned 4 characters' POVs. Each of them had their agendas, ideals, weaknesses, and drives, making them authentic. As the novel progresses, we see them gradually develop and instantly connect with them. Apart from them, some other characters' POVs were also added to show the different sides of the story. This makes the narratives more engaging to me and I didn't feel it dragging.

🔥The climax was satisfactory. It had a huge cliffhanger in the end, relating to the magical system that has not been properly explored in this novel. This makes me more eager for the next book to witness how these capabilities will be explored.

Overall The Judas Blossom is an ambitious, majestic, and brutal historical fantasy read that impresses throughout. If you love history, fantasy, and character-driven stories then it was a must-read. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

𝙈𝙮 𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(5/5)

I was so intrigued by the concept of this book, set during the mongol empire which is a part of history that I don’t really read much about but i have to say I was disappointed by this. The writing felt to clunky and didn’t really flow well so it took me a while to get interested in the story and i felt the characters felt flat.

Stephen Aryan created an amazing universe that has everything to grow bigger!
It's historical fiction with a beautifully developed story and political environment through the eyes of four characters - POV.
It presented itself at a slow pace without failing to guide the reader into different emotions. 
I am very excited for the next book in this Nightingale and the Falcon series.

It's 1260, Persia, as Hulagu Khan continues to ensure the legacy of his grandfather and continue the expansion of the Mongol Empire. In violence, Hulagu conquers Persia crushing local leaders and brave warriors. Kaivon, a Persian general, hates Hulagu but realises the best way pf getting revenge is to infiltrate the Khan's inner circle and destroy it from the inside out while the Khan's new wife Kokochin discovers her own method of rebellion within a secret organisation of female assassins. And closer to home, Hulagu's son Temujin struggles to meet his father's expectations but then discovers a magical gift that could change everything.

This is a book that tries to unpack a lot of history, and tell it in a fast-paced, informative way and I think in many ways it does it really well. The Mongol Empire is a very fascinating, and violent time in human history and I think to try and explain it all in one book is an impossible feat. But this look at the grandsons of the original Genghis Khan, and what his legacy meant for them and the mere ferioucness of the Mongol warriors was enlightening in itself.

I think for me, for some reason I can't quite pinpoint, there was just something missing in this book. And seeing all the other 5-star reviews out there, I'm thinking it must be a me problem rather than the book itself. When it comes to historic fantasy, I'm prepared to take it slow and really fall into the world I'm reading from the history to the characters and that didn't quite happen for me with this one. I think I didn't get on with the pacing of this book, the jumping around of characters and everything felt a little rushed and too easy at times. I would have liked a lot more detail about many things from the travels between cities for Kaivon and the Mongol troops, to Kokochin's training with Layla (and their relationship that went from 0-100 in the space of a sentence). I wanted to really get to know the characters and I really feel like I didn't have the time to appreciate them and who they really were and what drove them (other than revenge and hatred for Hulagu).

I actually think I would have preferred if this book slowed all the way down and only followed Kaivon and Kokochin as people attempting to take down Hulagu and the Ilkhanate from the inside. I actually feel, for me, Temujin's story took away from the interesting chapters that were Kaivon and Kokochin and the magical element in this story left me slightly confused as well (though I know it's historical fantasy so it would be removing the fantasy element but I'm okay with that).

Hulagu's chapters actually felt obsolete because everything we learned about him/from him we could have learned from Kaivon and it would be more fun seeing him from Kaivon and Kokochin's perspective only.

I found this to be easy reading though - and the paperback I had was lovely and floppy which made the reading experience more enjoyable. I still liked this book, and enjoyed my reading experience - I was just disappointed that I didn't get more out of it like I wanted to.

This is such an incredible fantasy novel! So unique and riveting. Historical fantasy is one of my favorite subgenres, especially when I am not entirely familiar with the historical material. Temujin was definitely my favorite character.

The world building was fascinating. I can't wait to read more from this author!

Amazingly immersive account of a little explored piece of history. A rich and vivid world with a wide cast of impeccably written characters. Can't wait for the next

This is billed as historical fantasy, but there are virtually no fantastical elements until about the 80% mark and even then it’s a very minor plot thread.

It’s about the Mongol invasion of Persia circa 1260 and other parts of what we now call the Middle East. There are five POV characters: Hulagu Khan, leader of the Ilkhanate part of the Mongol empire; Temujin, his pacifistic son; Kokochin, Mongol princess and Hulagu’s newest wife / war prize; Kaivon, a captured Persian general; and The Twelve, the leaders of a secret female resistance group. I know very little about the Mongol empire — in Katherine Arden’s Winternight trilogy, the dissolution of the Golden Horde circa 1480 and the subsequent emergence of Moscow as a regional power is a minor plot point — and I really enjoyed the historical aspects of the novel and cross-checking them against Wikipedia.

The author is clearly sympathetic to the oppressed peoples and not the colonizers; the book just felt… very much written by a man. Its hard for me to articulate why I felt this way, because while war is a traditional focus of men, I’ve read other fiction about war (e.g., She Who Became the Sun, written by a nonbinary author) that didn’t feel this way.

The writing itself was also surprisingly amateur for someone who’s evidently an established author. Overall, this just do it for me.

The Judas Blossom is the first installment in an all new series from Stephen Aryan which reimagines the invasion of Persia by the Mongolian Empire. We follow four main characters: Hulagu, grandson of Genghis Khan, is determined to see his grandfather’s vision of the Mongol Empire come to life, at any cost. Temujin Khan, Hulagu’s youngest son, has always been a disappointment to his father, but when he discovers a power he never imagined possible, he could become his father’s secret weapon. Kokochin is the last of her tribe and is forced into marriage with Hulagu. Determined to find a purpose for herself, she finds a path to power she did not think possible. And finally Kaivon, a Persian rebel whose only thought is revenge for his people. When he saves Hulagu’s life and becomes a General in his army, he knows the best way to destroy the empire is from inside.

The Judas Blossom is completely unlike anything I’ve read before. I knew virtually nothing about the Mongol Empire so it was absolutely fascinating to read a story set in this time period. Aryan does an incredible job bringing the sights and sounds of 1260 Persia to life and the story felt incredibly well-researched. I was completely glued to this story – this is my first book from Stephen Aryan and I found it to be so well paced with plenty of riveting moments that kept me coming back for more.

Aryan has created some truly fascinating characters in this book and I found each point of view to be so compelling. Temujin and Kokochin were probably my favourites but I was desperate to know where the story was going to take all of them and I cannot wait to see where the story goes in books two and three. Each character felt really well crafted and I loved seeing the journey that they all went on. This story is full of scheming and intrigue with everyone plotting for their own gain. The magic element was also woven into the story really well and I am looking forward to seeing more of that in the rest of the series.

The Judas Blossom is an incredibly tense and gripping historical fantasy tale. If you’re looking for a dark and bloody story with fascinating characters then this one is definitely not to be missed.

I had a bit of a strange experience with this book. I liked it and I enjoyed it. The historical aspect to it was very interesting, as I didn't know much about this period, and it reads as a very good court drama, with factions vying for political gain and back-stabbing galore. It is rich and complex, with quite a lot of characters (there is a character list at the back, which might help to keep everyone in order).

So, what's the problem? Well, I found myself sympathising with the main "baddy" more than the rebels opposing him. In this case, the "baddy" is a oppressive dictator who flies into murderous rages, viciously murdering all around him and I still was rooting for him over the rebels. Yes, all the characters are morally grey and all make dubious decisions. I just felt that Hulagu came across more sympathically than those that oppose him, especially Kaivon. I don't know if it was the authors intention but it came across as a bit...odd.

In all, I did enjoy The Judas Blossom and would consider carrying on with the series.

First of all I want to say thank you to Netgalley and the publishers as I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review.

Not my usual go to but what an epic fantasy book! Set in Persia in 1260 following 4 key figures and their treacherous journeys throughout the heart of the war.

Had pulled my interest so much that it made me go away and do my own research of that time period and Mongolian culture.

Recently, I've finished reading The Judas Blossom by Stephen Aryan. It was my first book by this author and I'll definitely want to dive into more of their works.
I've had a copy of it from Netgalley, but I've decided to also buy an audiobook. The narrator is great!

This book is historical fantasy and it's inspired by Persia in 13th century. We are following the characters involved in Mongol expansion. I wasn't sure if I'm gonna get involved into a story in such a setting but I definitely did!
We follow the story from a few different points of view, but I've found each one to be interesting. The pacing was really good in my opinion, and even if the magic doesn't play a huge part in the book (at least the first chunk), I really enjoyed it. We uncover it with our characters and that added to the suspense and magical feel. I also really really liked the portrayal of how different characters think and what their motivations are. I've really gotten emotionally invested.

Even though the setting is way different, it had a similar feel to me as The Children of Gods and Fighting Men by Shauna Lawless. I'm seeing that historical fantasy is a genre I'm really enjoying and I want to read more from it! I really like that you can learn about the history in a fun way.

I can't wait for the next part of the series, but the first one was already really really good! I'll probably try to grab a copy from The Broken Binding, as that's a book that definitely deserved a special edition.

It was a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ read for me.

✨ Books with similar vibes / if you liked one, I recommend the other: The Children of Gods and Fighting Men by Shauna Lawless

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for granting me access to an e-arc.

I DNFed this after reading around 30%. I think I gave it a fair shot but the writing is very dry and I wasn't able to connect with the story at the moment.

I can maybe give this another go, if I can get an audiobook at hand.

This book was a lot of fun! It follows four POVs, all co-mingled around Hulegu, a grandson of Genghis, and his quest to subdue the middle East. The twist here is that all the POVs (besides Hulegu's) are trying to prevent him, one way or another.

I really liked three of the POVs, particularly Hulegu's which dealt with the political and cultural politics back in Mongolia with his brothers as well as his desire to fulfill his grandfather's wishes. Kaivon's POV was also really good; a Persian general turned bodyguard for Hulegu who wishes to undermine him.

Where this book fell apart for me is almost everything to do with the fourth POV; Temujin. Temujin is one of Hulegu's sons and the one that everyone hates. My first issue is that people's views of Hulegu felt a bit too modern or...not Mongolian enough? They hate him because he's fat. Okay. I am not an expert on Mongolia but Kublai Khan is in this book and a few decades later he is supposedly very large and it's not treated as a big problem. There's also a rumor that Subutai was fat, even if it's untrue the evidence suggests this wouldn't be a big issue with the Mongols. The second reason they hate him is because he's not a fighter. This again feels like someone trying to think of WHY a strong warrior would hate their son and not considering cultural context. If this was Genghis's generation or before, sure. But Genghis' whole thing was finding uses for people that suited their talents. His brother Temuge was not a good fighter, but was a highly trusted administrator and counsellor in the khanate. So everything to do with why Temujin was utterly rejected just fell flat for me.

Beyond that, I found his internal struggle to just be not very compelling. He flips switches on his father on a dime and his sensibilities feel so modern that it's jarring. Finally, most of his story doesn't get started until near the very end; he basically spins his wheels until 80% into this book, and even then, he is basically just training. I'm sure there was a way to bring this forward or make his storyline more dynamic in this book.

Kokachin's storyline also had a lot of training, but it has way more going on to keep it interesting. Temujin's just didn't do it for me.

I will read the sequel though; the combat and political stuff in this book was good, and the set-up seems over.

This book was a lot of fun! It follows four POVs, all co-mingled around Hulegu, a grandson of Genghis, and his quest to subdue the middle East. The twist here is that all the POVs (besides Hulegu's) are trying to prevent him, one way or another.

I really liked three of the POVs, particularly Hulegu's which dealt with the political and cultural politics back in Mongolia with his brothers as well as his desire to fulfill his grandfather's wishes. Kaivon's POV was also really good; a Persian general turned bodyguard for Hulegu who wishes to undermine him.

Where this book fell apart for me is almost everything to do with the fourth POV; Temujin. Temujin is one of Hulegu's sons and the one that everyone hates. My first issue is that people's views of Hulegu felt a bit too modern or...not Mongolian enough? They hate him because he's fat. Okay. I am not an expert on Mongolia but Kublai Khan is in this book and a few decades later he is supposedly very large and it's not treated as a big problem. There's also a rumor that Subutai was fat, even if it's untrue the evidence suggests this wouldn't be a big issue with the Mongols. The second reason they hate him is because he's not a fighter. This again feels like someone trying to think of WHY a strong warrior would hate their son and not considering cultural context. If this was Genghis's generation or before, sure. But Genghis' whole thing was finding uses for people that suited their talents. His brother Temuge was not a good fighter, but was a highly trusted administrator and counsellor in the khanate. So everything to do with why Temujin was utterly rejected just fell flat for me.

Beyond that, I found his internal struggle to just be not very compelling. He flips switches on his father on a dime and his sensibilities feel so modern that it's jarring. Finally, most of his story doesn't get started until near the very end; he basically spins his wheels until 80% into this book, and even then, he is basically just training. I'm sure there was a way to bring this forward or make his storyline more dynamic in this book.

Kokachin's storyline also had a lot of training, but it has way more going on to keep it interesting. Temujin's just didn't do it for me.

I will read the sequel though; the combat and political stuff in this book was good, and the set-up seems over.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

I love that this is based on Mongolian culture, which is something I have not seen a lot in fantasy. There was a good balance of character development and plot. The story is very ambitious, and while I loved it, I wish it had been a bit longer.

I coudn't get into another series by this author, but the writing style was so different in this one that it made ALL the difference!

***Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book to review.***