Review: An enthralling dark fantasy tale
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 10 20, 2011
First Chosen by M. Todd Gallowglas follows the birth and life of Julianna Taraen.  At birth she is imbued with the faith of the Saent of Grandfather Shadow as a hidden gift that will come into play at a point later in her life.  Because of this unwanted gift her life is visited by tragedy on a regular basis as the Goddess of Lies Yrgaeshkil seeks to manipulate Julianna into using the gift at a time and in a way that will be to her own benefit.  The plot is woven very skillfully and I can't really say anything else for fear of spoiling anything for the reader.The book starts out a little confusing as there are a lot of unique races and gods to learn about, but as the story unfolds everything is cleared up very nicely.  The magical system is very well done with the power of faith being the basis for the magic that people can use.  The story also has a couple of clues to what may be coming in the rest of the series.  The character Maxian introduced at the end of the story really made me eager to see what would be coming in the next book.  I have a theory about who he is and I am very curious to see if I am right.This book is filled with vivid characters engaging in some fantastic fight sequences.  If you are a fan of fantasy with a bit of a darker side this book will suck you in and leave you wanting more.