The Ninth Rain by Jen Williams is the first book in The Winnowing Flame trilogy. This was my first novel by Williams, and I dived into it with high expectations, as many friends of mine have expressed much love for her books. I can firmly say I will now be joining other reviewers in singing Jen Williams’ praises too, as this book was simply spectacular. The Ninth Rain skilfully blends fantasy with sci-fi and mystery, it contains a grand Tolkien-esque world, and characters that feel incredibly real and fresh. This is very much high fantasy at the top of its game. Playing with Fire: The ability of all fell-witches of Sarn - sapping a living being's energy, taking it into themselves, and releasing it as a magical fire.

Normally I’m not fond of multiple Povs but here all the characters are so interesting that I didn’t mind the change of perspective. Jen Williams' debut fantasy trilogy, The Copper Cat, was a grand fun-filled adventure with great characters that I've grown to love throughout the three books. In my review of The Silver Tide, I commended the author in crafting a modern high fantasy tale that was her own instead of emulating the increasingly popular grimdark sub-genre. As much as I loved The Copper Cat trilogy by the end of it, I can put my hand to my heart now and say that without a doubt The Winnowing Flame is going to top that easily. Ninth Rain is one of the most unique books I've read. It's like a combination of science fiction and fantasy; I love the execution; the author made these aspects blend seamlessly. The Ninth Rain is, without a doubt, one of my favourite reads of 2022. I loved this book so much! Reading this book a second time felt like reading a new book. This just goes to show that your mental state can have a massive impact on whether you will enjoy a book. Sometimes the timing is just wrong. THE NINTH RAIN introduces readers to the world of Sarn and all of its many peoples. Our main characters are Lady Vincenza "Vintage" de Grazon, a scholar traversing Sarn to investigate the remains of the Jure'lia in an attempt to solve the mystery of who these "worm-people" are and where exactly they come from when they invaded Sarn in years past. Then there is Tormalin the Oathless, an Eboran who left the ruins of the Eboran Empire to live out his final years amongst the living while also serving as Vintage's bodyguard in her travels. The two stumble upon a Fell witch named Noon on the run after her escape from the Winnowry, a horrible institution which imprisons women who had the misfortune of being born with certain destructive abilities.

Vostok has the typical fiery dragon's breath, but Celaphon (another dragon) expels electricity from his mouth instead. It's not clear if Celaphon is abnormal in this aspect due to being twisted by the Jure'lia growth fluid or if he was born with the ability. The plot of the book follows three different characters whose stories are destined to be intertwined.

World Tree: Ygseril - root-mother and tree-father of Ebora, and the source of the sap that gave its people long lives of near-endless youth. Ygseril is the centre of Ebora, both literally and metaphorically, and its death spelled the end of the once-great nation. Ygseril's seed was planted by a space-faring race known as the Aborans, who traversed the stars in a vessel called the Seed Carrier and travelled to numerous worlds, planting similar seeds in each one.

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So many questions asked, and only some of these were answered, to a certain extent. At the same time, some discoveries only led to even more questions. And this is why I was so entranced by the story that Jen Williams has weaved with so much skill and agility. That tantalising trail of bread crumbs, deviously laid with bite-sized morsels, which only make you crave for more of what lies ahead and that final delicious piece. Review: ‘They don’t make them like they used to’. These words go hand in hand with a tendency for people to proclaim that ‘XYZ book’ is the next Tolkien, Le Guin, Howard, Stoker etc. This is especially true with anything considered a ‘Classic’. I’m not overly keen on this type of association, firstly because I like to think that every story is different, and secondly because a book has an author’s name on it so why add other names to it when it’s not their book? Which is why I find myself reticent to say that ‘the Ninth Rain is the 21st century Lord of the Rings’, which, in my honest opinion, it is. The Winnowing Flame is a trilogy of novels written by Jennifer Williams: The Ninth Rain, The Bitter Twins, and The Poison Song. There is so much in which this book excels. Distance itself from others. From main plot, through characterization and worldbuilding to prose. Be quiet, Tormalin, my darling, or I will waste one of my precious quarrels ventilating your beautiful throat.’