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A Wizard's Forge

Woern Saga

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A Wizard's Forge

By: A.M. Justice
Narrated by: Leah Casey
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About this listen

★★★★★ "I was blown away." (Booknest)

★★★★★ "One of the best books in the genre." (Underground Book Reviews)

Wizards are forged, not born.

Vic the Blade was once a shy but ambitious scholar. That life ended when a vicious tyrant stripped away everything she was, forging her into something darker. Deadlier. Now she fights a war against him, seeking to avenge her lost innocence. A rescue mission may bring her quarry within reach, but she must traverse a vast wasteland and reckon with a race of giant, sentient insects, who hold the key to to defeating the tyrant. Their legendary power may be her only chance to destroy him, if it doesn’t kill her first.

Fans of dark fantasy will love this gritty, award-winning tale of empowerment and revenge in a setting that echoes the classic science fiction/fantasy blends of McCaffrey and Herbert.

Finalist, 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards

Honorable Mention, 2017 Reader's Favorite Awards

©2017 A.M. Justice (P)2018 A.M. Justice Dark Fantasy Fantasy Fiction First Contact Science Fiction Revenge Magic Users

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Critic reviews

"One of the best books in the genre." (Underground Book Reviews)

"A masterpiece that keeps readers awake into the late hours of the night." (Reader's Favorite)

"I was blown away." (Booknest)
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A Wizard’s Forge follows Victoria through her mid teens to her early twenties, starting with her innocent beginningsbut quickly plunging her into a brutal sexual servitude, far from home, in the clutches of a narcissist of the worst order. The unrelenting months of physical and psychological abuse shred Vic’s psyche, the constant rape and mental dominancy brainwashing her into a meek girl who exists only to sate her master’s cruel appetites. Through sheer luck of circumstance, she eventually manages to escape her imprisonment and finds herself in a comparatively safe haven. She’s free from the clutches of her once-master, but the emotional wounds run deep. Haunted by the memories of her captivity, the broken Vic begins to rebuild her life and her self, but the girl she had been is gone, and the future she should have had is a shattered dream. Though it takes her a long time to rise from the ashes of her ordeal – battling through a gamut of real and overwhelming emotional responses – she does finally manage, but the woman who emerges is one of steel, broken in a very different and deadlier way, forged into Vic the Blade, with one strong undercurrent driving her every action – vengeance.

At the opening of the third act, the story skips forward five years, but, although Vic has reinvented herself as the Blade, the scars still remain. What follows is a slowburning narrative that follows Vic as a military captain through patrols and skirmishes and power-play, through her connections to the supporting characters, and a plot that takes her slowly but surely towards the man she escaped from all those years ago. But this isn’t just a story about one woman’s self-healing and desire to right what had been wronged her; though Vic and her actions are at the core of it all, the stakes run much deeper and wider. The tyrant who kept her as his sex slave is a lord of great authority and power, the sort who rules by domination rather than respect, a man who has wronged far more people than merely Vic.

I’ve skirted over the edges of the plot there because I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but suffice to say that A Wizard’s Forge is a story that is clearly at A.M. Justice’s heart, that is so comfortable in its telling and its pace that even the mere details of character actions and at-times poetic narrative descriptions bring it to vivid and detailed life. I mentioned that this is something of a slowburner; though interspersed with plenty of action, the story does focus strongly on Vic’s relationships with several major characters and is in no rush to skim the minutiae. In a very loose sense, A Wizard’s Forge put me in mind of The Handmaid’s Tale, but, to be honest, I’d say it blows that famous novel out of the water. That’s just my preference, of course. Slow-paced does not have to equal boring, so, if you’re happy to immerse yourself into a less-rushed story that explores relationship and emotion dynamics and has a rich, gradually unfolding world, then you should enjoy immersing yourself into A Wizard’s Forge. Four and a half stars from me, and I’m certainly looking forward to the next instalment in the series.

A vivid and detailed character-driven fantasy

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Hard not to give too much away. This deals with some very mature themes and the main character Vic is certainly put through it. However, I found her evolution from victim to empowered hero was handled sensitively and believably. I enjoy a thought provoking listen and this certainly is that but it's also filled with rich characterisation, a very strong plot that sweeps you along, and ultimately the most important thing: I enjoyed it. I'll be certain to pick up the sequel.

I recommend this book for anyone who appreciates gritty fantasy that isn't afraid of tackling the big issues.

Narration: I considered giving this four stars, as for the first fifteen to twenty minutes I didn't entirely take to it. By the end, I was thoroughly enjoying the narration so I suspect it was just a case of my ear getting acquainted to the voice.

At times challenging but a brilliant listen.

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An enjoyable read and a decent audiobook, whose narrator sounds very believable as Vic. Reminiscent of the chronicle with the Lady in Black Company.

 Personally I'm not that struck on the style of the narrator, but I thought the same with Kings of the Wyld.

Fans of descriptive works will be in for a treat with the novel being a rich tapestry for the senses (ears), with the prose elegantly painted.



Vic is an interesting character and without giving much away, she isn’t just put into a wringer, but thrown into it and yanked in and out several times and scarred on several levels.

 A true survivor's story.

A world I look forward to being revealed further with peripheral characters I’m especially curious to see how they evolve after the conclusion of book one.



It should appeal to a fair range of readers. In part seeming almost Young Adult (in the vein of Abercrombie) and in part downright grim. I do have to admit muttering ‘just stab him’ a couple of times, but that would have spoiled the wringers last cycle and the occasional big bang.

Well worth the purchase / token and I look forward to the following books.

A rich tapestry for the ears.

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Listener received this title free

Book 1 is long one but I quickly got through it in two days because it was so good. It is not such a slow burn in my opinion because there is purpose and meaning to everything that happens and it provides lots of action. There is an initial background account of Vic's life, then her world is suddenly turned upside down when she is kidnapped. Thereafter, so much happens at every turn that it totally kept my attention. I liked the way the author offered up subtle hints of information which are important to the storyline, allowing you to gradually pull the threads of the story together as you journey alongside Vic, and she grows from vulnerable and brainwashed to strength and skilled. As well as the main story, there is an underlying one with Vic's past history and future destiny intertwined throughout the book. This is a secret that only certain characters know and understand, but the author doesn't just offer up the details on a plate. These central characters play a game of cat and mouse, secrets and lies against each other, and sometimes its difficult to tell if they are trying to mold Vic into something for selfish power grabbing reasons, or help her reach her full potential. Occasionally the author drops nuggets of information which can change the direction of the storyline in an instant. This is not a tale you can easily predict, it has a rich, intricate story which is wrapped up in mystery with the promise of even bigger things to come in book 2.

The book deals with mental and physical abuse, manipulation, abduction, slavery and Stockholm's syndrome which may be triggering for some people. It is however done in context and is not 'used' to glorify these things.

The narrator did a good job, providing emotional ebbs and flows with each character. I also did not get distracted by the narrator switching from male to female voices which is sometimes an issue with audiobooks..

I was given a copy of this book for free of my own choosing and have voluntarily left this review.

Really Good

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