SPFBO XI FINALIST ANNOUNCEMENT

The time has finally come! The SPFBO XI judging team at SFF Insiders has cast their vote, and we are ready to announce our finalist. We had a fantastic batch of books, and the selection of our finalist was an extremely difficult choice with the difference between 1st and 2nd place being a 0.1 point difference in the aggregate score. 

As a refresher, here are our 6 semifinalists. 

The Purple Prince by Sebastien Menkes

A thousand years have passed since the fall of the gods. Those who remain faithful to them are hunted down and killed by the tyrannical Kildarion Empire. Meanwhile, the dead are brought back in untold numbers, and anyone who dreams goes mad...

The Purple Prince follows the lives of four extraordinary people, bound together by destiny.

Mila, a loyal follower of the gods, who has sworn to bring them back to life.
Benedict, son of the Emperor, and next in line to the Kildarion throne.
Angelo, a master assassin, who has been given his greatest assignment yet.
And Raewyn, heir to Earth's End, who alone knows the whereabouts of the infamous Purple Prince.

"When the flames of heaven are rekindled, the fallen shall rise again..."

ShadowBane by Cal Logan

One womb, one soul, two fates. One will rise. One will fall. 

Shura and Jin are the last of a divine bloodline, operating at the bloodiest fringes of society where they wield might and magic against the demons they are sworn to destroy. For Shura, it’s the only way to restore honor to her lineage and claim her rightful place in the world. For Jin, it’s a matter of begrudging duty—and escaping the influence of the three kings vying for control of the continent.

In their pursuit of the sadistic cult behind the demons’ resurgence, the twins find themselves hunted by an ancient demon harboring a blood vendetta, and are forced to set aside past grudges and seek the kings’ alliance. When Shura discovers a chilling prophecy, she fears that even her newfound allies may not be enough to stem the rising tide of shadow.

Even the palest chance of victory will come at a brutal price. But the prophecy never foretold whose fate would settle the debt: Shura's or her brother's.

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Greencloak by Lyndsey Luther

Suken Anisaria is just starting out as a bounty hunter in a floating city riddled with crime, corruption and magical convergences powering everything from rail-cars to crossbow bolts. He’s got years of training under his belt, a hatful of his dead uncle’s debts to pay off, and the talent and drive to make it in the dangerous world of bounty hunting. When a warrant goes up for a notorious thief-turned-murderer, he jumps on the chance to take it, knowing that success will cut years off of his career advancement. 

Hunting’s never easy, but this warrant’s harder than most. The thief the broadsheets named “Greencloak” is rumored to be a master of disguise and is infamously solitary, making it damn near impossible to find leads on him. But Suken’s got a few contacts that give him an edge on the competition. He’s certain that he’s got this case in the bag… but the whole job goes sour when he learns that Greencloak is being framed. 

With an assassin shadowing his every step, a shady underground organization determined to stop him from bringing the truth to light, and the guards convinced that he’s complicit in the crime, Suken's only remaining option is the most drastic one – teaming up with the notorious thief in a last-ditch attempt to clear both of their names.

Violence & Vigilance by David T. List

Violence & Vigilance is book one of Turesia Untamed, an epic fantasy series featuring an eternal vendetta, scars of grief and loss, untethered rage, and hope against all odds.

Irdessa the Undying, a renowned arena fighter in Fohrvylda, has escaped imprisonment but at great cost. Broken and alone, she must outwit and outfight her pursuers.

Basalt Kale, a failed Consonant monk of the lowest order, embarks on a quest to improve Ausgan but discovers vile secrets of his order that he cannot abide.

The heathens of Fohrvylda amass ships and beasts of war to sail the Faithless Sea and assault the monks of Ausgan, who will greet the steel-bearing invaders with elemental destruction.

Violence & Vigilance is a story of survival with dark humor, exotic settings, savage beasts, and damaged characters. If you enjoy the grittiness of Joe Abercrombie's First Law or the urgency of Pierce Brown's Red Rising, you'll love Violence & Vigilance.

Last Among Equals by Peter J. Aldin

A young mage - the last of her class, and a refugee in the land of her enemies.

A disgraced warrior - fighting to prove his honor to a king who branded his father a traitor.

A devious thief - pressed into service, and willing to do anything to escape the hangman's noose.

As monstrous hordes of Trell carve bloody swathes across the southern nation of Ollaj, northern Kardalan quietly revels in their neighbor's downfall. Until the Trell appear at the Kardelian border.

Now Erik Hødegaal, a shunned nobleman bearing his father's sins, must forge an unlikely alliance with an inexperienced Ollajen apprentice who hides a secret calling she feels ill-prepared to fulfill.

Together with a ragtag band of soldiers and outcasts, these traditional enemies must face an enemy who raise the very dead to serve their armies.

In a world where old grudges run deep and new horrors emerge, they must learn to trust each other—or else bear witness to the destruction of both their homelands.

The Gift of the Guardians by Justin Bello

For 1,300 years, the Order of the Guardians has defended the continent of Termain from unimaginable evil. Now, with the coronation of a new and ambitious king, the Order appears poised to turn from its role as protector to dominate those it once kept safe. Meanwhile, after a millennium of lurking in the shadows, the servants of a dark god reemerge to take advantage of the strife. In the face of these dangers and more, unlikely heroes must rise:

Three bookish orphans, raised as brothers, find themselves torn apart by destiny…

An archduke’s daughter, imprisoned in a world of luxury, comes face to face with a deadly assassin…

A middle-aged farmer struggles to provide for his family in a land ravaged by bandits…

The youngest son of a senile king clings to his honor in a century-old civil war…

Will they be enough to bring the dawn and drive the dark away?

Without further delay, our finalist is:

Violence & Vigilance by David T. List!

Coming in with an 8.4/10, this book was a hit with our judging team. See below for what we had to say!

Grady: David T. List writes an ambitious story sprawling the width of the world. Featuring a massive cast of characters, and utilizing dozens of points of view, we’re constantly juggling perspectives. This movement helps maintain intrigue, and ensures the pace is brisk throughout the long novel. The writing is so strong. Immediately visceral, and impactful. Nothing is held back, and it’s routinely absolutely brutal.

Characters are fully fleshed out, and go on dramatic and heart-rending arcs. Losses are felt deeply. Antagonists are given prominent places, and their backstories are simultaneously mysterious and integral to the entire state of the world. 

From cover to cover the book sang for me. I was pulled through and kept on the edge of my seat, never knowing who would be safe or what twists might be turned. I can’t wait for the Heathen Tide sequel—it’s been set up brilliantly.

Jonathan: By the end of the semi-finalist reading period, the three books I enjoyed most tied on my end, those being “Last Among Equals” by Peter J. Aldin, “ShadowBane” by Cal Logan and “Violence and Vigilance” by David T. List. All three had equal amounts of just the right blend of chaos and order that somehow made sense in the grand scheme of the whole novel. 

David T. List told more through the environment and what could be read through the pages, as if daring us to unravel the mystery of what is going on than outright saying why things were currently happening the way they were happening. Cal Logan saw the level of misunderstanding in half of Shakespeare's plays, said “Bet” before throwing Demons at the fictional last two demon hunters of the Japanese Warring States period and capturing the near hopeless struggle they have convincingly. And Peter J. Aldin had several PoVs going on at the same time in the same spot and still made an enjoyable read without having the characters feel like a one dimensional cut out.

All things considered, each novel had some issues. “Violence and Vigilance” is a long haul read. Once you get past the halfway point, it goes uphill exponentially. Until then though, you're left confused about the world. “ShadowBane” is a pain to read at times because of the amount of pure trauma that gets shoved into your face. And “Last Among Equals” speeds along at times, feeling more like a short story than a novel, and I wish there was more traversing the landscape and more focusing on the court politics of the northern kingdom. 

Overall, the Shakespearean levels of drama happening in “ShadowsBane”, and the fast paced snapshot into a world on a brink of chaos in “Last Among Equals”, they're all along one or two active plotlines taking place at once (still go and check them out, they are quite good). Now, however, taking into account the stylistic choices made by David T. List, with the amount of juggling that went into the layers of plotlines. There's at least 8 different plotlines from just as many characters going on in tandem. The juggling of all of that, and the ending chapters unfolding a mosaic of connected threads and the full picture of what was truly happening unfolding bit by bit, “Violence and Vigilance” forced me to sit back and state at my e-reader.

So, for that reason, I gladly nominate the SFFI finalist for SPFBO XI to be “Violence and Vigilance” by David T. List . I was not expecting the roller coaster journey that I was put on when I first opened this book, and at first, I kept finding something else to do due to the slow start, but after I finally understood that I wasn’t meant to make sense of the various PoV switches… I was on board for whatever chaos was about to happen. Combine that with the fact that this is the first book he’s published with a vague hint of book two happening at some point in the future, and I cannot wait to see what madness comes into creation in the chapters of book two. Thank you for writing this novel and congratulations on making it as a SFFI finalist for SPFBO XI.

Kristen: David T. List has absolutely knocked it out of the park with his grimdark novel. From the very first pages, it's clear this is a story that doesn't pull its punches. Bloody, ruthless, and every bit as violent as the title promises, this is grimdark at its finest. Featuring a massive scope of world-building and a cast of characters with some extreme flaws, David is prepared to take you on an epic journey like never before.

One of the things I appreciated most was indeed the sheer size of the world-building. Rather than overwhelming readers with endless exposition, David embraces the philosophy of "show, don't tell." You can’t help but get lost in this story as David masterfully weaves the plot and narrative together

The characters are another standout. While there are multiple POV’s, the book focuses mainly on two individuals, Irdessa and Basalt Kale. Both carry scars, make mistakes, and struggle with impossible decisions, creating an emotional weight that lingers on the reader. 

As someone who loves fantasy that isn't afraid to get dark, brutal, and emotionally devastating, this novel checked every box for me. When I say I feel like I was helplessly dragged through the book, I mean it in the most positive way possible. This is an incredibly impressive novel, and if this first installment is any indication of what's to come, David T. List has an exciting future ahead of him. I'll definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for the next installment, The Heathen Tide.

Amanda: What a ride this book was, it kept me on my toes. Grimdark isn’t usually my favorite genre, that’s partly because I feel that sometimes it can rely too much on devices instead of the story, but Violence and Vigilance is truly an exception. It took me 15% or so to really get on board, but as Irdessa and Kale's stories unfolded, intrigue arose, and the worlds painted themselves into the background, I fell in love. It ends absolutely brilliantly. The prose for me was beautifully done, though I think the pacing at times distracted me. That said, I liked the weight of lore, character depth and the enticing amount of story still pacing the halls of my mind, all leaving me dying for the rest of the duology. David T. List has given us a hugely worthy epic for our Finalist pick, and gets a well deserved standing ovation from me.

Khan: Violence and Vigilance by David T. List is an epic fantasy that asks for a bit of patience from its readers, and rewards them generously for giving it. The opening chapters move at a measured pace, taking their time to lay the groundwork before the story truly finds its rhythm. It’s the kind of slow burn that might test you early on, but stick with it, because the payoff is well worth the wait.

Once the plot picks up steam, it does so with real momentum. The story builds in layers, each development pulling you further in until you find yourself completely absorbed in what’s unfolding. The structure rewards the patience the early chapters demand, with the pieces set up early on clicking into place in ways that feel earned rather than rushed.

The standout of the book is Kraus, a character who refuses to back down no matter who or what stands in his way. He’s fearless and fiercely loyal, the kind of presence that immediately makes a story more entertaining. What makes him even more compelling is how often he’s misjudged by those around him, a good hearted man fighting against the assumptions people make about him.

Kraus’s relationship with Irdessa is one of the book’s true highlights. Their dynamic is masterfully put together, layered with a depth that makes every interaction between them feel meaningful. Scattered throughout are lines involving Kraus that are simply a joy to read, moments that’ll have you smirking to yourself or quietly rooting for him with everything you’ve got.

By the time the story reaches its conclusion, Violence and Vigilance proves itself to be an enticing and rewarding read, one that more than makes up for its slower start. Resernation readers.

We wish the best of luck to David as he advances to Phase 2 of the competition! Violence & Vigilance will compete against 9 other books in the finals.