Order “Blackveil” HERE (US) + HERE (UK)
Read An Excerpt HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Review of “The High King’s Tomb”
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Kristen Britain is the author of the bestselling Green Rider fantasy series which includes Green Rider, First Rider’s Call, The High King’s Tomb and Blackveil.
PLOT SUMMARY: Over a millennium ago, Mornhavon the Black, heir to the Arcosian Empire, crossed the great sea hoping to replenish his depleted country by conquering the rich lands of Sacoridia. But Mornhavon underestimated the defenders of this far away land, and after years of siege, Mornhavon and his armies were vanquished—but not before Mornhavon resorted to desperate, dark magics that rendered his twisted spirit immortal. Eventually, Mornhavon was captured and imprisoned in Blackveil Forest, with Blackveil’s perimeter enclosed and protected by the magical D’Yer Wall.
For the thousand years since the end of that Long War, Blackveil Forest has been a dangerous place—corrupted by the spirit of this eternally malicious entity, its flora and fauna twisted in monstrous ways. But in the many centuries since the war’s end, knowledge of the working of magic has slowly disappeared from Sacoridia, due to the fear and prejudice of a people traumatized by the memory of the terrifying sorceries of Mornhavon’s invading army. Even the protective magic that created and maintained the D’Yer Wall has been lost.
But this once-impermeable barrier has now been breached, allowing Blackveil’s malignant influence to begin to seep into the lands beyond the wall, threatening all of Sacoridia once again.
Karigan G’ladheon is a Green Rider—a seasoned member of the elite messenger corps of King Zachary of Sacoridia. Though Karigan was recruited to the Riders seemingly by chance, she has achieved more than any Rider since the corps was founded during the Long War, and has even been made a Knight of the Realm—the first to be so honored in over two hundred years. Karigan wears the magical brooch of the First Rider, an artifact that enables her to “fade,” sometimes to the point of traversing the barriers of time and space. Because of this extraordinary ability, she was able to enter Blackveil and transport the spirit of Mornhavon into the future, buying precious time for her country. Time for the Riders to scour the land searching for lost magical documents, and for members of Clan D’Yer to study the wall, hoping to uncover the secrets of their ancestors.
But Sacoridians are not the only people interested in the fate of Blackveil. For eons before the Long War, the peninsula where the tainted forest now stands belonged to the Eletians, an immortal race. With Mornhavon temporarily absent, they plan to send a small delegation into the forest to see what has become of their long-lost city, Argenthyne. But King Zachary senses the secretive Eletians are not being completely honest with him, and insists that an equal number of Sacoridians accompany them. Karigan, because of her previous experience in Blackveil, is an obvious choice for this perilous expedition.
Though Mornhavon is gone, the forest is still a treacherous and unnatural place filled with monstrous creatures and deadly traps. Plus, no one knows how far in the future Mornhavon has been sent—a hundred years? Ten years? A few years? Maybe even less? And unbeknownst to the contingent of Eletians and Sacoridians, another small group has entered the forest—a contingent of Arcosian descendents who have kept Mornhavon’s dark magic alive in secret for centuries, and who now plan to avenge their long ago defeat by bringing Sacoridia to its knees...
CLASSIFICATION: Featuring a reluctant heroine with incredible magical powers she did not know she possessed, an ancient evil bent on conquering the land, quests, a medieval-influenced feudal system, an elf-like race, and many other familiar tropes, the Green Rider series is traditional epic fantasy in the vein of Tolkien, Tad Williams, Terry Brooks, Kate Elliott, L.E. Modesitt Jr., Greg Keyes, Jennifer Roberson, and David Farland.
FORMAT/INFO: Blackveil is 663 pages long divided over many unnumbered/titled chapters. Also includes a map of Blackveil/Argenthyne. Narration is in the third person via several different point-of-views, both major characters and supporting ones as well as heroes and villains, including the main protagonist Karigan G’ladheon; Laren Mapstone, captain of the Green Riders; Xandis Pierce Amberhill; Grandmother of the Second Empire, Alton D’Yer; Lady Estora, King Zachary’s betrothed; and a few other minor players. Blackveil is the fourth volume in the Green Rider series after Green Rider, First Rider’s Call and The High King’s Tomb. Enough background information is provided for readers new to the series to jump in with Blackveil, but it’s not recommended. As far as the ending, expect a series of cliffhangers to conclude Blackveil.
February 1, 2011 marks the North American Hardcover publication of Blackveil via DAW. Cover art is once again provided by Donato. The UK version (see below) will be published on June 16, 2011 via Gollancz.
ANALYSIS: It’s hard to believe, but the first Green Rider novel was released in 1998. Since then, my taste in books has evolved considerably. Fantasy may remain my favorite genre, but I’m more willing and eager to try out different kinds of novels, while the fantasy I enjoy the most these days tends to be of the less traditional variety. That said, there will always be a special place in my heart for traditional epic fantasy, which is why I couldn’t wait to read Blackveil, the latest volume in Kristen Britain’s Green Rider series. At the same time however, I worried the book would suffer from the same issues that hindered The High King’s Tomb. Unfortunately, I was right.First though, the good news. Fans of the series will be pleased to learn that Blackveil does not deviate much from the formula established in the first three Green Rider books. Characters are still likable and well-developed with romance a major theme; the action remains exciting and family-friendly—for the most part at least; and Kristen Britain’s writing is once again charming and accessible, while demonstrating noticeable improvement with her prose. In short, most of the ingredients that made the first three Green Rider novels so much fun to read are still present in Blackveil.
The problem with Blackveil, the same problem that plagued The High King’s Tomb, is with the story. Or more precisely, the concern that Kristen Britain is starting to follow in the footsteps of Robert Jordan and making her fantasy series longer than necessary. After all, the Green Rider series was originally promoted as a trilogy, but obviously we’re at book four now with a fifth volume already in the works, and who knows how many other volumes yet to be published. Personally, I don’t mind that the author is extending the series—I really enjoy the characters and the setting after all—but the manner in which Kristen Britain is prolonging the Green Rider saga is disheartening. Instead of focusing on the main story arc involving Mornhavon the Black, Second Empire and Sacoridia, the series has become weighted down with trivial matters like Karigan’s love life, court politics and family drama. This was a major issue in The High King’s Tomb, and sadly Blackveil suffers from the same problem.
As the title implies, the fourth book in the Green Rider series revolves around the corrupted forest Blackveil and the different factions who seek something there including Grandmother, the Eletians, and Karigan. This storyline, which features some of the most thrilling moments in the novel, is a lot of fun to read. The problem is that it’s overshadowed by such mundane matters as Karigan dealing with family secrets; the numerous romantic complications that arise concerning Karigan, Lady Estora, Alton D’Yer and Estral Andovian; court politics involving King Zachary’s marriage, assassination attempts and a power-hungry advisor; and even a masquerade ball. While these subplots are there to add depth and substance to the characters and main story arc in the series, they just take too long to develop, significantly slowing down the pace of the novel and bloating the page count. To make matters worse, a number of subplots fail to progress very far including the breach at D’Yer Wall, the pending war against Second Empire, and Xandis Pierce Amberhill’s fascination with pirates and the sea kings resulting in cliffhangers that are difficult to stomach considering the lengthy wait between volumes, while the story itself offers very few surprises due to familiar ideas and transparent plotting.
Apart from these issues with the story and concerns about the extended length of the series, Kristen Britain’s Blackveil has everything that Green Rider fans could hope for including romance, adventure, humor, time travel, dark magic, entertaining drama, ghosts, prophetic visions, and much more. In fact, even with all of the problems the book suffers from—bloated page count, trivial subplots, cliffhangers, etc.—Blackveil is still one of the better entries in the series. Unfortunately, I can only recommend Blackveil and the series it is a part of to die-hard Green Rider fans and anyone who loves to read traditional epic fantasy and is not bothered by archetypes and tropes. As for those who want something different, it would be wise to look elsewhere...
12:01 AM | 
Posted by
Robert |
Excerpts or links to such (Kindle, Smashwords, author's website) are very important since at least personally I would never consider an unknown book without at least a small sample, however enticing the blurb would be.
As for comments, I *hate* censorship, but profanity laced comments are not allowed since civil discourse is important too and things degenerate fast online.
Spam is not allowed either, in particular comments that contain advertising with the only exception if the advertising is related to a particular book(s) and is made by the author/publicist of the respective book and the book is related with the post the comment refers to.
Order “Of Blood & Honey” HERE
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Stina Leicht is a fantasy author based out of central Texas. Of Blood & Honey is her first novel.
PLOT SUMMARY: Liam Kelly never knew who his real father was and assumed he was dead. But then Liam and his family are pulled into a centuries old war between supernatural forces that seems to mirror the political divisions in Northern Ireland during the 1970s.
Now, only the direct intervention of Liam's father and a secret Catholic order dedicated to fighting "The Fallen" can save Liam from the mundane and supernatural forces around him . . . and from the darkness that lurks within...
FORMAT/INFO: Of Blood & Honey is 300 pages long divided over twenty-seven numbered chapters and an Epilogue. Narration is in the third person via Liam Kelly, his mother Kathleen, and Father Murray. Of Blood & Honey can be read as a standalone novel, but offers many opportunities for future sequels. February 2011 marks the North American Trade Paperback publication of Stina Leicht’s Of Blood & Honey via Night Shade Books. Cover art is provided by Min Yum.
ANALYSIS: Stina Leicht’s Of Blood & Honey is a captivating debut that seamlessly blends together historical drama with supernatural horror and dark fantasy, bringing to mind the excellent Danilov Quintet by Jasper Kent.
Like the Kent novels, Of Blood & Honey is rich with historical detail with actual places and events woven into the narrative. In this case, the setting is Northern Ireland between the years 1971 and 1977, with the backdrop centered around the civil rights struggle between Loyalists and Nationalists. To be honest, I’m not very familiar with Irish history, but the manner in which Stina Leicht portrays Northern Ireland during this tumultuous period—including conditions in the Long Kesh internment camp, the 1972 Bloody Sunday massacre, and serving as a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army (IRA)—feels undeniably authentic, and is one of the obvious highlights of the book.
As far as the novel’s supernatural elements, Of Blood & Honey features fairies, fallen angels, Celtic mythology (Fianna, Púca, etc.), and a secret order of the Roman Catholic Church devoted to hunting & destroying demons. Compared to the rest of the book however, these supernatural elements only comprise a small part of Stina Leicht’s debut, with a heavy emphasis placed on the more realistic matters in the novel like the Loyalist/Nationalist conflict.
This disparity is most evident with the story, which revolves mainly around the personal and political drama of Liam Kelly’s life, including serving time in Long Kesh and Malone Prison to marrying his true love in Mary Kate to working as a wheelman for the IRA. Traces of the supernatural are evident throughout the novel—including appearances by Liam’s Púca father Bran, the war between the Fey and the Fallen, and Liam’s shape-shifting abilities—but these elements and subplots involving the Milites Dei, factions among the Fey, and the Redcap do not possess nearly the same level of detail and substance enjoyed by the novel’s historical setting or Liam’s drama.
Admittedly, the noticeable disparity between the novel’s realistic and supernatural elements was disappointing at times, like when the story drags during the middle of the book or the Redcap’s endgame, which lacked execution. Fortunately, these shortcomings are easy to forgive in light of how compelling the rest of Stina Leicht’s debut is, not just the novel’s vivid historical setting, but also the powerful, gut-wrenching drama Liam Kelly has to deal with, which includes everything from lost love, father issues and political beliefs to darker themes like rape, abortion, drug addiction, revenge, and fighting with the monster inside him for control:
“You don’t deserve to live. You’re weak. Nothing. Threaten me, will you? I’ll bury you so far, so deep in the dark you’ll fade into memory. Then I’ll see to them. I’ll do for them all. And I’ll be forever free of you.”
Of course, what makes Of Blood & Honey so compelling is Stina Leicht’s writing. Specifically, the obvious amount of time and research that was spent making the novel’s historical setting as authentic as possible; sympathetic—and tragic—characters that radiate with sincerity; believable dialogue and banter; and emotionally driven storytelling.
CONCLUSION: While I wish Stina Leicht had dedicated the same amount of time, research and attention to detail to the supernatural elements in Of Blood & Honey as she did the historical setting and the dramatic events in Liam’s life, it’s hard to complain. Sure, the book can be difficult to read at times because of the horrific ordeals that Liam has to endure, but that’s part of the novel’s charm. A fearlessness to explore the darker side of humanity. Combine that with Stina Leicht’s impressive writing, a story and characters that bleed with emotion, and history & politics that are still relevant today, and what you have is a dazzling debut that will hopefully receive the attention and praise that it deserves...
A big thank you goes out to K.A. Stwart for taking the time to stop by Fantasy Book Critic.
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Thank you for taking the time to interview with us, you made your fiction debut with "A Devil in the Details: A Jesse James Dawson" this year and will be following it up with two more titles in the same series. Before we talk about the books though, can you tell us a bit more about yourself including why you chose to be a wordsmith & what do you do currently besides writing.
I like to think that writing chose me. I have been writing as long as I can remember, and I don't think I could stop if I tried. If I'd never been published, I'd still be writing, and one day they'd have found these boxes and boxes of unpublished stuff in my attic or something.
Aside from writing, I'm a fanatic reader (I don't know any writer who isn't). I also play video games, mostly World of Warcraft. (For the Horde!) Most of my other free time is spent with my daughter, hauling her to various karate functions that she participates in.
What was the precise spark of inspiration which lead to the creation of Jesse & the J.J. Dawson series?
I lay this solely at my husband's feet, and I can tell you the exact moment that the whole thing was born. On May 20th, 2007 (our wedding anniversary), we were having a rare lunch sans kiddo, and my husband was lamenting the fact that so much urban fantasy was straying into the paranormal romance area with the kick-ass heroines and the romance sub-plots, which really didn't interest him.
So I asked him, "What kind of hero would you like to see?" And we spent the next two hours hashing out Jesse and his world, the mechanics, the characters, everything. It was probably the best two hours of my writing life. About two months after that, I'd finished the first draft and it all kinda went from there.
Who are your literary idols and while growing up what books did you read which made you such an avid reader?
Idols…wow… Well, I always say that I want to be Jim Butcher when I grow up. I'm envious of his ability to walk easily through both the urban fantasy and fantasy genres, which is what I've always wanted to do. I think I could also put Anne Bishop in there, and Stacia Kane, for their exquisite world-building abilities. (Stacia's gonna be so embarrassed when she finds out I said that)
Growing up, I know that my love of fantasy started when I read The Hobbit when I was in the first grade. That pretty much set my feet on the road of all things unreal. The other thing that really influenced me as a child was a comic book, of all things. ElfQuest was and still is one of the things that really shaped how I looked at fiction. The world building was always amazing, the characters, even the supporting ones, were always so well fleshed out. For a very lonely child, to have these fictional characters as my "friends" made me want to be able to deliver the same experience for other people.
Your book has small nuggets of information in regards to Samurai culture, swords & other minutiae, which are authentic and make for fascinating reading. How do you go about your research & what makes you decide what to keep and what to not.
For the JJD series, with the bushido and swords in particular, all of the research materials were things we already had. My husband is the bushido expert in the family, and I really just raided his collection of texts to find the information that I needed. Any time I wasn't sure what Jesse's reaction to a certain situation should be, I'd reference those books, trying to find any advice on the subject. (And trust me; the samurai had advice for EVERYthing.)
As for the swords I describe, those are all actual blades that we own, made by a couple of local guys. I went to them to ask the particulars about how the swords are made, what stresses they can take, things like that.
Mostly, research on any new subject is a combination of what I can find in books (currently researching alchemy for a future project), the internet, and people I happen to know. My best friend is a doctor, she double checks all my medical stuff. My webmaster vets my computer stuff. The internet, while not always reliable, can usually point you in the right direction.
And deciding what to keep, that's a rough one. Sometimes, I have to rely on my editor to let me know when I've slipped from "neat addition to the story" into "lecture on Japanese culture" mode. It happens. Ultimately, I have to remind myself that folks aren't reading the JJD series to become well-versed in bushido and samurai culture. They're reading it to watch Jesse kick some demon butt.
Could you elaborate on the journey you underwent from first when the idea for the book germinated to ultimately finding a publisher for it, what were your initial thoughts when Roc signed you for writing it and what do you think the publisher saw in your book proposal?
Well, my journey started in May of '07, like I said. I think I really finished the first draft of Devil (then called Third Strike) around October of that year, and then I revised it multiple times until February of '08. That's when I started sending out queries. I actually got really good responses to my query, had a lot of requests for fulls and partials. In…late August of '08, I sent a query to Chris Lotts of the Ralph Vicinanza Agency, and within a week he'd asked for a full. We emailed back and forth several times after that, and by September 5th, I'd signed with him.
Chris had some great revision ideas for the book, and I did another two passes of edits for him. At the end of February of '09, we went out on submission, and on March 16th I got the call that we'd sold to Roc.
At that point, part of me was still afraid this was some elaborate practical joke. I am still amazed that people are interested in reading my "little story". I told my husband that I'd been prepared for rejection and the long hard road… I had no idea what to do with success.
I think what caught my editor's eye was precisely the thing that my husband was asking for when he told me all about the kind of hero he wanted to see. First off, it's a male protagonist, doing guy stuff, and kicking butt. Second, Jesse is unique in that he is happily married, a father, and he's trying to make his domestic life as normal as possible, all the while doing these extraordinary things. I think that's what makes these books stand out in the boom genre of urban fantasy.
When you first began writing "A Devil in the Details" did you plan it to be the first book in the series or was it a standalone in which you saw further possibilities?
Devil was always supposed to be the first in a series, in my mind. From that first brainstorming session with my husband, we had an entire series arc laid out. There are events that need to happen to Jesse, changes he needs to go through, and it's going to take multiple books for that to play out.
Speaking of this series, you are contracted for 3 books. How many volumes do you think will be required for Jesse's saga? how far along are you in the next book, and is there anything you can tell us about book two and/or three?
The second book is currently with my editor (currently titled A SHOT IN THE DARK), and I'm waiting on my edit notes for that. Book 3, still untitled, exists in outline form at the moment, and I'm still tweaking that.
Theoretically, I could finish the series in six books. The first four books will stand as I have them in my head. The last two books will always be the last two books. However, between four and what is currently five, I think I have some wiggle room to add more stories, if they're willing to let me.
And things to tell you… Well, I can tell you that in book 2, we'll see zombies and paintball. And in book 3, we'll get "Jesse goes to Hollywood".
What was the reason/s for you choosing Kansas City as the primary setting for the books?
Two reasons, actually. One, I live in Kansas City, so describing a city I know well is simply easier. Two, it's an obscure homage to Jim Butcher, who wanted to set the Dresden Files in KC, but wasn't allowed to.
What do you do when you aren't writing, what hobbies and proclivities engage you & could you enumerate them?
Well, like I said, I play video games, namely World of Warcraft. I'm part of a heavy RP (role-playing) guild there, and I do a lot of writing for them, just as a fun way for me to relax from my "professional" writing.
I read a lot. Mostly urban fantasy and fantasy, but occasionally I stray out of my comfort genres, usually because a friend has recommended something.
I have a weird obsession with obscure musical instruments, so you'll often hear me playing a fife, or a dulcimer around the house. My most recent acquisition was an Irish tin whistle, and I can't wait to start working on learning that.
I also attend our local Ren Fest pretty religiously when it's in season. I have a thing for costumes, I admit. (man, I am such a girl!) Once upon a time, I was a very good archer, a recurve bow being my weapon of choice. I also practice with thrown weapons (knives and hatchets) but I'm very out of practice.
And sometimes, I just decide to learn a new foreign language, for giggles. I speak Spanish, Swedish, some Gaelic and a smattering of other things.
I'm kind of a dork, when you lay it all out like this.
You by your admission are a huge Jim Butcher fan, could you tell us more about your fascination with his writing & the effect he's had on yours as well, also how was it to meet him?
A big part of my fascination with Jim's writing is how fleshed out he makes his characters, even the ones who are theoretically not that important. He's nearly killed a couple supporting characters in recent books, and one of them almost had me in tears.
And what I love is that he makes the transition from urban fantasy and a first-person writing style, to a fantasy with a third-person writing style, so easily. This is everything I ever wanted to do. I have a zillion worlds in my head, a zillion characters, and I want to be able to get them all on paper someday.
Meeting him… First off, Jim is a great guy. He's funny, he's smart, and he truly takes the time to pay attention to every single rabid fan that he can. That said, I'm pretty sure he just knows me as "that girl who keeps showing up with the "I stalk Jim Butcher" button" at his signings. But really, he's also showed me the kind of author I want to be, as he relates to his fans. He's approachable, he's always smiling, he never gets impatient. He answers the same questions every single signing with the same smile, even though he's heard it eleventy-billion times, and everybody comes away feeling like he's kinda their friend. That's the kind of person I want to be.
While you have been contracted for a trilogy, I feel there is much potential for further installments in this series. Do you have any ideas you'd like to explore if the publisher becomes interested in more titles? If so, could you discuss them?
In my head, at least, the first four books are set. The ending of book four, however, is going to largely depend on how many books they want to see me write in the series. I can't say much about that one without giving away too much of Book 3, but I can say that things will get much worse for Jesse before they get better, both in his real life, and his demon-hunting life. There's only so much stress people can take before they break.
This is a general phenomenon I have noted in Urban Fantasy, that mostly female authors write about Female protagonists,, there are a few Male protagonists however they are still in the minority, what made you decide to go along this route?
Precisely for that reason. My husband was lamenting the lack of male protagonists, and so I wrote one for him. And that's not to say that there aren't any male protagonists out there. The Dresden Files series being the one most people mention. Rob Thurman's Cal Leandros series, Simon R Green's Nightside series, Anton Strout's Simon Canderous series… All great series with males in the lead. Harry Connolly's Twenty Palaces series… Mario Acevedo's Felix Gomez series… I could go on. But I thought there was room for one more, and Jesse seems to be fitting in well with the rest of the guys.
On your blog you mention a couple of other books [Muse, Avarice] which you seem to be writing currently as well, could you tell us about them & if they are close to publication as well??
Ah, Avarice… My poor little abandoned pirate princess epic fantasy. Right now, this one is trunked. Someday, I want to go back to it, and fix the fatal flaws. I think what it boiled down to was that I simply wasn't a good enough writer to do what I wanted to, with that one. Maybe in a few years, I'll be good enough to try again.
Muse, on the other hand… Oh, this one I'm excited about. Steampunk, Greek gods, a city of eternal night… It's awesome. Right now, this one's on hold because my agent has read through it and given me some REALLY great revision ideas for it. It's going to involve a pretty massive rewrite, but when it's done, it's just…there are no words for the awesomeness. (I can say that about my own stuff, right?) Since my winter/spring will be spent writing Book 3, I think the Muse rewrite will probably be next summer/fall's project.
You had a very nice and detailed take on writing a series of books & the what and what-not to do in it, how much of that have you utilized in writing your own series & which series currently/past(in your opinion) best encapsulates what you have posted?
Well, I try to utilize it all in my own series, of course. Especially when I start dreaming up new ones. (I've got two on a back burner that I'd like to get to, someday.) I try very hard to think the entire series out ahead of time, or at least the first three books. If I can't make a coherent plot out of that much, then I start to think maybe it would be better as a one-shot stand-alone. (The alchemy project I'm currently researching will be like that.) I don't think anything's worse than trying to stretch something out that just shouldn't be.
There are a lot of great series out there (Dresden Files, Mercy Thompson, Codex Alera, Downside Ghosts, just to name a few) that I think encompass what I'm talking about. In fact, it would almost be easier to point out the series that I think fail at it, then to detail all the ones that get it right. (I won't, by the way. That's just mean, and would really just be my own opinion) But all of those series take some of the things I talked about and put them to good use, despite the fact that they're all very different.
What I'd really like people to take away from that blog series that I wrote is that there is no right way to do it, but there is a way to do your own personal series to the best of your ability.
You have this very concise essay about having a normal "everyman" as the hero of you book, you have written a very compelling character as well so what basically propels you to do such horrid things to him ;) and in the end what do you think makes Jesse J. Dawson do the things which most of us wouldn't?
Well, I do what I do to Jesse because at heart, all writers are sadists. True story! I think part of it is that we wonder what we would do in those amazingly bizarre situations, and so it's easier (and safer) to throw that at a fictional character than to run out and be super-heroes ourselves.
One of my beta readers wrote an essay a few years ago about Jesse Dawson, the Five-Minute Man, that I think addresses some of this phenomenon very well.
I think Jesse does what he does for the same reason that firefighters run toward a fire, and police officers run toward the man with the guy. Because someone has to!
What other ideas/books would you like to write about in the future & lastly any other comment you would like to leave us with?
Well, we've already talked about Muse. Avarice will come about someday, in some incarnation or other.
I've got the first draft of a fantasy western sitting on my hard drive right now. It's got a plot hole the size of the Grand Canyon in it, but if I can fix that, it'll be a great start to a new series. And hey, there's a jackalope! How can you go wrong with a jackalope?
I also have another urban fantasy series sitting there, where the main character is a supernatural firefighter. I'm really excited about that one and the world I've built there. It's got a lot more magic and supernatural stuff than the JJD series. Hopefully, I can polish it up and send it to the agent soon.
For Nanowrimo this year, I'll be working on a one-shot that I'm tentatively titling "The Pugilist and the Alchemist". Not quite sure if it'll develop into something that I'll actually try to get published someday, but I have hopes.
Strangely, I do Nanowrimo in order to relax. It's my month away from my "real" writing, but when December starts, I'll be diving into Book 3.
Order “Never Knew Another” HERE
AUTHOR INFORMATION: J.M. McDermott is the author of numerous short fiction and the critically-acclaimed debut novel, Last Dragon, which was shortlisted for an IAFA William Crawford Award and included on Amazon.com’s list for Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy 2008. Last Dragon will be reprinted in early 2011 by Apex Publications who will also publish McDermott’s next novel, Maze, in Spring 2011.
PLOT SUMMARY: When Walkers discover the corpse of a demon’s child—a city guard of noble blood named Jona—the memories of the deceased lead the Walkers to the city they call Dogsland. There, the Walkers use Corporal Jona’s memories to learn about how he kept his demon heritage a secret, the places he frequented, and the people he associated with including Rachel Nolander, a newcomer to the city who lives in constant fear that someone will one day discover that she is the child of a demon. Unfortunately, the Walkers also learn of another demon’s child on the loose—one who cannot be found—and the Night King who may pose an even greater threat than the spawn of demons...
FORMAT/INFO: Never Knew Another is 240 pages long divided over eighteen Roman-numbered chapters. Narration alternates between the first-person POV of a nameless female Walker and the third-person POVs of Corporal Jona and Rachel Nolander. Never Knew Another is the first volume in the Dogsland Trilogy, with the book coming to an abrupt ending that leaves many matters unresolved.
February 2011 marks the North American Trade Paperback publication of J. M. McDermott’s Never Knew Another via Night Shade Books. Cover art is provided by Julien Alday.
ANALYSIS: J.M. McDermott first came to my attention through the short-lived Wizards of the Coast Discoveries imprint, which published the author’s debut, Last Dragon, in 2008. While I never did get around to reading Last Dragon, I was impressed by what other people had to say about the novel. So when I heard Night Shade Books was publishing a new fantasy trilogy by the author, I was immediately intrigued...
The concept behind Never Knew Another, the opening volume in the Dogsland Trilogy, is a fairly simple one, but incredibly fascinating. Basically, Walkers—wolves that can shed their skin to become human—are servants of the goddess Erin dedicated to hunting and eradicating the seed of the demon Elishta. Demon children, though now uncommon, are considered extremely dangerous, their very blood, saliva and tears capable of polluting whatever it touches—the land, clothing, flesh, life itself. To combat these abominations, Walkers are blessed with many gifts including the ability to smell a man’s life—and sometimes death—in his skin, smelling the secrets of the land, and being able to “merge into the mind of a dead man.” It is this last ability that the majority of Never Knew Another is centered around, with a Walker using Corporal Jona’s memories to search for answers:
“His mind was mine now. I could sift through his memories, if I knew what to seek; I could reach into the lives of the people around him, as they were known to him.”
“What is it like, to hold a million moments from another’s life inside your mind? It’s like living on an island, with two oceans beneath you; the ocean you see when your eyes are open is yours; the ocean you see when your eyes are closed is not. I had to swim in someone else’s waters, and I did.”
“I see with my eyes, my senses, deep enough into Jona’s memories. I can see more than he ever did. His memories lead where they lead, and there is never too much information for hunters to know their prey.”
What makes this concept so fascinating is the wonderful contrast between the Walker’s intimate first-person viewpoint and the more straightforward third-person POVs of Corporal Jona and Rachel Nolander, resulting in an unconventional—and somewhat non-linear—narrative that borders on the surreal. A narrative that could have been dreamed up by someone like Charlie Kaufman or Christopher Nolan. Of course there’s more to Never Knew Another than a cool concept, like the way recognizable fantasy elements are integrated into the unconventional narrative to create something that seems familiar—and therefore accessible—but is actually refreshingly different. Or how the title of the book actually pertains to a central theme in the novel. Or, best of all, the author’s thoughtful examination on the definition of evil. After all, Corporal Jona and Rachel Nolander are considered evil creatures because of their demon blood—“Polluter of flesh, seducer of innocents, betrayer and destroyer of life!”—but are they really?
Unfortunately, Never Knew Another suffers from some serious flaws. World-building for example, is practically non-existent with very little information provided about the Walkers, the goddess Erin, the Church of Imam, the demon Elishta, Senta and other magic in the world, the kingdom’s history and politics, the Night King and so on. For a secondary world, this lack of information is inexcusable, especially when the book only contains 240 pages. Character depth was also an issue, particularly for the two nameless Walkers, while the novel’s sudden ending was largely unsatisfying.
Despite these obvious and frustrating deficiencies, J.M. McDermott’s Never Knew Another was still more of a positive reading experience than a negative one. As a result, I remain intrigued by the forthcoming volumes in the Dogsland Trilogy, which I believe will only get better thanks to the many questions yet to be answered, a fantasy setting ripe with untapped potential, and J.M. McDermott’s creative guidance...
Four More Notable 2011 Upcoming Novels: Daniel Abraham (2), "James Corey", MJ Locke, Mark Hodder (by Liviu Suciu)
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In June 2011, Orbit will publish Leviathan Wakes the series debut from established fantasy author Daniel Abraham and newcomer Ty Franck, written under the pen name James Corey. This is Solar System high level adventure set some 2-3 centuries ahead and it is just superb, as good as space sf gets without ftl, with great world building, characters, high drama and lots of action. A superb ending giving a full reading experience put Leviathan Wakes on my provisional top 2011 novel list as top sf and it will be hard to beat in the genre.
Somewhat of a surprise for me, but this novel has everything that made sf my favorite genre for 15+ years and even today when fantasy out-breadths it by a lot and I am quite jaded in it with too many books being "I've seen this already, would have been impressive 10-15 years ago for me", when a special novel like Leviathan Wakes comes, I am reminded why sf is *the* literature of our age, the only literary medium through which our fears and hopes as *the human race* are reflected.
Highly, highly recommended and while the full review will come here later in the year, you can read more about why I rave about this novel on Goodreads (of course the mini review there is rough and not that much edited, just a first impression sketch, but as usual no real spoilers).
Official blurb, accurate as it goes below:
Welcome to the future. Humanity has colonized the solar system - Mars, the Moon, the Asteroid Belt and beyond - but the stars are still out of our reach.
Jim Holden is XO of an ice miner making runs from the rings of Saturn to the mining stations of the Belt. When he and his crew stumble upon a derelict ship, The Scopuli, they find themselves in possession of a secret they never wanted. A secret that someone is willing to kill for - and kill on a scale unfathomable to Jim and his crew. War is brewing in the system unless he can find out who left the ship and why.
Detective Miller is looking for a girl. One girl in a system of billions, but her parents have money and money talks. When the trail leads him to The Scopuli and rebel sympathizer, Holden, he realizes that this girl may be the key to everything.
Holden and Miller must thread the needle between the Earth government, the Outer Planet revolutionaries, and secretive corporations - and the odds are against them. But out in the Belt, the rules are different, and one small ship can change the fate of the universe.
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And speaking of Daniel Abraham, his traditional fantasy series debut The Dragon's Path will be published in April 2011 by Orbit also. The first novel of The Dagger and the Coin series, this is traditional fantasy at its best; nothing really fancy as world building or story goes, but great execution with characters and world that make a pleasure reading about and one wants to revisit as soon as possible.
For me this was as good as epic secondary world fantasy that is not in the "new gritty/weird/early modern world" style/content goes and another A++ with a guaranteed inclusion on my top 2011 list. While offering a satisfying reading experience from a completeness point of view, this one needs more the sequels for full appreciation than say Leviathan Wakes above since in large parts it sets the stage for what is to come. As usual more rambling thoughts on Goodreads, full review in due course and official blurb - accurate as it goes - below:
"Summer is the season of war in the Free Cities.
Marcus wants to get out before the fighting starts. His hero days are behind him and simple caravan duty is better than getting pressed into service by the local gentry. Even a small war can get you killed. But a captain needs men to lead -- and his have been summarily arrested and recruited for their swords.
Cithrin has a job to do -- move the wealth of a nation across a war zone. An orphan raised by the bank, she is their last hope of keeping the bank's wealth out of the hands of the invaders. But she's just a girl and knows little of caravans, war, and danger. She knows money and she knows secrets, but will that be enough to save her in the coming months?
Geder, the only son of a noble house is more interested in philosophy than swordplay. He is a poor excuse for a soldier and little more than a pawn in these games of war. But not even he knows what he will become of the fires of battle. Hero or villain? Small men have achieved greater things and Geder is no small man.
Falling pebbles can start a landslide. What should have been a small summer spat between gentlemen is spiraling out of control. Dark forces are at work, fanning the flames that will sweep the entire region onto The Dragon's Path -- the path of war"
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In March 2011, Pyr will publish Mark Hodder's The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man (Burton and Swinburne 2).
I am currently reading this and will update here when done with review in due course, but so far this one turned out to be what I expected The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack to be and it was only partly with a quite rough first half followed by a much better second half, though even there with some so-so scenes like villain and hero declaiming stuff when crossing swords.
Here the author hits his stride from page one and while I will have a final evaluation when done, this one is a major improvement as style, pacing and balance go.
Official blurb below:
From a haunted mansion to Bedlam madhouse, South America to Australia, séances to a labyrinth, Burton struggles with opponents and inner demons, as he meets the philosopher Herbert Spencer, Florence Nightingale, and the father of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Update Feb 15: The Clockwork Man continues and expands on the Spring Heeled Jack story with which the author debuted; in a quite changed world of 1862, Sir Francis Burton now king's investigator and his assistant Algernon Swinburne, plus a motley cast including beggar/philosopher Herbert Spencer, various policemen and special agents of the Crown have to deal with new threats to "life as we know it" different from the events in the first volume, but related in subtle ways .
Starting innocuously with a robbery, a chase and some interesting events, followed by an excursion into seeming supernatural when Burton is drawn into the investigation of a missing aristocrat supposed return, the novel explodes into full sf action in the last part ending on a great note that promises a lot to come.
As opposed to the somewhat unbalanced first volume, this one is much more coherent and the author manages the transitions between narrative phases much better; there is still a bit of disconnect in the middle when the story jumps a little in time, jump that is quite abrupt breaking the flow of the story, and Burton is still a bit on the wooden side without a clear distinctive personality, but overall The Clockwork Man (A+) is a marked improvement on the first book making me a clear follower of the series for the foreseeable future
Will add the full FBC review in several weeks closer to the publication date
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(cover may change)In March 2011, Tor will publish "Up Against It", the debut novel from MJ Locke about which I had no idea it existed until my FBC co-editor Robert sent me his review copy as more suited to my taste than his.
The blurb with action on an asteroid in the moderate future seemed "standard sfnal adventure limited resource human grouping in enclosed small habitat, whether asteroid or orbital habitat" as for example Mary Rosenblum's quite good Horizons of 2007 or say the late 90's novels of Howard Hendrix like the recently reissued Standing Wave, so I was unsure if I would be interested - as per my comment about a lot of sf being "read that, done with such, unless the book has something to really attract me" above - but on opening it I was hooked by its style so I am currently reading it too and I plan to have a full review closer to its publication date and an update here when done in the near future.
The official blurb that seems accurate so far below, while I want to emphasize that the book flows superbly so far and it grabbed me from page one which is what I want from an unknown book.
Life isn’t as good as it seems, though. A mysterious act of sabotage kills Geoff's brother Carl and puts the entire colony at risk. And in short order, we discover that the whole thing may have been cooked up by the Martian mafia, as a means of executing a coup and turning Phocaea into a client-state. As if that wasn't bad enough, there's a rogue AI that was spawned during the industrial emergency and slipped through the distracted safeguards, and a giant x-factor in the form of the Viridians, a transhumanist cult that lives in Phocaea's bowels.
In addition to Geoff, our story revolves around Jane, the colony's resource manager -- a bureaucrat engineer in charge of keeping the plumbing running on an artificial island of humanity poised on the knife-edge of hard vacuum and unforgiving space. She's more than a century old, and good at her job, but she is torn between the technical demands of the colony and the political realities of her situation, in which the fishbowl effect of 'Stroiders is compounded by a reputation economy that turns every person into a beauty contest competitor. Her maneuverings to keep politics and engineering in harmony are the heart of the book.
Order “Deep State” HERE (US) + HERE (UK)
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Review of “This Is Not A Game”
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Walter Jon Williams has been nominated repeatedly for every major SF award, including Hugo and Nebula Award nominations for his novel City on Fire. His most recent books include the Dread Empire’s Fall series, Implied Spaces and This Is Not A Game. He has also written both fiction and rulebooks for the roleplaying games, Privateers and Gentlemen and Cyberpunk.
PLOT SUMMARY: By day, Dagmar Shaw orchestrates vast games with millions of players spanning continents. By night, she tries to forget the sound of a city collapsing in flames around her. She tries to forget the faces of her friends as they died in front of her. She tries to forget the blood on her own hands.
But then an old friend approaches Dagmar with a project. The project he pitches is so insane and so ambitious, she can't possibly say no. But this new venture will lead her from the world of alternate-reality gaming to one even more complex. A world in which the players are soldiers and spies and the name of the game is survival...
FORMAT/INFO: Deep State is 416 pages long divided over a Prologue, three Acts and seventeen numbered chapters. Also includes an excerpt from Master Baby Head, the upcoming third Dagmar Shaw novel. Narration is in the third-person, exclusively via the protagonist Dagmar Shaw, except for the Prologue. Deep State takes place three years after the events of This Is Not A Game, but like its predecessor, is self-contained. February 3, 2011 & February 7, 2011 marks the UK/North American publication of Deep State via Orbit.
ANALYSIS: A smart, entertaining, and skillfully written techno-thriller, Walter Jon Williams’ This Is Not A Game was one of the best novels I read in 2009. So naturally, when I heard the author was writing another book featuring Dagmar Shaw, the heroine from This Is Not A Game, I was pretty excited. Unfortunately, Deep State was not nearly as enjoyable to read as its predecessor.
The main problem I had with Deep State, was the story. In This Is Not A Game, Walter Jon Williams cleverly explored how alternate reality gaming (ARGs) could help solve real-world problems like extracting a person from a third-world country suffering from currency collapse, finding a murderer, and preventing a financial crisis, all while delivering a story that was not only intelligent and relevant, but also highly entertaining. In fact, for most of the time that I was reading This Is Not A Game, I felt like I was watching a big-budget Hollywood action-thriller. Deep State on the other hand, was more like watching a documentary or a movie on The History Channel. Using the alternate reality gaming model to stage a revolution in a country under the rule of a military dictatorship, Deep State is mostly set in Turkey, and is rife with political, historical and cultural details about the country and its citizens. Of course, as informational as all of this was, it just wasn’t entertaining. To compound the problem, the whole ARG concept felt less interesting the second time around, while weak subplots involving murder, treachery, a Scottish actor named Ian Attila Gordon, and the High Zap—“the Internet equivalent of a thermonuclear bomb”—failed to add anything of value to a story already suffering from a transparent lack of excitement. Finally, the conclusion to Deep State, which included the outcome of the revolution in Turkey and defeating the High Zap, was disappointingly sudden and anticlimactic.
Apart from the story however, I can’t really complain. Like its predecessor, Deep State is an extremely well-written novel led by crisp dialogue, accomplished prose and brisk pacing. Supporting characters may lack depth, but they make up for it with distinctive personalities, while Walter Jon Williams convincingly captures the pain and torment that haunts Dagmar Shaw because of what happened to her in This Is Not A Game. On top of that, the subject matter in Deep State is once again topical and thought-provoking, perhaps even more than its predecessor.
In the end though, the excellent This Is Not A Game was a tough act to follow, and even though the writing in Walter Jon Williams’ Deep State was on par with the first book, the story and degree of entertainment were not. As a result, Deep State is one of the biggest disappointments of the year...
“The Fallen Blade” by Jon Courtenay Grimwood (Reviewed by Robert Thompson & Liviu Suciu)
Order “The Fallen Blade” HERE + HERE (UK)\
Read FBC Review of End of the World Blues
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Jon Courtenay Grimwood is a British science fiction author whose bibliography includes the Arabesk trilogy, 9tail Fox, and the End of the World Blues which won the British Science Fiction Award. He also won the British Science Fiction Award for Felaheen, and has been short-listed for the Arthur C. Clarke Award—twice, the British Fantasy Award, and the John W. Campbell Award. The Fallen Blade is Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s fantasy debut.
PLOT SUMMARY: It is the year 1407. Venice is at the height of its power. In theory, Marco IV commands, but the Duke is a simpleton so his aunt and uncle—Duchess Alexa and Prince Alonzo—rule in his stead. Within the Serene Republic, their word is law, but for all their influence, Venice's fate still lies in other hands...
Lady Giulietta is the Duke's cousin. She enjoys greater privilege than many can even dream of, but her status will demand a terrible price.
Atilo Il Mauros is head of the Scuola degli Assassini, assassins who secretly enforce Venice's will—both at home and abroad.
Prince Leopold zum Bas Friedland is the bastard son of the German emperor and leader of the krieghund—the only force in Venice more feared than the Assassini.
And then there is Atilo's silver-haired apprentice. Only a boy, Tycho is already stronger and faster than any man has a right to be. He can also see in the dark and has no scent, but sunlight burns him and he fears water. Some believe he is a fallen angel. Others, a demon. Only by embracing his true nature, can Venice be saved...
CLASSIFICATION: Combining alternate history with the supernatural, The Fallen Blade is kind of like Jasper Kent’s Twelve/Thirteen Years Later with Anne Rice’s vampires and Underworld’s lycans, while written in the style of Glen Cook.
FORMAT/INFO: The Fallen Blade is 464 pages long divided over two Parts, sixty-three numbered chapters, and an Epilogue. Also includes a map, the Millioni family tree, Dramatis Personae, an interview with the author, and an excerpt from Joe Abercrombie’s Best Served Cold. Narration is in the third person via Tycho, Atilo Il Mauros, Lady Giulietta dei San Felice di Millioni, Captain Roderigo, Iacopo, etc. The Fallen Blade is Act One of the Assassini Trilogy, but for the most part reads like a self-contained novel with the book coming to a satisfying stopping point.
January 27, 2011 and February 3, 2011 marks the US/UK Trade Paperback publication of The Fallen Blade via Orbit Books. Cover artwork provided by Larry Rostant.
ROBERT’S ANALYSIS: It’s been five years since Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s last novel was published, the British Science Fiction Award-winning End of the World Blues (Reviewed HERE). That book actually happens to be the only Jon Courtenay Grimwood novel I’ve ever read, but I absolutely loved it, and have every intention of going through the author’s backlist as soon as I can. That said, fantasy will always be my first love, so when I heard Jon Courtenay Grimwood was making his fantasy debut with The Fallen Blade, the book instantly became one of my most anticipated releases of 2011...
The first thing readers should understand about The Fallen Blade is that the book is an alternate history novel set in a 15th-century Venice ruled by Marco Polo’s descendants. I’m not the biggest fan of alternate history/historical fiction, but Jon Courtenay Grimwood does a tremendous job of creating a living, breathing Renaissance Venice that feels as convincing as the real thing, and is one of the novel’s greatest strengths. I particularly loved the amount of detail the author uses to establish the Millioni family and their complex political situation, which includes Duchess Alexa and Prince Alonzo vying for control of the throne, their trade routes coveted by the Mamluks, the Millioni declared as false princes by the Pope, and threats from the Germans, the Byzantines and Timur’s Mongols. Admittedly, it’s sometimes difficult to process all of the information that Jon Courtenay Grimwood throws at you, especially because of the manner in which he feeds readers info in tiny bits and pieces, but at the same time, it’s easy to become invested in the Renaissance Venice that the author has imagined.
Now if there is one thing negative to say about Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s Venice, it’s that the setting sometimes overshadows the rest of the book. This is most evident regarding The Fallen Blade’s fantasy elements—including a vampire, werewolves (krieghund) and a witch (stregoi)—which only accounts for a small percentage of the novel. What’s so disappointing about the book’s fantasy elements is that Jon Courtenay Grimwood hardly spends any time at all explaining their purpose or presence, making them feel more like an accessory than an integral part of the novel. I can understand the mysteriousness surrounding Tycho since most of the characters in the book don’t know what he is, including Tycho himself, but what about the krieghund or the witch A’rial? Fortunately, the fantasy stuff picks up during the novel’s climax, and I’m hopeful it’s a preview of things to come in the sequel.
Characters meanwhile, are memorable and intriguing, led by Lady Giuletta and the silver-haired boy Tycho, while Lady Desdaio is the book’s most surprising character because she’s a supporting player who heavily factors into many of the novel’s most important moments. To be honest, characterization in The Fallen Blade is not particularly deep, and the characters would not be nearly as interesting if not for an unpredictable plot that forces the book’s characters through a series of engaging, life-altering circumstances. Take Lady Giuletta for example, who runs away to avoid a political marriage, becomes part of an assassination plot against the king of Cyprus, is abducted, and then falls in love with an enemy. The rest of the characters have their own issues to deal with, and seeing what drama unfolds and how they handle their situations is definitely one of the novel’s highlights.
Writing-wise, The Fallen Blade is a tale of two sides. On the one hand, Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s world-building is convincing and immersive, and I was impressed by the author’s ability to manage the novel’s many different characters and subplots without losing control. On the other hand, Jon Courtenay Grimwood makes a number of questionable narrative decisions over the course of the novel. Like the uneven manner in which he shifts between viewpoints, with extended periods sometimes passing by before returning to a character—Atilo Il Mauros for instance. Or how viewpoints are provided for minor characters like Captain Roderigo and Iacopo as opposed to more important characters such as Lady Desdaio or Prince Leopold zum Bas Friedland. Or the author’s decision to skip over most of Tycho’s Assassini training and the months Lady Giulietta and Prince Leopold spent together, which I felt were very significant moments in the novel that deserved a more indepth account.
I should also point out that Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s writing style in The Fallen Blade is very reminiscent of Glen Cook’s writing style from his Instrumentalities of the Night series. Including sparse prose, moments of telling instead of showing, and a noticeable level of detachment that is present in the storytelling and characterization. Personally, this wasn’t an issue for me as I’m a huge fan of Glen Cook’s work, but for others, this could be a problem.
Overall, Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s fantasy debut did not live up to my high expectations or its own immense potential. Nonetheless, The Fallen Blade is a well-written novel that features a fully realized setting, engaging characters, and a gripping story rife with complex politics and heartbreaking drama. In short, The Fallen Blade is still a very good book, and I definitely plan on being there for the second Act...
LIVIU’S ANALYSIS: I have read all 10 JC Grimwood novels before this one and none had disappointed me, while a few of them were superb - most notably his last loosely linked trilogy of sf novels set in today's world but with far future links, Stamping Butterflies, 9 Tail Fox and End of the World Blues which are as good as literary sf gets in the 21st century so far. So ultra-high expectations for this one and to my surprise I was somewhat disappointed in The Fallen Blade for unexpected reasons.
I thought this will be a blow me away A++ novel based on its premise - alt-history fantasy set in in the early 1400's Venice of an Earth with some magic and while the announced hot-topic vampires from the cover and the blurb gave me a little doubt, it turned out that The Fallen Blade stumbled where I have never dreamed it will happen: the novel's style is very fractured so it just does not flow and hits narrative walls constantly, while also having a contrived plot in key situations, where things seem to happen only because the author wanted it so his selected set of surviving characters could get away from hopeless situations which of course kill his "sacrifice" characters... No rhyme or reason beyond authorial fiat and that was the second major negative.
On the plus side, The Fallen Blade has a lot of goodies: extremely good atmosphere you can really visualize and even "feel" the Venice of 1400's; great vivid characters in Tycho, Atilo, Giulietta, Desdaio, Alexa and several others and some twists and turns that are excellent, while all the world building and differences from our world are almost pitch perfect inserted at crucial points.
I would give it a B for the many goodies which kept me chugging at it, though I had to pause often because of those narrative walls that just took me away from its world and while I am interested in the next book, it won't be the asap as this one was. I hope the author will raise the quality of the prose and plotting to the level of his early novels since the series has high potential with the implied depth of the world he created and the vivid characters that starred in this one.
