Tag: fantasy

My review of A Curse Upon the Saints by J. Rutger Madison for KBR

December 16, 2014

NOTE: The Kindle Book Review received a free copy of this book for an independent, fair, and honest review. We are not associated with the author or Amazon.

As a Mississippi sf/f author, I am perhaps biased by my delight at finding another one. This was only the first thing to delight me about Madison’s book. A Curse Upon the Saints is a dark, rugged fantasy, the first block of book laid down for an edifice of epic. This is a world shattered by religious war and interspecies rivalries. The vicious goat-men who appear in the first pages of the novel, the Sarbarah, are demonically cruel, but not entirely without honor or tenderness. The most appealing of the protagonists – a lawyer, of all people, who is enslaved by an invading army of Sarbarah – is allowed to survive because he happens to play the flute. Through his patience and cunning, he manages to purvey this tiny influence into a perilous position of power.

The author cheerfully acknowledges the influence of George R.R. Martin in this sprawling work. The depth of intrigue and worldbuilding make this the same kind of addictive setting as Westeros. The dialogue could have used some polishing, and the various sniping factions are often confusing, but this is not enough to keep one from turning the pages. I would give this 4 1/2 stars if I could, and I look forward to seeing more.

My review for KBR of Per-Bast: A Tale of Cats in Ancient Egypt by Lara-Dawn Stiegler

June 25, 2014

NOTE: The Kindle Book Review received a free copy of this book for an independent, fair, and honest review. We are not associated with the author or Amazon.

As someone who loves historical fiction about ancient Egypt, I was quickly and easily drawn in, but this is Egyptian high fantasy, a little something different. It is a mythological tale, full of gods and monsters. I have to admit that I initially judged this book by its concept, because: cats. Talking cats. It did not sound promising. However, the strength of the prose and the solidity of the setting won me over. Besides, if you have ever known a “supervisor cat,” the kind of cat who watches everything you do, it is not hard to believe they are well up on human and divine affairs. I was also interested in the use of the actual drama between Ramesses III and Queen Tiye – a true story that did not end well. In sum, I recommend this book as a real departure from the run of ancient Egyptian novels.

– L.T. Patridge (The Kindle Book Review)

My KBR Review of From Hell With Love (The Forsaken Comedy Book 1) by Kevin Kauffmann

June 17, 2014

NOTE: The Kindle Book Review received a free copy of this book for an independent, fair, and honest review. We are not associated with the author or Amazon.

Niccolo, the Horseman of Pestilence, was once himself a human, but now finds himself in Hell, scrambling to protect Lucifer himself from an assassination attempt sure to bring on the Apocalypse.
The book‘s saving grace is in Niccolo himself as a character, in how he suffered in his life in Renaissance-era Florence. The chapters flashing back to his fall from grace as a merchant prince, due entirely to accident, are what give the book its – well – its humanity. The many ultra-violent demon battles and bickering between fallen hideous creatures are all very well, but without Niccolo and his relationship with Cadmus, another deceased warrior, this book would lack the strength to stand. But it does, and there is a hel – I mean quite a cliffhanger in store. The ending promises a fascinating sequel.

My review for KBR of Jacqueline Garlick’s Lumiere (Book One, the Illumination Paradox Series) (2013)

January 27, 2014

NOTE: The Kindle Book Review received a free copy of this book for an independent, fair, and honest review. We are not associated with the author or Amazon.

In this steampunk YA fantasy, Eyelet Emiline Elsworth, the heroine, is the teenaged daughter of a scientist who disappeared after losing his capstone invention, the Great Illuminator, to betrayal and theft. In a dystopian past-future where daylight has vanished and the lower classes are kept hemmed in and separated by rolling poisonous fogs called Vapours, Eyelet must flee persecution and find the Great Illuminator before her father’s enemies find it first.

The grim setting is drawn with a beautiful cinematic skill, with an Oz-like blend of whimsy and horror that would lend itself well to a filmed adaptation. I also appreciated the sharp, funny details, such as the Ladybird, a flying Twitter analogue that can carry tiny tin scrolls stamped with messages of 140 characters or less. Eyelet, who is also the first-person narrator, is strong and skillful, and the narrative is packed full of action. The plot, which never stops moving, turns on a innovative use of radiation, reflecting the early 20th-century fad for the healing use of “rays” of various types.

It is somewhat distracting to have a heroine named Eyelet and a villain, Professor Smrt, whose name lacks all vowels. Nevertheless, younger readers are less likely to notice this than I am, so let it pass. I was also awfully fond of Eyelet’s friend Urlick, even though that was his name, because he was so delightfully twisted as a love interest. The characters generally needed more depth, more complexity of motivation, and the immense spunkiness of Eyelet was grating until it became indispensable to the situation. Again, this will not affect the enjoyment of younger readers, for whom this will be a wonderful ride. I would give it 3.5 stars, if Amazon would permit it.