The Battle Sylph
L.J. McDonald
Leisure, Mar 2010, $7.99
ISBN: 9780843963007
Her father arranged for Solie to marry a forty-five years old obese man. She refuses so believing her maiden Aunt Masha would taker her in, Solie flees her village. However, she fails to arrive at the haven she seeks. Instead she is captured by soldiers working for the prince of Eferem who expects a visit from a Battler Sylph. To bind him to the royals, they need a virgin sacrifice; hence the plan is to kill Solie the moment the Sylph crosses over as that enslaves them to the killer of his “queen”.
However, the soldiers underestimate their helpless prisoner who escapes their binds and calls to the Sylph “Hey You”. He kills the prince and immediately the named Heyou and his queen Solie flee together. Outraged King Alcor Baldorth sends royal warriors and other Battle Sylphs to chase after this abomination of a female master of any kind of Sylph, but especially the most fearsome type, the Battler.
This is a great opening romantic fantasy with a delightful tongue in cheek attitude that enhances the fun of the action-packed tale. The story line is fast-paced from the opening failed binding and never slows down as everyone knows females cannot be masters of sylphs. As Solie and Heyou rock their kingdom, readers will appreciate their escapades of trying to find haven, which is how she got into this mess in the first place. The Battle Sylph is a superb first act.
Harriet Klausner
Sunday, February 7, 2010
At the Gates of Darkness-Raymond E. Feist
At the Gates of Darkness
Raymond E. Feist
Eos, Apr 6 2010, $26.99
ISBN 9780061468377
Insane necromancer Belasco called up and sent demons to destroy Midkemia. However, a shaky alliance between enemies, especially Pug the Black Sorcerer of Sorcerer’s Isle and the Conclave of Shadows led by field agent James Jamison defeated the Demon King Maarg and his horde (see Maarg Rides a Dread Legion). Although they won that battle, the war is far from over as Belasco has other demonic contacts ready to fight.
In the Valley of Lost Men, Belasco regroups with Dahun the demon as they unite in a level of dark magic never tried before. Still healing physically, they have no time to do so mentally especially to grieve for so many valiant, who died in their just cause, James warns the band of Midkemia protectors that the next battle has begun. James, Pug, Amirantha the necromancer, Brandos the warlock, Sandreena the Knight-Adamandt, the Star Elven siblings, and others set out to end the latest deadly threat; none of the brave heroes and heroines expect to come back alive.
The second Demonwar fantasy is an exciting thriller that continues the latest demonic assault on Midkemia. The story line is fast-paced and fun to follow as the various cast of heroes and the two prime villains make their magical skills and species seem genuine. Well written even long time fans wondering when Pug will start receiving medicare will think two ways about Yogi Berra’s comment “deja vu all over again” as Raymond E. Feist like Mantle and Maris hits back to back home runs though his saga has that sameness feel from the previous series. Still readers will enjoy the latest battle against the demon minion.
Harriet Klausner
Raymond E. Feist
Eos, Apr 6 2010, $26.99
ISBN 9780061468377
Insane necromancer Belasco called up and sent demons to destroy Midkemia. However, a shaky alliance between enemies, especially Pug the Black Sorcerer of Sorcerer’s Isle and the Conclave of Shadows led by field agent James Jamison defeated the Demon King Maarg and his horde (see Maarg Rides a Dread Legion). Although they won that battle, the war is far from over as Belasco has other demonic contacts ready to fight.
In the Valley of Lost Men, Belasco regroups with Dahun the demon as they unite in a level of dark magic never tried before. Still healing physically, they have no time to do so mentally especially to grieve for so many valiant, who died in their just cause, James warns the band of Midkemia protectors that the next battle has begun. James, Pug, Amirantha the necromancer, Brandos the warlock, Sandreena the Knight-Adamandt, the Star Elven siblings, and others set out to end the latest deadly threat; none of the brave heroes and heroines expect to come back alive.
The second Demonwar fantasy is an exciting thriller that continues the latest demonic assault on Midkemia. The story line is fast-paced and fun to follow as the various cast of heroes and the two prime villains make their magical skills and species seem genuine. Well written even long time fans wondering when Pug will start receiving medicare will think two ways about Yogi Berra’s comment “deja vu all over again” as Raymond E. Feist like Mantle and Maris hits back to back home runs though his saga has that sameness feel from the previous series. Still readers will enjoy the latest battle against the demon minion.
Harriet Klausner
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Jade Man's Skin-Daniel Fox
Jade Man's Skin
Daniel Fox
Del Rey, Feb 16 2010, $15.00
ISBN: 9780345503046
The Dragon in Chains is no longer locked in the Straits of Taishu. Instead she soars in the sky free with an obsession to take her vengeance on those who chained it. However, the beast has not been able to rid itself of her liberator, Han the apprentice scribe who remains telepathically tied to the dragon.
At the same the exiled young Emperor remains alive because of the dragon, but also feels like a bird in a gilded cage as he is trapped in the mountains of Taishu Island by his enemies and the beast. He is changing due to jade exposure that leaves him more powerful, angrier and frustrated as he no longer wants to hide in the mountains. His first step back is taking control of the city of Taishu as the Emperor strikes back. General Ping Wen believes capturing the Jade Throne is his first step to what he should be – Godhood. Besides counting his losses over the years, pirate Captain Li Ton tries to take over the military as the civil war continues unabated. The exiled Emperor’s favorite concubine Lady Mei Feng is also in the mix cleverly out maneuvering the ambitious general. However, out of the sea comes the Li-Goddess who comes after the dragon, but collateral damage of people is no concern to her.
The second medieval fantasy captures the essence of Chinese mythology with an even deeper more complicated tale than the Dragon in Chains. The story line is fast-paced with several subplots brewing as various individuals want power; some want godhood power. The point of view changes, but never slows down as the dragon unchained is a strong tale as the conflict expands.
Daniel Fox
Del Rey, Feb 16 2010, $15.00
ISBN: 9780345503046
The Dragon in Chains is no longer locked in the Straits of Taishu. Instead she soars in the sky free with an obsession to take her vengeance on those who chained it. However, the beast has not been able to rid itself of her liberator, Han the apprentice scribe who remains telepathically tied to the dragon.
At the same the exiled young Emperor remains alive because of the dragon, but also feels like a bird in a gilded cage as he is trapped in the mountains of Taishu Island by his enemies and the beast. He is changing due to jade exposure that leaves him more powerful, angrier and frustrated as he no longer wants to hide in the mountains. His first step back is taking control of the city of Taishu as the Emperor strikes back. General Ping Wen believes capturing the Jade Throne is his first step to what he should be – Godhood. Besides counting his losses over the years, pirate Captain Li Ton tries to take over the military as the civil war continues unabated. The exiled Emperor’s favorite concubine Lady Mei Feng is also in the mix cleverly out maneuvering the ambitious general. However, out of the sea comes the Li-Goddess who comes after the dragon, but collateral damage of people is no concern to her.
The second medieval fantasy captures the essence of Chinese mythology with an even deeper more complicated tale than the Dragon in Chains. The story line is fast-paced with several subplots brewing as various individuals want power; some want godhood power. The point of view changes, but never slows down as the dragon unchained is a strong tale as the conflict expands.
The Scorpions Strike-C.L. Talmadge
The Scorpions Strike
C.L. Talmadge
Healing Stone Books, 2008, $16.95
http://www.greenstoneofhealing.com
ISBN: 9780980053753
The priests of the powerful Temple of Kronos continue their domination over the Toltec empire because King Kefren is too weak-minded to challenge the fundamentalist wing. The priests accuse Lord James Mordecai of heretical crimes against the Temple of Kronos by violating the purebred code when he sired a half-breed daughter Helen.
Both are punished for this gregarious transgression as James is brutally whipped and the Supreme Lord applies the Toltec death-mark to Helen, which allows a legal murder of her. Although festering with anger, James fails to act for fear of causing a civil war at a time the barbarians are attacking the borders. Meanwhile; Helen’s secret lover Colonel Jackson Orlando keeps her alive until with the help of Maguari the Mist-Weaver and Academy Grand Master Isaac Sudras she finds a deadly toxin buried in her father's welts. When her stepmother Lady Samantha Poseidon becomes pregnant Helen saves her life and that of her unborn half-brother from an attack intended to kill Helen as the priests are still after the half-breed.
The third GREEN STONE OF HEALING fantasy is an engaging tale that has a unique feel to the plot as the key lead players are tied up by their ethics. James must choose between the kingdom and his daughter so does nothing beyond feeble protection of his offspring. Helen struggles with her fears for her father and his land as she has become a focus of those who would demonize the opposition; so like her dad is unsure what is best for him and his people. With an easy to manipulate ruler, Temple of Kronos fanatics proclaim religious supremacy enable them to assert heresy even knowing they emaciate the kingdom. Father and daughter only respond to their machinations making for a fascinating entry.
Harriet Klausner
C.L. Talmadge
Healing Stone Books, 2008, $16.95
http://www.greenstoneofhealing.com
ISBN: 9780980053753
The priests of the powerful Temple of Kronos continue their domination over the Toltec empire because King Kefren is too weak-minded to challenge the fundamentalist wing. The priests accuse Lord James Mordecai of heretical crimes against the Temple of Kronos by violating the purebred code when he sired a half-breed daughter Helen.
Both are punished for this gregarious transgression as James is brutally whipped and the Supreme Lord applies the Toltec death-mark to Helen, which allows a legal murder of her. Although festering with anger, James fails to act for fear of causing a civil war at a time the barbarians are attacking the borders. Meanwhile; Helen’s secret lover Colonel Jackson Orlando keeps her alive until with the help of Maguari the Mist-Weaver and Academy Grand Master Isaac Sudras she finds a deadly toxin buried in her father's welts. When her stepmother Lady Samantha Poseidon becomes pregnant Helen saves her life and that of her unborn half-brother from an attack intended to kill Helen as the priests are still after the half-breed.
The third GREEN STONE OF HEALING fantasy is an engaging tale that has a unique feel to the plot as the key lead players are tied up by their ethics. James must choose between the kingdom and his daughter so does nothing beyond feeble protection of his offspring. Helen struggles with her fears for her father and his land as she has become a focus of those who would demonize the opposition; so like her dad is unsure what is best for him and his people. With an easy to manipulate ruler, Temple of Kronos fanatics proclaim religious supremacy enable them to assert heresy even knowing they emaciate the kingdom. Father and daughter only respond to their machinations making for a fascinating entry.
Harriet Klausner
Friday, February 5, 2010
Full Moon City-Darrell Schweitzer and Martin H. Greenberg (Editors)
Full Moon City
Darrell Schweitzer and Martin H. Greenberg (Editors)
Gallery (Pocket), Mar 9 2010, $15.00
ISBN: 9781416584131
Full Moon City contains fourteen dark werewolf and one leaning more towards vampire (Darrell Schweitzer’s “Kvetchula’s Daughter”) urban fantasies written by some of the genre’s most renowned authors. None are clinkers, but only a few can be considered as super. For the most part the environs are places not anticipated in werewolf tales such as the Plaza Hotel in Esther M. Friesner’s where “No Children, No Pets” prevail but six years old Emmeline lives next door in Central Park; at Houston Community College where the Lycanthropy Support Group meets in “The Truth About Werewolves” by Lisa Tuttle and Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty returns to Vegas in “Kitty learns the Ropes”. More typical locales are used too but less frequently like in Ian Watson’s “The Weredog of Bucharest”; the Bayou is the setting for Peter S. Beagle’s “La Lune D’Attend” and Hollywood in “I Was a Middle Aged Werewolf” by Ron Goulart. In my opinion the best contribution is Holly Black's “The Aarne-Thompson Classification Revue” as the werewolf actress looks deeply at conversion. Overall this is a very good collection worth reading only by fans of the modern take on the werewolf mythos
Harriet Klausner
Darrell Schweitzer and Martin H. Greenberg (Editors)
Gallery (Pocket), Mar 9 2010, $15.00
ISBN: 9781416584131
Full Moon City contains fourteen dark werewolf and one leaning more towards vampire (Darrell Schweitzer’s “Kvetchula’s Daughter”) urban fantasies written by some of the genre’s most renowned authors. None are clinkers, but only a few can be considered as super. For the most part the environs are places not anticipated in werewolf tales such as the Plaza Hotel in Esther M. Friesner’s where “No Children, No Pets” prevail but six years old Emmeline lives next door in Central Park; at Houston Community College where the Lycanthropy Support Group meets in “The Truth About Werewolves” by Lisa Tuttle and Carrie Vaughn’s Kitty returns to Vegas in “Kitty learns the Ropes”. More typical locales are used too but less frequently like in Ian Watson’s “The Weredog of Bucharest”; the Bayou is the setting for Peter S. Beagle’s “La Lune D’Attend” and Hollywood in “I Was a Middle Aged Werewolf” by Ron Goulart. In my opinion the best contribution is Holly Black's “The Aarne-Thompson Classification Revue” as the werewolf actress looks deeply at conversion. Overall this is a very good collection worth reading only by fans of the modern take on the werewolf mythos
Harriet Klausner
The Poison Throne-Celine Kiernan
The Poison Throne
Celine Kiernan
Orbit, Apr 7 2010, $14.99
ISBN: 9780316077064
Dying Lorcan Moorehawke returns from the Northland after a five year mission accompanied by his fifteen year old daughter Wynter to their former home Kingcourt, but are not welcomed as befits the Protector should be. That is they feel unwelcome until Victuallor Heron greets them warmly.
Wynter is stunned with changes at Kingcourt as everyone fears the king with good cause as he has turned brutal. His heir Alberon was forced to flee for his life and his other son Alberon's half-brother Razi sits uncomfortably on the regal Chair that belongs to his sibling while trying to remain loyal to his older brother and his sire; not an easy task. Razi welcomes home his childhood friend Wynter at a time rebellion and civil war seems imminent with the kingdom split in two between loyalists to a mad monarch and rebels. Wynter will soon find herself caught in the crosshairs of this division between her father loyal to the king and Razi and his cohort Christopher Garron considering the overthrow of the monarch.
This is a superb young adult political fantasy filled with plenty of intrigue as everyone at Kingcourt is impacted by the ruler’s apparent insanity. The story line fast-paced, but loaded with a strong cast who brings out the depth of life in a dictatorial deadly monarchy. Young teen readers will relish the courageous escapades of the heroine who must choose between her father and her kingdom.
Harriet Klausner
Celine Kiernan
Orbit, Apr 7 2010, $14.99
ISBN: 9780316077064
Dying Lorcan Moorehawke returns from the Northland after a five year mission accompanied by his fifteen year old daughter Wynter to their former home Kingcourt, but are not welcomed as befits the Protector should be. That is they feel unwelcome until Victuallor Heron greets them warmly.
Wynter is stunned with changes at Kingcourt as everyone fears the king with good cause as he has turned brutal. His heir Alberon was forced to flee for his life and his other son Alberon's half-brother Razi sits uncomfortably on the regal Chair that belongs to his sibling while trying to remain loyal to his older brother and his sire; not an easy task. Razi welcomes home his childhood friend Wynter at a time rebellion and civil war seems imminent with the kingdom split in two between loyalists to a mad monarch and rebels. Wynter will soon find herself caught in the crosshairs of this division between her father loyal to the king and Razi and his cohort Christopher Garron considering the overthrow of the monarch.
This is a superb young adult political fantasy filled with plenty of intrigue as everyone at Kingcourt is impacted by the ruler’s apparent insanity. The story line fast-paced, but loaded with a strong cast who brings out the depth of life in a dictatorial deadly monarchy. Young teen readers will relish the courageous escapades of the heroine who must choose between her father and her kingdom.
Harriet Klausner
Fallout-C.L. Talmadge
Fallout
C.L. Talmadge
Healing Stone Books, 2008, $16.95
http://www.greenstoneofhealing.com
ISBN: 9780980053746
On Azgard, Lord James Mordecai recognizes adult physician Helen Andros as his daughter from a liaison with Miriam Andros (see Vision). However, their union is not harmonious as each brings a different past to the father daughter relationship. He demands offspring loyalty and she wants much more from him.
Meanwhile Exalted Lord Toltec King has healed from his debilitating drug induced coma and is interested in Helen's skills as a natural healer and as a surgeon as she brought him back to the living. He orders her to marry her second cousin Lord Justin Atlas. She now knows the Green Stone she wears enhances her medical abilities, but is unsure why. However, she is worried about what will happen to her father, who stands trial for seditious acts. At the same time Justin’s father Prince Enoch Atlas believes he is finding the secrets of the priests of the Temple of Kronos in the use of life and death kura energy, which if successful will further his ambition.
The second Green Stone of healing tale is a terrific fantasy starring a large cast held strongly together by the confused heroine. The story line is fast-paced throughout and never slows although much goes on in several subplots. Enoch is a great villain with plans to raise himself and his House to the Exalted Lord level as C.L. Talmadge continues to expand on her deep political fantasy that requires the audience to read the first tale in what is so far a great saga.
Harriet Klausner
C.L. Talmadge
Healing Stone Books, 2008, $16.95
http://www.greenstoneofhealing.com
ISBN: 9780980053746
On Azgard, Lord James Mordecai recognizes adult physician Helen Andros as his daughter from a liaison with Miriam Andros (see Vision). However, their union is not harmonious as each brings a different past to the father daughter relationship. He demands offspring loyalty and she wants much more from him.
Meanwhile Exalted Lord Toltec King has healed from his debilitating drug induced coma and is interested in Helen's skills as a natural healer and as a surgeon as she brought him back to the living. He orders her to marry her second cousin Lord Justin Atlas. She now knows the Green Stone she wears enhances her medical abilities, but is unsure why. However, she is worried about what will happen to her father, who stands trial for seditious acts. At the same time Justin’s father Prince Enoch Atlas believes he is finding the secrets of the priests of the Temple of Kronos in the use of life and death kura energy, which if successful will further his ambition.
The second Green Stone of healing tale is a terrific fantasy starring a large cast held strongly together by the confused heroine. The story line is fast-paced throughout and never slows although much goes on in several subplots. Enoch is a great villain with plans to raise himself and his House to the Exalted Lord level as C.L. Talmadge continues to expand on her deep political fantasy that requires the audience to read the first tale in what is so far a great saga.
Harriet Klausner
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)