Adrian Collins's Blog, page 231

REVIEW: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George RR Martin

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a collection of three novellas that are set a generation or two before the events of A Song and Ice and Fire. In the third person perspective, we follow Dunk or as he tailors himself – Ser Duncan the Tall. The first narrative is named The Hedge Knight and we are presented to our protagonist as he is burying his former mentor for whom he used to squire. It’s a touching start, and an interesting introduction to Dunk. He is planning to go to a tourney in Ashford and at a crossroads inn he meets Egg, who he assumes is a stable boy. This boy decides to follow Dunk without permission, wanting to squire for him, and eventually it transpires that he is of royal blood and would eventually become Aegon V, protector of the realm, etc… He is the brother of Aemon Targaryen who becomes Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch and at this time Bloodraven is the Hand of the King. This is the gentleman who becomes the three-eyed-raven.

“Dunk the lunk, thick as a castle wall.”

At 17 years old, almost 7-foot-tall, strong and with weight and reach in his favour, Dunk is a formidable Hedge Knight. Essentially, he is a Knight who travels throughout the 7 Kingdoms doing jobs he deems true and honourable for coin. Dunk is as true and decent as any Knight you would have read about in A Song of Ice and Fire and there is a fan theory that Brienne is a descendant of his and I can totally believe that. We are presented the tale from his mind and he talks himself down over explaining his stupidity. I never really saw him as being dim. He can’t read, he has never kissed a girl and he doesn’t really have people skills but some of the supporting cast and villains who can and have done these come across as more vile and horrid when reflected against Dunk’s honesty, loyalty and general goodheartedness.

Egg is a pretty amazing character. Even though he has Targaryen purple eyes he shaves his head so his gold/silver hair doesn’t make it completely obvious regarding his lineage. And he has a silly straw hat! He is described as being as wise as a maester but still only 10. He knows the history of the majority of the nation’s houses and can name who someone is just by seeing the paintwork on their shields. He is also quick of tongue sometimes to his detriment, especially when these 3 novella’s often discuss the Targaryan Blackfyre rebellion and hints at seeds of which are still spread throughout the land. I read this after I read GRRM’s Fire and Blood and the knowledge I gained regarding the Targaryan’s there did enhance my experience although it isn’t truly necessary to read in that order. I think this could be thoroughly enjoyed by someone who has not yet read the main series. It’s not all pretty and it does feature numerous deaths, violence and backstabbing but from Dunk’s perspective, these stories present a lot more hope and goodness than we are accustomed to from a typical Westeros tale.

When I read this I had had one of the worst weeks of my life. If I believed in guardian angels I would think that mine made me pick up this book at this time instead of the other 1000 books on my to-be-read list. This story was exactly what I needed. Interesting, funny, about friendship with elements of trust, mystery and excitement. I’ve always looked down upon reviewers who rate a book 6/5 as I think it makes no sense. After this scenario and how this book has helped me recover then this is the closest I will ever get to giving that rating. It’s the best novel I’ve read this year and I can’t wait to read about more Dunk and Egg.

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Review: Son of the Black Sword by Larry Correia

I first came across Larry Correia while I was doing what most failed writers do—browsing the internet to find out how I can become a better writer instead of actually writing. Correia and author John Brown (The Dark God series) were doing a writing seminar that someone had kindly posted to YouTube. Correia seemed genuinely enthusiastic about writing gritty, entertaining SFF. When I searched out his books at the time, however, I found that both his Monster Hunter series and his Grimnoir Chronicles featured guys and gals with large machine-guns on the cover, and I’m just not that into guns. So I never delved into Mr. Correia’s oeuvre. Well, that changed recently when I surfed across Son of the Black Sword on Amazon and decided to give it a try.  Overall, with a few reservations, I’m glad I did. Although it’s not what I would call a literary masterpiece (see last issue’s review of Ian Tregillis’s The Mechanical), I enjoyed it and I think Grimdark Magazine readers will enjoy it as well.

Son of the Black Sword is a heroic fantasy novel set in a medieval-style world of magic swords, archaic magic elements and relics, and plenty of war. The story follows Ashok, the reluctant hero—a somewhat typical downcast orphan with a mysterious past, who finds himself on the wrong side of, well, pretty much everything—on his quest for justice. But do justice and ‘the Law’ always coincide? Ashok must find out, whether he wants to or not, and the stakes are high. Luckily, he has his sentient black steel sword, Angruvadal (think of a slightly nicer sibling to Elric’s Stormbringer) by his side to slay anyone who gets in his way.

Ashok is a Protector, an enforcer of the Law that has replaced the mysticism and superstition of the Age of Kings. Protectors have a secret force, the Heart of the Mountain, which gives Ashok nearly unbeatable strength, agility, sensory perception, endurance and pretty much anything a hero would need to kill his enemies—breakers of the Law. And Ashok, the Black Heart, is as ruthless and deadly a Protector as has ever been known.

But Ashok is not the only character who has a stake in this melee, and as such, he is not the only viewpoint character in Son of the Black Sword. Jagdish is a dishonoured guard/warrior of the House Vadal, who hopes to regain his honour and give his loving wife a respectable life. Rada is a librarian and scholar. She puts her life on the line to find out exactly how their land, Lok, transformed from the Age of Kings to the Age of Law in the first place. Keta is a religious disciple, a Keeper of Names, who hopes to bring back the spirit of Ramrowan, the great hero who rid the land of demons and forced them into the oceans. He is convinced that a prophet has foreseen the coming of a great hero to bring spirituality back to Lok.

Correia sets this complex tale in a well-wrought story world.  Lok is a place where many feudal Houses compete for pre-eminence, and the rise of one House often depends on the fall of another.  Within the Houses is a rigid caste system in which movement seems nearly impossible.  While the ‘firsters’ wine and dine in fancy clothes, the ‘casteless non-beings’ labour at the worst tasks to earn a barely subsistent living.  In between rich and poor, warriors, workers, and merchants maintain their stations. Demons, relics of a past religious apocalypse, inhabit the oceans and occasionally take to land to create mayhem, as if this world needed more mayhem than its humans already create. Embedded in the world are some very compelling and vivid settings—a prison for Law breakers, a river barge floating under a well-defended bridge crammed with archers, a ‘firsters’ party, a mountain trek, an icy village, and several other nicely painted backgrounds that figure adroitly into the action. I really felt like I was standing in a pink slushy mixture of blood and snow fighting Somsak warriors or chasing a demon through a web of rope bridges in a coastal slum village. Correia obviously gave this a lot of thought with the intent of creating a home for an expansive story world, and it pays off for the reader.

Most of the novel is pretty much just people sitting in taverns and talking in this really cool story world. Just kidding! There are some fuckin’ epic battles and fights that take place in Son of the Black Sword (‘cause if there weren’t, I’m pretty much fired at this point). Corriea obviously loves a good fight and has taken great pains to make the timing and details of the fight scenes in Son of the Black Sword just right to kick your arse. There are a great variety of frays here. At first I worried that Ashok would be fighting faceless demons for 400+ pages, but not so, my friend—the many fights and battles are staged between well-motivated characters and factions from all walks of life, giving the story world a spectrum of violence that can stand up with the best grimdark. Prepare for a shower of skull shards, broken teeth, and bloody clots of brain. Bring an umbrella.

Underlying the brutality of Son of the Black Sword, however, is a reasonably interesting theme that pits the Law against what’s morally right. Should we do what we do because it’s the law or because it’s right? It’s not earth-shatteringly original but it provides a nice depth to the story’s conflicts. Similarly, moments that pit the Law against religion nicely complement the conflict of Law and justice. It’s complex enough to form the background for a many-threaded story.

The wow factor, though, in Son of the Black Sword comes from a faction of wizards who seek to emerge from secrecy by possessing Angruvadal, Ashok’s sword. Luckily for the reader, they are not wizards with pointy hats who clumsily summon something-or-other by waving plastic wands. Wizards in Lok are mercenary assassins and shapeshifters whose magic is both mysterious and illegal.  More importantly, when they walk out a window into thin air or fly down like a cluster of vultures, a sense of wonder, the true measure of good SFF, is conjured. Again, not necessarily su generis, but vivid and entertaining.

There are just a few nagging hangnails in Son of the Black Sword that keep me from recommending it without reservations.  First, there’s Ashok.  When I began reading I hoped the entire novel would be in his (third-person-close) point of view.  He’s a sympathetic hero and a total badarse.  By halfway through, however, I realized that might not be a good idea because at times he is so inflexible that I wondered if he’s an idiot.  Additionally, there are moments when Correia’s overall pretty good writing could have been better. For example, when Ashok, simmering for vengeance, returns to House Vadal after many years away, he says, of all things, ‘I have returned!’  Well, duh?  Also there is some cheesy hyperbolic nonsense like ‘The world turned to blood’ and ‘he dragged his meat shield [a dead body]…’ and ‘the morning filled once more with flying death [arrows]’. This kind of purple prose always diminishes my enjoyment of a story and makes me wonder if I should just go have a beer instead.

Nevertheless, Son of the Black Sword is an engrossing read that should entertain fans of grimdark with its main character caught in a crucible between justice and the Law; its gruesome and well-choreographed fights; its wide array of complicated, well-motivated bad guys and diverse viewpoint characters; and its pitiless and complex story world. I recommend reading this one, book one in the Saga of the Forgotten Warrior series.

Son of the Black Sword was published by Baen Books on 15 October, 2015.

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Originally published in Grimdark Magazine #6.

Grimdark Magazine #6 is available for purchase from our catalogue.

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REVIEW: A Collection of Obsessions by Michael R. Fletcher

Rarely do I find myself drawn to fiction without knowing much about the person behind the words. Perhaps it’s a part of my training as a researcher, or just me being a know-it-all, but I love to understand how the weaver of words cobbled their fiction together. Michael R. Fletcher‘s A Collection of Obsessions taps into this passion for what we have in his collection of short stories is a treat for those interested in not only the writing process, but the struggles, the highs, and the lows of being a writer.

Before I proceed, I’m going to mention that this is not going to be a normal review. That would be a disservice to Fletcher’s work here. I cannot review seventeen short stories in a reasonable amount of space, so I’m going to examine the few that really stood out to me and of course, the commentary Fletcher offers the reader in between his stories.

Obsessions is no simple collection of tales. It is, as the title suggests, a collection of obsessions that Fletcher has developed over the course of his artistic career. The shorts range between cyberpunk to fantasy to semi-autobiographic and historical. Some have been previously published in Grimdark Magazine and other publications, some have been hidden away until now. There are slight grammatical errors (or as Fletcher would call them, ‘beautiful flaws’) and the constant returning to his preferred themes of sanity, death and undeath, and the concept of what makes humans human.

Perhaps ironically to Fletcher, I found myself mostly drawn into his unpublished and semi-autobiographical works, which is an anomaly for me. There is a rawness and energy in these stories that perked my cynical mien and drew me in more than I initially thought possible. My favourite story out of the seventeen, Less than 20/20, is one of these unpublished gems that has been critically underrated by the various publishers. It is an unusual piece that features a scuzzbag named Mark that speaks to his future self through emails. The formatting is exceptional (Fletcher has a penchant for playing with form) and the story goes as well as you would except for a scuzzbag with access to communicating with his future self. It is gritty, jovial, and I had a blast reading it.

The Summer of ’79 is another one of Fletcher’s underrated shorts that treads a fine line between autobiography and fantasy. This short read as if it was being told to me by a child. Fletcher immerses the reader in an almost dreamy landscape of childhood innocence and imagination which evoked a warmness in me that I thought was long dormant. ’79 personally hit me hard as it reminded me of my childhood and the wanderlust that comes with being an adventurous little hellion.

Fletcher’s first fiction sale, Artificial Stupidity, is another standout and one that left me pondering for a long while. I am fascinated with A.I., robots, cyberpunk themes, and anything else to do with computers in fiction, and  Artificial Stupidity delivers on the simple notion of depicting a rather simple machine. It is common knowledge to think of A.I. as being far beyond our intellect, as depicted in various films and novels, but Fletcher reroutes that trope and perfectly turns it around. Artificial Stupidity is short and sweet, and it left me wanting to read more hilarious lines from the juvenile A.I.!

Though I only mentioned three stories, Fletcher’s other works are definitely well worth reading. His fantasy collection (which some of you Grimdark Magazine readers may be familiar with) is superbly written and his cyberpunk works are intriguing.  As mentioned above, this is no mere collection of short stories, but a journey throughout Fletcher’s mind, and I thoroughly enjoyed learning about his writing and his methodology. I appreciated learning about his failures and relished in his triumphs. His stories felt personal, gritty, and loved, and I felt connected to Fletcher on a far more personal level.

I have no real criticisms of this collection, for how can one criticise a living, breathing piece of art that depicts the method behind someone’s madness? There are some inconsistencies, editing mistakes, and some slight inconsistencies, but as Fletcher mentioned during his introduction to Fire and Flesh: ‘The story is what it is, and rewriting and editing it now would be lying about what it was (and where I was)’.

A Collection of Obsessions is one of those rare gems that excites me every time I think about it. I want to recommend this to not only everyone familiar with Fletcher’s works, science fiction and fantasy affictionatos, but also writers and writing students. This is a deep dive into the psyche of a fiction writer, someone that has faced hundreds of rejections, gone through the publication process, and is a valuable voice to guide those starting out. Read. Muse. Ponder. And write, write, write, write, and write some more.

Pre-order one of the best short fiction collection we’ve laid hands on

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COVER REVEAL: A Collection of Obsessions by Michael R. Fletcher

Michael R. Fletcher’s A Collection of Obsessions is described in our review as, “A deep dive into the psyche of a fiction writer, someone that has faced hundreds of rejections, gone through the publication process, and is a valuable voice to guide those starting out.” This magnificent collection includes 17 brilliant short fiction stories featuring Fletcher’s full range of cyberpunk to fantasy to semi-autobiographic and historical works. And it’s those commentaries and semi-autobiographic works that give a deep insight into the man and his process and why it’s important that his daughter create his cover.

Without further ado…

The reveal

Here it is!

Check out the review!

If you haven’t yet checked out our review, go have a look now. If it doesn’t convince you, I don’t know what will. Click here.

Pre-order this masterpiece, now

Make sure you get yourself a copy immediately.

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REVIEW: From The Wreck by Jane Rawson

I received an uncorrected proof and a finished version of From The Wreck in exchange for an honest review. I would like to thank Jane Rawson and Picador. This review is based on the final product. *Minor spoilers*

But I, awakened from sleep, considered in my excellent heart whether to drop from the deck and die right there in the sea or endure, keep silent, go on being of the living.

– Homer – Odyssey

Rawson’s Aurealis award-winning novel is a unique, intelligent and thought-provoking alternative history / science fiction merger. This narrative begins with an incident set on the Admella, a real-life steamship that was wrecked on Carpenters Reach in 1859. George Hills, the main character is an alternative version of a gentleman who was actually Rawson’s great-great-grandfather. He was on the aforementioned ship as it hit the reef and was one of the few survivors who lasted over a week at sea with very little substance. Naked, drifting, without any sort of nourishment on the wreck, in this version, George befriends – if you can call it that when freezing, close to death and having to make brutal life changing decisions – a young lady who he canoodles with whilst waiting for the inevitable watery end that awaits them all.

After many days, he is fortunately rescued by a lifeboat and the lady he was embracing named Bridget disappears. George tries to continue with his life and eventually gets married, has a decent job, and raises three children. But not a day passes where he doesn’t suffer from a kind of post-traumatic stress disorder. Replaying the events in his mind. Having trouble breathing. Falling down. Having terrible dreams. And also feeling like he is no longer a human. That the human died during those days and he is part of the ocean. His storyline is mainly about how he handles reality and his life which on paper is flowing perfectly. There is always a part of his mind that wants to find out where and who the woman he was with on the wreckage is and what/if anything, she did to change him.

We follow George’s 3rd-person point of view perspective, as well as his young son Henry’s and a mysterious neighbour’s. There is another, poetically written 1st-otherworldly-being, siren, wraith, shapeshifter, what on earth is the thing-perspective that although initially confusing has an ethereal and elegant quality. Haunting and dreamlike. This section that I have written may sound confusing and these sections initially do not seem to make much sense either. To the extent where I nearly put the book down after the second chapter. But, keep with it. It is definitely not nonsense and fits the story expertly.

It’s really difficult with a story that is this original to discuss some of the events that happen without spoiling the plot, tone, and the unique directions that the narrative takes us. Some of the scenes are extremely emotional, especially when told from a child’s perspective. How can a scene where someone talks about counting stones make me want to cry? There are twists, elements of utter sadness, horror, uncertainty, mental breakdowns, blood-drinking headless monsters, a birthmark that eats food, a cat that turns up when she wants to, a baby boy who lives in a drawer. It’s a unique literature cocktail that reads like a classic work of fiction would if the author was warped on hallucinogenics – but focuses on family, heart and goodness as much as paranoia, uncertainty and wanting to cut a part off of a member of your own family – in a world where nobody quite knows what is happening to the ensemble we witness. The ending blew me away and I can confirm that this is one of the strangest, most original, intense, beautiful yet in someways hauntingly horrific books I have ever read.

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Enter the Dragons: Richard A Knaak’s fiery fiends

To me, dragons are the epitome of magic and fantasy. They are epic in both proportion and power. With fifty novels in the fantasy genre, I’ve created my share. I’ve worked on dragons in my own worlds and helped develop those in others. I’ve always attempted to make them different from one another, at least in some regard, so that each world has something unique to give to the reader. In fact, I actually think that dragons themselves offer that opportunity just for being who and what they are. Below, are a few prime examples, including my latest, the dragon from the Black City Saint series.

The Dragon Kings and the drakes of the Dragonrealm

My first creation, the Dragonrealm has been, and continues to be, an active part of my career from its inception. The simple explanation is that many of the lands in the series begin under the claws of shape-shifting ruler of a race that has two basic forms. Giant dragons and, for the males, scaly-armored knights. The females are a bit more successful, managing what appears to be more elven forms.

The truth is, however, that there is a reason that a human form has more and more appeal to them. The drake race of the Dragonrealm shares the same ancestor as the humans—an ancient race of sorcerers called the Vraad. Through desperate manipulation of spells, some of the Vraad attempted to escape their dying world by transporting their spirits to remotely-created human bodies strengthened by the essence of animalistic dragons discovered in what would become the Dragonrealm. That plan backfired badly, resulting in them becoming sentient dragons who, with a few exceptions, forgot their lives. Their descendants remain mostly unaware, but newer drakes sometimes seem more and more human again… which may only make them more sinister.

 

 

The dragon folk and the dragon who judges gods

In my more recent Rex Draconis saga, there is a very distinct and tumultuous group of gods suddenly become more interested again in the mortal world. Some have good intentions, others do not. They can be glorious and they can be petty. Yet, in Tiberos, the world of the series, there is a power even greater than them, set by an enigmatic force to try to ensure that the world stays in some sort of balance. The title refers to the legend of a powerful dragon that even the gods fear, but who is so rarely seen that even the deities wonder if he still exists. He moves in subtle ways, using agents who may or may not understand they serve him. Despite his vast power, Rex Draconis wields it judiciously, well aware of the chaos he himself might be capable of.

On the other end, though, are the dragon folk, consisting of the Afafni and the Fafni, two races diametrically opposed and with ambitions harmful to the mortal races. In their secretive war against one another, they seek to become the gods they believe they should be. Each wears the form of a dragon part of their life, with one group during the night and the other during the day. Much to their bitterness, though, their dragon forms are mere shadows of Rex Draconis, and that jealousy only makes them more vicious. They would yearn to be true dragons, and, thus, true gods, in their minds.

 

 

 

The most primeval of dragons

In the beginning…of the Black City Saint saga… there was the dragon. He had no name. He had one purpose, one… curse. Condemned to guard the gate between the mortal world and Feirie, he was forced to follow it as it ever shifted from one location to another. That is, until he was slain by a Roman tribune unaware of his true task, a tribune who would become known as St. George.

However, two things neither of them expected to happen forever changed them. One was that, with its guardian slain, St. George became the unwilling replacement. For the next sixteen centuries, he would follow the gate, trying his best at all times to prevent dark powers on either side from crossing. The second was that the mixing of the tribune’s and the dragon’s blood during combat sealed their existences together. Now the dragon is a part of Nick—as St. George calls himself in Prohibition Chicago—but while the dragon must lend him his power, the ancient leviathan ever yearns to break free, to take over the body they share and become himself again. He’s come close, including ending up setting fire to Chicago itself in 1871. In the meantime, the dragon in Black City Saint is like the proverbial devil whispering in the saint’s ear, trying to weaken his resolve with his sarcastic or seductive comments and biding his time for the next chance to make everything burn…

There are more dragons I could mention and more to come, I’ve no doubt. Like Nick / St.George, I think I may have one whispering in my ear now, telling me what the next world will be… and what dragon will rule it.

Check out Richard A. Knaak’s dragons!

Grab some copies of Richard’s latest trilogy, including his 2019 release Black City Dragon.

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REVIEW: Priest of Lies by Peter McLean

I received an uncorrected proof copy of Priest of Lies in exchange for an honest review. I would like to thank Peter McLean and Ace Books for the opportunity.

We return to Ellinburg following the first person perspective of gangster boss Thomas Piety, the head of the Pious Men. The way that McLean writes led me to feel like I was actually walking the streets of The Stink, enjoying a mug of beer in the Tanner’s Arms and that I was almost a member of the Pious Men myself. When a fantasy world has me that invested then it is difficult for an author to do much wrong. Since I read Priest of Bones I have read about 100 books so I always worry when returning to a fictional world after I’ve spent too much time away. Will I remember the characters? Political agendas? Warring factions? Etc… With Priest of Lies, I need not have worried. The reading experience at the beginning was like trying on a favourite hat that I thought I’d lost to find out that it still fitted perfectly and I still looked good in it! I fitted in with the world here again straight away and it was a great feeling.

In addition to the quality worldbuilding, which is set across two cities this time, War for the Rose Throne’s greatest asset is the characters. They are a colourful bunch featuring many different characteristics and personalities, but they gel in sublime fashion under the guidance of Tomas, that they are a family. My favourites remain Tomas himself, his second Bloody Anne, and the young magician Billy the Boy – who is Tomas’ adopted son. Some of the ensemble who were featured heavily in the first novel get less page time here but other players have real standout performances. Jochan, Tomas’ slightly deranged half brother really shines as does the role Cutter – the mysterious and perhaps even nefarious assassin – plays. A revelation regarding the latter literally made my jaw drop! To say it’s a group composed of war veterans and hard as nails mercenaries, I don’t think there is a single member of the crew that I didn’t like reading about.

Either I’ve become softer in my old age of McLean has really upped the Grimdark stakes here when compared to Priest of Bones! Deaths of likable characters. Yes. People being eaten alive by a bear? Of course. Betrayals, sedition, turpitude? Sure. And a scene featuring a grotesque ritual that showcases what happens if you betray the Pious Men from the inside. Peter McLean sees your hammer scene Anna Stephens and he raises you this!

Priest of Lies is written in a style that caused me to devour the entire novel within two days. The chapters are short and sharp each taking about ten minutes to read. Each chapter is focused, precise and keeps the plot moving and flowing expertly. Even though the narrative is quite short by fantasy standards with 368 pages the dramatis personae is overflowing with characters however none of them seemed two-dimensional filler. I even cared about more obscure individuals such as Tomas’ barber which reflects the way he truly cares for those that are under his protection. If you cross his people you cross Tomas and the consequences to that can be drastic and I don’t really fancy being buried alive.

Priest of Lies is pretty damn exceptional. The ending is stunning and I can’t wait to see what comes next. I need to see Kurt’s sword again! Both the books in this series are 9/10 standard. This is the third book I have read by McLean and I have never been disappointed at all. The only negative I have here, and it’s very minor, is that Tomas says ‘as I have written’ far too many times and it niggled me a bit. Priest of Lies is stunning low fantasy by an author who is on top of his game. Start this series if you haven’t already.

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Review: God of Broken Things by Cameron Johnston

Ah, it is refreshing to read a fun gritty story. Sword-swinging action, virulent and explosive magic, and a host of quirky and entertaining characters, Cameron Johnston amps the grimdark to eleven with his exciting next installment in his Age of Tyranny series, God of Broken Things.

The plot revolves around the protagonist Edrin Walker, a magus that had slain the monster sent by the villainous Skallgrim, but not before it destroyed Setharis, and infected their magical elite with mind-controlling parasites. There’s almost little time to react though as the Skallgrim army marches on the mountain passes of the Clanhold, and Edrin, and his ragtag band of scumbags, must race to stop them.

Johnston depicts a beautiful and lavish world that is a feast for the imagination. I was chilled as the gang traversed the mountainous passes of Clanhold. My mouth was left agape as I lay witness to the destruction of the once towering spires of Setharis. There is magic in Johnston’s world, and not the magus kind of magic! It is literary magic that only supreme fantasists can conjure within their regal tomes of fancy and I was humbled to be allowed into Johnston’s realm, even momentarily.

Johnston’s way with words is another thing that I must mention. The base description within the generic grimdark story revolves around “action, blood, sex, magic, monsters, more action, blood, and more sex”. At times there is little to no nuisance, and this is where Johnston excels above his luminaries. To read passages such as: ‘The Scarrabus shrieked in rage…as their god-beast fell to earth, burning and unconscious, its vast mind a fragmented thing drained of all magic…they slammed through the skin of the world and its fiery blood spewed into the sky’ and ‘flesh burst in a welter of blood and from his insides a god came forth…my guts churned and my Gift burned as if I stood too close to an inferno’, not only depict the world as gritty and dark, but as magical, volatile, and bleak. Broken Things is filled to the brim with such little details that build upon Johnston’s already wonderful world.

But that’s not to say that there’s no action or monsters, far from it. Though it takes a little while to start, once Broken Things hits its stride, it does not disappoint. There are strokes with steel, arcs of flames, and witty banter between characters as others are slain before their very eyes. I greedily consumed such segments like the gluttonous child I am, only wanting more and more as I turned the pages.

Whilst I thoroughly enjoyed Broken Things, there were some parts that detracted from Johnston’s novel. The language itself was a little derivative and while his description and worldbuilding was spot on, the characters’ vernacular and narration was, at times, tedious. This was disappointing and distracted me considerably as, more often than not, wonderful tidbits of detail was placed next to lines such as ‘Oh. Fucking. Shite. I suddenly needed to piss. Badly.’. The wittiness and banter does add a layer of levity much needed in Broken Things, but there were many instances where the levity took on a life of its own. The swearing did also border on being quite juvenile and not befitting such a fantasy realm, but that may in fact be a personal qualm of mine.

The characters were, unfortunately, mostly forgettable, though that might be the fault of being in the shoes of Edrin Walker. As a first-person novel, the reader is beholden to whatever the protagonist wants to see, feel, taste, and describe, and this in no exception in Broken Things. Walker is such a lively character, his descriptions and affable nature lure the reader into wanting to follow him and only him. This might not be so bad if it was a novel centred around a solo protagonist. It becomes an issue when the novel also features a ragtag coterie of bastards bound to the protagonist and the reader can hardly remember anything memorable about them.

Overall, Cameron Johnston’s God of Broken Things is a boon to those smitten with the grimdark genre. His words and world are but mana to those in need of some gritty and lively action. The pacing works and the story remains strong, even though it does have some issues. They, however dissipate as the reader loses themselves within the pages of the novel. A wonderful addition to the Age of Tyranny series and a definite recommendation.

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REVIEW: Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky

I received a review copy of Children of Time in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Adrian Tchaikovsky and Pan Macmillan for the opportunity.

Children of Time is 600-pages of extraordinary, evolution-based science fiction that features quality storytelling and worldbuilding that is rarely seen in this generation. This narrative is set over 1000’s of years. We first see Doctor Kern and her scientific team of 19 as they wish to experiment with monkeys and a nanovirus on what some individuals are considering could be the new Earth. After betrayal and confrontation on their spaceship, which may be reflecting hostilities back on Earth events don’t progress in the way that they envisaged.

The action mainly follows two very different perspectives. The first is the views of a human classicist named Holsten who has travelled for two millennia to the above-mentioned planet after the end of Earth. He is onboard the spaceship Gilgamesh with the remnants of the human race and spends most of his years frozen and therefore not aging. The crew members are only awakened when their duties permit it necessary so our first contact with the human ensemble is when they are approaching the said planet. The crew features the needed components to create a new future including commanders, engineers, soldiers, intellects, etc… It transpires that the planet they are looking to land on is already occupied and it isn’t by the highly evolved monkeys as was planned. This brings me to the second perspective which is written from the point of view of spiders – a species that are also receptive to the advancements in evolution that the nanovirus presents. This complication was not accounted for and may be prblematic. We follow the spiders as they evolve over 100’s of generations and the way it is written is truly unique. The main spiders we follow are Portia, Bianca, and Fabian. They don’t live to be 1000’s of years old, instead, we follow the original characters’ relatives through different generations as the spiders evolve. They may share the same name but often have very different personalities. There is also a third perspective that is from a human/machine/satellite/messenger/God viewpoint and she is very protective of ‘her planet’ and does not wish for the humans to land. It’s a superbly original tale in the way it is presented.

Often, science fiction stories that I read are overly complex with tech-lingo and it sometimes feels like the author is trying to prove how smart he is. In the first few pages of Children of Time, I thought it would be the same again. However, after the first chapter or two, it became crystal clear that this is a novel where the story, characters, and development are the top priority. It is beautifully written, and has been extremely well researched and is expertly paced. Children of Time is packed full of highs and lows. Who could have known I’d care about the death of a revolutionary hero giant-spider? The spiders’ society throughout various stages of evolution is intensely detailed and complex, still the way the species progress feels organic and natural although before this narrative I’d have never considered how a spider community would behave. Turns out they’re pretty damn sexist!

For quite a lengthy book I was reading this at a blistering pace. Chapters tend to be between 10-20 pages so it was always tempting to just read one more which soon became another 100 pages. Especially the last 100 pages with I devoured in one breathless sitting. It features an insane space battle and I could never have imagined reading something of the sort when I first picked this up. The ending is intense, unpredictable, but highly satisfying. When I finished reading this story the first thought I had upon reflection was that there is no way I could be an author because I could never write anything this good so what would be the point? It’s one of the best science fiction books I’ve ever read and I’ve already started Children of Ruin. A+ Recommended.

Buy yourself a copy

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ANNOUNCEMENT: Winners of the Mark Lawrence Holy Sister giveaway competition

Five of you lucky devils will be taking home a UK hardcover of Mark Lawrence’s Holy Sister thanks to Harper Voyager UK! I’m very jealous of all of you.

Winner Winner chicken dinner

And the winners are… drumroll…

a Rafflecopter giveaway

How to claim your prize

I’ll be emailing you to get your address details. Keep an eye out for an email from adrian (at) grimdark magazine (dot) com.

The post ANNOUNCEMENT: Winners of the Mark Lawrence Holy Sister giveaway competition appeared first on Grimdark Magazine.