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A Torch in the Darkness
The first in The Eighth City Series, A Torch in the Darkness is the start of Sebastian's journey into the Below, a refuse heap beneath the Eighth City where only the most vicious survive. The story follows Sebastian as he attempts to discover what happened to his parents and what his strange dreams mean. Caught in the middle of powerful forces, he is left to find his own way in a dangerous world.
ebook
First published May 9, 2013
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About the author
R.C. Champagne
4 books2 followersR.C. Champagne is a runner, a writer, and a lover of music with a knack for singing out of tune. He is about as average as you can get in every way, except his short height, but we don't talk about that. His favorite hobby is growing beards of all shapes, sizes, and personalities.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
May 12, 2013
After reading the first part of "The Eighth City", Robbie Champagne's innovate steampunk adventure, I stared at my screen wondering where the next part was. And this is by no means a criticism! Releasing the story in parts as a sort of serial is an excellent way to tantalize the reader. As Barnum said, "always leave them wanting more", and I most certainly want more!
Not only has Sebastian's (the protagonist) personal story enticed me and left me feeling sympathy for him, but the setting is so intriguing! The imagery of the city, the lore surrounding this universe, all of it is very well thought out. One of the problems with fantasy and science fiction stories is that there is an imbalance between character, story and setting -- one will often take precedence while the others aren't as prominent. In The Eighth City, there is a good balance between those three elements to the point where I never found myself rolling my eyes at the amount of exposition or annoyed with hammed-up character backstory -- everything has a nice, natural flow.
My only criticism of the story is that it switches tense in the same sentence near the beginning -- I'm not sure if it was intentional, but it was jarring. This, however, is the beauty of a story released as a serial, it can only get better!
And I am confident that it will!
Not only has Sebastian's (the protagonist) personal story enticed me and left me feeling sympathy for him, but the setting is so intriguing! The imagery of the city, the lore surrounding this universe, all of it is very well thought out. One of the problems with fantasy and science fiction stories is that there is an imbalance between character, story and setting -- one will often take precedence while the others aren't as prominent. In The Eighth City, there is a good balance between those three elements to the point where I never found myself rolling my eyes at the amount of exposition or annoyed with hammed-up character backstory -- everything has a nice, natural flow.
My only criticism of the story is that it switches tense in the same sentence near the beginning -- I'm not sure if it was intentional, but it was jarring. This, however, is the beauty of a story released as a serial, it can only get better!
And I am confident that it will!
Displaying 1 of 1 review