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Arts of Dark and Light #0
Summa Elvetica: A Casuistry of the Elvish Controversy
Do Elves Have Souls? In a medieval fantasy world in which the realm of man is dominated by a rich and powerful Church, the Most Sanctified Charity IV decides the time is ripe to make a conclusive inquiry into the matter. If, in his infallible wisdom, he determines that elves do have immortal souls, then the Church will be obliged to bring the Holy Word of the Immaculate to them. But if he decides they do not, there will be holy war. Powerful factions line up on both sides of the debate. War-hungry magnates cast greedy eyes at the ancient wealth of the elven kingdoms and pray for a declaration that elves are little more than animals. And there are men who are willing to do more than merely pray. The delegation sent to the High King of the Elves is led by two great theologians, brilliant philosophers who champion opposite sides of the great debate. And in the Sanctiff’s own stead, he sends the young nobleman, Marcus Valerius. Marcus Valerius is a rising scholar in the Church, talented, fearless, and devout. But he is inexperienced in the ways of the world. Nothing in his life has prepared him for the beauty of the elves―or the monumental betrayal into which he rides. *** Theodore Beale has published decidedly Christian speculative fiction with the decidedly secular publisher, Pocket Books. He is a game designer, a technologist, a one-time techno band member, and, under the name Vox Day, an occasionally controversial political columnist.
328 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2008
42 people are currently reading
232 people want to read
About the author
Vox Day
68 books450 followers Theodore Beale does much of his writing under the pseudonym Vox Day. Three-time Hugo Award nominee Vox Day writes epic fantasy as well as non-fiction about religion, philosophy, and economics. His literary focus is military realism, historical verisimilitude, and plausible characters who represent the full spectrum of human behavior. He is a professional game designer who speaks four languages and a three-time Billboard top 40 recording artist.
He maintains a pair of popular blogs, Vox Popoli and Alpha Game, which between them average over 20 million annual pageviews. He is a Native American and his books have been translated into ten languages.
He is the Lead Editor of Castalia House, and is also, with Tom Kratman, the co-creator of the military science fiction anthology series, RIDING THE RED HORSE.
He maintains a pair of popular blogs, Vox Popoli and Alpha Game, which between them average over 20 million annual pageviews. He is a Native American and his books have been translated into ten languages.
He is the Lead Editor of Castalia House, and is also, with Tom Kratman, the co-creator of the military science fiction anthology series, RIDING THE RED HORSE.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
June 5, 2013
I was already familiar with this author's other writing, but I did not know what to expect. I wasn't particularly interested in finding out if elves had souls or not, and was initially more curious about if orcs had souls. But as I got sucked into the story, I was pleasantly surprised at the way the story progressed, and I even had my curiosity satisfied in a way I didn't expect at all.
I found that the story was original, coherent, and easy to follow, without having to be dumbed down for the audience's sake. The characters were relatable, the world building is interesting in that it partially requires knowledge of Roman culture to fully understand, yet it isn't essential.
I enjoyed it so thoroughly that I have either read or have plans to read the remainder of this series.
I found that the story was original, coherent, and easy to follow, without having to be dumbed down for the audience's sake. The characters were relatable, the world building is interesting in that it partially requires knowledge of Roman culture to fully understand, yet it isn't essential.
I enjoyed it so thoroughly that I have either read or have plans to read the remainder of this series.
September 17, 2017
Excellent set of stories
This book serves as a wonderful and broad establishment of a complicated and fun world. The combination of fantasy elements, politics, and Christianity is well thought out, creates very interesting conflicts, and deep characters.
This is one of those books I could rarely tear myself away from.
Highly recommended!
This book serves as a wonderful and broad establishment of a complicated and fun world. The combination of fantasy elements, politics, and Christianity is well thought out, creates very interesting conflicts, and deep characters.
This is one of those books I could rarely tear myself away from.
Highly recommended!
March 29, 2016
I've actually bought this book twice, when Vox first released it in trade PB and again when he released the HC. The additional short stories were nice, but I truly wanted it in HC for my collection. I love it that much. The book's dust jacket is beautiful. The faux wear is a very nice touch.
As it turns out, the additional short stories were excellent as well. Particularly "Opera Vita Aeterna", which I found very emotionally-moving. I had read a few of the others on Vox' old writer site, years ago and was glad to see their inclusion.
The main story of "Summa" tells of a young man's submersion into a world of religious politics, ostensibly to settle a theological argument of whether or not elves posses souls. The world's setting and especially its politics ring very true. The dialogue is a bit stiff at times, but considering how much of it is actually theological / philosophical discussions held amongst those that hold intellectualism to a very high regard, that's perfectly fitting. The pacing is uneven in that it seems to have a long lead to a finish that comes about too quickly, but the plot itself well-serves the story and has some good twists. The main character is maybe a bit too "vanilla" but were he not who he was, he couldn't BE in his position in this story. There are plenty of other characters that I find well-written, but I cannot go much into why without spoilers
"Summa" shows great promise for future works by Vox. As an introduction to his world, it serves masterfully. Especially with the short stories. Perhaps some day, Vox will be seen as a companion to C.S. Lewis, giving us fun and thoughtful fictional insights to God's word.
I already consider him so, and hope that more will as well.
(He also wrote the three Eternal Warriors books which I found moving as well, even before I became a Christian.)
As it turns out, the additional short stories were excellent as well. Particularly "Opera Vita Aeterna", which I found very emotionally-moving. I had read a few of the others on Vox' old writer site, years ago and was glad to see their inclusion.
The main story of "Summa" tells of a young man's submersion into a world of religious politics, ostensibly to settle a theological argument of whether or not elves posses souls. The world's setting and especially its politics ring very true. The dialogue is a bit stiff at times, but considering how much of it is actually theological / philosophical discussions held amongst those that hold intellectualism to a very high regard, that's perfectly fitting. The pacing is uneven in that it seems to have a long lead to a finish that comes about too quickly, but the plot itself well-serves the story and has some good twists. The main character is maybe a bit too "vanilla" but were he not who he was, he couldn't BE in his position in this story. There are plenty of other characters that I find well-written, but I cannot go much into why without spoilers
"Summa" shows great promise for future works by Vox. As an introduction to his world, it serves masterfully. Especially with the short stories. Perhaps some day, Vox will be seen as a companion to C.S. Lewis, giving us fun and thoughtful fictional insights to God's word.
I already consider him so, and hope that more will as well.
(He also wrote the three Eternal Warriors books which I found moving as well, even before I became a Christian.)
January 11, 2016
A solid collection of short stories set in the Selenoth Universe. This particular edition combined several of the other stories into one volume. All of the stories are well written and enjoyable. Most of the stories touch on the interaction of the Ammoran religion interacting with the various races in Selenoth, particularly the elves. Day's elves are more interesting than typical and he does a good job of highlighting how alien the elves are to men. He spends a good deal of time discussing religious philosophy, which might be a bit dull for some reader but I enjoyed. My favorite story was Master of Cats. I enjoyed the attempt by the Monk to convert the elves.
Overall I enjoyed all of the stories and it provides a lot of much needed background to the rich world Day has created!
Overall I enjoyed all of the stories and it provides a lot of much needed background to the rich world Day has created!
April 16, 2018
Excellent book
Provides excellent back stories to the two novels in the series. Each told from a different race/political point of view. Not a wasted story in the bunch. I would recommend this to anyone even if they weren't aware of the novels.
Provides excellent back stories to the two novels in the series. Each told from a different race/political point of view. Not a wasted story in the bunch. I would recommend this to anyone even if they weren't aware of the novels.
September 2, 2013
Fresh take on fantasy. Loved the book. The only negative was that it was too short.
June 15, 2016
Loved the novel, but the short stories included were too dark for my taste.
April 11, 2017
I really liked this book. The characters were well-built and the plot was captivating and evenly paced. The additional short stories following the main novel were also surprisingly well done and added back story to the novel.
Fantastic.
Fantastic.
Read
October 21, 2017Too dry for my tastes, just couldn't get interested in it.
Read
October 7, 2020The headline story is a 4.
The other stories run from a 1 (Hoblets) to 5 (Opera Vita Aeterna).
This book contains all of the Arts of Dark and Lights short stories contained in all other collections.
The other stories run from a 1 (Hoblets) to 5 (Opera Vita Aeterna).
This book contains all of the Arts of Dark and Lights short stories contained in all other collections.
September 17, 2015
Interesting premise, not so good execution.
It still merits reading though, especially if you're inclined to reach for "A Throne of Bones" (which I very much advise you to do) as it serves (along "A Magic Broken") as an important introduction. I concur with most of the drawbacks other reviewers pointed their fingers at and would single out the seemingly rushed ending as the main flaw. I also found the portrayal of some of the social dynamics (slavery) as not thoroughly convincing. Also don't bother pestering yourself with Google Translate as I (silly me) did each time a chapter starts with Latin as all of them come in plain English in the Summa Elvetica (Proper) chapter at the end.
What also comes at the end are two short prequel stories that are actually much better than the rest and they're probably the main reason my score tumbled over two into three stars territory.
It still merits reading though, especially if you're inclined to reach for "A Throne of Bones" (which I very much advise you to do) as it serves (along "A Magic Broken") as an important introduction. I concur with most of the drawbacks other reviewers pointed their fingers at and would single out the seemingly rushed ending as the main flaw. I also found the portrayal of some of the social dynamics (slavery) as not thoroughly convincing. Also don't bother pestering yourself with Google Translate as I (silly me) did each time a chapter starts with Latin as all of them come in plain English in the Summa Elvetica (Proper) chapter at the end.
What also comes at the end are two short prequel stories that are actually much better than the rest and they're probably the main reason my score tumbled over two into three stars territory.
January 3, 2016
Kinda neat, short, and bizarre.
March 24, 2011
When I picked up this book I hoped for adventure, thought provoking debate... and lots of elves. Maybe you'll laugh at that last part but I really thought if your aim is to decide about the state of their souls - they should play a fairly large role in the story. The real central conflict (and thus the story) is centered around the men here. Elves play a secondary role - almost as more of an excuse to examine the people than anything else.
This book was somewhat confusing to me. It's more like four things squished between one cover than a single novel. It sets up as this dramatic tale about what will happen when they meet the elves - but about 70% of the book is the journey there and back again plus the Summa Elvetica - which is short and really anti-climatic because the author already summarizes the important conclusions for us and what decision has been made. Then he shares his author's note and then goes back and shares two short stories that give background information for the main story. The two stories also don't connect to each other. It's almost as if the author had these great ideas but couldn't figure out how to make it into one smooth, connected novel so he just pieced it together into -- this.
Despite this drawbacks I loved the characters we meet early on in the book. They are well-written and have engaging personalities. I like action more than long descriptions but I still enjoyed the camaraderie shared between the characters and "listening in" on and comparing the soldiers war stories was interesting.
In the end, I wasn't the biggest fan of the format but there were lots on interesting surprises and great characters that made it a worthwhile read.
This book was somewhat confusing to me. It's more like four things squished between one cover than a single novel. It sets up as this dramatic tale about what will happen when they meet the elves - but about 70% of the book is the journey there and back again plus the Summa Elvetica - which is short and really anti-climatic because the author already summarizes the important conclusions for us and what decision has been made. Then he shares his author's note and then goes back and shares two short stories that give background information for the main story. The two stories also don't connect to each other. It's almost as if the author had these great ideas but couldn't figure out how to make it into one smooth, connected novel so he just pieced it together into -- this.
Despite this drawbacks I loved the characters we meet early on in the book. They are well-written and have engaging personalities. I like action more than long descriptions but I still enjoyed the camaraderie shared between the characters and "listening in" on and comparing the soldiers war stories was interesting.
In the end, I wasn't the biggest fan of the format but there were lots on interesting surprises and great characters that made it a worthwhile read.
March 2, 2015
I've read Vox's other works set in Amorr, so in a way I came at this almost backward. His fantasy epic series really is a refreshing change to that style, he's added back in religion, an important aspect of human life that has lost its place in the fantasy/medieval epics.
The theological arguments for whether elves have souls or not are based on Aquinas's Summa Theologica. Vox convincingly imitates Aquinas' style.
The world is rich and interesting, the characters hint at complex back stories and development.
It's not his best book, but it's a good book and it sets up the backstory for the much better "A Throne of Bones"
The last two sections are brilliant, the modification of a real papal bull addressing the souls of the American Indians and the clever imitation of Aquinas. Both just really round out the world and setting.
The version I have has two bonus stories in it, "Master Of Cats" and "Birth of an Order" further set in the world. The second is an enjoyable short story about faith and will. The first is a stunning little jewel. Faith, power, science, magic, pious examples, Biblical courage, it's all there, woven together in a wonderful setting. I recommend this version of the book for that story alone.
**SPOILERS AHEAD**
The weakest point is, as other reviewers mentioned, was the ability of the assassins to conceal themselves in a religious organization that have to practice suppressing magic through faith. Had they been crack troops it would have been easier to understand the success of the stratagem, but fake Michaelines are a lot harder to sneak in, especially en mass. Otherwise, it's a fun start to a much larger world.
The theological arguments for whether elves have souls or not are based on Aquinas's Summa Theologica. Vox convincingly imitates Aquinas' style.
The world is rich and interesting, the characters hint at complex back stories and development.
It's not his best book, but it's a good book and it sets up the backstory for the much better "A Throne of Bones"
The last two sections are brilliant, the modification of a real papal bull addressing the souls of the American Indians and the clever imitation of Aquinas. Both just really round out the world and setting.
The version I have has two bonus stories in it, "Master Of Cats" and "Birth of an Order" further set in the world. The second is an enjoyable short story about faith and will. The first is a stunning little jewel. Faith, power, science, magic, pious examples, Biblical courage, it's all there, woven together in a wonderful setting. I recommend this version of the book for that story alone.
**SPOILERS AHEAD**
The weakest point is, as other reviewers mentioned, was the ability of the assassins to conceal themselves in a religious organization that have to practice suppressing magic through faith. Had they been crack troops it would have been easier to understand the success of the stratagem, but fake Michaelines are a lot harder to sneak in, especially en mass. Otherwise, it's a fun start to a much larger world.
October 27, 2008
Do Elves Have Souls?
In Theodore Beale’s Summa Elvetica, young nobleman Marcus Valerius is sent with a delegation to Elebrion to help settle the debate among church scholars as to whether or not elves have souls. The task is no simple matter since a holy was hinges on the outcome of his assessment.
On the long journey to the Elf kingdom, Marcus befriends those in the delegation including several warrior-priests, an elf, and his new dwarf bodyguard. He learns much from these men through historical war accounts. When the party arrives in Elebrion, the Elf king treats them to dinner where Marcus discovers a shocking betrayal.
I enjoyed reading Summa Elvetica. The storyworld was fascinating as were the characters. Marcus is honest, smart, and naïve toward the ways of the world, which made him very likeable despite his wealth and lofty status. His adventure entertained me until the last page. I wished there were more to the story. Recommended.
In Theodore Beale’s Summa Elvetica, young nobleman Marcus Valerius is sent with a delegation to Elebrion to help settle the debate among church scholars as to whether or not elves have souls. The task is no simple matter since a holy was hinges on the outcome of his assessment.
On the long journey to the Elf kingdom, Marcus befriends those in the delegation including several warrior-priests, an elf, and his new dwarf bodyguard. He learns much from these men through historical war accounts. When the party arrives in Elebrion, the Elf king treats them to dinner where Marcus discovers a shocking betrayal.
I enjoyed reading Summa Elvetica. The storyworld was fascinating as were the characters. Marcus is honest, smart, and naïve toward the ways of the world, which made him very likeable despite his wealth and lofty status. His adventure entertained me until the last page. I wished there were more to the story. Recommended.
May 11, 2015
Enjoyed it.
I enjoyed this book. Although parts were, at times, a bit above my understanding due to not being as familiar with some of the source materials that were the inspiration it still kept my attention and I found the characters engaging. I was still able to follow the underlying themes and the Sanctiff's final reasoning for his decision was a surprise I did not see coming. I look forward to reading more from Mr. Day.
I enjoyed this book. Although parts were, at times, a bit above my understanding due to not being as familiar with some of the source materials that were the inspiration it still kept my attention and I found the characters engaging. I was still able to follow the underlying themes and the Sanctiff's final reasoning for his decision was a surprise I did not see coming. I look forward to reading more from Mr. Day.
August 29, 2018
Action! Adventures! Elves! A Roman empire look-alike! Sorcery and arson! All driven by the burning question: do elves have souls?
Marcus Valerian is sent as part of a mission to the kingdom of the elves. Nominally, this is to conclude the peace of a war that has not been fought in decades. In actuality, it is to determine whether elves have souls. A judgment of immense political significance as well as theological. Hence the adventures.
Marcus Valerian is sent as part of a mission to the kingdom of the elves. Nominally, this is to conclude the peace of a war that has not been fought in decades. In actuality, it is to determine whether elves have souls. A judgment of immense political significance as well as theological. Hence the adventures.
January 4, 2013
Summa Elvetica was an enjoyable read. I, too, thought it was too short and lacked, well... elves. Still, it was well written and a few parts made me laugh. I'd like to see more books from Ted Beale, as his writing (and imagination) obviously need more room to grow.
April 28, 2014
Not bad. The main story started off very well, but once they got to the elven kingdom it felt very, very rushed. I would have liked to see this fleshed out more. The two short stories were both very good.
Read
January 4, 2016From my Amazon review: Excellent read and written with intellect. I am glad someone is writing stories without the preaching and political correctness infused throughout the plot. We need more like this!
June 1, 2013
Enjoyed the first and last parts, which were narrative, not the middle "theological" section so much.
February 16, 2014
5 stars = Yearly re-read
4 stars = Re-read eventually
3 stars = Very Good
2 stars = OK
1 stars = Pass on this one.
0 stars = Couldn't finish it.
4 stars = Re-read eventually
3 stars = Very Good
2 stars = OK
1 stars = Pass on this one.
0 stars = Couldn't finish it.
January 1, 2017
Awesome book, new take on the relationships between elves and humans. Watch this author they are going somewhere
January 31, 2017
Great collection of tales
The stories provide background info on the events in "A Throne of Bones". A fun read.
Looking forward to more books in this world.
The stories provide background info on the events in "A Throne of Bones". A fun read.
Looking forward to more books in this world.
October 29, 2017
One of the better alt-European fantasy I've read. A sprinkling of typos, but not too many.
June 15, 2018
The author is very bad at writing.
May 30, 2022
I would give it a 3.75 because in some spots it was definitely dry and hard to get through, but overall it was pretty interesting. The first half of the book is about Marcus (the main character) and his team riding to the elflands and discussing the elves, which I found facinating because I like elves, but sometimes it does get long. Once you get to the part of the book where the characters get to the elflands things become more interesting. Overall, I would recommend the book to people who like fantasy, specifically elves, and to readers who are in their teens and older because there are some harder words in it.
September 17, 2020
I enjoyed this book more than any of the Marcus chapters in A Throne of Bones. This book goes a long way towards enhancing his character, as well as the world of the elves, and even a little of the dwarves'.
September 4, 2024
Another hidden gem from our DarkLord(TM), They´d make movies of these books if he wasn´t on the Establishment sheet list,.
June 21, 2014
+: A lot of "bang for the buck" in this book considering its $3 price.
+: Interesting characters and world it takes place on. An interesting premise.
+: The dialogue between characters is well done.
-: The 2nd half of the story suffers. Feels rushed. I was expecting more of a whiz-bang ending after reading the intro and setup for the book.
-: Huge plot flaw that is pretty hard to swallow. Discussed below.
I'll say this about the book. The price is right. It's an easy (well, the story itself. The theological arguments at the end of the book...a bit more meaty and complex) and fun read. I felt the first half of the story was much better than the 2nd. The premise and promise is a hook, but I felt the 2nd half the book felt kind of rushed. I felt that more would be done with some interesting characters, but instead things just raced towards the finish it seemed.
I was also sad that Nomelos/Bessarias did not have a bigger role in the book. He seems to be arguably the most interesting character in the book. He gets a few pages worth of text. (I will say, this is mostly mitigated by a pretty cool "extra" at the end of the book showing a Prologue of sorts regarding his past and how he came to where he was.)
So here is the huge plot flaw though. It's pretty ridiculous and bring the rating down a full star. !! *** MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!!! *** . The idea that the Michaelines turn out to be the assassins who are hired to kill the protagonist and the other two religious figures in the story is just beyond belief. Sure, it's kind of a cool twist. But in terms of pulling that off...IMPOSSIBLE. For a guy as smart as Vox (I read his blog as I assume most of the reviewers of this book do as well. He's clearly a very smart individual), I cannot believe he put that in there. It requires a huge suspension of disbelief. Here is a very important mission to the Elf kingdom which may decide the fate of that race and whether a huge war will follow, being sent out from the capital city by the Sanctiff, and the 20 man priest-army are all fakes?! Not real Michaelines? How did that get past the Sanctiff, the Bishop and FAther Augustus. None of them are familiar at all with any of the Michaelines, let alone the Captain of the group? How on earth do your bluff your way into that part? Where were the REAL Michaelines in all of this? Who the fudge vetted these guys?! Had the Michaelines been tied up to some trees in a forest?! It's incredible! Wouldn't the real Michaelines be like "Um, shouldn't we be going along with this delegation? Uh..by the way..who are those 20 guys dressed up like us?". All these guys were being presented at a celebration in the city before they head out and all the major players are there. No one in the town, crowd or on the stage is aware that these are all hired killers and not real Michaelines? Wouldn't someone be like "I do not recognize a single one of these people!" The only way this plot device could have worked was 1) If the Santctiff and or Bishop were in on it somehow and arranged it. Even then, no one in the crowd would notice? No real Michaelines would be curious as to why they are not going on this historic journey to protect the Bishop, Father August and Marcus? OR....2) They arranged to meet the Michaelines 10 miles down the road outside the city, the Michaelines are defeated by the imposters first (highly unlikely of course) and then the traveling party meets up with the fake Michaelines along the way, not realizing the real ones were dead and hidden in the forest nearby. Something like that. Short of using a variation on one of those two explanations, the way it was done in the book was preposterous. A plot hole you could drive a truck through.
A second, less serious, plot flaw in my opinion is the incident with Marcipor ("the lifelong friend" of Marcus). That bit was really contrived and also not well thought through. This "lifelong friend" was "turned" by a few guys offering him gold? Would even those Michaelines believe they "turned" him successfully? Wouldn't it be far more likely that Marcipor goes to Marcus and says "Uh, so i just got offered gold to basically betray you a couple of hours ago. I played along, but we better watch our back!". The whole bit is handled in a couple of pages, and Marcus is kind of like "Ah, don't sweat it buddy! Thanks for not killing me!" Vox could have removed those 2 pages from the book, and you would not have lost anything to the story, and avoided the whole silly, hard to swallow incident.
By the way...if i have missed something in the story, let me know. I've only read the book once, and might have missed a key sentence along the way. I will revise my review. But I'm pretty sure I did not miss a reasonable explanation of how this stunt would have been pulled off.
+: Interesting characters and world it takes place on. An interesting premise.
+: The dialogue between characters is well done.
-: The 2nd half of the story suffers. Feels rushed. I was expecting more of a whiz-bang ending after reading the intro and setup for the book.
-: Huge plot flaw that is pretty hard to swallow. Discussed below.
I'll say this about the book. The price is right. It's an easy (well, the story itself. The theological arguments at the end of the book...a bit more meaty and complex) and fun read. I felt the first half of the story was much better than the 2nd. The premise and promise is a hook, but I felt the 2nd half the book felt kind of rushed. I felt that more would be done with some interesting characters, but instead things just raced towards the finish it seemed.
I was also sad that Nomelos/Bessarias did not have a bigger role in the book. He seems to be arguably the most interesting character in the book. He gets a few pages worth of text. (I will say, this is mostly mitigated by a pretty cool "extra" at the end of the book showing a Prologue of sorts regarding his past and how he came to where he was.)
So here is the huge plot flaw though. It's pretty ridiculous and bring the rating down a full star. !! *** MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!!! *** . The idea that the Michaelines turn out to be the assassins who are hired to kill the protagonist and the other two religious figures in the story is just beyond belief. Sure, it's kind of a cool twist. But in terms of pulling that off...IMPOSSIBLE. For a guy as smart as Vox (I read his blog as I assume most of the reviewers of this book do as well. He's clearly a very smart individual), I cannot believe he put that in there. It requires a huge suspension of disbelief. Here is a very important mission to the Elf kingdom which may decide the fate of that race and whether a huge war will follow, being sent out from the capital city by the Sanctiff, and the 20 man priest-army are all fakes?! Not real Michaelines? How did that get past the Sanctiff, the Bishop and FAther Augustus. None of them are familiar at all with any of the Michaelines, let alone the Captain of the group? How on earth do your bluff your way into that part? Where were the REAL Michaelines in all of this? Who the fudge vetted these guys?! Had the Michaelines been tied up to some trees in a forest?! It's incredible! Wouldn't the real Michaelines be like "Um, shouldn't we be going along with this delegation? Uh..by the way..who are those 20 guys dressed up like us?". All these guys were being presented at a celebration in the city before they head out and all the major players are there. No one in the town, crowd or on the stage is aware that these are all hired killers and not real Michaelines? Wouldn't someone be like "I do not recognize a single one of these people!" The only way this plot device could have worked was 1) If the Santctiff and or Bishop were in on it somehow and arranged it. Even then, no one in the crowd would notice? No real Michaelines would be curious as to why they are not going on this historic journey to protect the Bishop, Father August and Marcus? OR....2) They arranged to meet the Michaelines 10 miles down the road outside the city, the Michaelines are defeated by the imposters first (highly unlikely of course) and then the traveling party meets up with the fake Michaelines along the way, not realizing the real ones were dead and hidden in the forest nearby. Something like that. Short of using a variation on one of those two explanations, the way it was done in the book was preposterous. A plot hole you could drive a truck through.
A second, less serious, plot flaw in my opinion is the incident with Marcipor ("the lifelong friend" of Marcus). That bit was really contrived and also not well thought through. This "lifelong friend" was "turned" by a few guys offering him gold? Would even those Michaelines believe they "turned" him successfully? Wouldn't it be far more likely that Marcipor goes to Marcus and says "Uh, so i just got offered gold to basically betray you a couple of hours ago. I played along, but we better watch our back!". The whole bit is handled in a couple of pages, and Marcus is kind of like "Ah, don't sweat it buddy! Thanks for not killing me!" Vox could have removed those 2 pages from the book, and you would not have lost anything to the story, and avoided the whole silly, hard to swallow incident.
By the way...if i have missed something in the story, let me know. I've only read the book once, and might have missed a key sentence along the way. I will revise my review. But I'm pretty sure I did not miss a reasonable explanation of how this stunt would have been pulled off.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews