Champion in the Darkness (The Champion Trilogy #1) in The Insecure Writer's Support Group Book Club

Dec 25, 2017 Ellen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sci-fi-fantasy

There was so much that I loved about “Champion in the Darkness” including its well-paced plot, inspiring stories of redemption, interesting characters, and fantastical creatures. But what I loved the most about this book is that it centers on Clara, a teen-aged girl who receives a calling to become her people's champion. In the process she experiences incredible personal loss and struggles with her own faith, yet continues to be the strong hero that her people need. I loved the fact that men and ...more

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Dec 23, 2013 Susan Swiderski rated it really liked it

Remember how easy it was to get caught up in fairy tales when you were a child? It didn't matter how much the story stretched the realm of reality, or how unusual the characters were, did it? No, it was all about the magic of the story .It was all about how a story could carry you away to "another world" and completely capture your imagination. It was about making the impossible seem... possible.

Well, guess what? A good old-fashioned fantasy can even work its magic on stodgy ol' grown-ups. That' ...more

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Feb 28, 2022 Toi Thomas rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: rated, spiritual, reviewed, fantasy, children-teen, action-adventure

Actual rating 4.25.

I finished this story early in the month and enjoyed it. It’s a great example of classic sword and sorcery. The Christian themes work well with the plot and come off as cultural rather than persuasive or political. This is simply the world in which this story takes place. This world and the faith-based magic system was intriguing to me especially because it showed good and bad magic in a traditional sense that you don't see a lot of anymore. Many modern tales blur the lines o Actual rating 4.25.

I finished this story early in the month and enjoyed it. It’s a great example of classic sword and sorcery. The Christian themes work well with the plot and come off as cultural rather than persuasive or political. This is simply the world in which this story takes place. This world and the faith-based magic system was intriguing to me especially because it showed good and bad magic in a traditional sense that you don't see a lot of anymore. Many modern tales blur the lines of good and bad, which often make a story more interesting and offers a wider appeal, but I think this story pulls off the classic notions of good vs. evil quite well.

The characters on the side of good are blessed with gifts to match their callings. These gifts range from scrolls, crystals, swords, etc... Some characters are able to balance multiple callings. I like the crystal sword concept along with the different colors and their meanings. I also like that when a warrior loses their faith, their sword dulls- I like a good checks-and-balance system on access to power.

This was an IWSG book club read for the month of February '22, and in the discussion, I learned that the men in the Dark Sisterhood couldn’t be sorcerers. When reading the book, I didn't pick up on that. I just assumed that all the women were more powerful than the men. Women definitely play a large role in both the good and evil societies which I thought was a refreshing contrast to some more traditional Christian views.

This book also featured some interesting takes on classic fantasy characters. Overall I wish I had seen more of the creatures in the story, but that's just because I really like creatures. The Griffins were by far my favorite of the featured creatures.

If you aren't deeply opposed to some Christian views or religion of any kind portrayed in a cultural way, I think this could be a fun sword and sorcery read. Ideal for teen readers but adults should also be able to appreciate it.

Highly recommended to fans of sword and sorcery fantasy, and those interested in religion-based magic systems. ...more

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Feb 16, 2022 Ronel Janse van Vuuren rated it did not like it

Shelves: disappointing-read, did-not-finish, young-adult, fantasy, series-dnf, iwsg-member-book, tbr-2022-challenge, book-club, a-z-c

I wanted to like this book. The blurb sounded interesting. But the cover didn’t tell me anything about genre, or age group, just that there’s a sword involved.

The book starts with action – which turns out to be just a dream. And then she looks in the mirror and we get a description of her. Ah, no. Two things we know we should never start a book with, especially not the first in series.

I won’t continue reading. DNF.

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