A fine high fantasy novel with a richly crafted world.
This fantasy series starter by debut author Bethancourt is set in the aftermath of a conflict between humans and elves.
It’s been many years since the humans tried to wipe out all the elves on the world of Asrellion, and they thought they’d succeeded. However, a small fraction of them managed to survive and flourish, far away from where humans live. Loralíenasa Níelor Raia knows that she isn’t supposed to stray close to the human lands, but for some time, she’s wanted nothing more than to climb the tallest, most ancient tree in the woods. She never expected to meet a human in the middle of the forest—and especially not one who could speak her language. Instead of fleeing in fear, she stays to talk to the young man, and before long, she saves him from a bear attack. After passing out from her injuries, she awakens to find herself in the man’s home—which happens to be a castle. The man she saved was no ordinary human: He’s Naoise Raynesley, the second son of the King of Grenlec. Now, human royalty knows that some of her people survived, and soon the Crown Prince Dairinn shows up and delivers startling news: war is coming with a group called the Telrishti. In this first installment of Bethancourt’s series, The Way of the Falling Star, she presents characters from rich fantasy cultures—both human and elvish. Readers who enjoy detailed worldbuilding will quickly fall in love with this novel, as the author clearly put great effort into crafting the world of Asrellion. The prose is similarly polished and executed with great care; the even pacing will keep readers engaged, the various players are well developed, and the smooth dialogue feels genuine. The action scenes are also compelling, and readers will be rooting for Loralíenasa, Naoise, and their band of compatriots as the war for the world begins. They’ll also eagerly await the next plannedinstallment in the series.
A fine high fantasy novel with a richly crafted world.Pub Date: April 9, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-73364-800-4
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Dogwood House LLC
Review Posted Online: June 18, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
An author to watch, Buehlman is now two for two in delivering eerie, offbeat novels with admirable literary skill.
Cormac McCarthy's The Road meets Chaucer's Canterbury Tales in this frightful medieval epic about an orphan girl with visionary powers in plague-devastated France.
The year is 1348. The conflict between France and England is nothing compared to the all-out war building between good angels and fallen ones for control of heaven (though a scene in which soldiers are massacred by a rainbow of arrows is pretty horrific). Among mortals, only the girl, Delphine, knows of the cataclysm to come. Angels speak to her, issuing warnings—and a command to run. A pack of thieves is about to carry her off and rape her when she is saved by a disgraced knight, Thomas, with whom she teams on a march across the parched landscape. Survivors desperate for food have made donkey a delicacy and don't mind eating human flesh. The few healthy people left lock themselves in, not wanting to risk contact with strangers, no matter how dire the strangers' needs. To venture out at night is suicidal: Horrific forces swirl about, ravaging living forms. Lethal black clouds, tentacled water creatures and assorted monsters are comfortable in the daylight hours as well. The knight and a third fellow journeyer, a priest, have difficulty believing Delphine's visions are real, but with oblivion lurking in every shadow, they don't have any choice but to trust her. The question becomes, can she trust herself? Buehlman, who drew upon his love of Fitzgerald and Hemingway in his acclaimed Southern horror novel, Those Across the River (2011), slips effortlessly into a different kind of literary sensibility, one that doesn't scrimp on earthy humor and lyrical writing in the face of unspeakable horrors. The power of suggestion is the author's strong suit, along with first-rate storytelling talent.
An author to watch, Buehlman is now two for two in delivering eerie, offbeat novels with admirable literary skill.Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-937007-86-7
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Ace/Berkley
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
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