A categorically hilarious and pleasantly goofy demon-riddled romp.
In Olson’s fantasy novel, a potpourri of demonic writings and documents recount the story of Hell’s invasion of Heaven.
After his conquest of Earth, Lord Satan is astounded to learn humans believe in a “Personified God.” As Satan had been certain there was no being higher than himself, he plans to track down and kill this Creator. Satan abdicates his thrown to become a “Free Agent of Universal Evil,” leaving a planned invasion of Heaven to his decidedly unpopular successor, Lord Zyk of Asimoth. Zyk, who never misses an opportunity to remind readers that he edited Satan’s first Encyclopaedia, has a problem before the invasion even begins: Earth’s poisonous “magentic field” (not the magnetic one) causes Zyk to sprout a heart and a spleen, infesting him with emotions. He’s also working with a reduced military budget, as many of his forces’ time-traveling Hellcraft (the “standard” for the demonic army) have been crashed due to the demons’ inability to read the 8,000-page operating manual. Once Zyk and the army he leads finally make it to Celestia, the planet on which the city of Heaven resides, nothing goes as planned. Although, in the author’s conceit, this novel’s writings were compiled eons after the “successful” conquest of Heaven, the invasion is anything but simple.
Olson’s follow-up to Encyclopaedia of Hell (2011) is a darkly comic satire featuring a plethora of grotesque imagery, from humans cooking in a rotisserie oven to torn-off limbs and various bodily bits sliced and/or diced. But humor abounds, especially in the way seemingly routine elements function with this batch of Hellish characters: A couple of Zyk’s lieutenants, for example, are afraid they’ve fallen into “romantic hatred,” while memo sign-offs include such sentiments as “With dreams of a railroad spike through your neck” and “May your ancestors curse your name from their astral hole.” In the same vein, there’s not much true malice displayed by the cast; most of the demons come across as more half-witted than evil, and Zyk’s greatest concern is proving to others that he’s worthy to sit on Hell’s throne. Millionaire’s and Singh’s (among others) illustrations further instill a sense of lightheartedness. Millionaire’s are a bit more cartoonish, to the extent that the multi-eyed, amoeba-like demon Abra Kadab looks well-nigh adorable, even next to his dreadful meat-canning machine. Singh’s bold, equally superb images embrace absurdity, as when a demon in a crowd sports a “Baalmart” employee vest. Olson gleefully relays this story through an array of writing styles, including a series of court depositions, email correspondence, and excerpts from Satan’s pulp novel-like memoir. As it’s abundantly clear that some of the contributions and translations herein are less than reliable, readers can take this religious parody with a grain of salt.
A categorically hilarious and pleasantly goofy demon-riddled romp.Pub Date: Aug. 31, 2021
ISBN: 978-1627311113
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Feral House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 23, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.
A young Navarrian woman faces even greater challenges in her second year at dragon-riding school.
Violet Sorrengail did all the normal things one would do as a first-year student at Basgiath War College: made new friends, fell in love, and survived multiple assassination attempts. She was also the first rider to ever bond with two dragons: Tairn, a powerful black dragon with a distinguished battle history, and Andarna, a baby dragon too young to carry a rider. At the end of Fourth Wing (2023), Violet and her lover, Xaden Riorson, discovered that Navarre is under attack from wyvern, evil two-legged dragons, and venin, soulless monsters that harvest energy from the ground. Navarrians had always been told that these were monsters of legend and myth, not real creatures dangerously close to breaking through Navarre’s wards and attacking civilian populations. In this overly long sequel, Violet, Xaden, and their dragons are determined to find a way to protect Navarre, despite the fact that the army and government hid the truth about these creatures. Due to the machinations of several traitorous instructors at Basgiath, Xaden and Violet are separated for most of the book—he’s stationed at a distant outpost, leaving her to handle the treacherous, cutthroat world of the war college on her own. Violet is repeatedly threatened by her new vice commandant, a brutal man who wants to silence her. Although Violet and her dragons continue to model extreme bravery, the novel feels repetitive and more than a little sloppy, leaving obvious questions about the world unanswered. The book is full of action and just as full of plot holes, including scenes that are illogical or disconnected from the main narrative. Secondary characters are ignored until a scene requires them to assist Violet or to be killed in the endless violence that plagues their school.
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374172
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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
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