A Killer of a Story.

The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn

An epic title introduces what turns out to be an equally impressive story, in which we meet Ardor Benn – con artist. He’s out to rob you. In fact, he lives for the thrill of the scam. But only if you’re important. A ‘someone.’ A name. An icon. A prominent part of an institution that will help him promote what’s truly important: himself!

The back cover blurb helps set the scene quite nicely.

*******

Ardor Benn is no ordinary thief - a master of wildly complex heists, he styles himself a Ruse Artist Extraordinaire.

When he gets hired for his most daring ruse yet, Ardor knows he'll need more than quick wit and sleight of hand. Assembling a dream team of forgers, disguisers, schemers and thieves, he sets out to steal from the most powerful king the realm has ever known.

But it soon becomes clear there's more at stake than fame and glory - Ard and his team might just be the last hope for human civilization.

*******

It’s incredibly difficult to write about this epically proportioned, 729 page tome without giving the game away – an unforgivable sin, where this story is concerned – as it’s just so darn enjoyable. But I’ll do my best.

First off, it’s important that you appreciate the magic system Tyler Whitesides dreamed up to add foundation to the world he’s created. Grit. A substance obtained – in its simplest terms – as a byproduct of the waste of dragons! Genius eh? I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a magic system built around what is basically, dragon poo. Awesome!

With a mind like that, I just knew I was going to love what followed. And I did.

Ardor is always looking for the ultimate scam. Something that will confirm he’s the best of the best, no matter how outrageous or dangerous it is. Nevertheless, when he’s hired to carry out what he considers will be the greatest test of his abilities, it turns out there’s a whole lot more involved than establishing his supremacy as a ruse artist.

Kings might fall. Religious hypocrisy might expose those at the very highest levels. The very foundations upon which society has been built might crumble. Everything mankind has built might end up in ruins.

And why?

People have been lied to. That’s why!

However, to understand the depth of that deception, you’ll have to immerse yourselves in the world of Ardor Benn and join him on his adventure. And boy, you’ll be glad you did. Though a self-centered, out and out rogue, Ardor is a charmer with a heart of gold. He’s amazingly loyal to those he trusts. And no one is closer to him than his boyhood friend and accomplice, Raekon Dorrel.

Together, they lead an amazing cast of characters who are as down to earth and relatable as they are freakishly funny. Each has their own weaknesses and skeletons in the closet. But it’s those weaknesses that highlights their humanity and charm, making them believable.

And there’s the key.

This is a long and comprehensive caper. But Tyler Whitesides doesn’t rush you through it. He carefully lays out the foundations. And, having done so, continues building from the ground up, adding layer after layer to a complex and fascinating story that not only draws you in and involves you from the outset, but will keep you busy until the stunning finale.

The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn. Outstandingly original, with twists and turns and timely revelations sprinkled in along the way, to you guessing until the very end.

Explosive exploits & fiery fun! Don’t miss it.

Amazon Review

 There's No Hoping About It
This Story Works - And Then Some.

A Fool’s Hope

The Egril.
Cruel. Savage. Monstrous barbarian killers.

The trouble is, they’re cunning too, with a penchant for strategy that always keeps them one step ahead of the game. And when that game centers on world domination, it turns out the Egril are grand masterclass players. Not the kind of thing you want to discover when you’re trying to bring your nation back from the brink of destruction.

With a premise like that, you begin to appreciate why I’ve been chomping at the bit, waiting for this sequel to We Are The Dead to arrive. And Mike Shackle doesn’t disappoint.

Take a quick peek at the back cover blurb:

*******

From Tinnstra, it took her family and thrust her into a conflict she wanted only to avoid. Now her queen's sole protector, she must give all she has left to keep Zorique safe.

It has taken just as much from Jia's revolutionaries. Dren and Jax - battered, tortured, once enemies themselves - now must hold strong against their bruised invaders, the Egril.

For the Egril intend to wipe Jia from the map. They may have lost a battle, but they are coming back.

If Tinnstra and her allies hope to survive, Jia's heroes will need to be ready when they do.

*******

So, what does A Fool’s Hope bring us?

Well, our favorite characters from the first book are still there: Tinnstra, Dren, Jax and Yas. We watch them evolve through pain and fire to become the kind of people Jia needs to survive . . . though not everyone will make it. This is war, after all.

Those we’ve met before in passing also get fleshed out: young Queen Zorique; the mage Assagod; Captain Ralasis, to name a few. As you will see, they become much more integral to the overall story arc as time passes. Helping you relate to their individual circumstances in a graphic, often personal way.

We’re also given a greater clarity of what life is like for the invading Egril, through the eyes of a new character, Mateon. A clever move, as through him we discover the true futility of war, especially where everyday folk are concerned. Mateon has been raised from birth to be a soldier, and the perfect instrument of his bloodthirsty god, Kage. Yet he struggles to reconcile the rhetoric of his superiors with the unjust treatment of the Jian people, and the brutality vested upon them. But will he suffer for such a blasphemous viewpoint?

Even better, the waning magic of this incredible world – only hinted at or rarely seen in the first book – is brought to the fore and given center stage. And Shackle does so in the most dexterous of ways. (Genius really, and not what you’ll expect).

Yes, war can and does bring out the best – and very worst – in people. Loyalty costs nothing, but it’s a priceless commodity in an arena where life is cheap, and betrayal is cheaper still. . . (Keep an eye out for the criminal element left in Kiyosun city, the Weeping Men).

A Fool’s Hope presents you with great narrative from a new writer who has become an instant favorite of mine. Believe me, I know a great story when I read one, and Mike Shackle will soon be up there with the likes of Joe Abercrombie and George R. R. Martin.

This is gripping fantasy set in a world rent by war, discarded ethics, and a savage, ‘stay alive in any way you can’ philosophy. The characters are human. Damaged and flawed and disappointing in all the right ways. But somehow, they hold it together and survive . . . barely!

Marvelous stuff – and a definite candidate for your reading list.

Amazon Review

 Find Out How I Did, Jamming With. . .

The Bands of Mourning

In this, the next installment of the continuing Mistborn saga, Waxillium Ladrian draws ever closer to fathoming the antics of his uncle, and the activities of the mysterious Set.

Allow me to set the scene:

*******

Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.

The Bands of Mourning are the mythical metal minds owned by the Lord Ruler, said to grant anyone who wears them the powers that the Lord Ruler had at his command. Hardly anyone thinks they really exist. A kandra researcher has returned to Elendel with images that seem to depict the Bands, as well as writings in a language that no one can read. Waxillium Ladrian is recruited to travel south to the city of New Seran to investigate. Along the way he discovers hints that point to the true goals of his uncle Edwarn and the shadowy organization known as The Set.

*******

So, what happens? Ah, THAT would be telling, and I hate to spoil surprises. Nevertheless, The Bands of Mourning once again reveal how good Sanderson is at laying out the foundations of an epically proportioned puzzle, and then gradually allowing us to piece things together as the story develops.

All the elements are there: Revenge; politics; long held secrets; mystery; intrigue; conspiracies; ambition. And at last, we get to learn more about Wax’s sister, Telsin, along with the goals motivating his uncle’s behavior. A course that has riven Waxillium’s family to the core.

The thing is, it’s NOT just about House Ladrian. We also get to discover that the people of Elendel aren’t the only ones to survive the changing of the world. And that goes for the long-lived kandra too, whose knowledge far exceeds that of mortal man. What role might some of them have in the simmering turmoil threatening to rip the world of Scadrial apart?

To find out the answer to that question, we’ll have to temper our anticipation and wait for the final installment of the story: The Lost Metal. Here’s hoping we don’t have to wait too long.

This is superbly crafted fantasy.

Amazon Review

 My Review of. . .
Shadows of Self

Shadows of Self

Waxillium Ladrian, a high-ranking member of society and former frontier lawman, finds life in the city of Elendel to be far from the sedate affair people would have him believe. All that chic and elegance is merely a front for an avalanche of crooked shenanigans that keeps both him and his team – Wayne and Marasi – on their toes.

What do I mean? Here’s a little clue from the book blurb.

*******

Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.

When family obligations forced Waxillium Ladrian to forsake the frontier lands and return to the metropolis of his birth to take his place as head of a noble House, he little imagined that the crime-fighting skills acquired during twenty years in the dusty plains would be just as applicable in the big city. He soon learned that there too, just being a talented Twinborn ― one who can use both Allomancy and Feruchemy, the dominant magical modes on Scadrial ― would not suffice.

This bustling, optimistic, but still shaky society will now face its first test by terrorism and assassination, crimes intended to stir up labor strife and religious conflict. Wax, his eccentric sidekick Wayne, and brilliant, beautiful young Marasi, now officially part of the constabulary, must unravel the conspiracy before civil strife can stop Scadrial’s progress in its tracks.

*******

 

I enjoyed this sequel to The Alloy of Law, as Sanderson advances Scadrial’s history by allowing its citizens to dictate the pace and direction the story arc takes.

Yes, the world itself is much more settled now. Things are as they should be and nature is slowly adapting to find its place. But society? Though Vin, Elend and Sazed worked hard to free the people of oppression at the hands of a dictator and an unfair class system, we find human nature has a nasty habit of sliding back into old, long-adopted habits. Habits that can spell disaster if they’re not tempered in some way.

Socioeconomic instability. Political intrigue. Empire building. Out and out scoundrels. Poignant blast’s from the past. They’re all there, in a superbly crafted tale that bundles you along at a cracking pace. As always, the characters themselves help the story along, as they each struggle with their own hurdles while contending with the ever shifting foundations that makes you wonder just how bad things are going to get. And the drama doesn’t leave Wax’s family untouched, either.

In what way?

Let’s just say, there are two sides to every coin. And as a coinshot hunter of the lawless, Wax finds his loyalties tested by the evidence he uncovers. Evidence that points to an escalation of unrest and violence that could very well bring ruin to all that the last 300 years has achieved. And his own family is involved in it. Yes, the threads of Harmony and Ruin run deep, and only Wax and his friends stand a chance of steering things in the right direction.

With superb interplay between the characters, and a clever marriage of steampunk, wild west and otherworld – yet oh so familiar – fantasy magic as you’ll ever see, it’s riveting stuff.

Amazon Review

 Time to Reflect on My Review Of. . .

Mad Shadows – The Heroes of Echo Gate

I enjoy Dorgo Mikawber’s company. A true friend. Down-to-earth. Pragmatic – most of the time – and just the kind of person you want by your side when the end of the world comes upon you . . . as it inevitably does when he’s around.

Here’s the blurb from this latest adventure to prepare you for what’s in store.

*******

During an arduous and dangerous trek through the Scarlet Desert in search of the fabled Well of Tears, Dorgo the Dowser and his companions accidentally uncover an ancient artifact buried for eons beneath the blood-colored sand. After a harrowing, action-packed journey through the desert they find the Well of Tears, the repository of God’s tears, and there encounter the ghosts of the Sisters of the Blue Light, the Guardians of the Well. The nuns tell them about the relic of antiquity they found: it is a thing of cosmic evil — a thing not of their world, a thing which must be destroyed. But the answer to destroying that artifact is a riddle Dorgo and his companions must discover for themselves.

When the Spirit trapped inside the artifact is set free by one of their companions, Dorgo and the others learn that the evil now threatens not only their world, but all the Otherworlds of the multi-dimensional Echoverse. The key to destroying this evil is somehow tied in with the demons seeking to control Echo Gate — the master portal that leads not only to every world in the Echoverse, but through Space and Time, as well. As a great battle erupts on the island of Thavarar, where Echo Gate is located, Dorgo and his companions must unravel the mystery of the thing they found in the desert, and discover the means by which it can be destroyed.

 

*******

Yes, life is never dull around Dorgo. And that’s a good thing, for not only do we delve into the history of the Echoverse and the worlds incorporated within it, but we learn more about the origins of Echo Gate itself and the role it plays in the greater scheme of things.

Joe Bonadonna has a vivid imagination, which, incorporated into his unique writing style presents us with a fast paced, action packed extravaganza, filled with suspense, double-crosses, puzzle solving and battles galore.

I really enjoyed it. The interplay between characters is engaging; the story arc builds toward a ‘will they-won’t they’ crescendo (because main characters do die – kudos there); and there’s just the right amount irony and self-denial among our heroes and heroines to keep things real.

Great fun and easy to read.

Try it - you'll be glad you did.

goodreads

 This Week, I've Been Mixing it Up With. . .

The Alloy of Law

I was so pleased to see that Brandon Sanderson had extended his original Mistborn Trilogy, as I found the magical system he’d developed for the series, that of Allomancy, Feruchemy, and Hemalurgy – processes whereby practitioners burn/employ different metals, and, after blending & activating them with the essence of his or her own body or mind to produce the desired outcome – to be innovative, and somewhat different to other fantasy novels I’ve read of late.

And what an extension it proved to be. This is what the back cover reveals:

 

*******

Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.

Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history―or religion. Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in the frontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice.

One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn, who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.

*******

Now, I don’t know about you, but I found the premise to be rather refreshing. Scadrial has been brought forward in time, and we’re given a glimpse of what has become of the world and its people after our heroes and heroines put things right at the end of the last trilogy.

For the most part, society has drawn together in what is now the Elendel Basin, a prepared and cultivated region surrounding its namesake capital and other provincial towns for many miles in all directions. Life is good. People are civilized. And culture, law and order is an accepted way of life. Beyond the encircling mountains, however, is The Roughs; a wilderness plains area, much like the wild west of cowboys & Indians fame. Life is much harsher there, and people look to gun slinging lawmen and women to keep the peace.

The three metallic arts still exist, though Allomancy and Feruchemy are by far the most widely practiced. (Hemalurgy, it seems, is unknown in the modern world, its secrets being kept by the kandra who survived Scadrial’s rebirth)

Of the populace, there are those who are capable of burning just one of the 16 arcane metals, be it as an Allomancer or as a Feruchemist in a single form, or there are the twinborn. Those blessed with both an allomantic and feruchemical capability combined.

So what happens?

Vin, Elend, Sazed and Spook may have guaranteed the world’s survival and the coming of a new age, but people are still people. And as we see, while society as a whole has advanced – to a degree – there are those still intent on getting what they want by any means necessary. Fair or foul. Lords continue to be aloof. The downtrodden, rebellious. And villains? Oh, they’re always out for what they can get. And when you combine all three?

Great rollicking fun! That’s what.

I’ve often thought it odd when successful writers allow their universes to remain static for so long. Brandon Sanderson hasn’t made that mistake. And by allowing Scadrial to progress over the intervening three hundred years, it injects a breath of fresh air into a well-established world, and a superb slant on his ever-evolving story arc.

The Alloy of Law is markedly shorter. At 325 pages, its half the length of his other Mistborn novels. But that doesn’t reduce the enjoyment. Our protagonists and antagonists are well thought out and skillfully introduced. And the relationship between Wax and Wayne is particularly engaging. (Reminding me, to some degree, of Alias Smith & Jones) – You’ll see. The dialogue is sharp; the slow burn a treat; the action – when it comes – relentless; and that story arc I mentioned? It’s a treasure to behold, as it allows the continuing mystery to establish deeper roots, to develop, and evolve into an appealing murder-mystery-whodunnit-action-adventure.

Or to put it succinctly: Sherlock Holmes meets Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid.

(And yes, I’m already into the second in this series) J

 Are You In the Mood For. . .

If so, here's my review:

A Little Hatred

In A Little Hatred by Joe Abercrombie, we take a trip back to the Angland we first met twenty to thirty years ago in the First Law Trilogy: The Blade Itself; Before They Are Hanged; Last Argument of Kings. Though, as you will find out, things have changed.

This is what you can expect:

*******

The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.

On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal's son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.

Savine dan Glokta - socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union - plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.

The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another . . .

*******

As you will note from the blurb, some of the characters we first met in the previous adventure are still here, so it certainly helps with the continuity. As does the introduction of their offspring. So even though we’re looking at a gap of several decades, we can get right back into the feel of the story ark as if slipping on a familiar pair of old gloves.

And familiar it is. The Union still struggles to maintain stability in a land where potential invasion is an ever-present threat. This time, from the North, where new leaders want to test themselves against oppressors of old. Additionally, conquered enemies test the limits of Angland’s patience by sending a never-ending flow of refugees into Union territory. And as the population rises and the wheels of industry put increasing numbers of laborers and farm workers out of work, tensions spiral out of control. Revolution threatens!

How do the powers-that-be handle it?

Joe Abercrombie style! That’s how.

It was great fun revisiting Adua, as Abercrombie expanded on the history of his creation to give us an engaging new set of circumstances to enjoy. And as so often happens in the real world, so much trouble on a grand scale can be fomented by the smallest amount of misunderstanding, and just a little hatred.

An apt title, therefore, to a story that is as rich with emotion and cutting-edge commentary as it is as sparing with mercy. It’s brutal, in-your-face fun, and wonderfully entertaining. I’d love to reveal more, but never spoil things with untimely reveals.

Content to say, Abercrombie weaves a complex set of circumstances and a grand cast of characters together with skillful dexterity and considerable panache. You’d be a fool to miss it, and I, for one, can’t wait for the series to continue.

Amazon Review