Reviewed by: Pete Barber
Genre: Science fiction/Fantasy
Approximate word count: 130,000-135,000 words
Availability
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Author:
Michael Hicks is a full time writer living in Maryland. This
novel is the first of a trilogy. The author has written five other novels based
around the Empire theme and has one other title in print-Season of
the Harvest.
Description:
The novel
is set in the distant future when Humans are locked in an intergalactic war
with an ancient race—the Kreelans. A connection is made between a young human
boy, Reza, and a powerful Kreelan warrior when she spares the child’s life
because he shows bravery beyond his years. The novel follows Reza’s life
story.
Appraisal:
The first part of the novel takes place on a human orphanage planet where
children are used as slave labor. Reza and the characters close to him are
beautifully drawn and I was soon pulled into the author’s world. After a
Kreelan attack, Reza is captured and taken to the Kreelan’s home planet. Reza,
and all humans, are considered animals by the Kreelans because they have no
souls. The boy is part of an experiment to see if a human can be trained to be
like a Kreelan and display his soul.
Reza’s training, at the hands of a female Kreelan warrior, is tough and
believable. Again, the author built a world for me to enjoy. In particular, the
Kreelan code of conduct is fascinating—bearing no small resemblance to that of
ancient Sparta. Science Fiction fans may find cause for complaint on the
Kreelan world, for this is far closer to fantasy than science fiction. I like
both, and enjoyed the switch from a sci-fi battle starting point to the more
ethereal concepts of the Kreelans who have a commonality of mind and purpose
channeled through an Empress and spanning both time and space and incorporating
the living and the dead (the Ancients).
The story follows the interaction between Reza and his trainer who are
bonded together as a couple in the eyes of the Empress. I rode their challenges
and triumphs along with the young couple.
Only two minor complaints made this four instead of five stars: For me,
the author didn’t fully explain the Kreelan structure, their method of
reproduction and the curse that had been placed on their race many centuries
prior. This was an important motivation for the way Reza was trained and
guided, and I found it confusing. More depth here would have elevated the story
for my taste. And secondly the author’s writing style—his voice—was pitched
beautifully for fantasy, but the point of view head-hopped around a lot, and on
a number of occasions this yanked me out of the story.
At the time I reviewed the story it was available as a free download on
Kindle. I’d recommend sci-fi/fantasy fans to take advantage.
Format/Typo Issues:
No
significant issues.
Rating: **** Four stars
2 comments:
I loved this book! :-)
I've heard lots of good things about it, Lynn.
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