Genre:
Fantasy
Description:
“Bolen
is a thief, plying his trade under the spires of an ancient and
sprawling city. Worried that he's growing too old, Bolen has lined up
a risky job, just to prove that he can still pull one off.
Tonight,
he's going to break into a nobleman's vault and help himself to its
contents. What he doesn't know is that inside is the key to a secret
as old as the city itself.
Kings
have killed for it, demons have coveted it, priests have prayed for
it, and in a few moments it will be in his hands. And when it is, the
adventure of his life will begin.”
Author:
“Gelo
R. Fleisher is an author and game developer. He lives on the East
Coast, with his wife and daughter.” This is his debut story and you
can find out more about him at his blog.
Appraisal:
This
fantasy novella was a nice surprise. Mr. Fleisher has written an
enthralling story full of descriptive prose that will pull you into
the story so thoroughly you can practically smell the stench. He has
also given us a bad guy to root for as we sit on the edge of our
seats as the plot twists and turns.
The
story is character driven as we follow Bolen down the streets and
alleys as Fleisher paints us stark pictures of the corruptness
throughout this ancient city and its ruling family. When Bolen gets
his hands on a coveted ruby statue, which he steals from the safe
inside the fortress walls, we know it is magical. The story behind it
is fascinating in and of itself, the powers it wields may even be
considered miraculous.
As a
twist of fate, Bolen is then enlisted by a shadowy figure to steal
this statue that he has already stolen and fenced. The story that
unfolds is an original and captivating rollercoaster ride that will
leave the reader fully satisfied. I think this is an Indie author to
watch for in the future.
FYI:
Added
for Reprise Review: Shadowcursed
was a nominee in the
Fantasy category for B&P 2014 Readers' Choice Awards. Original
review ran October 5, 2013
Format/Typo
Issues:
No
significant issues.
Rating:
***** Five Stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 25-30,000
words
4 comments:
Yeah, I liked this one, too. Nice character study of a middle-aged thief stuck at the crossroads of life.
Thank you for stopping in and commenting, DED.
I shall definitely give this a go. It sounds as if it is in the same vein as my current favourite author, Chris Willrich.
Thanks for commenting, Judi. I hope you enjoy Shadowcursed as much as I did. You will have to let me know. :)
Post a Comment