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David L. McDaniel

Autor/a de The Warrior's Bane

3 obres 25 Membres 6 Ressenyes

Sèrie

Obres de David L. McDaniel

The Warrior's Bane (2018) 20 exemplars
Quarterstars Awakening (2019) 3 exemplars
Fyaa's Bane (2021) 2 exemplars

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Membres

Ressenyes

Ressenya escrita per a Crítics Matiners de LibraryThing .
Please note: this book was provided for me to read and review by Library Thing's Early Reviewer programme. You can rest assured however, that this is (as always) an honest review!


Set in an world of high fantasy, Quarterstars Awakening is reminiscent of Tolkein yet builds an original world all of its own. Quarterstars Awakening is the second book released in the War for the Quarterstar Shards series, and I have to disclose that I haven't read the first. However, chronologically it is a prequel set a few hundred years before the rest of the series, and I have been assured that it can be read as a standalone book.

Humans and elves have been at war for centuries, and humans are struggling to survive sandwiched between their traditional enemies, dragons, and other aggressive creatures. There are two races of elves in this iteration, the Val and the Sor. Each despises the other, yet have created an alliance to best take advantage of their differing strengths. The behaviour and appearance of the elves is not your typical Tolkeinesque stereotype -- they are shorter than humans, have different physical abilities such as leaping long distances, and have a war-like streak. And, of course, two different races of elves with such polarised worldviews also adds interest.

Quarterstars Awakening chronicles the failed truce between the human King Dar Drannon and his elvish counterpart Keiyann Krowe, the star-crossed love between their children Jaerick and Traelyn, and the discovery of the first Quarterstar Shard. There are four shards in total, and if they are ever re-united as part of the complete Quarterstar Talisman, doom will come to the world. The Talisman, thought safely kept in the catacombs below the elvish city, is missing. Can the lovers, with their memories of each other only newly re-instated, overcome the machinations of the elvish king's advisor Naemyn, who wishes to bring ruin to their world?

The book unfortunately suffers from a lack of editing, but responsibility for this can be laid at the feet of the publishers, not the author. As a picky reader, I cringe at grammatical issues and find them hard to put aside. The lack of flow in some passages and switching between formal and informal language was a little grating. However, the author's flights of fancy more than make up for this. The concept of the Quarterstar shards, which will bring a vague but terrifying doom if ever brought together, is intriguing. I enjoyed the character of Traelyn, with her wisdom earned during an unnaturally long life and her relationship with her children and grandchildren. The human soldier Voll and his unlikely friendship with the dragon Aegyn was also a high point. Some of the most compelling scenes are the battles in which dragons fly overhead, and the elves' magic produces giant winged spiders and other terrifying creatures. Knowing that Quarterstars Awakening sets the scene for a whole series set in this world has me intrigued.

Would I read more by this author? Yes!
… (més)
 
Marcat
apartmentcat | Mar 6, 2020 |
Ressenya escrita per a Crítics Matiners de LibraryThing .
Very interesting story as told by a "weathered old man" to a group of children. The story primarily follows Alaezdar a warrior who left Ragers house of Renegades (a group of sell swords) under bad circumstances. Alaexdar is hiding out in a farming village as a farmer. He is working for Tharn the village leader and owner of the largest local ranch. The local politics with the area lord come to bear as does Fyaa a powerful witch as well as many other interactions with wizards, watchers, goblins, etc, that make for a very good story. Many side stories also included for a well rounded environment and cast of characters.… (més)
 
Marcat
scmerritt | Hi ha 4 ressenyes més | Jan 16, 2019 |
Ressenya escrita per a Crítics Matiners de LibraryThing .
I enjoyed this new world with a mix of familiar (humans, wizards, goblins) and unfamiliar (gronts, chroks, and others). Mystery, magic, prophecy, quests, damsel in distress and battles are confidently weaved. I found the prose to be a bit clunky at times with odd style periodically that disrupted reading flow, for example the main character Alizdear, referred to his male parent as father. When he was thinking about his female parent it was as Mom which didn’t fit with the rest of the style and context.
And so I wait for the next instalment of The Warriors Bane.
… (més)
 
Marcat
TinaC1 | Hi ha 4 ressenyes més | Dec 16, 2018 |
Ressenya escrita per a Crítics Matiners de LibraryThing .
The Warrior's Bane by David L. McDaniel is definitely part of a series. There are so many loose ends at the end of the book, that it feels incomplete. The pacing is ragged. It moves nicely along and then jumps to some background info that doesn't fit with the story arc at that time. Most of the background characters are not fully realized so that I could care less what happens to them. The whole series might be interesting, but I don't know if I'll bother with it.
½
 
Marcat
Antares1 | Hi ha 4 ressenyes més | Dec 13, 2018 |

Estadístiques

Obres
3
Membres
25
Popularitat
#508,561
Valoració
½ 3.6
Ressenyes
6
ISBN
3