The Tiger and the Wolf
(Echoes of the Fall: book 1)
by Adrian Tchaikovsky
fantasy
copyright 2016
read in November 2016
rated 8/10: really quite good
The first book that I read by Tchaikovsky was set in a world of insects. Well, of people who had evolved from insects. At the time I thought, This is brilliant! He has merged the characteristics of insects, with "human" characteristics -- in an entirely believeable fashion.
This time Tchaikovsky has merged animals with humans. The characters are "were", with the ability to change between human and animal. Once more, he has done it so very, very well. A vast improvement on the usual werewolf stereotypes.
There are many characters, based on a range of animals. For a while I believed that there were several "heroes", until one emerged as the definite, central character. Okay, the true hero (heroine) was obvious right from the start. But I have grown accustomed to -- and annoyed by -- fantasy books which offer a tangled soap opera rather than a clear story.
The Tiger and Wolf story is clear. It is a clear story of one person's attempts to decide just who she is. There are plenty of strong support characters. Many of those characters have their own depth, motivation and internal conflicts. The book has just one main character.
For a while, though, the story is too convoluted. The heroine feels that she has spent too long just running from her enemies... and she is right. As the reader, I also begin to tire of the constant running, from one place to another. From one group of people to another. Is this all, I wonder, just a way to introduce all the characters for the next few books?
Finally, though, it comes together.
In the final, this will save me, scene, there are two parts. The supreme monster spirit appears and I think, yeah, well, nothing unexpected there. But the heroine has already tamed her internal demons -- in a much smarter, a very human, fashion.
This book is really quite good. It has a beginning, a middle and an end -- a complete story. It is clearly just the first of a series -- with just enough hints to raise interest in book two. Yet it can be read on its own. And thoroughly enjoyed.
A good start to a series. A good book on its own.
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Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper
Agamedes Consulting / Problems? Solved.
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"If all the world's a stage, the director deserves a pay cut." … per Ginger Meggs
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