A Crown for Cold Silver
(#1 of ??)
by Alex Marshall
fantasy
copyright 2015
read in January 2018
rated 6/10: read to pass the time
As it says on the cover, "All roads lead to war." So there is no surprise that this book is violent. Soldiers come out of battles with gore and bits of body parts stuck all over them. It's horrible -- but it's over the top cartoon level violence. Like a Warner Bros cartoon: harmless... unless you think too much about what it's doing to your acceptance of what is "normal" in life.
At the start -- having guessed that this is just the first of a series of books -- I worried that it would be the worst kind of epic fantasy: groups of characters having unrelated adventures in the one fantasy world. Then -- about half way through the book -- two groups suddenly meet... and I think... That was clever!
There was a bit of that cleverness: complicated actions and adventures which finally seemed to add up to a coherent whole. Spoilt only at the very end, when one character is definitely separated from the rest. Book two will have -- so I guess -- at least two unrelated plots.
If you do like the epic fantasy -- several unrelated stories writ large in an interesting world -- then add a point or two to my rating. Me, though, I prefer a book which is complete in itself.
Yes, Crown works its way to a solid ending -- but not solid enough. It ends with a major battle but the battle does little more than clarify that neither combatant is the major villain. And there are far too many main characters for my own preferences in a novel.
Still, I enjoyed reading this book. I will look out for the second book in the series (I know that I have seen it round). It may be soap opera rather than a standalone story. But it's easy enough to read. And -- skimming over the extreme violence -- it's quite enjoyable.
Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper
... Agamedes Consulting / Problems ? Solved
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"You're only young once but you can stay immature forever" … per Ginger Meggs
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1 comment:
February 2018: I saw the second book of this series and decided -- no, I am not interested in reading more. Book one is gore-splattered action and adventure. The characters are unique -- but not likable. There is not enough *enjoyment* -- for me -- to make me want to read more.
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