Hi my names Jon and im a 20 year old student at Keele University in Staffordshire, Currently studyin...
Hi my names Jon and im a 20 year old student at Keele University in Staffordshire, Currently studying History and Social Studies in my Second Year. Hope to eventually go into Social Work
Member since:04.01.2005
Reviews:4
Ever since my early teens i have always been fascinated by fantasy novels, I read the hobbit and Lord of the Rings in my early teens and have slowly worked my way through the world of fantasy fiction. Eventually i was recommended James Barclay by a friend so went out and bought Dawnthief and with it dissapeared three days of my life. To say this book is addictive is to underestimate how good it really is. It is gripping, character driven, fantasy action at its very finest.
The plot revolves around an aging mercenary party known as the Raven who found themselves thrown reluctantly into saving the realm of Balaia from the evil Wytch lords and with it get entagled in the petty politics of the colleges of magic. The characters are well put together and even from the very start you feel a connection to the characters that drives you to see what happens to them next.
It is quite clear however that Barclay has taken alot of inspiration from other famous fantasy authors, i feel it is no coincedence that on the cover of the latest edition is a quote from David Gemmel, his style can be seen fingerprinted on every page, this isnt necessarily a bad thing however, if you are a fan of Gemmels works it is almost certain that you will thoroughly enjoy Dawnthief and Barclays other works.
A word of warning though Barclay is brutal and completely unafraid of killing off any character no matter how important they seem to be!
If you are looking for a good fantasy action romp it is hard to go wrong with Dawnthief, it is the first of the Raven books and it is clear that Barclay is still developing his own style at this point but it is the clear starting point to move onto his other works and the rest of the ravens tale.
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Mmm.. sounds good. Think I'm going to have to get hold of that!
Thanks for the warning about the killing-off of characters, I have experienced that with James Patterson, and it is very disconcerting.
This energetic first fantasy novel is familiar in outline, but told with unusual ... more
intensity. "The Raven" is a group of seven mercenaries, just starting to lose their fighting edge, who reluctantly get hired by a mage from a college of magic with a nasty...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
This energetic first fantasy novel is familiar in outline, but told with unusual ... more
intensity. "The Raven" is a group of seven mercenaries, just starting to lose their fighting edge, who reluctantly get hired by a mage from a college of magic with a nasty...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
May 12th, 2005
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