Scepters (Corean Chronicles) - L.E. Modesitt

The land of Corus is troubled. There have been some insurrections and unnatural events. There has been what appears to be incompetence in the Army. The Madrien are resurgent and on the move again.

The Protector has kept his promise not to order Alucius to return to duty but he can ask and ask in such a way that it is hard to resist. He thought that he had done with military times and could live as a herder with his wife who is expecting ...
...in the background. The old rulers of the land want it back and are fomenting troubles prior to a take over. Alucius becomes aware of the moving in the background and events move towards a final showdown.

Alucius has to move fast round the world putting out the fires that others are starting. Revolts are springing up set by enemies both seen and unseen. The enigmatic Soarers make a final appearance to give some final details and advice ... more

The land of Corus is troubled. There have been some insurrections and unnatural events. There has been what appears to be incompetence in the Army. The Madrien are resurgent and on the move again.

The Protector has kept his promise not to order Alucius to return to duty but he can ask and ask in such a way that it is hard to resist. He thought that he had done with military times and could live as a herder with his wife who is expecting their first child.

But there are enemies in the background. The old rulers of the land want it back and are fomenting troubles prior to a take over. Alucius becomes aware of the moving in the background and events move towards a final showdown.

Alucius has to move fast round the world putting out the fires that others are starting. Revolts are springing up set by enemies both seen and unseen. The enigmatic Soarers make a final appearance to give some final details and advice to Alucius and his wife Wandra. Alucius will need all his talent and the talent of his wife. Together they may be enough to prevent the return of the older ones.

There is a mad rush to acquire some of the old symbols of power by each side, one to dominate and one to deny.

This is the third book in the series when a lot of the previously unanswered questions become answered. The position of the human population is made plane and it is not what they think.

Alucius is the hero of this and the two previous books. He is a young man and a herder of Nightsheep and has mental abilities that are regarded as magical and also with suspicion. His wife also has some of the Herder talents.

The land of Corus was once a more settled land with a great{?} civilisation that fell for reasons that we did not know. The population fell back to the usual human pastimes of trying to make a living and fighting wars.

This story moves along at a cracking good pace with old and new characters coming and going. All are well constructed and are believable.
The story is again written in the Third person style and is again an entertaining read. It would be better to read the other books first as this will give a background to where the story has come from and where it is going. This book would not do as a stand alone book. It could be read alone but much of the references would be lost.

This series is meant to be read in order, not as a collection of incidents on a world timeline.

As stated in previous reviews, Mr Modesitt has the habit of raising important moral and ethical issues in his works. He does it in such a way as it forms an integral part of the story and not in a "preachy" style.

If this book shows anything other than a good story, it is that we should be very careful of our planet. Vast powers that can shape a planet to desires should be used with care so in a way this trilogy is a plea for moderation and restraint by humans, couched in the form of a story that we can read and enjoy while the underlying message seeps quietly into our thinking. That is something that I can approve of. Strident or blatant propaganda would not be acceptable to many people, but a subtle story couched as good versus evil can be accepted. This does seem to be a consistent background theme to some of this author's works. I find that it does not detract from the read as broadly I am sympathetic to such aims. Some readers would miss this background and some would be annoyed.

To sum up, this is a good read and a reinforcement of the saying that power corrupts and that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Any and all power needs to be used in a responsible manner and we forget that lesson at our peril.

Copies may be obtained through Amazon.co.uk as this is an American import.
Price $27.95 or £14.55 Amazon price £13.09. Some specialist shops such as Forbidden Planet will either have copies or can get them.

Hardcover Only 624 pages (July 2004)
Publisher: Tor Books
ISBN: 0765310422

Paperback version has not yet been released and I have no data as to when it will be.

 

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