Queen of Alendeortor - Jan Doncom

This post is brought to you from my iPad while in the comfort of my own bed! Sundays are the best. Not sure about the blogger app as yet but we shall see how that goes.

I had a random email asking me to review a book, which was a lovely ego boost by the way, first time that has ever happened.  I was more than happy to do so but had to tell the author I was training to be a teacher (and reading the Dark Tower) and that it may be a while. Then I got this dental abscess thing and all I could do was read and sleep. So, here we are in all its honesty, as requested.

It didn't take me long to read this novel and that's because I enjoyed it. It wasn't a chore to read like some books I have had in the past. The characters were easy to care for and there was no initial getting to know you period. The protagonist is an underdog in his society, a bonkers one at that, and from the moment the book starts your on his side. His cast of 'sidekicks' are equally as rounded and balanced. They all have their flaws and that makes them believable, a lot of effort has gone into this characters and that really pays off.

The plot and pacing of the novel work well too. The reader is drawn in from the first chapter and taken on a whirlwind race through the story. The action is portrayed well and the plot has significant twists and turns to keep most readers attention. It's not the most inventive plot in the world but it has enough to be a decent standing point.

The novel isn't all perfect however, there are some areas that could use improving, as with most novels. Another round of editing and proofreading would solve the grammar and spelling mistakes that I spotting. There were not hundreds of them however there were enough to warrant me making a point of it. It would also rid the novel of some clumsy sentences, which can only be a good thing. I also spotted a loop hole where one of the characters kills a child of sixteen. The next page goes on to say how he has been considered an adult from fourteen. They are of the same race then this seems a bit strange to me.

My next issue was with the world building. The concept was fantastic and the small details that were the helped paint a lovely picture of the places the characters lived, however I believe, that the world could have been developed further. If you pardon the cliche, the devil really is in the detail and I like to know a lot about the places characters live. What is there is good but it needs more information and more development. This tendency to gloss over important details is evident in other parts of the novel too, I just feel that as I have invested time into reading the novel, time should also be invested in really bringing the world to life. It may come at the sacrifice of a bit of pace but most fantasy readers relish those details that transport them to another world. This is, after all, the reason we read them.

All in all, I enjoyed reading the novel and shall be following the author to see if she writes and more. It will be interesting to see where she takes this good start.

Follow the Stone (An Emmett Love Western) - John Locke

I have once again strayed into the realms of the Western for entertainment dear readers, this time from a recommendation by a friend who said this book was an easy read and even better, it was free. Free being the magical word in this time of austerity I decided to take her up on the offer and give it a go.

It wasn't a bad read either. I do enjoy a good Western and this novel isn't shy on that count. The details are all there and the characters all counted for - a cool gunslinger, a fiesty maiden and a bunch of whores, lets not forget the Indians and the cowboys either. Mix this up with an intricate setting and you've got yourself all you need for a Western novel. The characters are easily recognised and fairly simple too. There is no great need for understanding with this novel, the characters do what is expected of them and I feel this simplicity is part of the enjoyment I took. I knew I wasn't going to be reading a gret epic from the first page but this didn't put me off at all. I knew the hero was going to end up sleeping with at least one of the prostitutes during the journey and I knew there was going to be some form of change on his part too - that's what story is after all right?

The plot of the novel is somewhat predictable however and I found I could guess what was going to happen before the words appeared. Most of the time I would find this annoying however in this novel, because I knew what I was getting, I found it was a good thing. John Locke may be the first 'kindle millionnaire' but he hasn't written a great masterpiece nor shocked the world with beautifully crafted writting.

I liked this novel for all its simplicity and I didn't pay a penny for it which was nice - which is a good thing. If you want a simple easy throw-away read, this is the book for you. If you want some hardcore detailed writing with fast paced fights and gunslinging wizards, go and read The Dark Tower series... Until next time!!