Action, Fantasy, Reviews

The Eagle and The Dove – a Review

2 Comments

From The Girl with the Fire in Her Hair by Robert Victor Mills

Part 5 of a 6-Part Series by

“You have not retched for the metal of hot blood in your mouth, nor revolted at the mud and gore brimming your boots to the knee, nor been deafened with the mewling of new-murdered men while hedged in the thickest press!”

 

The opening premises of this 5th tale included in The Girl with the Fire in Her Hair are quite intriguing as we read on…

 

PLOT:

Rugosto, Ealdorman of Oltisa finds himself challenged to a duel by Baron Wulfiolo over a matter of honor. Since he cannot walk due to war injuries, and cannot stand , the law allows him to pick a champion to fight on his behalf. Things get complicated since that same law requires the chosen champion to be a family member. Rugosto only has one daughter, just barely 18 years old and no combat skills: Celesta.

But what Celesta lacks in physical prowess she makes up for with courage and intelligence. She seeks the help of Royhe and her power of conviction is here in full display: 

“Most mortal of weapons, a woman’s tears, to the heart of a true man. For against that soft stiletto of feminine woe can be raised no shield, nor any armour ward the chivalrous breast from the plunge of so delicate a blade.”

 

As it goes, Celesta pleads with Royhe to teach her sword fighting, since she is the only next of kin who can fight for Rugosto, her father. Naturally Royhe thinks this madness, considering that she is but a small young lady with no experience with the sword, whereas the Baron is a seasoned soldier but most importantly, a man with twice her size and strength!

ASTROPHO AGAIN:

So if you guess that Astropho will be the one to save the day yet again, you guessed right! But what I loved about this is how the author is able to create a sense of anticipation regarding how the cunning bard will be able to solve this conundrum. To let young Celeste fight would surely mean her death, yet by law only a relative could fight for the challenger, if the latter is injured or disabled.

CLOSING REMARKS:

This is thus far one of my favorite tales in the book. The specific circumstances in which our heroes find themselves require more than brawn to get resolved. Particularly considering that neither Rohye nor Astropho are willing to break the law in order to help Rugosto and Celeste. The end result was brilliant and left me smiling. 

This is how you write NEW LEGENDS!

🦀

 

Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Scout’s Honor by Henry Vogel

4 Comments

A Review

David Rice is a “Terran Scout” who crash lands on a world colonized long ago, then left to develop on its own.  The Scout falls right into a feudal conflict as well as  some palace intrigue, and it’s off to the races.

The characters barely get a chance to breathe. because the  action is almost non-stop. The reader may want for breathing room, too, because every chapter I remember ends with a cliffhanger.

If this sounds like retro-pulp, well, it is. Specifically, it conforms to a genre called “sword & planet.”  However you felt about John Carter’s adventures on Mars, that’s probably how you’ll feel about Scout’s Honor. The manuscript could be taken back to the 1930s, each chapter used as an episode to be published in multiple issues of a pulp periodical, and nobody would be the wiser. You’ll find that the character development and the romance simulates what came off Edgar Rice Burroughs’ typewriter as well.

When Rice (coincidence? I think not) lands on this planet, a beautiful princess and her bodyguard are under attack.  He comes to their aid, and not too much later he pledges his life-long support to the princess. This guy must have been a recruiter’s wet dream. But he’s not doomed to rot away from jealousy as the princess dallies with and/or marries somebody else, because she falls in insta-love with him, too. Luckily for them both, nobody has much of a problem with foreigners of non-noble blood merging into the royal line, either.

This would be a good read for children and young adults who can handle long-form fiction. Adults looking for a few hours of escape should appreciate it, too.

Reviews, Steampunk

Bound for the Styx by Bonsart Bokel

2 Comments

A Review by

~She couldn’t help but sob. There were bleeding cuts all over her hands, and the dodo’s beak had scratched her cheeks. Her dress was all dirty and covered in dust. Her pretty hat was all bent and riddled with peck marks. As tears started to flow, she pulled Anwin from her pouch.~

 

I’ve gotta be honest, when I was first introduced to Igraine Mortuba in Book 1 (A Wrench in The Machine) I was not completely  sold on her character. She  came off as an ungrateful little brat, especially toward Ol’ Barrow, who saved her life on more than one occasion. But in Book 2 her charm and spontaneity are quickly winning me over. This is one of the two main reasons why I think Bound for The Styx is yet another solid publication by author/youtuber Bonsart Bokel.

PLOT:

Even if you haven’t read Book 1, Book 2 can be followed without any previous knowledge of events. Basically it’s an account of Igraine’s journey to Arkology as told by Igraine herself to former inspector and now RFA member Mr. Ol’ Barrow.

Due to needing new implants to survive the ongoing ‘decay’ the body goes through when traveling over multiverses, the Association of Ishtar sends Igraine to Arkology, on Elysium, where she can get this unique procedure done. Little does she know that in exchange, she will have to undertake a mission on behalf of the Founder, who rules Arkology. Joined by a group of resourceful scavs (Cheff, Cutter, Breach, Cabby, and Neir), Igraine has no choice but to delay her return home and get involved in the local affairs of Arkology.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND/IGRAINE IN ARKOLOGY:

What I really like about this story is that I see a parallel with classic childrens’ tale Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, albeit in a steampunk setting. Our Igraine is a seemingly timid yet resourceful young girl thrown into a world where nothing seems to function as in her own world, and where the ‘unconventional’ becomes the norm. 

And just like the classic Lewis Carroll children’s tale, Bound for the Styx could have had all the potential to become a new and original classic for all ages (more on that later). Igraine’s French accent, with her “Oui” and “Non” exclamations and gentle demeanor really serve as the finishing touches on a character that both children and adults could easily feel drawn to.

PACE:

The pace feels at times a little slow but if you consider what Bokel is trying to create here, it is quite understandable. This is not just about telling one story but rather about adding another piece to the world of multiverses of the Association of Ishtar. 

 

ARKOLOGY:

After reading about Elysium in Bokel’s graphic novel-Journey to Elysium-we finally find out what this body revolving around the moon is all about. Elysium is basically this massive satellite structure with life and civilization within it. Its capital is Arkology, and this is where Igraine finds herself right now. The place is like the Wild West, where only the strong survive, and where different social classes fight in the struggle for dominance.

CLOSING REMARKS:

The only negative remark has to do with some of the sexual content. I was really hoping that the author would have kept this rated PG all the way, but by adding those sexually-charged scenes, this automatically turns into a 14-and-over rated book. I understand that it’s the author’s personal choice, but like I said before many times, what we need today is more content that is appropriate for all ages while getting both children and adults fired up for more. 

Think about Lord of the Rings; 3 books, not one single sex scene or even profanity, and yet people of all ages love it today as much as ever. You can still have love stories develop, that is not what I’m inferring at all. Yet no current author has been able to pull that off, and that’s exactly the type of content we so dearly need, or at least that I personally hope to see.

Other than that, the story is fun, the world building is as always compelling, and the characters all memorable!

🦀

Action, Fantasy, Reviews

ISLANDS OF LOAR: Rebellion

Leave a comment

by Ernie Laurence, Jr.

Reviewed by

“What we do after, where we go from here when we have won, that is going to depend more on folks like you than we blowhards up at the Hall.  You will all have to dig deep and find the will to rebuild.  To become stronger.”

 

If you’re curious to know why I decided to go on and review book 3 of this series, the answer is simple: why not?

This entire world created by Laurence is exactly what readers of all ages deserve at this time. With modern media entertainment becoming more ‘progressive’ and deranged, it is refreshing to find content that the whole family can enjoy together again. Disney, Netflix, and the other big networks at this point no longer care about creativity and good content, so if you finally got the memo and realized that it’s now the time to seek good, wholesome storytelling elsewhere, there is no better place to start than at the Islands of Loar!

If you’ve missed our previous two reviews go back and check them out:

Sundered

Causality

If you haven’t, join us on this third ride into ‘fantasy done the right way’!

PLOT/CHARACTERS: 

In Book 2, we saw how Doogan took charge of the island of Bethairia, and along with bard/ best friend Serah and the other characters we got to know throughout Books 1 and 2, created an organization called the Restorationist League. The League includes some of the most powerful and resilient beings, from elves, to dwarves, to fairies, and men and women skilled in the arts of battle, hunting, and magic. It is without saying that this will obviously cause tension with the Council, led by Doogan’s father, Lord Riftwind. A conflict of interests will certainly be inevitable over the issue of the bards.

Remember that Islands of Loar is known for featuring a multitude of characters moving about many different stages where the action takes place. It’s important that the reader keeps tabs and stays FOCUSED! I counted in total approximately 7 stages with 7 different groups of characters. But there might be more! It can be challenging but it is also fun and much rewarding! This is not Disney’s The Acolyte, after all.

THIS IS WAR:

As Loar seems to undergo civil turmoil, with persecution of the bards by the Council of Wind, and the League standing up for their rights, an alien invasion of the Xenotaur is unfolding. The Xenotaur, previously believed to be just another form of Aberration, turn out to be aliens, and their sheer numbers alone prove to make them an unstoppable force.

Unlike in the previous books where we’ve seen scattered fights here and there with the Xenotaur invaders, in book 3 things escalate to full-blown war. Feats of bravery and courage are in full display, and all the forces of Loar are tested to their limits.

The battle scenes are massive. The loss of lives, a cold harsh reality of war.

 

NOBODY’S SAFE:

Unlike other franchises of this kind, where powerful beings use both super strength and magic to fight their battles, here in Loar death is real and death is blind. I think frankly that’s a great way to keep the reader invested. No matter how powerful or central a character may seem, he/she could be the next victim to be claimed by the ongoing conflict. This is something that instills an added sense of humanity to these super-beings. We hold our breath every time danger is upon them because frankly the author has already shown us that nobody is safe indeed!

MAGIC MEETS HIGH-TECH:

We were already introduced to the high-tech flying ship and golem of Optrinicus in Book 2, but in Book 3 these really take center stage as I was hoping and expecting. This creates a very exciting universe where you have both the power of magic at display but also the advanced technology applied to ships, space suits, and other cool gadgets. The enemy is powerful and every weapon available must be used to deter them!

 

CLOSING REMARKS:

I think perhaps at a subconscious level I decided to read and review Book 3 in face of the grim reality of the current fantasy genre content that mainstream media is promoting. With abominations like Prime’s Rings of Power or Disney’s Star Wars, Islands of Loar is a strong reminder that it’s time to accept the idea that good content does exist, we just gotta know where to look to find it. Laurence is an extremely smart individual and understands how to create a world that can be easily accessible to audiences of all ages, yet without ultimately presenting a dull product. When was the last time a franchise was able to appeal to both children and adults equally? Maybe The Hobbit comes to mind. But what about new content? Where is the new content that can get dad, mom, son, and daughter equally excited about?

It’s right here. And it’s found on the Islands of Loar!

Action, Adventure, Espionage, Historical, Sci-Fi, Socio-Sexual Studies, Speculative, Sports, TEOTWAWKI

Behold the Based Book Bargains Blast

Leave a comment

As mentioned before, the latest novel in the Paradox Series was released in time for Father’s Day.

If you haven’t heard of the Paradox Series yet, it’s a time travel sports adventure that begins as a coming-of-age tale in the first novel and climaxes as a wild conspiracy thriller in Book Six (coming in a couple few months). Themes of manhood/masculinity, leadership, and truth vs. popular perception run through the entire course of the overarching plot.

I’m happy to report that all five books in the series so far have been category bestsellers. Five for five is batting really well. Even though I’d still like to stretch the envelope of success, I didn’t even imagine the series would do this well back when I decided to break up the Super Great American Mega-Novel.

More important to you is that right now, you’ve still got a little time to pick up the entire series (plus the entire Retreads Series) at 99 cents per full-length novel. This is not just  on Amazon, but all the online stores with E-Books for sale (linked throughout this post, along with the ‘Zon series pages).

My books, plus dozens more, are all heavily discounted at the Summer Based Book Sale. As always, there are more books by more authors than the previous sale.

 

Non-woke authors are providing alternatives to the ubiquitous Globohomo narratives that are disgusting you and targeting your children. We all want an escape in our entertainment. Consider buying it from people who don’t hate you.

Sadly for you, the sale ends Wednesday morning.

Action, Fantasy

The Couplet in the Rhyme – a Review

2 Comments

Part 4 of a 6-Part Series by

~“Ah, Rhoye of Khetaine!” said he. “In arts of iron and steel you are the unequalled master, the man of swords. But here we have an affair of the heart. Such is the province of a poet, a man of words.”~

 

This must be the shortest and most light-hearted tale from the Wandered Lands we’ve read so far. Forget the epic battles, fight scenes, or dramatic events; this time we visit the world of romance and poetry, thus you can already guess our favorite bard Astropho is once again at the center of the action.

 

PLOT

As our two companions Rohye and Astropho are sitting at a tavern of a fishing town they’re passing through, a young fella approaches Astropho seeking his aid in a matter of the heart. He explains that he wants to master Astropho’s poetic skills to gain the heart of the girl he is in love with but that unfortunately has been set up to marry another man by consent from her father.

Without giving any spoilers, Astropho has another plan to bring together the young man and his beloved…But not through poetry!

POEMS

Every chapter here begins with a song/poem by Astropho. These are love poems that some might want to read while others will prefer to skip over. They really don’t aid the plot or are by no means indispensable to further enlighten us on the unfolding events. They’re just a nice bonus, no more no less.

 

CONCLUSION

As this was a very short tale, so is its review.

It seems like the author here wanted to explore a more laid back, humorous setting. Astropho is our MC while Rohye is just happy to sip on his drink and smirk at his friend’s schemes to help two young lovers be united.

This is a somewhat drastic departure from what we’ve been used to, but even warriors sometimes need to take a step back and enjoy a drink…or two!

Adventure, Reviews, TRENDS DIE OUT; LEGENDS LIVE ON

SHE by H. Rider Haggard – a Review

7 Comments

TRENDS DIE OUT/LEGENDS LIVE ON

Reviewed by

SHE is arguably the best adventure/exploration story ever written…But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. What this really is about is a soul-searching/mind-bending LEGEND disguised as the former. Haggard has set the standards so high that no other book, movie, game, or AI generated content can ever surpass what Haggard has been able to project in the mind of the reader via his written words.

Haggard raised the standards of adventure/mystery narrative to heights that to this day have not been matched, and most likely never will. Haggard redefined what can be done with the genre. I feel spoiled but also humbled, being able to read, study, and review his body of work.

PLOT:

What we read here is the memoir of main character Horace Holly. When Leo Vincey was still a toddler, his biological father (and Holly’s only real friend) reveals a dark secret to Holly just before he dies of a disease he contracted on a trip to Central Africa. As a result, Holly assumes guardianship of Leo (who was 5 at the time) along with his  family wealth and a suitcase for Leo only to open on his 25th birthday.

Without spoiling things too much, the contents of that suitcase will see Holly and Leo travel to a mythological civilization named Kôr, in Central Africa.

Holly’s memoir is an account of that voyage.

 

ADVENTURE/PERILS/HARDSHIP:

This is where Haggard really pushes the envelope of what can be achieved in what we would call the ‘Indiana Jones’ adventure genre. The path to Kôr is dangerous and life-altering. The scene of the storm while they’re at sea (chapter 4) is probably the most gripping scene of its kind. Out of a crew of about 20 only 4 make it to shore. Once they reach land our protagonists will have to deal with the harsh elements of the region, its animal kingdom (witness the most brutal fight between lion and alligator in chapter 5!), and a local tribe of flesh-eaters who adopt the most sadistic ritual called ‘hot-potting’ to kill their victims before they eat them (it seems like the human body dying in fear and pain tastes better to them!)

And this is just the beginning!

FEMALE VILLAIN:

Another bar that Haggard manages to set very high is that of the female villain character. Today’s writers for the most part fail miserably at capturing what should really define a female villain. Here is where we get introduced to Ayesha who is simply known as She or She-who-must-be-obeyed, as the locals call her.

Ayesha is mysterious, evil, scary…But also beautiful, irresistible, wise beyond any mortal, and truthful. Her beauty is so otherworldly that she has to wrap herself in thin white veils. As Holly writes in his memo: “The truth is veiled, because we could no more look upon her glory than we can upon the sun. It would destroy us.”

KÔR:

Haggard is very detailed with the geographical account of this lost nation called Kôr. Located north of the Zambezi river and once a very advanced civilization, it was eventually decimated by a plague. The few who survived fled and eventually funded what we know as Ancient Egypt. All the cities of Kôr were abandoned, including the enormous cave system they had created. Only a few scattered tribes eventually settled in the area but never dared to go near the cities for fear of the ghosts of those who died by the plague. About 400 B.C. Ayesha (who seems to be from the line of Ishmael) moved to the area and made her kingdom out of the caves, whereby she ruled the local tribes through fear and terror ever since.

 

CLOSING REMARKS:

Is this an action/adventure story? Yes and no.

This is a psychological and spiritual masterpiece disguised as an action/adventure book. It pushes the boundaries of how a finite human mind would handle the interaction with a god-like creature of infinite beauty and wisdom. How much could the human psychic take before snapping? Ayesha interacting with Holly and Leo is comparable to trying to pour a gallon of water into a 16-ounce cup. Too much beauty, too much knowledge, too much wisdom. As Holly himself puts it: “No man who once had seen She unveiled, and heard the music of her voice, and drunk in the bitter wisdom of her words, would willingly give up the sight for a whole sea of placid joys.”

This deals harshly with the finite limitations of the human psyche. Today we live in a society where the self is exalted. The worship of the self is probably the most widespread ‘religion’ in the West. I am strong, I am brave, I can accomplish anything! But reality is, man is puny and the human mind has limitations.

 

Before closing, I’ll leave you with this excerpt from Holly’s memoir, and please go read SHE!

 

“Who would so load up his back with memories of lost hours and loves, and of his neighbour’s sorrows that he cannot lessen, and wisdom that brings not consolation?”

Adventure, Sci-Fi, Sports, Time Travel

Books for Sons Without Dads

7 Comments

If you’re like me, you barely notice when Father’s Day comes around. A good wife will remind you, and maybe do something nice for you on that day, otherwise, we’d probably never know.

So many men today grew up without fathers—sometimes literally. For those of us who were fortunate enough to know ours, quite often we saw our fathers only sporadically as part of a custody arrangement. Even before our parents’ divorces, our fathers were physically absent often, and emotionally absent otherwise. They weren’t all that interested in us once we were no longer cute little toddlers—if they even were then.

Then we felt guilty if they ever made an effort to take an interest in us for a little while, because by then we knew they had a lot to do that was far more important than us.

Beyond that, some fathers were abusive, in one way or another.

There’s a whole generation of us out here now, trying to behave differently than our own fathers did, and giving our kids the advantages we never had. If you’re like me, even though all that is behind you and you’re doing the best you can with the cards you were dealt, you often reflect on your younger years and wonder if you might have made better decisions had you enjoyed the benefit of a dad who tried to prepare you for what life had in store.

Before I first began writing Paradox, I wanted to tell a fun men’s adventure tale that involved time travel. Then, while the idea germinated, I couldn’t help speculating on some “what if”s:

When I was a young man, what if I knew  what I know now? What if I had a role model to clue me in on life, so I didn’t have to learn everything the hard way? What could I have accomplished if even a few of my ignorant decisions were never made?

In Book One of the Paradox Series, our hero is just about to enter puberty, going through life like many of us did at that age, with no dad, assuming that our single mothers and the culture at large were guiding us competently on the path to manhood. And doomed to a series of failures, defeats, bewilderment and disillusionment over how nothing works the way we were told it would.

Our hero encounters a mysterious uncle who begins to turn his life onto a new path right away. Out of all the advantages this new role model provides, perhaps the most valuable is the wisdom of how to deal with other people in general, and females in particular.

Paradox follows the hero from his pre-teen years into his late 20s. There are four books in the series published so far. The fifth one releases on Father’s Day (Sunday 6/16/24). Of the reviews these books have received so far, the consensus is that they’re full of wisdom that boys and men need, but mostly, they’re fun.

Check ‘em out!

Book 1: Escaping Fate

Book 2: Rebooting Fate

Book 3: Defying Fate

Book 4: Provoking Fate

Book 5: Resisting Fate

Historical, Reviews, TRENDS DIE OUT; LEGENDS LIVE ON

Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc

2 Comments

By Mark Twain

TRENDS DIE OUT/LEGENDS LIVE ON

Reviewed by

In my humble opinion, this is the second ‘most quotable’ book in existence after the Holy Bible. Written by the author that was nicknamed ‘the father of American literature’-Samuel Langhorne Clemens, aka Mark Twain, this masterpiece has a very special place in my heart for different reasons.

 

ME AND JOAN:

If you’ve followed me on social media for any amount of time, or even if you have randomly bumped into any of my posts, you might have noticed that I often bring up the character of Joan of Arc. That’s because the Maid of Orleans has a very special place in my heart, mind, and soul. I don’t want to get too esoteric but I’ve had Joan appear to me in dreams often or sometimes she will pop into my mind at the most unexpected times. Surely this is the result of the magnitude of impact she has had on my life. I feel a bond and connection that bypass time and space. There is no other character other than Jesus Christ that has influenced me to such an extent. Her life and death move me and inspire me daily.

 

WITCH OR SAINT?

There’s always been a lot of controversy around the image of Joan of Arc. Some revere her as a messenger of God and she is upheld and embraced by Catholicism at large. Others think that she was a witch or at best just a country girl with a mental disorder. Whatever your stand might be in that regard, her character and her story comprise what TRUE LEGENDS are made of.

I’m not Catholic, Mark Twain was not Catholic, yet both of us have been drawn to her character in love, awe, and reverence.

And there’s a reason why many others who are not of French nationality or of the Catholic faith love her and respect her so much. When you get to know the undisputed facts of her life story-including the heinous way in which she was tried, convicted, and executed…how could you not?

PLOT:

The story in Personal Recollections is told from the perspective of Joan of Arc’s paige, Louis de Contes. He was one of the closest people to Joan, from her childhood to her becoming commander-in-chief of the French army. He was witness to her upbringing from an uneducated farm girl in a small town of France to leading her country to freedom. Louis de Contes was always by her side first as a childhood friend, then as her paige. And this is his account of what he witnessed during those years. He recalls these events as an old man looking back, and the emotions are quite palpable through the lines so magnificently written by Mark Twain.

Though some events are fictionalized they don’t depart too far from the essence that was Joan of Arc and her life events. Mark Twain was very clear on not altering the elements that mattered most.

 

The book is structured into three main parts:

 

Part 1: In Domremy

Part 2: In Court and Camp

Part 3: Trial and Martyrdom

 

This is a labor of love and hard work, for it took Mark Twain 12 years of research and writing to bring it to completion.

CHARACTERS:

What makes this story so rich is the fact that not only you have such a magnetic character as Joan herself, but a series of side characters so rich in personality that entire books could be written about them: from the Fairy Tree to her childhood friends; from Joan’s siblings to the people at court and the giant bodyguard known as the Dwarf. These are all rich characters that don’t just stand around to take up space but prove to be of fundamental importance to the plot. Some of them are funny (Paladin, the standard bearer) and some of them are despicable (the king’s counselors). Mark Twain is a master at creating stories within a story.

 

CLOSING REMARKS:

Mark Twain wrote some of the greatest pieces of American literature (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer; Adventure of Huckleberry Finn) and yet even he himself went on record to say that Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc was his best book. And it is!

 

Ask yourself this: why would an acclaimed American writer such as Twain take interest in a French national hero and saint of the Catholic Church? Twain himself grew up in a Southern culture that was openly hostile to Roman Catholicism.

The answer is very simple: Joan of Arc.

Joan of Arc is more than just a national hero to the French or a saint to the Roman Catholic Church. She is everything that is good, wholesome, truthful, godly. But also mysterious, enigmatic, peculiar, at times weird even… and that’s why we LOVE her!

 

“She was truthful when lying was the common speech of men.

She was honest when honesty had become a lost virtue.

She was a keeper of promises when the keeping of a promise was expected of no one.”

 

This shouldn’t be just the next book on your TBR list, my friends. This is the textbook every family should keep next to the Holy Bible. This is the book parents should read to their children. This is the book that you want to have always around to go back and rediscover over and over again. Its wisdom, humor, drama, adventures, and holiness are to be praised till the end of days.

~ Never Forget~

🦀

Action, Fantasy, Reviews

The Giant’s Purse – a Review

5 Comments

By Robert Victor Mills

Part 3 of a 6-Part Review Series by

~“Have you much experience in the fistic disciplines?” “A little,” said Rhoye, never one for vaunt. 

“Oh,” said Vica, crestfallen. “This may prove short.” “Aye, that it may.”~

 

The third tale in this collection once again finds Rohye accompanied by best friend and poet Astropho. It seems as though this joining of forces has been paying good dividends in the last few tales and the interactions of these two main characters is always fun and engaging.

 

PLOT:

This time our power duo finds itself crossing the river on a boat named the Chrysomal on their way to the city of Altamantia, after Avaya (an Assayer of Khelydos the God of Trade) asked them to deliver a miniature box of engraved rosewood to the High Marshall of the Great Temple of Erishala, from whom they would of course receive a generous recompense.

Other travelers and supporting characters will cross paths with our heroes on the boat, including a champion boxer whose name is well known for being undefeated in the region.

After the big burly fighter seemingly recognizes Astropho and accuses him of ‘stealing his woman’, it is to be expected that a fight will take place to ‘right a wrong’.

What happens next? Pick up a copy of The Girl with the Fire in Her Hair and find out!

THOUGHTS:

I thought overall this was a solid Wandered Lands tale, but I was left with a few questions unanswered. Whether that was intentional of the author I can’t say.

  1. Did Astropho indeed steal the woman of this other man? Even though we know by now that Astropho really ‘admires’ the opposite sex, he never comes off as the immoral type that would aid in adultery, at least not based on his code of ethics we’ve seen on display in the past.
  2. What was in the miniature box they were tasked to deliver? We never find out, which I found kind of odd. This seemed to have great importance and was entrusted to Astropho with the most regard.  Maybe this will be revealed in a later adventure? Or perhaps Mills decided to leave his audience hanging? No idea!

 

CONCLUSIONS:

The Giant’s Purse is another entertaining tale from the Wandered Lands with an awesome fistfight for the ages and exquisite prose that flows delightfully. However, I must add that it left me with a little feeling of dissatisfaction, hindsight. Something felt incomplete or perhaps somewhat ‘rushed’. If this was intentionally done, fine. Not all stories are supposed to offer all the explanations we expect, and perhaps some things are best left to the imagination!

🦀

Red-Blooded American Men Examine Pop-Culture and the World