Author: Michael J. Sullivan
Publisher: Orbit (1st Edition)
Genre: Fantasy
Book Description:
Publication Date: November 23, 2011
THEY KILLED THE KING. THEY
PINNED IT ON TWO MEN. THEY CHOSE POORLY.
Royce Melborn, a skilled thief, and his mercenary partner, Hadrian Blackwater,
make a profitable living carrying out dangerous assignments for conspiring
nobles--until they are hired to pilfer a famed sword. What appears to be just a
simple job finds them framed for the murder of the king and trapped in a
conspiracy that uncovers a plot far greater than the mere overthrow of a tiny
kingdom.
Can a self-serving thief and an idealistic swordsman survive long enough to unravel the first part of an ancient mystery that has toppled kings and destroyed empires in order to keep a secret too terrible for the world to know?
Can a self-serving thief and an idealistic swordsman survive long enough to unravel the first part of an ancient mystery that has toppled kings and destroyed empires in order to keep a secret too terrible for the world to know?
Review:
There is a new author that has found a spot on a special bookcase in my
office (or at least will as soon as I order a printed edition – one I hope
comes signed); a series of four shelves that hold my all-time favorites. Such authors that have made this shelf are
J.K. Rowling, Garth Nix, Cinda Chima Williams, Christopher Paolini, Rick Riordan,
Stephen King, Ursula K. Leguin, Piers Anthony, Charlaine Harris, Jane Austen,
Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson, R.T. Kaelin, Anthony Ryan and D.J.
MacHale. His name is Michael J. Sullivan, and I
absolutely fell in love with his Riyria series. Well, more to the truth, I fell
in love with the two protagonists, Hadrian Blackwater and Royce Melborn. These two make me think of a young Garth and
Hub from the movie Second Hand Lions – they both argue about everything, but
when working together surmount impossible odds.
It didn’t take but perhaps a half of a chapter before I was absolutely
hooked. The chemistry between Hadrian
and Royce was illustrated so elaborately and simply, I couldn’t help but
instantly draw a clear picture of them in my mind. I was plucked out of my mundane twenty-first
century existence and dropped right into the center of a middle-age fantasy
saga. Yet, Sullivan didn’t go to the King
or Jordan extremes with dumping me into the center of several paragraphs of description. He kept it active, yet colored the scenes in
beautifully, allowing my mind to smooth out the edges, which in my opinion is
the mark of a true literary artist.
The story starts with two thieves, doing what they do best – thievery. Well, actually the story starts off with two
thieves on their way to do thievery when they are ambushed by a band of common thieves. The brilliance of dialogue and character
development were poured out by the barrel full in this opening scene, as
Hadrian and Royce not only argued with one another while being held-up by arrow
and knife-point, but then proceeded to chastise their assailants in the proper procedures
of highway robbery, to the point that not only did their accosters stop their
attempt to rob them, but aided them on their way, more particularly when they
found out the two people they were
trying to rob were the infamous Riyria.
Needless to say, the thieves were successful in their midnight raid,
brought back their spoils and divided their profits to all in their little
network. Here we get to meet some minor
characters, some that play bigger parts later in the story.
With a job well done, and their storehouse filled, and a decision made
to live easy for the upcoming winter, an unexpected and urgent job plops into
their laps. Going against their own set
of thief rules (beware of things that sound too good to be true and don’t thoroughly
examine the job), they accept a job to steal a sword in order to save a man
from dying in a duel for simply ‘looking’ at another’s man wife. This dueler
was a man of renowned reputation for being an excellent swordsman, and placed
much value and superstition onto a particular sword. With the offer of a hundred gold coins before
and after the theft, the boys found they couldn’t resist, even if they
disagreed through the whole consideration.
Once they’ve accepted the job, everything from this point forward goes
haywire: they are set up and accused of
killing the king, are imprisoned to face horrible torture and beheading as
decreed by the crown prince, yet aided by the princess to kidnap the prince (to
save his life), escape with him, and journey to a secret prison to release a
five-hundred year old wizard. What is
amazing about this whole journey is that Hadrian and Royce treat each of these
exciting adventures as if it were just another day and another job. Throughout the whole adventure, their comic relief
comes at just the right moments. The
story on the whole is not too heavy, too dark and too on edge, but quite
balanced with a little of it all. I didn’t want to stop reading. I wanted to lock myself away and close the
door to the world around me, and become completely immersed in this fantasy
world.
The rest of the story includes a couple of great battles, a little
magic, a lot of religious persecution, a contest, an evil serpent, a sword, a
tower, a conspiracy and a people who not only need, but can’t survive without
Hadrian and Royce’s involvement, aided by the elusive wizard Esrahaddon.
I loved every minute of this story.
I have my own speculations of what is to come, but I won’t share them
here. In fact, I’m so excited about
reading the next installment I’m going to end this review. I highly recommend this book and this
author. This makes the third writer I’ve
met recently that has really impressed me, and their stories have moved
me.
Till next time,
~T.L. Gray
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