SleepbyStephenKing

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

Friday, 9 August 2013

Dwarves, Dragons, and Danger with James Enge (#bookreview)

Posted on 02:09 by Unknown


In this first book of his Morlock Ambrosius origin story, James Enge provides us with a 'classic' epic fantasy tale, centered around the clash between dwarves and dragons, augmented with a little alternative history, a story of parallel worlds, and a really interesting take on the Arthurian legends. It's an odd mix of storytelling elements, but A Guile of Dragons works quite well, despite a few awkward passages.



The opening chapters certainly felt a bit rushed, as if Enge were impatient to have Ambrosius grow up, without getting into the whole coming-of-age storytelling mess. Don't get me wrong, there are some authors who have done the coming-of-age thing well (Tad Williams immediately comes to mind), but all too often it feels like padding, so I'm not disappointed that Enge passed it by.



Fortunately, once we get outside the city and meet back up with Earno, the man responsible for Merlin's exile, the story really begins to pick up. There's a subtle antagonism between the two men that you can feel, and enough conflicted loyalties on both sides to really add some tension to the tale. Neither are particularly likable as protagonists, which does present a bit of a challenge - especially when the dwarves so often steal the show - but they're interesting, and admirable in their own way.



It's with the first appearance of the dragons, however, that Enge completely won me over.


The dragons broke through the clouds in groups of three, casting distorted shadows behind them by their own light. There were perhaps a dozen groups. Most of them soared steeply out of the range of sight, but three dragons flew directly to the windows of the High Hall of the East. One roosted directly before the windows (the mountain shook beneath them) and peered within: smoke and fire trailing from his jaws, his bright scales shedding red light at their edges, his slotted eyes as red and gold as molten metal.

It seems as if dragons have become somewhat passé in recent years, as gritty realism and militaristic tales have come to dominate much of the market, so it was refreshing to encounter real dragons again - intelligent, greedy, treasure-seeking, malevolent creatures, full of magic and fire. Add to that the idea of a guile, of a collared dragon claiming mastery over a group of its kin, herding them and marshaling them into a sort of army, and you've got one hell of a great story.



The writing is crisp, and flows well; the battle scenes are played out beautifully; and the characters are both complex and engaging. A Guile of Dragons isn't a particularly deep fantasy tale, although I can sense a great story waiting to be told. Perhaps readers already familiar with the character will find more nuances to the tale than I, but it's still more than adequate as an introduction to Ambrosius' world, and strong enough to make me want to read Wrath-Bearing Tree, the second book of A Tournament of Shadows.





Published August 24th 2012 by Pyr

Paperback, 280 pages
Email ThisBlogThis!Share to XShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest
Posted in book review, epic fantasy, James Enge, suvudu | No comments
Newer Post Older Post Home

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • Blake Crouch Creeps Me Out and Intrigues Me With Pines (#bookreview)
    Damn, but it's been a very long time since a book sucked me in as quickly, and as deeply, as Pines did. I originally picked this up a f...
  • EXPLORATION: Schoellkopf Power Station (Part 1 - The Approach)
    The Schoellkopf Power Station is one of those almost mythical locations that have obsessed me since my early childhood days. Every time we d...
  • The Human Condition by John Grover (eBook Review)
    Book 2 of the Song of the Ancestors , The Human Condition , is another strong effort from John Grover that doesn't quite live up to the...
  • Black Feathers by Joseph D'Lacey (REVIEW)
    For a book in which very little actually happens in terms of plot development,  Black Feathers  was a fantastic read. It's the story of ...
  • Sweat by Mark Gilleo (REVIEW)
    With its heady mix of corporate wrongdoings, political scandals, family betrayals, blackmail, and murder, Sweat is a slow-burning thriller ...
  • Spook House by Michael West (REVIEW)
    Harmony, Indiana is to Michael West what Castle Rock, Maine is to Stephen King. It's a beautiful little all-American town, populated by ...
  • Dwarves, Dragons, and Danger with James Enge (#bookreview)
    In this first book of his  Morlock Ambrosius origin story,  James Enge  provides us with a 'classic' epic fantasy tale, centered ar...
  • The Hunter's Rede by F.T. McKinstry (REVIEW)
    Despite my fears that the promise of the cover blurb might be too good to be true, The Hunter's Rede turned out to be one of those old-...
  • S is for Scourge of the Betrayer . . . and Steel Panther (#AtoZChallenge)
    The A to Z Challenge  is a daily meme posting every day (except Sundays) in April. Check out the list of 1500+ participants below and follow...
  • Sharing a Sense of Desolation with Travis Simmons (#bookreview #giveaway)
    While it wasn't necessarily a bad book, there were so many little issues with Desolation that I really had trouble enjoying it. On the ...

Categories

  • "Waiting On" Wednesday (14)
  • #TuesDecay (8)
  • A to Z Challenge (25)
  • adventure (19)
  • Angry Robot (3)
  • archaeology (10)
  • atheism (1)
  • awards (2)
  • B.R. Kingsolver (1)
  • bdsm (2)
  • Ben Bova (1)
  • Bentley Little (1)
  • bizarro (13)
  • Blake Crouch (1)
  • book review (143)
  • book review-DA (16)
  • book review-SB (2)
  • Brandon Sanderson (4)
  • Brian Lumley (2)
  • Call for submissions (2)
  • Cameron Pierce (1)
  • Carlton Mellick III (2)
  • censorship (1)
  • charity (1)
  • Charles Stross (1)
  • Clive Barker (4)
  • Clive Cussler (1)
  • comic books (3)
  • contest (2)
  • conventions (2)
  • cover reveal (5)
  • Daniel H. Wilson (2)
  • David L. Golemon (3)
  • David S. Goyer (1)
  • David Wellington (1)
  • deals and freebies (4)
  • Dean Koontz (1)
  • Doctor Who (1)
  • Douglas Preston (2)
  • Edward Lee (3)
  • epic fantasy (37)
  • Ernest Cline (1)
  • erotica (6)
  • fantasy (92)
  • fiction (3)
  • Follow Friday (40)
  • freebies (10)
  • ghost (2)
  • giveaway (33)
  • Gothic romance (1)
  • guest post (37)
  • Guy Gavriel Kay (5)
  • haunted (4)
  • historical fantasy (11)
  • horror (113)
  • humour (13)
  • Ian C. Esslemont (1)
  • In My Mailbox (4)
  • Insecure Writer's Support Group (6)
  • interview (20)
  • Jacqueline Carey (1)
  • James Enge (1)
  • James Maxey (1)
  • James Rollins (2)
  • Jeff Salyards (2)
  • John Grover (3)
  • Jonathan Strahan (2)
  • Joseph Devon (1)
  • Julie E Czerneda (1)
  • Kate Locke (1)
  • Kevin J. Anderson (1)
  • Kevin L. Donihe (1)
  • Larry Correia (1)
  • Launch Day (1)
  • Layton Gree (1)
  • Lee Battersby (3)
  • lgbt (4)
  • Lincoln Child (2)
  • Mailbox Monday (11)
  • Mark Lawrence (2)
  • Matt Forbeck (1)
  • Melanie Rawn (2)
  • Mercedes Lackey (1)
  • Michael J. Sullivan (2)
  • Michael West (5)
  • Monday Morning Musings (5)
  • mystery (8)
  • Neal Stephenson (1)
  • Nicholson Baker (1)
  • nonfiction (4)
  • origins (1)
  • paranormal romance (2)
  • Paul Kemp (1)
  • Peter V Brett (3)
  • photo exploration (8)
  • Pip Ballantine (3)
  • poetry (2)
  • post-apocalyptic (14)
  • pricing (1)
  • promo (2)
  • publishing (1)
  • Raymond E. Feist (3)
  • Richard Laymon (2)
  • Richard Matheson (1)
  • Robert J. Sawyer (1)
  • Robert Jordan (2)
  • Robin Hobb (2)
  • romance (2)
  • Rowena Cory Daniells (10)
  • Schoellkopf Power Station (2)
  • sci-fi (93)
  • Secondhand Sunday (2)
  • Sergey Dyachenko (1)
  • Seventh Star Press (6)
  • Solitaire Parke (1)
  • Stacking The Shelves (27)
  • Star Trek (1)
  • Star Wars (1)
  • steampunk (8)
  • Stephen Baxter (2)
  • Stephen King (6)
  • Steven Erikson (3)
  • Steven Shrewsbury (1)
  • Storm Moon Press (1)
  • superheroes (6)
  • suvudu (4)
  • T. Aaron Payton (1)
  • Taylor Anderson (1)
  • Tee Morris (2)
  • Terry Pratchett (2)
  • TGIF (25)
  • thriller (58)
  • Tim Lebbon (1)
  • Tom Knox (1)
  • Tom Lloyd (1)
  • Top Ten Tuesday (1)
  • tour-BBT (9)
  • tour-BTS (4)
  • tour-DMB (2)
  • tour-FRP (4)
  • tour-IOBT (4)
  • tour-JPR (1)
  • tour-Nurture (2)
  • tour-PIC (4)
  • tour-PUMP (5)
  • tour-TCM (1)
  • tour-TLC (1)
  • tour-VBT (7)
  • Tracy Hickman (1)
  • Twisted Tinsel Tales (9)
  • Tyr Kieran (1)
  • urban fantasy (32)
  • vampires (23)
  • Waiting On Wednesday (62)
  • werewolves (1)
  • What Are You Reading? (19)
  • zombies (8)

Blog Archive

  • ▼  2013 (217)
    • ▼  August (7)
      • Blake Crouch Creeps Me Out and Intrigues Me With P...
      • Dwarves, Dragons, and Danger with James Enge (#boo...
      • The Residents of this Town Eat Zombies for Lunch b...
      • IWSG - Revisions, Restorations, and Reactions
      • Waiting on Wednesday - The Worlds of Edgar Rice Bu...
      • What Readers Really Need by David Wellington (Auth...
      • Stacking The Shelves & What I'm Reading
    • ►  July (24)
    • ►  June (29)
    • ►  May (25)
    • ►  April (47)
    • ►  March (29)
    • ►  February (25)
    • ►  January (31)
  • ►  2012 (283)
    • ►  December (35)
    • ►  November (28)
    • ►  October (22)
    • ►  September (24)
    • ►  August (28)
    • ►  July (21)
    • ►  June (23)
    • ►  May (24)
    • ►  April (23)
    • ►  March (20)
    • ►  February (26)
    • ►  January (9)
Powered by Blogger.

About Me

Unknown
View my complete profile