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A review by cableguy13
The Fell Sword by Miles Cameron
3.0
Some brilliant sections, dampened by several uninteresting characters and scenarios.
Miles Cameron knows how to write battle scenes. Any time groups of characters come together in a clash of arms, the writing is great. Everyone's position is kept in the reader's eye, and you can sense the danger and the excitement.
Even away from action, there many interesting things going on. The Red Knight (AKA the duke, the megas ducas, Gabriel, the captain... some characters have too many names to remember) is trying to save an emperor and an empire at the same time, while dealing with various infringes, as well as a powerful Mage in his head.
Unfortunately not every plotline is given the attention it deserves, and some are given much more than they deserve. Jean de Vrealliy (AKA the Galle, the Captal, another characters cousin) and his cohorts are sowing seeds of discontent in and around Harndon, killing people and harassing the queen. 'Seeds' is key here, as we see the beginnings of the dispute, and hear of the problems, however it isn't until very late that we really see the issues directly. Showing us the disputes rather than having us hear about it as a report to another character would make it more engaging. On the other hand, characters like Bill Redmede, the Black Knight and Ota Qwan (AKA Peter) are given large sections of print, but their storylines are irrelevant to the immediate plot, and only at the very end is their connection to the overall plot (of the series, that is) made apparent. Before that, however, they are fairly tedious sections of little interest.
Cameron again brings a lot of authenticity to this book, in a way that mostly helps but slightly hinders. He knows what all the types of armour are called, and has no hesitation in referring to it as such. However an inexperienced reader may not know what he is talking about, and can make things a bit confusing sometimes.
Looking forward to the next book. As the overall story is now coming into focus, it will be easier to read certain characters and see their relevance.
Miles Cameron knows how to write battle scenes. Any time groups of characters come together in a clash of arms, the writing is great. Everyone's position is kept in the reader's eye, and you can sense the danger and the excitement.
Even away from action, there many interesting things going on. The Red Knight (AKA the duke, the megas ducas, Gabriel, the captain... some characters have too many names to remember) is trying to save an emperor and an empire at the same time, while dealing with various infringes, as well as a powerful Mage in his head.
Unfortunately not every plotline is given the attention it deserves, and some are given much more than they deserve. Jean de Vrealliy (AKA the Galle, the Captal, another characters cousin) and his cohorts are sowing seeds of discontent in and around Harndon, killing people and harassing the queen. 'Seeds' is key here, as we see the beginnings of the dispute, and hear of the problems, however it isn't until very late that we really see the issues directly. Showing us the disputes rather than having us hear about it as a report to another character would make it more engaging. On the other hand, characters like Bill Redmede, the Black Knight and Ota Qwan (AKA Peter) are given large sections of print, but their storylines are irrelevant to the immediate plot, and only at the very end is their connection to the overall plot (of the series, that is) made apparent. Before that, however, they are fairly tedious sections of little interest.
Cameron again brings a lot of authenticity to this book, in a way that mostly helps but slightly hinders. He knows what all the types of armour are called, and has no hesitation in referring to it as such. However an inexperienced reader may not know what he is talking about, and can make things a bit confusing sometimes.
Looking forward to the next book. As the overall story is now coming into focus, it will be easier to read certain characters and see their relevance.