My review
A book this is of fantasy and curses, where reality is far and fairly askew.
A tale set in the magical land of the druid (Calem), dragon slayer (Niena), and the General grandfather (Marny), modified and manipulated by the fae (Oberon).
The story goes thus, hear me well and hear me loud.
It is convoluted and winded when read, but oh so easy, when said aloud…
Calem wants to protect his wife from the curse, so strikes a bargain with Oberon, but it crumbles and he finds himself in the strange land. Niena who wants to be a bard, is held in Fairhome by Oberon to protect her from the dragon, but running away, she finds herself in the land of the sleeping-now-awake dragon, and the grandfather Marny who wants to protect everyone from the dragon and kill it, is leading his band of warriors to the same land.
And a secret unfolds and a battle ensues, those who reach the end have their fates unfurled.
Lonely is the path the last of their kind is on, but the first is hidden in the air unseen.
The lattice on which the story is built is extremely wondrous, the vines which curl around it as the chords of the characters grow into the saga that is part lyrical, part illusion, and part redemption.
A fabric of time is cleaved in an attempt to make things right, the future and the past both merge to defeat a common foe and lift the curse.
The future is fluid so the past undulating, Oberon as the Controller sees both the paths. He chooses the one which helps the blood of his own, but the magic has tears which leads to faults in the crevices.
All cannot be controlled, all cannot be changed.
Some have to follow the path destined.
A book where the words do not flow but the wisps of the tale emanate from the pages, like the mists, twirling and swirling, joining together, dancing to tell the tale which Reeves has written. The fog which envelopes the book together is dense at times, but allows the lore to seep through. The writing though difficult and different at time, allows the parable to jump across.
A piped piper never was seen, as Reeves who plays the flute unseen
Deep into the forest, deep in the land, the sleeping dragon soon arisen
The music of the mists were like tiny creatures that hopped and jumped, asking me to follow them deep into the hidden, and I couldn’t help but join the folklore.
An easier a language, this book would have been fabulous for the teenagers too… But patience is needed to understand the prose and tread between them to visualise the world created by the author Stephen Reeves. The path is rocky, the winds are choppy, the lines have to be navigated slowly, solving the puzzle as one goes…
A different a book never has been, nary a fairy tale ever been seen,
The story which ends is the beginning too, the girl with family ends being lonely too
My rating : 3.5 stars
About the Author
Stephen Reeves was born in 1980 in Huntsville, Alabama but grew up in a small community just on the edge called Madison. His writing career began during a boring math class in college and has blossomed over the last couple of decades into something decidedly not boring. His works have been published in numerous zines including the Blotter, the Chantwood, Yellow Chair Review, and the Writers Drawer. Stephen has also reviewed books for Oxford University Press, including Michael Newtons Victorian Fairy Tales. Curses of Scale is his debut novel, written over the course of four years in the inspirational country of Switzerland, where he now resides with his wife, two cats and an obsessive Pomeranian.
Book blurb
Sixteen-year-old Niena wants nothing more than to attend an elite bardic college, but when the dragon that shattered the empire awakens again she finds herself on the run, through the fey realm of Fairhome, to the city where she was born. On her trail are her army veteran grandfather, thrown into a commander’s role he doesn’t want, the lord of the fairies, trying to steer her to his own ends, and the husband she won’t meet for fifteen years. If she kills the dragon, she’ll save everyone she holds dear. But if she kills the dragon, she’s cursed instead to become it.
Product Details
Publication date : 15th November, 2017
Publisher : Riversong Books
Language : English
Available on Amazon
51 Responses
Nice
Thank you
I’m really not that into fantasy . . . But I’ll give this a try once I’m older!😀😄
Great review, Shalini!😊
A lot older, the writing is extremely difficult and very very different… It is a clean fairy tale. But
Isn’t it too imaginary.
??? What does that mean??
Hmmm I meant is it Harry Potter kind of book.
Something like that… But a differently worded English
I red your review ‘teenagers would have Njoyed if the language was a bit simple’. Not exactly these words but you ment something like that
Yes… This is not for the average English speaking reader. It is a very different and difficult book to read
Hahaha…. Then the book is definitely not for me….
😊
Evening, soooo what is your next read.????
Nothing
Why so??
I don’t read all the time 24*7
I take breaks too
Ohhh cool. Have a good time then.
Haha ya I have a novel in hand but not reading.
I think you need a break???
Haha I keep on taking breaks always
Which novel are you trying to read
Something known as buried
Something known as buried I am not trying to read. I just have a novel in my hand
Buried….. Sounds interesting … Is it a thrill
I also thought, neither a thriller nor romance
How’s your writing coming along
So boring huh.
Very slow… Not boring… Just slow
Don’t ask about it I am struggling to write priority 8
Why strugglling
I have no time. I have to post it on Monday.
Ooooh so you have to write instead of chatting with me
Haha not struggling with time exactly just not able write.
Can I help??
Sure but how can you
Mail me if you want
I have to write it to mail it.
Hahaha… You have to write mail, write chapter, write your teaching notes
Its hard to explain, wait I will mail you
Ok
I sent you a mail
I replied
OK I have seen it. And replied too
I know
Reblogged this on Die Erste Eslarner Zeitung – Aus und über Eslarn, sowie die bayerisch-tschechische Region!.
Thanks Michael
Wow
Thank you so much. Sometimes one word is enough encouragement.