Shadows and Relics
This is the closest thing to a five-star book I have read in a long time. I didn’t give it five stars for it does have a few tiny flaws but think of it as a for and three quarter stars book.
The central character is immediately relatable, engaging, and appealing. This is a person with style ability and smarts who moves seamlessly between the supernatural world and the mundane. Better still the character has a complete life with favorite places, friends, and vices,
The secondary characters are all fully drawn and have real substantial life of their own, with jobs and desires all too understandable whether the reader is talented or simply mortal.
The antagonists and there are a few are for the most part equally drawn and have depth not usually found in fantasy. The supernatural opponents are challenging and capable without being so powerful they become cartoons. That is almost all of them are.
The failure comes with the principal villain, too hastily built and calling on too many tropes to have any real vibrancy. This character’s motivation and methods are pretty common to many sub-genres and hurt what is otherwise a fantastic book.
And, much as I am loath to say it, I can even forgive the introduction of a demon. Now I simply cannot stand demons or angels, they distract from any story they are inserted in and seldom offer any interest as well as being completely unbelievable. Yes, I know this is a fantasy and so reality is hardly a mainstay, but even fantasy should have some boundary.
It certainly helps that the demon is pretty charming and slyly seductive and very open to deals of an unconventional manner giving a more earthy flavor to the sulfur and brimstone. So, with grave misgivings, I’ll say this demon doesn’t slow or ruin the story.
And it, the novel, is way too short. I was just getting up steam when I hit the end. I had to scramble to get my hands on the next books so I can tell you to run straight out and get this book, cause I am one book ahead of you. (And I plan to stay that way.)
