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Elfhunter: A Tale Of Alterra, The World That Is ReviewElfhunter by C.S. Marks is the first novel in the A Tale of Alterra, the World That Is trilogy. The second book is titled; Fire-Heart: A Tale of Alterra, The World that Is with the third book being titled Ravenshade: A Tale of Alterra, The World that Is. Ms. Marks is a new author and as such, I wanted to give her a chance. It seems all to often with the plethora of fantasy books being released, that if an author does not have a major publishing house, with a large marketing campaign it is rare they will get noticed by most readers. Here are my thoughts on this novel.
The main plot of this book focuses on a mysterious `person' who is seeking to single-handedly rid the world of Alterra of elves. A small group takes up the search to find and stop this threat to the elven people. There are also several sub plots woven into the story. Sub plots such as the malevolent Wrothgar and just what his plans are, the relationships between the elven people, the requsite love angle, and a surprising point of view from that of the horses. To name a few. This novel is rich in story and provides a deep feel of not only the characters and their plight, but also the richness of the world and setting. This novel single-handedly takes the reader to almost all parts of the world and introduces many things. Though this novel is rich and detailed in terms of plot, it does suffer at times from a slowness. It's almost as though Ms. Marks is writing a play and has interludes between acts. Some of the plot points are more clichéd then I would have liked them to be as well. I am a firm believer that just because one author does something one way, does not mean all books that follow must follow the same path. Ms. Marks does create some new things in this novel, and the plot is solid and for the most part interesting.
The characters in this novel, and there are many characters, are more clichéd than the plot. I can accept small clichéd elements in a plot, or small clichéd elements in characters, but I get frustrated when there are both in one novel. Some of the characters that you can expect to read about are Gaelen, Nelwyn, Gorgon, Orogond, Galador, and Eros. I will say this right away, one of my favorite characters in the novel was Eros. What a fun character with so much complexity, and he's a horse! I will even say I may have enjoyed his scenes the most. Ms. Marks shows a deftness of getting into the head of a loyal steed and just what he will do to stay by his master. There are times in the novel that I felt Gaelen and Nelwyn blended together and I had a little trouble trying to remember who was who. Also, in regards to the characters themselves, at times the dialogue didn't seem natural. I didn't have the sense that the characters all had unique voices, and at times there as too much dialogue. I would have preferred the story explaining things naturally to me, versus having the characters point things out. Gorgon, the main villain in this novel, is a solid character and adds a needed element to the story. He is just sadistic enough to be believable and one of those villains that you both hate, but root for in the same breath. While for the most part the characters are solid, I was not completely sold on all of them all of the time.
A couple minor criticisms about this novel:
1 - In the acknowledgement section of the book, Ms. Marks notes that this book is inspired by Tolkien's Lord of the Ring trilogy. While this is the case for many fantasy authors, I would have liked to see this novel at more of a distance from Tolkien's work. Forging more of a name for itself, than following in footsteps.
2 - The way the dialogue is presented served as a distraction for me. It's hard to truly convey what I mean, but it is noted at the start of the book how it will be presented. It didn't work well for me and as such detracted from some of my enjoyment of the book.
3 - Lastly, it almost seemed as though this book explored too much of the world in one shot. Since this is a trilogy, there was plenty of time to touch on other areas of the land. At times the breakneck speed pulls away from the story because it leaves the reader wondering where are we going next, versus what is going to happen next. A subtle paradigm shift, but it was there.
Some positives about this novel:
1 - Have I mentioned the horses yet? I really can't say enough how much I enjoyed these scenes. Being in the head of a loyal mount, who is also a bit stubborn and mischievous is not only a change of pace from most fantasy novels, but a welcome one at that.
2 - The little things. Most authors focus the majority of their energy on the major things in a novel. It is quite evident that Ms. Marks also focused on the little things as well. Such as the horses, but also with things like history of the realm, that elves have an affinity for honey and can get drunk off it. Those little details, and many more, are what give the world its own uniqueness.
3 - The believability of a good solid villain. I have read some fantasy novels that make the villain too mean thereby making the villain not believable. In this novel, Gorgon's actions and motivations make sense for who he is. For me, he added quite a bit to the story.
Overall, this is a decent first novel by Ms. Marks. There was a mixture of things I really liked as well as a few things that I would have liked to have seen done differently. For a first time author, Ms. Marks does an admirable job of weaving a complex story. The similarities to this novel and the Tolkien novels, was at times too blatant for me though. Fans of Tolkiens novels may enjoy this novel quite a bit. Fantasy fans who may not be such big fans of Tolkien may want to do a little more research on this novel before embarking on the journey. While I was not blown away by this novel, I did enjoy it and will certainly be reading the next installment. I could also see this novel being appreciated by a younger audience as well. Such as the twelve to fifteen age type of reader who doesn't have the jaded view of fantasy that many well read fantasy fans seem to develop over time. All in all a solid effort.
Elfhunter: A Tale Of Alterra, The World That Is OverviewElfhunter is the first of the tales of Alterra, the World that Is. It concerns the quest of an unlikely pair of heroines, Gaelen and Nelwyn, who are Wood-elves of the Greatwood Forest. They are hunter-scouts in the realm of King Ri-Aruin, and they have sworn to protect their woodland home, but they are drawn into a quest to defend all the Elves of Alterra as they seek to destroy the ?Elfhunter?, a monstrous entity intent on exterminating the Elves until none remain. Along the way, Gaelen and Nelwyn are joined by other interesting characters as they make their way through the realms of Alterra in pursuit of the Elfhunter, whose true name is ?Gorgon?. What headstrong Gaelen and her gentle cousin do not know is that Gorgon is in league with the Dark Power, and that the forces of Evil have forged an entanglement between Gorgon and Gaelen herself. Now she and all she loves are in jeopardy, and only an inspired plan put forth by Orogond, a mortal man, can save her.
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