The Copper Promise by Jen Williams
Mar. 16th, 2014 11:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
There are some far-fetched rumours about the caverns beneath the Citadel.
Some say the mages left their most dangerous secrets hidden there; others, that they hold great riches; even that gods have been imprisoned in its darkest depths.
For Lord Frith, the caverns hold the key to his vengeance. Against all the odds, he has survived torture and lived to see his home and his family taken from him … and now someone is going to pay. For Wydrin of Crosshaven and her faithful companion Sir Sebastian Caverson, a quest to the Citadel is just another job. There’s the promise of gold and adventure. Who knows, they might even have a decent tale or two once they’re done.
But sometimes there is truth in rumour. Sometimes it pays to listen. Soon this reckless trio will become the last line of defence against a hungry, restless terror that wants to tear the world apart.
And they’re not even getting paid.
Lord Frith wants revenge. Demon worshippers have stolen his ancestral home, murdered his family and tortured him to find their treasure. Friends helped him to escape but not before he was maimed and crippled. He hires mercenaries Wydrin “the Copper Cat” of Crosshaven (a rogue) and Sir Sebastian Caverson (a disgraced former Knight of Ynnsmouth) to help him break into the Citadel of Krete. Created by mages to trap ancient gods, the Citadel’s supposed to be home to treasures and artefacts beyond imagination although no one who’s entered has ever emerged to talk of them. The trio discover though that the Citadel is also home to something else, something more powerful and evil than they could possibly imagine. And they’ve just let it loose …
Jen Williams’s debut fantasy novel is a sword and sorcery romp that attempts to invert the traditional stereotypes of the rogue, the mage and the paladin albeit (for me) to limited effect. The main issue for me is that all three main characters are essentially driven by self-interest, which makes it difficult to empathise with them. This is, I think, partly the point – they are not setting out to be heroes – but much of the book turns on their collective refusal to sort out the mess that they’ve created (although Sebastian does eventually step up to the plate). The protagonists’ story is by the numbers and there were no real surprises with any of the plot twists as each one tied so obviously to the resolution of the story. More interesting for me were the scenes told from the viewpoint of the dragon’s brood and their growing self-awareness and I wished that there had been more of this because the lightness of touch here was missing from much of the rest of the book. The book leaves open the potential for a sequel, which I have to say I wouldn’t rush to read, although I would check out Williams’s other work.
I didn’t take to any of the three characters. Frith is selfish and vengeful, Wydrin selfish and selfish and Sebastian selfish and moody. Wydrin’s supposed to be the comic relief but for me her dialogue was flat with punchlines telegraphed. Much is made of Sebastian’s big dark secret that’s obvious from the first page it’s highlighted.
Ultimately, this just didn’t do it for me and as such I probably wouldn’t read a sequel.
The Verdict:
Jen Williams’s debut fantasy novel is a sword and sorcery romp that attempts to invert the traditional stereotypes of the rogue, the mage and the paladin albeit (for me) to limited effect. The main issue for me is that all three main characters are essentially driven by self-interest, which makes it difficult to empathise with them. This is, I think, partly the point – they are not setting out to be heroes – but much of the book turns on their collective refusal to sort out the mess that they’ve created (although Sebastian does eventually step up to the plate). The protagonists’ story is by the numbers and there were no real surprises with any of the plot twists as each one tied so obviously to the resolution of the story. More interesting for me were the scenes told from the viewpoint of the dragon’s brood and their growing self-awareness and I wished that there had been more of this because the lightness of touch here was missing from much of the rest of the book. The book leaves open the potential for a sequel, which I have to say I wouldn’t rush to read, although I would check out Williams’s other work.
THE COPPER PROMISE was released in the United Kingdom on 13th February 2014. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the free copy of this book.
Some say the mages left their most dangerous secrets hidden there; others, that they hold great riches; even that gods have been imprisoned in its darkest depths.
For Lord Frith, the caverns hold the key to his vengeance. Against all the odds, he has survived torture and lived to see his home and his family taken from him … and now someone is going to pay. For Wydrin of Crosshaven and her faithful companion Sir Sebastian Caverson, a quest to the Citadel is just another job. There’s the promise of gold and adventure. Who knows, they might even have a decent tale or two once they’re done.
But sometimes there is truth in rumour. Sometimes it pays to listen. Soon this reckless trio will become the last line of defence against a hungry, restless terror that wants to tear the world apart.
And they’re not even getting paid.
Lord Frith wants revenge. Demon worshippers have stolen his ancestral home, murdered his family and tortured him to find their treasure. Friends helped him to escape but not before he was maimed and crippled. He hires mercenaries Wydrin “the Copper Cat” of Crosshaven (a rogue) and Sir Sebastian Caverson (a disgraced former Knight of Ynnsmouth) to help him break into the Citadel of Krete. Created by mages to trap ancient gods, the Citadel’s supposed to be home to treasures and artefacts beyond imagination although no one who’s entered has ever emerged to talk of them. The trio discover though that the Citadel is also home to something else, something more powerful and evil than they could possibly imagine. And they’ve just let it loose …
Jen Williams’s debut fantasy novel is a sword and sorcery romp that attempts to invert the traditional stereotypes of the rogue, the mage and the paladin albeit (for me) to limited effect. The main issue for me is that all three main characters are essentially driven by self-interest, which makes it difficult to empathise with them. This is, I think, partly the point – they are not setting out to be heroes – but much of the book turns on their collective refusal to sort out the mess that they’ve created (although Sebastian does eventually step up to the plate). The protagonists’ story is by the numbers and there were no real surprises with any of the plot twists as each one tied so obviously to the resolution of the story. More interesting for me were the scenes told from the viewpoint of the dragon’s brood and their growing self-awareness and I wished that there had been more of this because the lightness of touch here was missing from much of the rest of the book. The book leaves open the potential for a sequel, which I have to say I wouldn’t rush to read, although I would check out Williams’s other work.
I didn’t take to any of the three characters. Frith is selfish and vengeful, Wydrin selfish and selfish and Sebastian selfish and moody. Wydrin’s supposed to be the comic relief but for me her dialogue was flat with punchlines telegraphed. Much is made of Sebastian’s big dark secret that’s obvious from the first page it’s highlighted.
Ultimately, this just didn’t do it for me and as such I probably wouldn’t read a sequel.
The Verdict:
Jen Williams’s debut fantasy novel is a sword and sorcery romp that attempts to invert the traditional stereotypes of the rogue, the mage and the paladin albeit (for me) to limited effect. The main issue for me is that all three main characters are essentially driven by self-interest, which makes it difficult to empathise with them. This is, I think, partly the point – they are not setting out to be heroes – but much of the book turns on their collective refusal to sort out the mess that they’ve created (although Sebastian does eventually step up to the plate). The protagonists’ story is by the numbers and there were no real surprises with any of the plot twists as each one tied so obviously to the resolution of the story. More interesting for me were the scenes told from the viewpoint of the dragon’s brood and their growing self-awareness and I wished that there had been more of this because the lightness of touch here was missing from much of the rest of the book. The book leaves open the potential for a sequel, which I have to say I wouldn’t rush to read, although I would check out Williams’s other work.
THE COPPER PROMISE was released in the United Kingdom on 13th February 2014. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the free copy of this book.
