Flames Of Mira by Clay Harmon
Aug. 6th, 2023 08:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
Born through life-threatening trials that bind chemical elements to the human body, Ig was forged in the boiling volcanoes under Mira’s frozen lands. One of the most powerful known elementals, he serves as an enforcer for Magnate Sorrelo Adriann, cursed with flesh-binding magic that will kill him at the first sign of disobedience.
When Sorrelo is overthrown, Ig quickly learns he can do far worse than what has been asked of him so far. If he can’t escape the flesh binding in time, Ig will have to kill friend and foe alike to stop his master reclaiming the throne, or sacrifice himself trying.
So far as the people of Augustin are concerned, Ig is the feared enforcer for their governor Sorrelo Adriann. Augustin is one of a number of territories within the kingdom of Mira. Each territory is ruled by a Magnate appointed by the Sovereign who is based in Saracosta. But not everyone in Mira is happy with the status quo and Sorrelo has been using Ig to publicly crack down on reformers who question and want to change the system by offering them the choice of a summary execution within the lava river that flows at the bottom of Augustin or in the frozen wastelands that stand at its top.
What no one knows is that Ig is no ordinary muscle. His childhood in the distant territory of Sulian Daw was cut short at the age of 12 when his parents sold him to the Ebonrock cultists who sought to bind children to various chemical elements through increasingly torturous rituals that carried a high death rate. Although the rituals gave Ig super human abilities (e.g. he can turn his flesh to stone, withstand extreme temperatures and even walk through matter), on discovering the cult’s true aims, Ig was so desperate to escape that he bound himself to Sorrelo through flesh magic. As a result, he is compelled to obey every command given to him by Sorrelo - failure to do so causes him terrible physical pain and ultimately his own death. Not even Sorrelo’s three children - the sharp and clever Sara (who plans to follow in her father’s footsteps), the more reform-minded Emil who had originally been an apprentice at the Foundry (a quasi religious order/guild whose members are, like Ig, bound to rhydium to give them powers over the same) before his father forced him to quit before he could complete his induction) or the youngest, Efadora (who is currently in the care of the Magnate of Manasus where she is seeking to become leader of a gang of criminals) know of Ig’s relationship or his true relationship with their father, and Sorrelo plans to keep things that way.
However as Sorrelo’s efforts to retain control become more vicious, the people become angrier and it isn’t long before a coup is launched that takes everyone by surprise. Sorrelo, Ig, Emil and Sara are only able to escape thanks to the help of master smith of the Foundry, Mateo who is keen to maintain the Foundry’s oath to stay loyal to the Sovereign’s Magnate. With Sorrelo keen to seek allies among the other Magnates to regain Augustin, the group must take to the pathways to reach the other territories. But it isn’t long before they realise that there is more going on than a mere coup, and Ig will discover that the terrible acts he’s already committed for his master are nothing compared to what will be required from him to regain Sorrelo’s and his family’s power and influence …
Clay Harmon’s fantasy novel (the first in THE RIFT WALKERS SERIES) has solid world building and the idea of Ig being literally compelled to obey a master, no matter how cruel or irrational is fully explored. However the writing is workmanlike at best and I never really connected with Ig’s angst at what he’s made to do, especially as he’s so emotionally immature and naive at times. It’s an okay read but I wouldn’t rush to check out the sequel.
I enjoyed the world building in Harmon’s book - the idea of a world divided into territories ruled by Magnates and governed by an out-of-touch but all powerful Sovereign may not be wholly original but it is well executed. I particularly liked the way Harmon introduces the Primordia (elementals with powers like Ig but vastly magnified) who criss-cross Mira notifying Magnates of the Sovereign’s commands and enforcing his will - there’s a lot of potential there that promises much for future books. The physical layout of the world, split between lower levels that are closest to the lava rivers that cross cross it and higher levels that lead to a cold, barren snowscape are also neatly done, particularly in the context of Augustin where the wealthiest live on the warmest levels.
I also enjoyed the way Harmon sets out his magic system, which basically sees people being bound to various elements in order to give them control over the same. He makes a great point of showing that this is not something everyone can do and that there is a high casualty rate among those who try for it - something that those administering the rituals for the various different factors are all indifferent to. Harmon also gets across the idea that having these powers doesn’t make you unbeatable - there are limits to what Ig can do and a price that he has to pay for using them.
However I found the characterisation in the book to be a little static and unconvincing. In the case of Ig, there’s an awful lot of angst there as he tries to rationalise and come to terms with the violent and unjust acts Sorrelo makes him commit. Harmon clearly wants to have some complexity for Ig as he tries to convince himself that he can guide and advise his master into better judgments but the way he never seems to learn when Sorrelo punishes him for his suggestions really began to irritate me after a while. I also never believed in Ig’s feelings towards Sara and surprise at what Sara does with that - the naivety doesn’t sit right with the experiences that he’s had and his constant credulity becomes more and more annoying.
There is a lot of promise in Sara and Efadora, both of whom dream of leadership and clearly have the cunning and drive for it but are held back by a subliminal patriarchal attitudes. Efadora held my interest more than Sara because she learns her lessons earlier on and although she lacks some agency within the story structure, there’s a suggestion that she’ll be a bigger player in the next books. Sara, in contrast loses some of her promise due to the relationship she develops with Rodi - a smuggler and criminal king pin who allies himself to her but at a cost that she’s initially slow to understand and then too quick to rationalise. It’s the type of relationship that, for me, had an unpleasant underlying sexism to it although I think Harmon’s trying to go for the notion that Sara’s ambition makes her over-estimate her actual control over events.
Ultimately, this was a perfectly okay read - I did keep turning the pages (notwithstanding my irritation at points) and the book ends with a set up for the sequel. The issue, for me, is that I don’t care enough about Ig, Sara or Efadora to rush to read that sequel and can take it or leave it.
The Verdict:
Clay Harmon’s fantasy novel (the first in THE RIFT WALKERS SERIES) has solid world building and the idea of Ig being literally compelled to obey a master, no matter how cruel or irrational is fully explored. However the writing is workmanlike at best and I never really connected with Ig’s angst at what he’s made to do, especially as he’s so emotionally immature and naive at times. It’s an okay read but I wouldn’t rush to check out the sequel.
Thanks to Rebellion Publishing for the review copy of this book.
Born through life-threatening trials that bind chemical elements to the human body, Ig was forged in the boiling volcanoes under Mira’s frozen lands. One of the most powerful known elementals, he serves as an enforcer for Magnate Sorrelo Adriann, cursed with flesh-binding magic that will kill him at the first sign of disobedience.
When Sorrelo is overthrown, Ig quickly learns he can do far worse than what has been asked of him so far. If he can’t escape the flesh binding in time, Ig will have to kill friend and foe alike to stop his master reclaiming the throne, or sacrifice himself trying.
So far as the people of Augustin are concerned, Ig is the feared enforcer for their governor Sorrelo Adriann. Augustin is one of a number of territories within the kingdom of Mira. Each territory is ruled by a Magnate appointed by the Sovereign who is based in Saracosta. But not everyone in Mira is happy with the status quo and Sorrelo has been using Ig to publicly crack down on reformers who question and want to change the system by offering them the choice of a summary execution within the lava river that flows at the bottom of Augustin or in the frozen wastelands that stand at its top.
What no one knows is that Ig is no ordinary muscle. His childhood in the distant territory of Sulian Daw was cut short at the age of 12 when his parents sold him to the Ebonrock cultists who sought to bind children to various chemical elements through increasingly torturous rituals that carried a high death rate. Although the rituals gave Ig super human abilities (e.g. he can turn his flesh to stone, withstand extreme temperatures and even walk through matter), on discovering the cult’s true aims, Ig was so desperate to escape that he bound himself to Sorrelo through flesh magic. As a result, he is compelled to obey every command given to him by Sorrelo - failure to do so causes him terrible physical pain and ultimately his own death. Not even Sorrelo’s three children - the sharp and clever Sara (who plans to follow in her father’s footsteps), the more reform-minded Emil who had originally been an apprentice at the Foundry (a quasi religious order/guild whose members are, like Ig, bound to rhydium to give them powers over the same) before his father forced him to quit before he could complete his induction) or the youngest, Efadora (who is currently in the care of the Magnate of Manasus where she is seeking to become leader of a gang of criminals) know of Ig’s relationship or his true relationship with their father, and Sorrelo plans to keep things that way.
However as Sorrelo’s efforts to retain control become more vicious, the people become angrier and it isn’t long before a coup is launched that takes everyone by surprise. Sorrelo, Ig, Emil and Sara are only able to escape thanks to the help of master smith of the Foundry, Mateo who is keen to maintain the Foundry’s oath to stay loyal to the Sovereign’s Magnate. With Sorrelo keen to seek allies among the other Magnates to regain Augustin, the group must take to the pathways to reach the other territories. But it isn’t long before they realise that there is more going on than a mere coup, and Ig will discover that the terrible acts he’s already committed for his master are nothing compared to what will be required from him to regain Sorrelo’s and his family’s power and influence …
Clay Harmon’s fantasy novel (the first in THE RIFT WALKERS SERIES) has solid world building and the idea of Ig being literally compelled to obey a master, no matter how cruel or irrational is fully explored. However the writing is workmanlike at best and I never really connected with Ig’s angst at what he’s made to do, especially as he’s so emotionally immature and naive at times. It’s an okay read but I wouldn’t rush to check out the sequel.
I enjoyed the world building in Harmon’s book - the idea of a world divided into territories ruled by Magnates and governed by an out-of-touch but all powerful Sovereign may not be wholly original but it is well executed. I particularly liked the way Harmon introduces the Primordia (elementals with powers like Ig but vastly magnified) who criss-cross Mira notifying Magnates of the Sovereign’s commands and enforcing his will - there’s a lot of potential there that promises much for future books. The physical layout of the world, split between lower levels that are closest to the lava rivers that cross cross it and higher levels that lead to a cold, barren snowscape are also neatly done, particularly in the context of Augustin where the wealthiest live on the warmest levels.
I also enjoyed the way Harmon sets out his magic system, which basically sees people being bound to various elements in order to give them control over the same. He makes a great point of showing that this is not something everyone can do and that there is a high casualty rate among those who try for it - something that those administering the rituals for the various different factors are all indifferent to. Harmon also gets across the idea that having these powers doesn’t make you unbeatable - there are limits to what Ig can do and a price that he has to pay for using them.
However I found the characterisation in the book to be a little static and unconvincing. In the case of Ig, there’s an awful lot of angst there as he tries to rationalise and come to terms with the violent and unjust acts Sorrelo makes him commit. Harmon clearly wants to have some complexity for Ig as he tries to convince himself that he can guide and advise his master into better judgments but the way he never seems to learn when Sorrelo punishes him for his suggestions really began to irritate me after a while. I also never believed in Ig’s feelings towards Sara and surprise at what Sara does with that - the naivety doesn’t sit right with the experiences that he’s had and his constant credulity becomes more and more annoying.
There is a lot of promise in Sara and Efadora, both of whom dream of leadership and clearly have the cunning and drive for it but are held back by a subliminal patriarchal attitudes. Efadora held my interest more than Sara because she learns her lessons earlier on and although she lacks some agency within the story structure, there’s a suggestion that she’ll be a bigger player in the next books. Sara, in contrast loses some of her promise due to the relationship she develops with Rodi - a smuggler and criminal king pin who allies himself to her but at a cost that she’s initially slow to understand and then too quick to rationalise. It’s the type of relationship that, for me, had an unpleasant underlying sexism to it although I think Harmon’s trying to go for the notion that Sara’s ambition makes her over-estimate her actual control over events.
Ultimately, this was a perfectly okay read - I did keep turning the pages (notwithstanding my irritation at points) and the book ends with a set up for the sequel. The issue, for me, is that I don’t care enough about Ig, Sara or Efadora to rush to read that sequel and can take it or leave it.
The Verdict:
Clay Harmon’s fantasy novel (the first in THE RIFT WALKERS SERIES) has solid world building and the idea of Ig being literally compelled to obey a master, no matter how cruel or irrational is fully explored. However the writing is workmanlike at best and I never really connected with Ig’s angst at what he’s made to do, especially as he’s so emotionally immature and naive at times. It’s an okay read but I wouldn’t rush to check out the sequel.
Thanks to Rebellion Publishing for the review copy of this book.
