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A Cast of Stones
(The Staff and the Sword #1)
An Epic Medieval Fantasy
In the backwater village of Callowford, Errol Stone's search for a drink is interrupted by a church messenger who arrives with urgent missives for the hermit priest in the hills. Desperate for coin, Errol volunteers to deliver them but soon finds himself hunted by deadly assassins. Forced to flee with the priest and a small band of travelers, Errol soon learns he's joined a quest that could change the fate of his kingdom.
Protected for millennia by the heirs of the first king, the kingdom's dynasty is near an end and a new king must be selected. As tension and danger mount, Errol must leave behind his drunkenness and grief, learn to fight, and come to know his God in order to survive a journey to discover his destiny.
Purchase
I received this book
through Netgalley for an honest review, and boy am I ever glad I did!!
Finally a high, medieval
fantasy - my favorite - that is told RIGHT, or rather SHOWN properly. A
character on a journey, personal and external, without the typical cliché of
the fantasy genre. Let’s dive right in.
Yummies: World building with an authentic feel.
Characters who nab your attention & empathy, refusing to loosen their hold.
Pacing. Action. Suspense & mystery.
The best part? The story
telling itself. Mr. Carr is a ‘show don’t tell’ master. He swept me up with
vivid visuals and kept me clicking the kindle late into the night because his
voice is active. Exciting. Every character & situation was portrayed with
indications (actions) of emotions / reactions rather than being told to us in
boring prose.
BRAVO!!
I loved too that there’s
no distinct villain. Yes, there are the ‘bad’ people / race, but Errol, the MC
faces personal struggles & constant threats on his life from unseen
sources, ones we can only guess at.
Perhaps I was too swept
up in Errol’s tale to nitpick plot issues & believability. Yes, for me it
was THAT good. The whole casting stones & reading has potential for
disaster in that believability issue, but Mr. Carr cleverly covered his bases
and thought this magic through.
Yummies: Um … none. Ok, well maybe that it’ll be way too
long until the next stinkin’ book comes out - The Hero's
Lot (The Staff and the Sword #2).
Recommend: Need I state the obvious? Best fantasy of 2013
IMO - other than my own Eye of the Soul (Pool of Souls #1) releasing in October of this year!! hehehe Yes I know it’s only
Jan, but I’m going to predict it right now. Given enough exposure, Mr. Carr
& his Cast of Stones is going to be a hit.
I’m his newest fan and
will do everything in my power as a fellow fantasy lover & author to help
promote his work. I hope you will too!
Author Patrick W. Carr
Patrick Carr was born on an Air Force base in West Germany at the height of the cold war. He has been told this was not his fault. As an Air Force brat, he experienced a change in locale every three years until his father retired to Tennessee. Patrick saw more of the world on his own through a varied and somewhat eclectic education and work history. He graduated from Georgia Tech in 1984 and has worked as a draftsman at a nuclear plant, did design work for the Air Force, worked for a printing company, and consulted as an engineer. Patrick’s day gig for the last five years has been teaching high school math in Nashville, TN. He currently makes his home in Nashville with his wonderfully patient wife, Mary, and four sons he thinks are amazing: Patrick, Connor, Daniel, and Ethan. Sometime in the future he would like to be a jazz pianist. Patrick thinks writing about himself in the third person is kind of weird.
Blog Tour Giveaway
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Ends 1/31/13
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Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareadernotawriter.blogspot.com and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
I totally agree with this review. The book as absolutely FANTASTIC! Best of 2013 (at least so far as I've read) hands down. ^_^
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with this review. This book was FANTASTIC! Best of 2013 (so far as I've read) hands down .^_^
ReplyDelete