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Book Back - My Views - Others Views
Im not the sort of person who dismisses a novel just because it isn't my normal sort of book as Im a firm believer that anyone that manages to get published must be alotted a certain amount of talent due to the fact that they made it.Having picked this novel up in the first place and having never heard of the author I did with a little trepidation give it a go and half expected to put it down after about half an hour and the first couple of chapters. This however wasn't the case. After picking it up the authors talent to display the character traits was carefully balanced alongside the exploration of the world using Raule as our gentle introduction. Both of the lead characters within the first few pages managed to exhibit traits that will either make you a Raule fan or a Gwynn fan with both having a different enough character to show how they wouldn't normally blend but during times of war how the two could manage a companionship and comraderie. This said the author had an immense task ahead, coming in as new blood and having to slog it out with the more established authors of the genre she had to produce something special and it was the characters interactions and managing to hold to thier own beliefs that sold the novel in the end to me as I felt that this author was trying to explore a new territory to make thier work different enough from the norm of this genre. The question though is : Is this novel one that will become a classic and thus one that would become a must read for all fans of the genre? As a debut author she offers something special in not only the way the tale was carefully crafted, but also in the way the characters interacted with each other. This tale carried certain traits reminicient of other authors such as China Mievilles metropolitan landscape in Perdido Street and also Jeff VanderMeers Ambergris tales. For her love of her trade and the sheer artistic descriptive prose that parade throughout the novel, the whole power of the tale keeps the reader gripped and makes this a debut that I believe you just can't miss. If you've loved works by authors such as Mieville, Irvine, Erikson and even VanderMeer then this is a book that will have pride and place on your shelf and one that will be read a large number of times.
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Fleeing the ghosts of their violent past, two former revolutionaries - the roguish, rakish Gwynn and the taciturn Raule - escape from the ruined and desert Copper Country to the tropical city of Ashamoil. As they salvage new lives from the rubble of the old, they discover that the ghosts of the past are also the ghosts of the future.