Review by Firedrake -- Roan by E. R. Barr
Posted: 31 Dec 2017, 12:32
[Following is a volunteer review of "Roan" by E. R. Barr.]
4 out of 4 stars
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Mythology and legend come to life in Roan: The Tales of Conor Archer, a beautiful coming-of-age tale that evokes magic while set firmly in our own modern world. This is a story with a broad appeal, and is likely to interest both young adult and adult readers, especially urban fantasy fans and lovers of Celtic culture and mythology.
Conor Archer is a seventeen-year-old from Chicago with a love for playing Celtic music. When a stranger bites his hand and tells him to go to the Wisconsin town of Tinker’s Grove for healing, he finds an entire town devoted to keeping a strange secret: the mystery of the ‘dark ones’, who are children with dark hair, dark eyes, and strange abilities.
Conor’s appearance in town is the catalyst for a set of changes, including the opening of a genetic laboratory funded by the area’s scheming business mogul; the rising of strange beings from an Indian mound who claim kinship with Conor; and the stirring of an ancient and terrible river monster whose evil begins to affect everyone in the town. Supported by the Abbot of the local monastery, his Aunt Emily, and new friends Jace and Beth, Conor discovers that he has a destiny – one that he does not want. But a threat to the town’s children leaves Conor to make a choice: accept who and what he is, or allow evil to overtake Tinker’s Grove, and perhaps even the rest of the world.
I thought this book was both captivating and well-written, and so I give it four out of four stars. Strong characterization, an intriguing plot, and the magic of the writing as well as the magic in the story carried me through what is quite a long book. However, there is no real fat to trim; it flows well and reads quickly, and all the scenes have a reason for their inclusion. The characters are well-realized and have strengths, flaws, and depth. Even the minor characters have complexity, sketched quickly but not carelessly by the author’s deft use of words. The style is reminiscent of an Irish tale, though it never skirts close enough to the archaic to trouble the modern reader. Instead, the writing adds to the atmosphere, invoking a sense of the mysterious without being pretentious.
The substance of myth and legend in a contemporary world transforms what could be an ordinary teen tale into a powerful saga. And in fact, the main theme of this book is transformation. Conor and his friends are transforming into adults; Conor is transforming into something greater than human; villains are transforming themselves through application of joined magic and science; even ordinary reality is transforming as magic bridges the gap between one world and another.
There were a few things I did not enjoy as much. Several of the characters in the story act in very frustrating ways. This isn’t really a flaw in the book so much as it is a difference between what I enjoy and what they author writes, but I could have wished that all the teenagers were not as stubborn as they were, nor many of the adults as fatalistic. I could also have wished that the plot did not rely as heavily on characters not giving information to others – it can be frustrating to a reader if the plot relies too much on miscommunication. However, as the question of what characters are and aren’t told – and why they aren’t told – is addressed in the story, it is probably more of a difference between the author and myself rather than a true flaw.
There were also a few scattered editorial issues, most of which were punctuation errors. These were very minor, and there were no grammatical errors that I noticed, and only one usage error. As there were only a few, I didn’t feel that these issues were significant enough to warrant losing a star in the rating.
The book leaves room for expansion into a sequel or a series, and I have high hopes that the author will soon produce another in this fascinating world.
******
Roan
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Mythology and legend come to life in Roan: The Tales of Conor Archer, a beautiful coming-of-age tale that evokes magic while set firmly in our own modern world. This is a story with a broad appeal, and is likely to interest both young adult and adult readers, especially urban fantasy fans and lovers of Celtic culture and mythology.
Conor Archer is a seventeen-year-old from Chicago with a love for playing Celtic music. When a stranger bites his hand and tells him to go to the Wisconsin town of Tinker’s Grove for healing, he finds an entire town devoted to keeping a strange secret: the mystery of the ‘dark ones’, who are children with dark hair, dark eyes, and strange abilities.
Conor’s appearance in town is the catalyst for a set of changes, including the opening of a genetic laboratory funded by the area’s scheming business mogul; the rising of strange beings from an Indian mound who claim kinship with Conor; and the stirring of an ancient and terrible river monster whose evil begins to affect everyone in the town. Supported by the Abbot of the local monastery, his Aunt Emily, and new friends Jace and Beth, Conor discovers that he has a destiny – one that he does not want. But a threat to the town’s children leaves Conor to make a choice: accept who and what he is, or allow evil to overtake Tinker’s Grove, and perhaps even the rest of the world.
I thought this book was both captivating and well-written, and so I give it four out of four stars. Strong characterization, an intriguing plot, and the magic of the writing as well as the magic in the story carried me through what is quite a long book. However, there is no real fat to trim; it flows well and reads quickly, and all the scenes have a reason for their inclusion. The characters are well-realized and have strengths, flaws, and depth. Even the minor characters have complexity, sketched quickly but not carelessly by the author’s deft use of words. The style is reminiscent of an Irish tale, though it never skirts close enough to the archaic to trouble the modern reader. Instead, the writing adds to the atmosphere, invoking a sense of the mysterious without being pretentious.
The substance of myth and legend in a contemporary world transforms what could be an ordinary teen tale into a powerful saga. And in fact, the main theme of this book is transformation. Conor and his friends are transforming into adults; Conor is transforming into something greater than human; villains are transforming themselves through application of joined magic and science; even ordinary reality is transforming as magic bridges the gap between one world and another.
There were a few things I did not enjoy as much. Several of the characters in the story act in very frustrating ways. This isn’t really a flaw in the book so much as it is a difference between what I enjoy and what they author writes, but I could have wished that all the teenagers were not as stubborn as they were, nor many of the adults as fatalistic. I could also have wished that the plot did not rely as heavily on characters not giving information to others – it can be frustrating to a reader if the plot relies too much on miscommunication. However, as the question of what characters are and aren’t told – and why they aren’t told – is addressed in the story, it is probably more of a difference between the author and myself rather than a true flaw.
There were also a few scattered editorial issues, most of which were punctuation errors. These were very minor, and there were no grammatical errors that I noticed, and only one usage error. As there were only a few, I didn’t feel that these issues were significant enough to warrant losing a star in the rating.
The book leaves room for expansion into a sequel or a series, and I have high hopes that the author will soon produce another in this fascinating world.
******
Roan
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like Firedrake's review? Post a comment saying so!