Review by DTamara -- Fish Wielder
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DTamara
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Review by DTamara -- Fish Wielder
[Following is a volunteer review of "Fish Wielder" by J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison.]
The chaotic world of Grome is a place where everything can happen, and no rules apply, except a few to Thoral Mighty Fist. "Everyone knows this." As one might anticipate, J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison introduces Thoral as the archetype of the perfectly manly warrior and hero. His faithful companion happens to be Brad, the sage talking Koi fish, a slightly unexpected development. Then the author of Fish Wielder expertly goes on about demolishing all the possible stereotypes you can encounter in a magical world settled by elves, gnomes, humans, talking animals, ghosts, supernatural beings, and a combination of them.
During a prolonged stupor of drowning his sorrows of the most mysterious origin, unbeknownst even to Brad, Thoral stumbles into the lair of Necrogrond, one of the most powerful sorcerers in Grome, a member of the Bad Religion and a nemesis to the elves. He heroically proceeds to make an oath to the elves to destroy all the Brothers of the evil Bad Religion and their leader, the Hearthless one. During this quest, fate forces Thoral to face all the demons he tries to escape from. The author takes some elements from The Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and The Wizard of Oz. Then he turns them on their head in his unique imaginative way.
In my opinion, J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison teaches a masterclass on writing with this most unconventional witty epic fantasy work. I can only describe his writing style in dualities - original in his unoriginal way of naming everything, grave yet humorous, anticlimatic yet gratifying, shallow yet complex, flowery yet coarse, lofty yet down-to-earth, predictable yet completely unexpected. The list goes on and on. It is as if the author is toying with us, effortlessly weaving one of the most creative storylines I have ever read. His writing is full of cliffhangers, twists, absurdity, and lyricism, all at the same time.
The dynamic between all the characters is flawless in its fluidity, especially between the inseparable Thoral and Brad. I felt a sense of familiarity from the first encounter with the characters that set the scene for all of the wild adventures to come. All the secondary characters are memorable and have a solid place in the storyline. While the events revolve around Thoral, the author dedicates a fair amount of time to developing the rest of the characters. He continually blurs the line between bad and good, keeping up the suspense and destroying any preconceptions.
There was nothing about this book that I didn't like. I rate Fish Wielder 4 out of 4 stars. My only complaint is that there isn't more of it. It is a jewel of a book worth re-reading to savor all the ingeniousness that J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison packed in it. I cannot wait for the next installment in the trilogy, and I recommend this book to anyone who likes epic fantasy or, in fact, any fantasy type. I would even go a step further and recommend it to anyone. It is the ideal book to cleanse your palate and put you in good humor.
******
Fish Wielder
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The chaotic world of Grome is a place where everything can happen, and no rules apply, except a few to Thoral Mighty Fist. "Everyone knows this." As one might anticipate, J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison introduces Thoral as the archetype of the perfectly manly warrior and hero. His faithful companion happens to be Brad, the sage talking Koi fish, a slightly unexpected development. Then the author of Fish Wielder expertly goes on about demolishing all the possible stereotypes you can encounter in a magical world settled by elves, gnomes, humans, talking animals, ghosts, supernatural beings, and a combination of them.
During a prolonged stupor of drowning his sorrows of the most mysterious origin, unbeknownst even to Brad, Thoral stumbles into the lair of Necrogrond, one of the most powerful sorcerers in Grome, a member of the Bad Religion and a nemesis to the elves. He heroically proceeds to make an oath to the elves to destroy all the Brothers of the evil Bad Religion and their leader, the Hearthless one. During this quest, fate forces Thoral to face all the demons he tries to escape from. The author takes some elements from The Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and The Wizard of Oz. Then he turns them on their head in his unique imaginative way.
In my opinion, J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison teaches a masterclass on writing with this most unconventional witty epic fantasy work. I can only describe his writing style in dualities - original in his unoriginal way of naming everything, grave yet humorous, anticlimatic yet gratifying, shallow yet complex, flowery yet coarse, lofty yet down-to-earth, predictable yet completely unexpected. The list goes on and on. It is as if the author is toying with us, effortlessly weaving one of the most creative storylines I have ever read. His writing is full of cliffhangers, twists, absurdity, and lyricism, all at the same time.
The dynamic between all the characters is flawless in its fluidity, especially between the inseparable Thoral and Brad. I felt a sense of familiarity from the first encounter with the characters that set the scene for all of the wild adventures to come. All the secondary characters are memorable and have a solid place in the storyline. While the events revolve around Thoral, the author dedicates a fair amount of time to developing the rest of the characters. He continually blurs the line between bad and good, keeping up the suspense and destroying any preconceptions.
There was nothing about this book that I didn't like. I rate Fish Wielder 4 out of 4 stars. My only complaint is that there isn't more of it. It is a jewel of a book worth re-reading to savor all the ingeniousness that J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison packed in it. I cannot wait for the next installment in the trilogy, and I recommend this book to anyone who likes epic fantasy or, in fact, any fantasy type. I would even go a step further and recommend it to anyone. It is the ideal book to cleanse your palate and put you in good humor.
******
Fish Wielder
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Of Zots and Xoodles by Zarqnon the Embarrassed
