OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Order of Ascalon" by Daniel J. Franks.]
This book is part of a trilogy that follows the exploits of the son of the legendary King Arthur. It starts off back in the sixth century AD with King Arthur and his most trusted counsellors facing certain annihilation at the hands of the wicked sorcerer, Mallum Mallus, who threatens to destroy the kingdom if the king's son is not handed over to him. It soon becomes apparent that his evil power has already infiltrated the palace and one of his informers has betrayed King Arthur and his kingdom.

However Arthur's most faithful advisor, Merlin, has a plan to save the young Prince Peter. He sets out with the baby in the company of his apprentice, Glynnis, who is also the prince's godmother, to a remote secret destination, leaving the King and his army to delay Mallum Mallus as long as possible. We learn through Merlin that Peter has special powers that originate from one of his ancestors and since that time Merlin has successfully hidden the bloodline from the sorcerer - until now.

The story fast forwards some 1500 years to 2018, where Peter has been sent to keep him safe. He is now sixteen years old and has been cared for by his adopted grandfather since he was found as a baby. But, as his grandfather's health deteriorates, Peter's life becomes increasingly miserable as other, less pleasant, members of the family move into his home and he is forced to give up college to work in a hotel with his disagreeable cousin. Things come to a head one night when he is mugged in an alley and in the resulting skirmish discovers he has mysterious powers.

Peter suddenly finds himself caught up in a bewildering world of secret organisations and mysterious sects, all looking for him and his new found powers, and he has to decide who to trust. He is forced to take on responsibilities and carry out actions which he would much rather avoid, in order to do the right thing.

Most of the story is told in the third person, from Glynnis' point of view in the first part and then from Peter's, which helps to build up an idea of their personalities. Some of the background and early events are revealed through the words of other characters, in particular Merlin who has witnessed much of this first hand.

The author incorporates a number of issues into his tale; as well as the main subject matter of good versus evil and the corrupting nature of power, he also touches on dysfunctional families, benefit spongers, and even the problems caused by the onset of dementia.

Given the age of the hero, its rites of passage theme, and the exploration of Peter's feelings, especially in the context of his relationships with women, I guess this series is aimed at young adults. The writing style is simple and straight forward, however the language doesn't always flow smoothly for me and there are quite a lot of repetitions in the text. The punctuation is occasionally confusing and a number of proofreading errors have slipped through, although they do not detract from the story. The use of modern idioms can be a bit incongruous at times when the setting is 40 years after the Romans left Britain.

I am disappointed in some of the characterisation. Even though I feel I know Glynnis and Peter, others are too stereotyped or could do with further development. Seeing a bit more of his obnoxious relations in action would make for some interesting scenes. I found the various riddles confusing (which could just be me being slow on the uptake), and there is quite a lot that is unexplained in the book; hopefully, for readers who want clarification, enlightenment will follow in the next one.

I have rated this book as fair with two out of four stars. I like the plot building on the King Arthur / Merlin legend and giving it a modern twist; Peter's character as the reluctant hero; and the author's flights of fancy when it comes to magic and the locations of the artefacts. It is also nice to see Merlin with a female apprentice, quite forward thinking for the Dark Ages.

***
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Hm, this definitely seems to have the potential to be something interesting. Even with the low rating, you did a good job of telling what the story is about. As odd as it sounds, it kind of reminds me of Sleeping Beauty, with them whisking their son away to be protected, and him not knowing anything about what happened.

This may be worth the chance read, as I see that others did really enjoy it in the Amazon reviews. My advice to the author would be to dish out some free copies on goodreads to get some reviews there as well though. I've heard that works well for some to get their reads up.

I may look into this, but...I never know when I'll get around to a new read.

As a rule I don't read reviews about a book before I review it, to keep my mind clear of other people's opinions. However, it is interesting to read what other people think of it and compare the different reactions. As I said in the review, there is quite a lot I liked about the story but I found it wanting in certain areas such as characterisation, language and editing.
That said, I admire anyone who undertakes to write a novel, let alone a trilogy, for their commitment, perseverance and courage.

I have a tendency to be the only critic of books. I'm always surprised when I really don't like a book, and everyone else has given it stellar ratings and reviews. I lots of times wait to read reviews until after I've done one myself, because as you said it does sometimes cloud my own opinion.

As I said before, you did well with this review, showing that other people may enjoy it more. Though I am finding the older I get the more frustrated I get with the lack of editing.

Thank you for your review Casper. I feel that I must apologise because I sent the wrong file to be reviewed (a stupid rookie mistake I know), so you had an out of date copy of the book. Yes, not enough sleep and too much coffee is a bad mixture, and as I now know, has serious consequences! Hey ho, we live and learn. I would like to commend you on an excellent review; I appreciate your insights and experience. One thing I would like to point out is that the 'riddles' are actually real Nostradamus quatrains - I could never make that stuff up

What a shame I got to read an out of date copy, still I enjoyed reading it and it was a good exercise to review it.
No wonder I found the riddles so obscure - I am impressed that Glynnis and Peter were able to deduce as much as they did.
Good luck with the rest of the trilogy.