Thrall

After a confrontation in a tavern results in the death of a local official's mercenary, legendary warrior Gorias La Gaul is commissioned to prevent the resurrection of a cult leader. Accompanied by his grandson, the official's daughter, and a bard, Gorias traverses the vampire-plagued land only to find himself caught between an invading horde of barbarians, a powerful necromancer's advancing troops, and two old enemies from his past. Gorias must rely on his own experience and tactical planning to prevent an even greater evil from ravaging the land.

Steven Shrewsbury crafts an engaging tale, much in the tradition of Robert E. Howard and Clark Ashton Smith. The action scenes are depicted in brutal detail, putting the reader at the center of the action. Shrewsbury also has a good sense of tactics and timing, which works well as the forces converge and Gorias's plan begins to unfold.

If I had any complaints, the first chapter is a little slow in its set-up, appearing almost directionless until Gorias gets his mission. Also, there were times when I had difficulties with the dialog as the characters' voices switched between the more traditional fantasy style of speech versus the modern, contraction-laden vernacular. The electronic copy of the book I read also had some infrequent grammar and spelling errors and would have benefited from another round of editing.

Despite these minor issues, this is a welcome addition to the sword-and-sorcery fantasy genre, and fans of the aforementioned authors should enjoy this book. I look forward to reading more of Shrewsbury's work, as well as the forthcoming books in this series.

Available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and Books-A-Million.

Title: Thrall
Author: Steven L. Shrewsbury
Year: 2010
Pages: 288

Dark Harvest

It's Halloween 1963 in Small Town, U.S.A., and the local teenage boys are getting ready for the annual hunt for the October Boy, a pumpkin-headed being that runs the gauntlet each Halloween. The boy who brings him down before he makes it to the local church wins a ticket out of town and freedom from the ennui of small-town, no-ambition life. Pete McCormack is extremely determined this year, but a chance encounter with a female tomboy reveals the horrifying truth about the town tradition and turns his expectations upside-down.

Dark Harvest, despite being a short book, spins an entertaining yarn that anyone who grew up in a small town can relate to (well, except for the rampaging pumpkin-boy). Having grown up in a tiny little burg, I can sympathize with an overwhelming urge to get away from the tired, repetitive lifestyle. Fortunately, my town wasn't as poverty-stricken as this one seemed to be.

The plot itself is fairly straightforward and doesn't contain much in the way of surprises. The reader would probably do him- or herself a favor by going into this book expecting a horror-themed action story rather than spine-chilling prose of terror. That being said, the action scenes are extremely well done. Partridge does an excellent job of balancing the descriptions with the activity, giving you just enough to see what's happening without overwhelming you with the details.

Because it's a short book and the action flows quickly, someone should be able to read this in just a few sittings. While it may not have the character richness of a 400-page epic, it's not necessary to tell this particular story. I'd recommend this for both the serious and the casual reader.

Available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and Books-A-Million.

Title: Dark Harvest
Author: Norman Partridge
Year: 2006
Pages: 169