Soren is eighteen, trying to survive on the streets, when a theft gone
wrong results in a street fight and a passing swordsman recognises some
talent in him. He is taken to the Academy to learn to wield a rapier and
be a gentleman. The early chapters are the usual
street-boy-goes-to-posh-school affair, but fortunately Soren has the
intelligence to keep his nose clean, so he’s not constantly getting into
trouble. He also turns out to be something of a fighting phenomenon,
not an unusual theme in fantasy, but nicely intriguing here. Is his
ability a natural talent, or some kind of magic?
Fortunately, the
author avoids getting too entrenched in schoolroom dramas and Soren is
soon out and about wielding his rapier and discovering the extent of his
extraordinary gift. These early battles are beautifully described, the
highpoint of the book for me, and I loved every moment of each one
(especially the belek). The romantic entanglement is slightly more
clunky, but that fits with Soren’s rather self-effacing nature. The
background scenery is lightly sketched, with more emphasis on
architecture than geography, but it works fine, and the deep history -
of empires and mage wars and other intriguing events - is no more than
hints. I found it interesting that Ostia (Soren’s country) has outlawed
magic, but still makes use of mage lights, while the barbarians still
practice magic.
Soren is a likeable protagonist, making (mostly)
sensible decisions. I liked his response to a trick played on him by a
fellow student. His friends tell him his honour has been impugned and he
must challenge the trickster to a duel, but Soren is reluctant; he is
far more concerned with trying not to break the rules of the Academy and
thereby get himself thrown out. Unlike his rich, titled friends, he is
more focused on making a career for himself than on abstract concepts
like honour, and he never forgets his origins. He seems to adapt
surprisingly well to a life of protocol and diplomacy, but he’s clearly a
smart cookie, so I can go along with that (and frankly, a socially
inept character would be pretty tedious - I wanted Soren to succeed, not
trip over his own feet). It has to be said, though, that he’s very
gullible - although to be fair, it fits with his personality and
previous life, since he’s too grateful for his reprieve from the streets
to question things, and he has no understanding of political nuances.
The
writing style is enjoyably literate, if rather wordy, but it works very
well for a story like this, built around formality and protocol. The
author has a habit of dumping information occasionally, but it’s small
scale stuff and not obtrusive. There is some untidiness, repetition and
excessive exposition, and the author might care to look up the
difference between ‘discrete’ and ‘discreet’. The latter part of the
book becomes a little episodic and the fights rather perfunctory, but
Soren’s investigations into his abilities were still intriguing. The big
reveal at the end is hardly a surprise, and the ending somewhat glib,
but these are minor issues.
I really enjoyed this book and found
it seductively easy to keep turning the pages - that
just-one-more-chapter syndrome. It’s the first time I’ve read a story
focused on the rapier as the weapon of choice, and I found it a
refreshing change from the more usual broadswords and bows. I would have
liked to know more about Soren’s abilities and the mage wars, but
perhaps that will come in a later book. This is a somewhat flawed effort
in many ways - the choppy ending, the not-quite-convincing romance and
the sometimes too wordy style - but I found it a great read. A good four
stars. And the belek was awesome.
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