J. R. Tomlin

This focuses on the life of the Andrew de Moray between the battle of Dunbar and the battle of Stirling Bridge. After escaping from being held captive in an English castle, Moray returns home to start driving the English out of Scotland. He works with William Wallace, to win some key battles. This novel gives a good brief look at a Scottish hero who largely is overshadowed by Wallace in history. Its a quick and easy read and while the battle scenes are descriptive, they aren't graphic. It is dominated by Moray's imprisonment, escape, training his troops and battle, and it would have been if the brief scenes of his domestic life were expanded, or if there were more of them to balance out his military life. Caitrina is a fun character, with a bit of rebelliousness that will appeal to the modern reader, but its not done in a modern way. Caitrina's rebelliousness fits in well with her place in the world, and the medieval time period of the novel. I just wish the novel was a bit longer.

I received this book from the author for review.… (more)

Earlier in the year I had review Tomlin's Freedom's Sword, which was set a few years earlier than the events in this book. My biggest comment on that was that it was so battle focused, and that it would have been nice to have more of Moray's personal life explored to balance out the military life. I do not have the same feelings on A Kingdom's Cost. Between James's relationship with Isabella, and later with Alycie Dickson, there is a nice balance between the military and personal aspects of James's life. This had the same quick pace as the other novel. This also has the good battle descriptions, which are descriptive enough to be able to picture the battles, but not in so great a detail that might turn off some readers. I really enjoyed this novel and will be looking forward to the second installment. I received this book from the author for review.… (more)

I rather liked 'Talon of the unnamed Goddess'. It has the type of story I like, about a woman in a men's world (that of a Talon: a bodyguard and warrior). Clearly she’s at a disadvantage, but she also has two advantages: she thinks things through more than her fellow warriors (and her enemies), and she gets chosen by the unnamed goddess. Using those characteristics allows her to protect her charge when her kingdom is taken over by her neighbour. This book is an easy read and definitely has potential.

On a more critical note, the book doesn’t entirely follow through on its potential. The characters are a bit flat. Aisha’s main characteristic is that she wants to be a Talon. Apparently this is because her family got murdered when she was younger and she wanted to take revenge. However, this revenge is not forthcoming. She never even speaks of it. Also, she doesn’t even blink the first time she kills someone, which seems rather unrealistic, and she hardly shows any emotion when fellow Talons are killed. In the end, all we know about Aisha is that she wants to be a Talon and that she comes to like her charge. Which is a pity, since she is clearly an unusual woman, given the fact that she has chosen the Talon life.
All in all, the book could have used more depth for its characters and more background, for instance on what happened during Aisha’s training. The book has potential, but the writer could have done more with it.… (more)