Steven Montano

So I finished this a few days ago, and needed that time to think about a review. This is a complicated book, in a simple way. Make sense? I didn't think so.

There is simply a TON of stuff happening in this book, with many characters in several locations, all pushing towards one goal: killing the dream witch intent on taking the Blood Queen's throne in the Dark Tower.

The blurb says the book is "action packed", and that's no lie. I was exhausted by the end of the book from all of the battles, show more tense runs through demon-invested pitch-black halls, and surprising reveals. That's one thing that Mr. Montano is very good at: battle scenes. His descriptive powers are among the best in dark fantasy today.

There's so much more to say about this book, but I don't want to spoil it. Read the book/series! show less

A generous 3 stars.

I really like Steven Montano's writing, which is probably the only reason I finished this book. If it was any other writer, it would have been a quick DNF at around 20%. Even still, this wasn't up to par.

The biggest problem with this book is the lack of clear motivation from the main character. The "bad guys" even mentioned that they didn't know why she was attacking the Scaravae. I'm not sure either, and it really impacted my desire to see what happened.

What I liked

The world as you’ve never seen it before: This book is set on an Earth twisted and ravaged by an apocalyptic event known as The Black. While not much is known about how this event occurred, or why, it appears to have merged at least one other world with our own. Monsters far scarier than anything you might’ve imagined under your bed now share our world, and probably would’ve annihilated the human race if some members hadn’t acquired an ability to use magic.

It laughs in show more the face of your zombie apocalypse: Numerous races of Undead creatures appeared after The Black and they are badass in the extreme. They don’t just have sharp claws and pointy teeth, they have steam powered nail guns, war machines, and arcane grenades. Some, like the barbarian Gorgoloth and the monstrous Sorn , are entirely original as far as I can tell.

It’s a war zone: The cities are festooned with magical protection in the form of hex wire, sandbags of blessed soil, crosses, and voodoo paraphernalia. There are also flame cannons mounted on the walls, sentries armed with assault rifles, and nobody ever really strips off their armour. Nearly all the races use a combination of guns and magic. The main characters are all soldiers, and while they aren’t fighting all the time, it’s gruesome when they do. It’s realistic too, to a point where just reading it is mildly traumatic at times.
Your influences are showing: The author’s bio mentions that he’s written adventures for Dungeons and Dragons, and it explained a lot to me. The descriptions of this terrifying and strange new world are both vivid and poetic, and no character makes it to the end unscathed. Many of them don’t make it at all. Nothing is certain except that everything can get worse.

What I didn’t like:

What the…: I didn’t know what was going on at first, except that it was dark and eerie. It’s the tone and descriptions that kept me reading. Somewhere between chapters two and three, I settled in and signed up for the ride.
Reminders: By this I mean the strategic repetition of a description or relevant piece of information. This is never my friend. When I read a book slowly, they’re never where I need them, and I when I read fast, they seem to be everywhere. This book wasn’t so bad in that regard, although I did find it a bit weird that one character’s appearance was rehashed in two consecutive chapters.

This book is a raw emotional journey through a vivid and disturbing landscape. It takes a while before the main plot is set in motion, but intrigue remains steady from start to finish. Although the violence isn’t gratuitous, and the vaguely PTSD-like mental state of the central character is realistic and understandable, it’s probably not a story for the faint of heart. show less

A surprising departure from his normal fare of dystopian/military/sci-fi/fantasy/horror, this was quite an enjoyable murder mystery. I’ve read all of Steven Montano’s books, and am constantly amazed at his skillfulness in drawing the reader into the scenes; his descriptions of the environment and surrounding areas bring his books to life. This one was no different.

The pace of the book is good, a real page-turner, bringing the reader willingly into the characters’ world. In this case, show more it is modern-day Washington State, set in a little town/village north of Seattle. The story itself is suspenseful, with complex twists and turns, and tightly woven, all leading to a surprising ending.

If you’ve read Montano’s sci-fi/fantasy books, you won’t be surprised at his writing skills into this foray into crime fiction. If you haven’t read any of Montano’s books, what in the world are you waiting for? show less