Furies of Calderon

According to the author, the Codex Alera series owes its birth to a forum flamewar. Several (unpublished) authors argued that a brilliant initial concept/central idea was required for a good fantasy novel. Butcher argued that characters, story complexity, and execution were what mattered. When dared to make good on his claim, he bet that he could write a successful story based on whatever two concepts his opponents gave him. They gave him Roman legions and Pokemon. Thus Alera was born.

Butcher made good on his bet. The characters in Codex Alera are surprisingly likeable, and it is their interactions and problems that drive the story. He creates a world with ambiguous morals, alien viewpoints, and a willingness to challenge the reader's show more perceptions and beliefs. The book's mood is a roller-coaster from laugh-out-loud humour (and some amazing one-liners) to points where the action is so graphic and painful that I was tempted to skim. Heroes and villains all remain complex, but in a way that's hard to describe: in terms of actions or fast descriptions, they are pretty stereotypical. Yet even the heroic, unselfish ones are oddly likeable rather than irritating. Butcher's prose is workmanlike. His dialogue is especially good at giving the world and characters shape and depth. (At the same time, I'd love to know how many times the tired phrase, "arched an eyebrow", occurs in the series. I'd bet it would be in the hundreds.)

One thing to note: I read the books out of order, starting with the second, third, and sixth before hitting this one (curse library availability!) so this is more a review of the series rather than this book; fair warning that I may impute more depth to the characters than they actually show here. One of the most impressive aspects of the series is the intricate plotting: plot points are set up in this book that become crucial in the last, and some of the characters' "out of character" responses or activities are due to a much more complex backstory. Also on a sidenote, other than Max, who first appears in the next book, I mainly find the characters here to be less likeable than those in the Dresden Files, Butcher's other series. I think this is due in large measure to the structure of the epic fantasy/quest story, where all the characters' skills and abilities are typically larger than life, often to the detriment of their personalities. In a full worldbuilding setting, it is harder to capture the eccentricities that give dimensionality to the DF characters (e.g. Waldo Butters' one-man polka band.) However, if you find the Codex Alera characters rather flat here, note that they become significantly fuller and more complex in the second book in the series, and a large number of fun new personalities are added to the gang.

One might, however, consider that Butcher lost his bet. Perhaps the world is loosely based on Pokemon and the Roman legion, but he has brought so much additional complexity and creativity that one might argue his central concept contains deeper themes--loyalty versus obedience, love versus dependence, humanity versus duty--as well as an amazingly complex and intricate world. The plot is intricate--basically, if you think of something awesome you wish might happen, it probably will. It is unusual for an author to create such a real magical world, with intricate rules and a complex society. He never breaks these rules, yet manages to to incredible, surprising, and creative things with it. I am not one for battle scenes--I tended to skim those bloodthirsty, brutal, and above all boring scenes in Tolkein or Sanderson--but the creativity Butcher brings leaves one with only one good description: purely awesome.

The story takes place in the Calderon Valley of the Kingdom of Alera, where the descendents of the lost Roman legions apparently settled thousands of years ago. Alera is a savage, hierarchical land, with a failing high king who is the last of his line, a set of scheming lords anxious to relieve him of the burden of office, an economy built upon slavery, and a tendency try to massacre the members of the neighboring lands. Not that its neighbors aren't doing their fair share. Alera, the only human civilization, is surrounded by the savage icemen, the barbaric Marat, and the warg-like Canim. Alerans themselves are superhuman: they are all gifted with and dependent on their Furies: elemental magic that can be embodied in beings of wind, fire, and stone (this is where the Pokemon come in, although it's actually a little hard to connect them the much more original and well-thought-out furies.) All Alerans have furycrafting skills and use them for everything from mundane household tasks to healing, flying, and superhuman epic battlemagic.

Only Tavi, a shepherd boy in the Calderon Valley, is furyless. Lucky Tavi is treated like a retarded child: he not only looks like a young 12-year-old, but at fifteen years, his lack of furies appears permanent and means he is essentially useless and helpless. In a world dependent on the furies, he cannot turn on or off lights, help with the farming, or even travel fast on the roads (which are specially designed for fast travel via earthcrafting).

The story--and the series--starts with a seemingly mundane incident. Tavi wants to bring flowers to the girl he is sweet on, and is therefore so late bringing in the sheep that they wander away and are lost. In retrieving them, he stumbles upon proof of a traitorous scheme that will endanger the entire Calderon Valley. Aided by his watercrafting aunt Isana, his stolid stonecrafting uncle Bernard, and the mysterious windcrafting servant of the high lord, Amara, Tavi must bring news--and preferably proof--to the garrison to alert the legions (yes, Roman legions) to the danger. Along the way, he and his allies must evade and outwit scheming mercenaries, vicious slavers, and bloodthirsty barbarians.

The most impressive part about the book, for me, was the way Butcher created a world with perspectives so alien to our own, and yet managed to make it immersive. I also thought he deftly separated culture from personalities: Marat happily practice cannibalism and don't have a word for lying, yet each individual somehow manages to escape simple characterizations such as "noble savage" or "vicious barbarian." Alerans live in a world where women are subordinate to their men, only Citizens of the realm have the protection of law, and slavery is the norm. They even utilize "discipline collars", which use incredible amounts of pain and pleasure to bend slaves to the slavers' wills. I found this concept the most horrible and long-lasting one of the book. Butcher graphically explores the loss of self-will hover for spoiler. The book is light and fun, yet opens some troubling questions: from the definitions of slavery and self-will to the limits of loyalty and duty, and what happens when the duty to the community conflicts with the path of truth, justice, and humanity.
~4.5 stars. show less

Review Originally Posted At: FictionForesight

This review pertains not only to Furies of Calderon, but will speak to the strengths of the series as a whole – without revealing too much, of course. I started the Codex Alera series with minimal expectations. It’s been a long while since I’ve indulged in a fantasy series because I was beginning to find a lot of them to be formulaic and a little trite. So I was pleasantly surprised when I ripped through Furies of Calderon in a matter of days.

Tavi of Calderon is a simple country boy, living on the easternmost reaches of Alera with his steadholder aunt and uncle, and their charges. Most people in Alera have a cursory command of what they call “furies” – earth, air, fire, water, show more wood, and metal elementals, capable of manipulating the world around them. Tavi is 15 and still furyless – but as political sedition and an encroaching warrior tribe draw his family into the action, he finds out he is capable of more than he thinks.

In this first book, the characters are largely the typical fantasy-character archetypes: plucky hero, strong and silent protector, emotionally intelligent and secretly powerful woman, vs. Sneaky traitor, skilled mercenary, and his doting evil mistress. It is very much “good” vs “evil” and characters have little moral complexity and very few character flaws. Still, they are relatable and well written, and the story moves us along enough to compensate for this problem. As the series progresses, we learn more about our cast of characters and the world they live in, which allows for a broader scope and more complex issues and development. The early books have a touch of romance to keep readers engaged (I felt a bit silly that this trick worked on me, I guess I’m only human), but by the last installments we are so wrapped up in Tavi, Alera, and the fate of the world that romance essentially ceases to exist.

If there’s one thing the author is good at, it’s writing action. Even the political and military discussions are filled with plot turns and twists and keeps the reader desperate to find out what happens next. Throughout the series our heroes are written into corners so deep you think everyone is done for – and then something unexpected swoops in and saves the day. Jim Butcher has also done his research into military tactics, as Alera uses a military force like the Roman Legions. While this hits its stride in the third novel of the series, even Furies of Calderon finishes with a massive battle for control of the Calderon Valley, and the reader sees every minute of it – the planning and subsequent panic of the characters, the bloody, visceral aftermath – Butcher gives us every grisly detail. While in some instances (especially in the first book) he gets a little too caught up in revealing a character’s entire train of thought, this can be forgiven as it allows us to follow the whirlwind of the next fight that much closer.

Butcher is best known for the Dresden Files series (you can read our review of Storm Front (here), but this lesser-known universe satisfies both the skeptical adult in me and the idealist, fantasy-loving teenager that I thought had vanished some time ago. There are plenty of flaws to pick at and I’ll admit, I rolled my eyes a number of times while reading Furies of Calderon. But Alera and its characters are engaging and well-crafted, and the pacing of the novels is outstanding. If you’re looking to keep the dull moments at bay, I’d suggest putting the Codex Alera series on your reading list.

Fun fact: Rumors abound in the blogosphere that Jim Butcher started this series on a bet – that successful writing depends on having relatable characters and that he could write a successful series based on any premise his friends came up with. The material? Roman legions and Pokémon.

(www.FictionForesight.com) show less

I came into Furies of Calderon a little hesitantly. I have a love-hate relationship with The Dresden Files and so would not have picked this one up if I didn't have the audiobook. On top of that the premise sounded a little lame and I am very picky about fantasy.

With that said, Furies was enjoyable. Tavi, the main character, is the only boy without a fury (an elemental spirit that does his bidding). He is, however, very clever. On the flip side, he's 15, so he manages to get himself into all sorts of trouble by being impulsive and twitterpated. There are other major characters which are both interesting and distinct from each other.

Jim Butcher's flair for writing action scenes is evident in the 2nd half of the book (the first half is show more setup that is well worth enduring) though I felt nearing the end of the book that all of the problems that were stacked on the characters were resolved too close together. Everything climaxed at once and there was little time to digest any of the resolutions. This may or may not be a problem for some, especially if one is reading the book instead of listening to it, but it felt hurried to me.

I will continue with the series, hoping that, as in the Dresden Files, the books improve with each entry. show less

The worldbuilding in this one was wicked cool. The social structure and military is Roman-based, which you don't find too often in fantasy. Additionally, Furies of Calderon gives us a magical system that is elementals meets familiars. Powers are well balanced and varied, but the magic exists so easily in the world that it doesn't take over the feel of the fantasy. Still, it was a thrill. Furies has a wide cast of characters, so there's someone for everyone in this book.

My personal favorite is Tavi, who really stumbles unaware into the adventure and ends up not only contributing importantly to the main storyline, but has an excellent little side-adventure of his own. Tavi is a great character - raw and honest in the way that young adults show more can be but he's also kind-hearted and genuine. I really liked following him.

Furies is definitely not meant for the light of heart - there's everything from slavery to cannibalism mentioned in the book, and there was a scene where I was sort of waiting to see if someone was going to get raped, because it was getting very sketchy. Do know that this has a lot of adult themes between the magic and war, and be prepared for that going in. show less

Dagnabbit, Jim Butcher! I have a job and a family. Quit keeping me up all night!

I actually have not read plain old fantasy since I was a teenager, but I love urban fantasy, and, of course, the Harry Dresden series. I've run through all the good urban fantasy books, so I figured why not? So glad, I did! Butcher has built a complicated and beautifully fit together fantasy world, but even better, this author excels in his amazingly likable and complex characters. Our hero Tavi is the shepherd boy with the hidden destiny who manages to be tenacious, clever, decent, and wildly endearing all by the fifth chapter. And there begins a wonderful cast of characters that are immediately fascinating even as you jump from subplot to subplot on route show more to the dramatic conclusion. There was no down time in this book where you wait around for the characters to quit talking or sharpening their weapons. Everything feels urgent, and it's near impossible to put the book down. Which is why I'm saving the sequel till the weekend. No more snoring at work, Butcher! show less

This is the first Jim Butcher book I read. My husband has read the series as well and told me it would be something I'd like. As usual he was right. He was right about something else, and I'll pass it along to all of you as advice.

Do NOT judge this book by its first half. I'm not sure what was going on, or why, but this book does NOT show its true colors right away. It's a little tedious at the beginning, when you're switching between storylines and getting everyone's names straight, figuring out their situations, loyalties, and relationships. STICK WITH IT. My husband told me to promise to read the whole book, and I'm glad he did, because I would have chucked it partway through and look what I would have missed! This is one of my show more favorite series, now. It picks up and MAN does it ever get good! Once Butcher has all the pieces he wants in place - varoom! He's off! The characters become personal, mesmorizing, touching, unique, and fully three dimensional - no mean feat for a newly published author to juggle so many main characters and not bore you with at least one storyline! And the PLOT! I like the little mysteries you can figure out (or wait and have revealed to you) and even the minor characters are often memorable in some way.

I like the fairly unique feel of these - high Roman fantasy - mixed with relatable yet heroic characters. Butcher's sense of humor is always right on target and his sex scenes are sexy without being ridiculously overwrought (think steamy PG-13). This is good stuff. show less

DNF.

I really tried with this book.

I’m a big Harry Dresden fan and I’ve been eyeing other Jim Butcher books for a while now.

Tbh I wasn’t very interested in the blurb, but I thought, it’s by Jim Butcher and so many people rave about this book, I’ve got to give it a try.

Unfortunately the characters in this book bored me. From the blurb I mistakenly thought most of the action would revolve around Tavi. Instead the book meanders through a menagerie of characters, none which stands out and I wonder when the story would actually start. When we finally meet Tavi, his problems seems so paltry compared to everything else that is supposedly going on that I wonder why he is the main hero at all.

It takes the book a little over a show more quarter of the way through to get to the point described in two paragraphs by the blurb (Tavi finally meets and save the slave girl). It has taken me three months to get to this point.
Nothing interesting has happened so far and I’m just not engaged enough with the characters or the events to waste any more time on it.

I’m sorry Jim, this is a no go for me. I think I’ll just stick to your Harry Dresden series (tbh this series makes me very leary of trying your Cinder Spires series as well). show less