A fun read.3 s Danforthkelly2 5

Perhaps I should preface this review with the tentative caveat that I'm one of those many, many eager sods that hopes to make a living with this writing thing someday. As such, I approached this series with a somewhat academic mindset (I even wrote a paper on the first book. Best assignment ever.) Since I read the series, I've recommended it to all my other writer friends because, though there are areas where it could improve (what book doesn't have a few of those?), it has some unmatched strengths that just aren't often paralleled in other works:
1) Action scenes. This de Castell guy can write a fight scene nobody's business. Almost he, I dunno, has some kind of experience in the field. I generally find such scenes pretty dull after the third time "so-and-so's iron fist collides with (insert brave hero)'s square jaw" and "they danced around each other, nimble as acrobats and/or cats and/or acrobatic cats" blahdy blah.
Not so here. Fight scene after fight scene I was engaged, edge of my seat, never confused by blocking, convinced that THIS REALLY COULD BE IT. I had to know how de Castell had managed it, so I looked up his reader's digest article on fight scenes. Among his excellent advice was a piece I've tried to implement in all my own work: treat each fight scene as a unique problem to be solved. He's quite right: The medium of literature doesn't lend itself well to an action play-by-play, but it's perhaps the best means mankind has ever devised to put one human inside the head and heart of another human. By turning each action scene into a battle of wits and values, de Castell managed to put me in the position, not of passive observer, but of active participant. I as the reader was also trying to out-think the other party, and decide which philosophy I supported in this conflict. It was a masterstroke.
Also swords. Swords are really cool. Did I mention there are really cool swords in this book? Yeah. Loads of 'em.
2) Suspense. de Castell has got pacing DOWN. He has a real knack for giving the reader a few moments of breathing space, of bringing tension down with a well-timed joke, and then ratcheting it up again before you get too comfortable. While he's at it, he manages to maintain a real sense of jeopardy. You're pretty convinced that this character, despite the fact you have about a hundred pages left, might really lose this round, and messily too. It'll pull you right through.
3) Humor. The dialogue, in particular, has that tantalizing whiff of Joss Whedon, that eau de pith which may cause public displays of unlady snorting. The characters are quick and clever, and their banter underscores a bond which we, as readers, get to vicariously experience. Ensemble fiction is generally my favorite, and this is an admirable example.
And if that's not enough to convince you to pick this series up, did I mention the swords?

Then there's his Shadowblack series. All I'll say here: make sure you copy the somatic shapes with your own hands. Preferably in public. No, not in the privacy of your own room, ya pansy.1 Jonathan Cruz2

Great story. Recomend it! Craig Black116 9

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