An attacking army of magical faeries, a love triangle, and even an old magician…

The River Runes (The Fight for Caithiir)

Written by Ken Lindsey

Genre: Fantasy

Book Synopsis

Jonathan is a young man, on the cusp of taking his Master's place as magician of Third Chapel. Things are better than he ever expected; he's becoming closer to his father, he is in the midst of a blossoming romance, and his magical abilities are growing every day.

And then an exotic stranger named Bixby finds his way to Third Chapel. The faerie is curious about the people that inhabit Caithiir, the great city that stands so close to the woods, and Mother is not around to stop him from finding out what he can.

Mother, however, has been awakened in Bixby's absence only to find that one of her own has openly defied her. Jonathan and his Master are determined to protect Bixby, but the cost may be more than they can afford to lose.

Mark's Rating

Mark's Review

This book has a lot to offer: adventure, magic, characters you both love and hate, and so much more. However, in my opinion, the thing that gives it the most charm is the setting. I love stories of ancient civilizations when towns were built with an outer wall. One particular scene hinted at some of the history of the humans of this particular city, Caithiir—that was one of the better scenes in my opinion.

Where this story lacks is in the quality of the editing. Some scenes were written so wonderfully that a five would have been an easy rating, while other scenes needed another editing pass. For example, there were repeated phrases, such as "couldn't help but." At one point that phrase was used in two consecutive paragraphs. One could argue that using it one time would be one time too many. Using it repeatedly simply weakens your characterization.

However, let me assure you that the problems with the editing are minor. There is more good to this story than there is bad, the good parts out weighing the bad several times over. An attacking army of magical faeries, a love triangle, and even an old magician—these are the things that make the story worth reading.

Disclaimer: May not be appropriate for children due to violence.