Galaxy Bookshop in Sydney, Australia, puts out an excellent newsletter every month for sff readers, called Nexus. Great way to find out what’s new in Oz.
Each month they have a Fave Rave. And this month, Issue 259 Nexus December 2009, their new Fave Rave is The Last Stormlord.
I just love the last paragraph!!
Especially cheering is that Mark from Galaxy was one of my beta readers (even though I have never met him!) There were parts of the book he was not happy with; I took his crit of those important sections to heart because I think he was spot on.
Was he happy with the result? Well, you decide. I know that I owe him one, and I don’t mean because of the review, but rather because he helped to make the book what it is.
Here’s the first and last paragraph of his review (you can read the full thing here):
It’s rare that a fantasy novel sets itself up in a world so obviously influenced by the idea of climate change. Usually such issues are left for science fiction. Yet in her latest blockbuster, Larke sets herself firmly in territory that few fantasy novels have dared to tread. Rather than traipsing through a ‘medieval’ past, she reveals a bold, original world that could possibly be our future, albeit one without technology.
…
The common link in Larke’s novels is her ability to craft worlds that are vibrant and vivid, immersing us in a world that has depth and substance in a way that few writers can match without bogging down in ‘info dump’. This story is no different and I think is her best work to date. That she can also tell a sweeping saga that runs the gauntlet of human experience, immersing us – quite disturbingly at times – in that white water rapid of joy and despair, unmistakeably marks her as one of Australia’s best speculative fiction writers and one you should not miss. – Mark
You must be over the moon with all the great reviews The Last Stormlord is receiving. I do agree, your stories are refreshingly different in setting and character. Not found one night on a charger or damsel in a castle. Wish I could write such reviews as believe me the one I wrote for your book would be glowing.
The reviewer's words said what I felt about the book but couldn't put into words.
Well done Glenda!
Break a leg at the Aurealis awards.
Nice review. Is that an Aurealis I hear calling?
Wow – thank you, Glenda, it's been a long time since I read something that sucked me in like this, so happy I picked it up (took me long enough to grab one of yours, after so much great press at the purple zone)
I highly recommend this to anyone who either hasn't read any of Glenda's work, or who is already and fan & has yet to do so.
The world-building is amazing, vivid, and there's so much imagination in the book, the 'waterpainters' are an amazing idea especially. And as with all the best charactarisation,I quickly came to care about the leads. And I had a good time trying to figure a few of them out too.
And the series ends with so many questions unanswered – it's gonna be a hard slog waiting for book 2!