Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written.
When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review, courtesy of Blue Ink Review:
The Legacy of Skur : Volume One
by L.F. Falconer
Publisher: Outskirts Press
ISBN: 978-1478761914
Synopsis:
The Legacy of Skur is as grim a fairy tale as one could want. Volume One begins with Fane’s quest of misfortune upon the mountain of Skur which ultimately leaves him imprisoned there. His sole companion has come from underground. And his only protection is a crystal talisman. When Fane’s brother, Kael, is unwittingly thrust into the care of Fane’s newborn daughter, he also gains possession of the crystal talisman. Yet when the talisman’s rightful owner comes to demand its return and holds Fane’s daughter for ransom, an impossible choice must be made. How much is Kael willing to sacrifice? More than he realizes. Fane’s daughter is the legacy of Skur. She’s four and a half feet tall, wields a sword yet is no warrior, claims the title of wizard yet cannot cast a spell, and of the two parents she never knew, only one was human. Her story has only begun….
Critique:
L.F. Falconer boldly embraces complex narrative devices in The Legacy of Skur, the second of what promises to be an epic saga.
The tome reads like three fantasy books in one: Each of three sections boasts its own well-crafted characters, distinct tone and unique perspective. The first part follows Fane, the son of a warrior intent on becoming a wizard. Along with his companion Jink, Fane sets out to scale the ominous mountain Skur in hopes of bringing back gold and other riches guarded by the dragon Ragg, but the mountain ultimately ends up being his prison. The second part focuses on Fane’s warrior brother Kael, as he brings up his brother’s infant daughter, finds love and wages his own battle against the shape-shifting dragon. Fane’s grown daughter Elva is the protagonist of the third part, which is rooted in themes of legacy, revenge and redemption.
Although the book spans several generations and explores the Tillaman Realm, a world full of magic, mystery and complex mythology, Falconer ties everything together through characters and setting. She works to distinguish each story, using different tenses and perspectives, adjusting her narrative style to fit each epic chapter.
Throughout, the author offers a well-honed approach to storytelling, employing descriptive prose and a vast vocabulary. This description includes—as with George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire saga—plenty of graphic details regarding sex and violence. Even typical battle scenes contain far more bloody detail than one finds in J.R.R. Tolkien or Terry Brooks novels; after a battle with a monstrous boar, for instance, one character gleefully dines on the beast’s entrails and manipulates its corpse. This, and the shifts from first-person to third-person perspective, may make the book a bit too challenging for casual or young fantasy readers.
However, for adult fans of the genre who appreciate experiments with narrative conventions and aren’t repelled by graphic elements, Falconer offers an intriguing and well-crafted fantasy of epic proportions.
[ reviewed by the staff of Blue Ink Review ]
Here’s what some other reviewers are saying:
As I was reading this book, The Legacy of Skur, a blockbuster movie-in-the-making was all I could picture. Every chapter, every scene, was laid out before my eyes with such precision, such mastery, such descriptive prose that only a master at the craft of writing could accomplish, and L.F. Falconer is just that.
This “grim” tale could do no wrong. While darker than I normally like and gorier than I normally tolerate, it had me absolutely hooked from the very first page, the very first scene.
I pictured everything as if seated in a movie theatre, watching this tale unfold on a silver screen in panavision and technicolor. Move over Lord of The Rings because this Legacy needs to be seen and heard by the masses!
My heart was pounding from the get-go in Part One reading Fane and Jink’s trek to the dreaded mountain of Skur, and their encounters with Larque and Seret and Ragg were marvelous.
Ms. Falconer’s words jump right off the page and onto the silver screen of my imagination . . . it’s THAT good because this author is that good! I cannot wait to get my hands on Volume Two. Hurry it up, Ms. Falconer. Your loyal fans await the next exciting installment with bated breath.
– Goodreads Reviewer Elizabeth Good
L.F. Falconer is one of my favorite authors. This book was no exception in its complexity. It was like reading three different books that were all connected. The writing was superb, and the characters compelling. I learned a new word on almost every page. That being said, I wish I had known it was a dark fantasy going in. I’m more of a PG-PG13 reader and this book deserved more of an R rating. Plus, it was dark, which is not my preference. So, it’s a matter of taste. If you want a fantastic dark fantasy, you’ll love the Legacy of Skur. I guarantee it!
– Amazon Reviewer j. turner
Book Trailer:
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