Graham Smith (14)

Like most modern novels this book is character led and this is one of its strengths. Affrity is a powerful and well drawn villain. We can feel his hatred, anger and frustration, his violence and malevolent attitude. This does beg the question is it easier to create darkness than light. Omigali is the opposing force of goodness, but she is rather insipid as a character.

Sool appears to elevated as a special character, there is this myth that she is somehow unbeatable in battle, but it would have been good to see more evidence of her skill. Harmony is a little dipsy and her backwards speech reinforces this idea and it is a good technique used to great effect.

Pol is the pilot, the chancer, but again there seems to be too little evidence of risk taking. I realize the trip to Kelepsion was very daring, but this is not enough. It is better to show him doing this than telling the reader.

The Marleseen are a wonderful creation, mischievous, loving and full of fun. They add to the non-violent and peaceful atmosphere of the place. In contrast they are hated by the dark side as they lack order, being spontaneous and fun.

Scarleen is the shape shifter being able to take different forms. The special relevance of this gift becomes apparent towards the end of the book when he needs to convince the guards he's someone else.

Being quite a novice to science fiction I was puzzled by some of he terminology - SL's, Skins, holo's (holograms?) and implants. The writer does not explain what they are, or give much details about their function.

The words Salvation and Glory Town conjure up a wonderful image of a magical planet, but we do not see the characteristics of what makes this world truly special. Perhaps the author wants to emphasize the fact that the people make it special, not its geography

Action scenes appear to be very difficult to create and unfortunately I am still looking for a good example to recommend. TV makes it look so easy due to the visual nature of the media, but the written word is more complex. Good use is made of flashbacks to talk about their time on Kelepsion, but there are not too many as to confuse the reader.

Overall this is a good read with some interesting characters and it promises to be a great series. How original it is in terms of the science fiction genre I am not experienced enough to tell, but I think this is a writer who will keep on growing.… (mais)