HUGEOrange
Publication Review
Editor’s Pick
Award Winner 2020
Canticle of the
Spear, by S.C. Terlecky
Canticle of the
Spear is a wonderful
fantasy tale of adventure and thrills.
It’s everything you want from a well-woven story with unique worlds,
undiscovered lands and mystery.
The rising sun painted a winding pattern
of rocks cutting through a dense forest of vines and colossal trees. A thick
fog rose to the treetops like the growing froth from a freshly poured ale. To
Pike’s back loomed the gigantic mountain wall that had stopped explorer
hopefuls like himself since the beginning of time. And there was something
else, a faint melody in the sanctuary of his mind. Something he could swear
he’d never heard before, and yet it was familiar. It was a faint whisper that
he yearned to hear more clearly. As abruptly as he noticed it, the sound
disappeared. How strange, he wondered in a whisper.
The worldbuilding
is great with a map guide of the known world at the front of the book. The author does a great job of holding
mystery and tension between chapters, encouraging interest throughout the
book. From the first mention of a
man-hunting beast to the scenes that come after, you will be on the edge of
your seat.
There are a
lot of characters in the book, with many coming and going. Each is fleshed out appropriately to give
them enough depth and meaning. The main protagonist, Pike, is easy for the
reader to like and follow. Smart enough
for the reader to have faith in, but enough flaws to make him believable. Pike is a man that I liked and cared about
for his morals and honesty. There’s
plenty of action during his adventures and scrapes too, which are hard to put
down once they begin.
This is a
bold book that does a great job of introducing the world, characters and scenes
while keeping the flow and story moving.
The story
engages and builds suspense every step of the way. It pulls you in as a reader. You feel present
in the scenes since the writing draws the surrounding environment in.
Jada
looked at him, her face horrified. “You will kill the beast?” The conversations
stopped, and now everyone around the bar seemed to be listening.
I’m not
giving anything away, but the ending felt right. The plot works and the writing impresses. I
had a ball reading it, give it a try, you probably will too.