The Skewed Throne
Joshua Palmatier

I don’t know if this was intentional or not (I suspect it wasn’t, but I’m always ready to give the benefit of the doubt), but much of this book sounded as if it was written by a fourteen-year-old, not just narrated. It’s just little things that sort of stick out, like, "Eyes hardening, I turned back to the mouth of the narrow." I mean, you just don’t say things like ‘eyes hardening’ when you’re talking about yourself in first person. It’s the show-not-tell thing, most basic rule in the book.

Same thing comes up in multiple other incarnations — overuse of adjectives: "All hints of the reassuring, casual voice had disappeared. This voice was hurtful, threatening." and exaggerated acuity: "There was a new, considering look in his eyes, as if he were judging me, coming to a decision." If it were just these isolated pieces, that would be one thing, but it comes back again and again, the emotions and reactions told to us instead of felt.

In contrast, the magic present in the story is very much felt — the burn of the Fire, the grey wash of the river. Both were very organic, very compelling, even more so for the fact that it doesn’t even get named as magic until the end, and that no one else seems to understand what it is. And I love the first time we get the full scene where she went under water as a child, and came into the Sight. That, "Mommy, look at the red men," that ends the scene is really fantastic. (It gets repeated later, which I think is sort of unfortunate — it was strong enough the first time, and we’re big kids, we can connect the dots.)

I appreciate the fact that her skill as an assassin is set up in a sufficiently logical fashion, with Erick’s training. However, the juxtaposition of this supposed ruthlessness with her periodic breakdowns into tears stretches my credibility a bit. You’d think she would swing one way or the other, with the passage of years that the book suggests.

I was also a bit disappointed with Bloodmark. I kept expecting him to break out of the typical rival mold, through forcing them into a situation where they had to work together so that they’d develop at least a grudging respect for each other. But he stayed firmly polarized all the way through. So Varis was right in her judgment of his character. Where’s the fun in that?