Review of Erekos By A.M Tuomala

May 2013
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Erekos

by A.M. Tuomala

Publisher: Candlemark & Gleam

Publish Date: September 21, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-9364-6000-7

Genre: Fantasy

Source: Ebook provided by publisher

Rating: * 1 of 5 stars

Blurb from publisher:

Her sister swore that she would never let her die; now the entire world may pay the price.

In a land where gods walk beside men and witches defy death, war changes everything. Scholar and warrior, witch and king, priestess and corpse—all must come together to save their world from the ravages of the coming tempest.

For three hundred years, Erekos and Weigenland have fought to hold the borderland between the two nations. As the first storms of the flood season scour Erekos from the swamplands to the feet of the mountains, the Erekoi king discovers a dangerous new weapon that might be able to end the war: the witch Achane, who has raised her sister from the dead.

Achane and her sister, dragged apart on the very doorstep of a temple, must work to find each other again before the magic that binds them also kills them. In the process, Achane must overcome her grief—and the temptation of the king’s plans for Erekos.

Meanwhile, on the mountainous border between the two warring lands, the student Erlen finds his research interrupted by the encroaching conflict. Driven by a militant love for this neutral territory and its people, he determines to defend his newfound homeland at any cost.

In a land where gods walk the earth and myth manifests along the rivers and in the mountains, ordinary men and women must fight to make their own stories before the war unwrites them all.

My Review:

Unfortunately, not every book available is a good fit for every reader. I enjoy many genres of books, fantasy included. I enjoy trying out new novels, authors, and styles, but every once in a long while, I come across a style that just does not suit me.

Erekos is a fantasy novel written in language that could be described as a literary prose. This sounded quite appealing, however, I discovered that this style of writing is not for me. The descriptions were often long, flowing, and felt too drawn out. I kept getting lost in the character descriptions (which were not very thorough) and the story line was unclear for a large part of the book. I couldn’t tell where the story was going, because I could hardly understand where the story stood. The story jumped to various points of view with irregularity. Throughout the book, I was confused and pretty much bored, and found myself skipping full paragraphs, and skimming through pages at a time.

I was tempted to put the book down many times, but I kept with it and finished the book. Basically the book is about a fantasy people, their fantasy gods, and the end of a war that will forever change the way the people will live. The story had potential, however, I felt that the story was poorly executed. The plight of the sisters was just very odd to me. Achane did not want to let her dead sister go, and she wound up creating and falling into trouble and battle. The entire scenario was just sad, and i didn’t see any redeeming qualities to this tragedy.

I will say that there was some beautiful language in the book. Some of the settings were very unique, and I can appreciate the creativity of the world created. I am very sorry to say it, and even sorrier to write it, but I just did not like this book. While I enjoy fantasy, this form of lyrical prose writing was not for me. I know that there are plenty of readers out there who appreciate the prose and beautiful language. I find that I enjoy more direct and clearly stated storyline. I will remember this in the future.