Merrrrrry Christmas everyone! Ho Ho Ho!
Now if only my beard were white instead of red…

Here’s a quick post with a review of a most-excellent indie book. For the bargain price of $0 I’m pretty sure you’ll agree this book kicks arse (you can get it here).

The Whirlwind in the Thorn Tree by S.A. Hunt

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

It’s been a while since I’ve read something this epic. I don’t mean that the plot itself was particularly Tolkienesque, but rather that it ticked all the Epic boxes:
A fully-realised world, teeming with saoshoma dragon serpents, mechanical monsters, and alluring aliens;
The kind of slow paced, highly-descriptive authorial style that lets you feel the slap of icy water, and the gusts of hot desert wind;
Journeys both long and fraught with peril, with companions you’d follow gladly;
And finally, a sense of history that makes you wish you could read tales of what has come before.

I loved it from the first page of the story proper, just after the prologue was through (which was descriptive and enigmatic; a glimpse into the world of magical gun-slinging that will make sense in a few chapters’ time). The pay-off for this first volume comes late but hard, so keep going! About a third of the way through you’ll know what I’m talking about.

I desperately wish I could go to the waffle festival in Maplenesse, and if you passed me the acolouthis I’d scarf it down in a heartbeat.
Overall, I give it four-and-a-half sorcerous goats out of five.

View all my reviews

See, doesn’t that make you want to sink your teeth into some steampunky cowboy urban fantasyish stuff? I thought so.
What’s everyone doing this fine Christmas day? I’m taking turns at minding the bub, and hopping in the pool with a tinnie of cold beer, as it’s a fine Southern Hemisphere Christmas for me. Would love to hear how you’re all going.

Festive regards,

D.R.Sylvester