Review: A Lively Fantasy
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 07 27, 2011
The Adventures of Benjamin Skyhammer, by Nicole Sheldrake, is a lively fantasy adventure. The story revolves around Benjamin Skyhammer. Skyhammer is a relic-hunter, think treasure hunter, who is unable to use magic. In this fantasy world, everyone is able to perform magic. This leaves him thought of as sub-human, basically an outcast. Skyhammer is joined by Higgins, his partner, who is a very powerful magician. When Skyhammer and Higgins discover a powerful sorcerer is out to destroy everyone's ability to perform magic, they must stop the sorcerer before their world is destroyed.In Benjamin Skyhammer, Nicole Sheldrake has built a fantastic world unlike any I've read before. The level of detail was vivid, imaginative. The opening immediately drew me in. It gave a strong sense of the characters' personality, their status in the world.Skyhammer isn't the typical, wholly moral hero. He has deep, deep secrets. He often came across as jealous, self-centered and sometimes, even whiny. He will (and has) done literally anything to get a relic. Because of these major flaws in character, he was often hard to sympathize with.Higgins, on the other hand, was a totally different story. Although she is a secondary character, she was definitely my favorite. As a brilliant magician, she is often the one to get Skyhammer out of trouble. With a funny comment or a kick in the rear, she pulled him out of his self-obsessed despair. I loved her!However, I had a problem with the story. I know I have said that the detail in the world-building was immense. But it sometimes left me feeling a little lost. There were so many different species of "people" and so many geographical areas that I sometimes got lost in the details. Another little problem I had was an unanswered plot point. I mentioned above that Skyhammer has a deep, dark secret. In an effort to keep this spoiler-free, I won't say what the secret was. I was really bothered that although it was referenced in his thoughts and by a few who knew what happened, Skyhammer was never confronted about what he did. I would have liked to have seen that issue addressed.So. I know I've done a lot of griping about my perception of Skyhammer's character. But, I do have to (happily) say that within the last portions of the book,  his actions did a lot towards his redemption.  Benjamin Skyhammer began to act out of love and towards the greater good, and not for his own selfish gains. And don't we all like a character who is mostly morally redeemed?*I received a copy of this book from the author, in exchange for an honest review.*