Review: Intriguing villain
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 10, 2011
This book was much more than I had expected. Being a free ebook, I'd downloaded it just to try out a new author. I was pleasantly surprised and entertained.Southwell does an amazing job at descriptions, and the prose sucks you into the developed world. The plot is well thought out and complete, with subplots and multiple story lines going on at once in a carefully laid plan that gives the reader a full view of the bigger picture without becoming convoluted. My only complaint was that the main protagonist, the young healer, was a bit shallow for me. While I understand her role in the novel was to be pure and utterly serene due to her sheltered upbringing, I thought it a little over the top that she endured so much at the hands of the Demon Lord without once straying her thoughts or at least at some point nearly coming to a breaking point. Unrealistic, yes. Forgivable? Yes.The main character, the evil Demon Lord, was actually the reason I went out and purchased the second book in the series. I was curious most of all what happened to him after the final climax (which was, unforeseen by the way) and I cared enough about the development of his persona that I wanted to continue on. I honestly wasn't quite sure why I was so attracted to him, be it his disagreeable personality, his shadowed background, or simply the author's skill at bringing his uniqueness off the page, I couldn't let him go with the first tale.This book probably isn't for everyone, especially those with weak stomachs toward gritty realism and violence, but that of course is literature right up my alley.