Review: Intricate World Building and a Fascinating, Well Developed Storyline and Characters
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 15, 2013
I really enjoyed The Return by Melissa Douthit. It reads like great epic fantasy despite being a post-apocalyptic, dystopian fantasy, but with hope. The world building is extremely intricate and the laws under which the world functions, as well as those few people who are able to manipulate the rules of that world with the use of artifacts, are well defined.The main character, Chalice, is gutsy, brave, daring, flawed, has a temper that often gets the better of her and is so genuine that she shines forth from the page. She is also the subject of a prophecy that only becomes less cloudy in hindsight. She has to cross lines that have been established among the survivors of this modern world in order to try to save her father and her people and she witnesses some of the worst things war brings as well as suffering terrible losses.The cast of supporting characters is equally interesting; they avoid being stereotypes and are fully rounded characters adding integral parts of the story line. I found myself amazed at how many varied storylines Douthit was able to keep apparently seamless track of and weave together into the intricate tapestry of this story.I recommend not only The Return, which is the third book in this series, but also the first and second books in the series, The Raie’Chaelia and The Firelight of Maalda, respectively. I read the books out of order though, starting with the final book, The Return and ending with the second book and I found that The Return provided a sufficient amount of back-story to stand independently; however, to truly appreciate the series and the intricacies of the story it was best to read all three books.I recommend this series to a broad scope of readers, those who enjoy dystopian literature with a mix of magic and standard warfare, those who like post-apocalyptic literature, those who like epic fantasy, those who enjoy paranormal romances – because Chalice definitely has some interesting abilities, although many in this world do. I just feel it has appeal to a broad scope of readers and offers a piece of literature that may well stand the test of time and one day appear beside the likes of Tolkien even though it is set in the future, not in some distant and forgotten past. It is still a wonderful fantasy in the truest sense of the word.* I received a copy of this book from the author in return for my honest and frank review.