Medalon Review

I just finished reading Medalon by Jennifer Fallon. It was definitely good enough to make me go out and buy Treason Keep, the second book in the Hythrun series. Of course, a bibliophile like me is cursed to read to the end anything I pick up. Still, the book does a very good job in the perhaps over-crowded fantasy genre. The characters are unique and have to, some extent, quite believable motivations. R’shiel, the main protagonist is a very strong lead and has very human aspects for a “good guy”. Tarja, the required companion in any fantasy, is perhaps a little too concerned about honor but that is me being fussy. The book gives us a good mix of politics and intrigue without getting bogged down in them like some other series; cough, Wheel of Time, cough. In addition, another criticism I have about most fantasy writers is that they overwhelm the reader with something I refer to as the superman aspect. We get an inordinate amount of fight and battle scenes and magic thrown in so that the reader gets the Hollywood feel. Personally, I like human stories where the author keeps these aspects in check. At the same time, myself being a wannabe writer, I feel that Medalon did a good job at hinting at these things to come in future installments. I just hope we get to see some cool battles and powers soon, rather than none at all until the climactic scene in the final book. One thing the book was probably lacking was moments of humor. The book has a very serious tone from the get go and after midway, we rarely see the characters attempt any sarcastic remarks or the like. Still, the bottom line is that I would definitely recommend this book as a good read to anyone looking to pick up a series. And those looking for synopsis and plot summaries, there are too many out there already. Still if you need one, look up the book on Amazon.