Book Review – Storms of Vengeance

Author: John Beachem
Cover Artist: Trace Edward Zaber
Publisher: Mundania Press
Binding: Paperback
Publication Date: October 2006

Storms of Vengeance is the debut novel of John Beachem. It is the first book in his fantasy series, “The Lorradda Stone.”

The story is set in the Kingdom of Faranin, a state comprising many formerly independent nations brought together by centuries of war, now enjoying an uneasy peace for the first time in generations. Magic is forbidden, and those tainted with magical power, the Marked, are hunted and destroyed without mercy.

Faranin’s short-lived tranquility is shattered by a daring late-night raid on the capital city. A band of mysterious attackers, aided by magic, penetrate the vast complex of the royal palace and manage to get out alive. In the aftermath, a prominent legislator is found murdered in his chambers. He had many enemies who would have liked to see him out of the way, but what seems at first like a political killing is soon realized to be more. Witnesses reveal that while the assassination was taking place, some of the raiders were busy searching a completely different part of the palace. The speed and efficiency with which the mysterious raiders struck makes it clear that they knew exactly where to find their victim. So what else were they up to?

Into this mystery are thrust two young palace guards. Calton Relanas is a young man of peasant origins, eager to prove himself. His friend, Ratel Eresgot, is the scion of a wealthy aristocratic family who desperately wants to show that he can succeed without his powerful father. Assigned to assist with the investigation, they find themselves faced with a deadly conspiracy with tendrils reaching into the palace itself, and an evil with designs on far more than the life of a single politician.

I found Storms of Vengeance to be a frustrating book, because it keeps showing flashes of potential to be better than it was. After a successful attention-grabbing opening, things slow down badly, meandering dully for a number of chapters, punctuated by attempts at greater excitement that came across as forced. Then, about a third of the way through, things start to pick up, and I was fairly interested by the end. There’s some good stuff here, but it’s a bit of a slog to get to.

The characters are a mixed bag. The main protagonists, Calton and Ratel, were not effective for me, and seemed neither emotionally engaging nor otherwise interesting. Unfortunately, the reader spends a great deal of time with them. On the other hand, some of the antagonists are a good deal more interesting, though again there is a pacing problem: the reader must wade through some rather unsatisfying parts before these characters start to become more intriguing. I also liked the character of Faren, the commander of the palace guard who leads the investigation of the attack. Beachem does a nice job of taking a very boring, stick-in-the-mud sort of person and making him an interesting and sympathetic character. The brief appearances by the King of Faranin were also effective, defying the common clichés for fictional monarchs- heroic guardian of the people, ruthless tyrant and oppressor, or ineffectual buffoon. Instead, he comes across as a well-intentioned man who is just unbearably tired, ground down by a lifetime of crushing responsibility.

The setting is more or less a typical medieval fantasy kingdom; for the most part it is serviceable but not remarkable. It does have one prominent virtue, however. I greatly enjoyed the book’s portrayal of elves- or “forest demons,” as most people in Faranin call them. In an enjoyable break with the common fantasy clichés that have turned elves into little more than pretty long-lived humans with a fondness for trees and shrubbery, Beachem’s elves truly seem uncanny and inhuman, frightening and inscrutable creatures of folklore.

Overall, I would describe Storms of Vengeance as a disappointment. Beachem shows a number of flashes of potential, but the reader must put up with a good deal of much less interesting material to get to them. I think his work shows future promise, and I’m curious to see how Beachem develops, but overall I can’t recommend Storms of Vengeance.

View/Post Comments

Buy it now at Amazon!