Customer Reviews

Ashes of the Sun (Magic: The Gathering) (No 7)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Even if you do not play the Magic card game, you can still enjoy this novel. Ashes of the Sun is the story of Ayesh, a former wrestler who is the last of her great civilization. In Ayesh's world, storytelling is an art, and tales can be traded for food or other goods. Ayesh wants her people to be remembered, and so she travels the land, telling her tale. To her frustration she finds that stories often change each time they are told, and the great cities of Neah that were her home will not be remembered as they were. Ready to die, and with nothing left to live for, she is captured by Minotaurs! Forced into the middle of intricate Minotaur politics, she sees and does things she never thought possible. In the midst of her unusual captivity, she discovers she does want to live after all. Braddock creates a new world full of surprise and intrigue. This book was a page turner, and I was up all night finishing it.

A Magic: The Gathering spin off it may be, but with or without the Magic label, it's still a good book!

Not only is a Minotaur hierarchy created, experienced and opposed, but you, the reader, get to enjoy it all!

Flakkah! (check the book to find out what it means), READ IT!

Ashes of the Sun is another quick and fun early MTG novel. Hanovi Braddock's novel takes place in a land of Minotaurs and Goblins and Humans, where each race believes itself superior and none understand the others. The story has a pretty good plot with danger and excitment and (as with nearly every fantasy book) plenty of fighting. The characters in this book are what really stand out though. Not your typical heroes here, but characters with their own unique personalities and flaws. Ayesh is a stubborn human who knows that she is right about everything in the world and will not back down from anyone. Tlik is an educated goblin who sees falt in everyone but himself. Zhanrax is a powerful minotaur who could never accept equality with others races or creatures. Throughout the story, these characters make decisions and act in very believable and realistic ways. By creating these characters, Braddock has made a point about real life human behavior and politics that will make you laugh and cringe.

I might be just a little biased playing the card game, but this has to be one of my favorite "fantasy" reads. It has a great deal of in-depth charector struggle that just makes you constantly fliping the pages to see whats up next. If you are a fan of the game this is a must buy and if you like the fantasy styled books this is one you will not be able to put down!

I first purchased this book many years back, and simply enjoyed it then. But reading it now, I can truly see how incredible it is.

The story of Ayesh, sole survivor of the lost people of Oneah, and storyteller who spreads word of her heritage in foreign lands, as she comes to realize that facts are lost over time, perceptions distorted, and truths rendered ambiguous, is comparable to our own modern journeys of self-realization and expression in a world where everyone wants to leave their mark. But how, and to what end?

With themes of trust, racism, love, hate, growth, redemption, self-worth and the ever-present question of who you can truly rely upon, it is also backed by solid action sequences, and a vivid sense of description and imagery that places you in the same labyrinthine mazes she is forced to dwell in for so long. It is filled with colorful characters worth caring for, and villains to despise.

For all the darknesses we find ourselves engulfed in, for all the weights placed atop of us, can we ever hope to reach the light again?

You'll have to read this fine, fine book to find out!

I loved this book like I wrote my self But your reviews on the other page Have me disturbed. You say Ayesh is from Neah but according to the book she is from the destroyed cities of Oneah. Don't take me wrong it was a simple mistake but it could have been avoided if you would only take the time to read over your writting more carefully or you just might confuse a reviewer like myself. Sincerly, Matthew Shaffer

Ayesh, a human travels to a land of minotaurs. She that minotaur politics can be very deadly.