Customer Reviews

Codespell (Ravirn)

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Ravirn may be the umpteenth great-grandson of Lachesis, one of the three Fates, but he is no longer part of their House. Recently Ravirn has become his own House, House Raven. The CEO of Pantheon Inc, Zeus, throws a party and for Ravirn attendance is mandatory. Ravirn is more than a little surprised when he spies Dairn at the party. Ravirn had been pretty sure Dairn had died during their last battle. As uncomfortable Ravirn is whenever he looks into the mirror and sees chaos reflected in his eyes, he is even more stunned to see what is in Dairn's eyes. Looks like Ravirn is not the only one to receive an upgrade lately.

Within Dairn's body is a (sort of) dead goddess. Nemesis used to be Goddess of Vengeance, visiting the wrath of the gods on the heads of men, and the wrath of Necessity, the sentient computer, on the heads of the gods. For some unknown (to Ravirn) reason, Nemesis is back and her entire being is focused on deleting Ravirn's existence - permanently. The only one able to deal with Nemesis is her mother, Necessity. But Necessity is currently (ahem) broken and her where-abouts are unknown.

Whoever repairs Necessity will, for that moment, run the entire universe and be able to remake everything to his/her liking. This means that many dangerous people (or beings, if you prefer) are trying to locate Necessity. Ravirn and his new girlfriend, Tisiphone (the Fury), and Melchior (little, blue web goblin) team up. Blend in some spicy help from the Goddess of Discord and they have the makings of a very hot team. Oh, did I mention that Hades still wants Ravirn dead as well?

***** Personally, Tisiphone has always been my favorite Fury. For the gamers out there who have played the MMO of Diablo II, picture Andariel with fiery wings instead of peacock feathers and you have a very close image. Tisiphone is the very embodiment of vengeance and destruction. It is great to see Ravirn on her good side - her VERY good side - for a change. Most of the characters from WebMage and Cybermancy make an appearance, even if only briefly. However, a new family member is introduced as well.

Even though Mythology and magic have gone digital, since one must keep up with the changing times, readers do not need to be in the I.T. (Information Technology) field to fully enjoy and appreciate what the author has created here. I do not recall the last time I have loved a series of books as I have this one. Author Kelly McCullough + the new genre he has inspired = pure genius! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

The magical universe has shut down and rebooting it isn't restoring the system. Ravirn, turned demi-god (or pretty close to it), is having to fix it. With Nemesis, the Goddess of Revenge, after him that's not easy...

McCullough's universe is as great as in the previous two books. This book however comes across as more action packed. What is nice about that, is that it makes the book fast-paced, draws out the character of the Furies, gives more insight into his divine family ("Meet your grandmother!"), refreshes his love interest. Slightly less positive is the effect it has on the depth of character we've gotten used to in the first two books. There's less "people" (i.e. characters of all sorts, be they divine, punk-fairy, cyber-mythological or otherwise) to meet, to be entertained by and to enjoy.

For a large part I was pretty lost in this book. No idea what the action actually was about... And then suddenly, McCullough turned it around, quite smoothly and it all made sense. It's a nice book. Not bad at all. But less suprising than the previous two. And with a little less depth.

I got this book for my ten-year old son, and he convinced me to read it too. We now have all four in this series and eagerly await the next. Some 'romantic moments' here and there, but nothing very graphic, and my son just skipped through those parts. A well-thought-out new universe, lots of fun.

This book picks up where the previous two installments leave off without a break in the action or the storytelling. These books by Kelley McCullough have been like a breath of fresh air to the fantasy genre with the integration of computer technology into the classic greek mythology. Very well written and a good balance of action and background. I'd recommend these books to all fans of the "Garret, PI" Glen Cook books and "Harry Dresden" books of Jim Butcher.

I thought that this was very good. It held my interest and the ideas in the story were interesting. The "melding" of computers and magic sometimes is a little forced - how could it not be - but I think it's done amazingly well. My only problem, and it's probably me, is that I had some trouble keeping up with who's who in the cast of characters.

This 3rd entry into the world of Raven does not disappoint. In fact I really, really need for Kelly to write book 4 so I will know what happened to the webtroll!

For a person that loves magical things and computers and myth, life don't get no betta than this.

These books are a mix of Xanith, Disc World, The Enchanted Forest Chronicles and a computer hand book. A surprise at every turn.

I am not about to give away anything here. Buy the 3 books then bug Kelly until he writes the 4th.

I was lucky to be able to read all three books in a row, including this new one, and I had a blast!

Fast, fun and Fury-ous. Like the first two, this one starts moving and doesn't let up. Great twists and turns, and more about Ravirn the "Raven" coming into his own in a strange universe that mixes computers and Greek mythology.

Not a stand-alone, because the plot-line is very dependent on the first two books. The author does a good job of trying to catch a reader up, but I think the magic just wouldn't be the same unless you read the other two in order. Another series for my keeper shelf.

I am really enjoying this series. I found the first 2 pretty much by accident, enjoyed them and pre-ordered the third. It gets a little dizzying trying to keep up with the computer geek language; but this time out the story sails more smoothly. I found Codespell to be taking on the flavor of the Amber books and that is not a bad thing at all. I will definitely look for the next installment.

Magical has gone digital in the twenty-first century with magic performed on the MWeb which uses computers formed by webgoblins. Both forms are sentient and Melchior, Ravirn's familiar is loved by the man who once owned him then set him free when he realizes he was sentient. After fighting Hades, he was turned into a Chaos entity with his own House of Raven. While in Hades, he rescued Persephone and his girlfriend's webgoblin Shara. He e-mails her to Raven's girlfriend Cerice. He did not realize that Persephone created a virus that she placed in Shara.

Now the magic of the mweb is chaotic and working at fifty percent capacity. Cerice leaves Ravirn to repair the supercomputer Necessity and because she belongs to the House of the Fates where order is obsessive and she realizes she cannot cope with the chaos Raven brings. Necessity is a goddess who turned herself into a supercomputer so that magical users can access the multiverse while the Fates are subordinates to the compute. The Fates hope to repair the machine, but under their control. Ravirn is backed by the Furies to fix their mother Necessity so that the Fates will not have control of her. He holds all the powers of the world in his fingertips, which leads to many wanting him dead before he repairs Necessity.

This is a fun to read fantasy filled with irreverent witticisms, plenty of action, and a mind boggling romantic subplot. The protagonist has become a demigod and has a new outlook while juggling romances, avoiding enemies and relatives who in some cases are both, and fixing a sentient computer. Ravirn has a dry wit and a streak of kindness that at times gets him in trouble but endears him to readers as he bumbles and fumbles with a CODE SPELL.

Harriet Klausner