9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
W-O-W!, September 27, 2007
The mweb (magical web) was created by Necessity. It connects all the infinite worlds of probability. Without it, the multiverse would be like a hard drive without a directory. Ravirn was designed to maintain it. He is a hacker and sorcerer. He WAS the prince of the middle house of Fate. In fact, the Fates are his great-aunts. These three are not the old hags most humans believe. They are more like Amazonian-to-the-extreme huntresses. Clothos is the spinner of life threads. Atropros wields the shears. But it was Lachesis who revoked Ravirn's name and cast him out of the family. Interestingly enough, Clotho declared him a legitimate force for chaos and gave him the new name of Raven. A name he HATES.
Melchior is Raven's webgoblin. (Sort of like a familiar.) He can take the shape of a goblin or a laptop. Cerice is Raven's girlfriend. Until recently, Cerice had a webpixie named Shara. Shara could take the form of a pixie or a PDA. Shara sacrificed herself to save Raven's life. Cerice is not only hurt emotionally at Shara's death, but is also academically shattered. You see, Cerice is finishing up a doctorate in Computer Science. The little PDA has all six years of Cerice's work on it and is currently residing on the wrong side of the River Styx.
So Raven must trick Cerberus (the dread guardian of the underworld and Raven's card buddy), hack into the computer of Lucifer's, and rescue Shara. Impossible for anyone else, but not Raven. However, this is where all ... well ... Hades breaks loose. Since her rebirth, Shara has begun acting a bit strange. The mweb is fraying and will soon disappear. Persephone is dealing some sort of goddess blackmail with Raven; and this is all just the beginning.
Everyone has been despairing of Raven's common sense for years. He seems to always be taking on higher entities than himself. And Raven is about to prove them all correct ... again.
***** Author Kelly McCullough has the most remarkable writing talent I have ever read, in a "myth-fanta-sci-full" sort of way. (Yes, that is a real word. Look in the dictionary and see where I penciled it in.) Not satisfied to write a single genre or to use a sub-genre already made, he has created a new template that others will build stories upon in later years. But know this, McCullough is the original and unparalleled. An outstanding addition to this newbie genre! *****
Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The House of Chaos is Built, November 19, 2007
Kelly McCullough continues to rack up big points with his ongoing science/fantasy series starring Ravirn, a child of the Fates from Greek mythology. The first book, WEBMAGE, was an excellent story, introducing a smart-mouthed, quick-thinking, magnet for trouble that reminded me a lot of Roger Zelazny's signature characters.
Like Zelazny's Corwin of Amber and Jack of Shadows, Ravirn tells his own story in a first-person narrative that explodes onto the pages and keeps moving along at a brisk pace. Since I'd read the first book, the second book, CYBERMANCY, didn't offer any challenges to lock into the world. I felt like I was stepping back into a gathering of old friends. That's how you know you have excellent characters - when your readers can drop back in and never wonder once who is who.
I call these books science/fantasy because McCullough insists on making technology and magic both driving factors of the series. Not only is Ravirn a child of the Fates who's gifted with awesome magical abilities, he's also a computer geek that knows his way around hacks and cracks. As steeped as I am in computer-speak, I was sometime challenged with having to keep up with the amount of information in Ravirn's narrative, but even when I lost the thread of something (I blame my ADHD, not McCullough's writing) it didn't take me long to catch up.
Even cooler than that, though, Ravirn turns out to be an emerging chaos god who's about to hang a shingle in the Greek pantheon. That story alone is worth the price of the book.
There are lots of stories in the second book of the series, though. Ravirn's friendship with Melchior -- the webgoblin he created, designed, programmed, and eventually gave independence to - is still at the forefront of the adventure. Likewise, Cerice - Ravirn's lady love - returns with a host of new issues as well. Her webgoblin's name is Shara, but she has a tendency to take a human form that looks an awful lot like Mae West, complete with ample charms and double entendre enough to make a sailor blush.
At the end of WEBMAGE, Shara inadvertently got trapped in Hell. Hades, that is. Cerice is as dedicated to Shara as Ravirn is to Melchior. So you know that Ravirn has to journey to Hades, risking certain death in the Land of the Dead as he outsmarts Cerberus, the three-headed dog that guards the gates of Hades. Thankfully, Ravirn has been playing cards with the dog/s for some time, so he knows a thing or two.
The story quickly takes shape as Ravirn attempts his feats of derring-do for his lady love. Who might not even love him in the same way he loves her. I really got into all these balls McCullough kept throwing in the air. There's always a new reason to keep turning pages. One of the strongest aspects about the books that I enjoy is the fact that McCullough plays fair with the whole Greek mythology. More to the point, if not for one of the most basic myths, this story would never even have taken place.
People who haven't tried the series really don't know what they're missing. McCullough has true world-building skills, a great sense of Greek mythology, and the eye of a thriller writer. The blend of technology and magic is absolutely amazing, and I'm surprised no one has thought to do it quite like this before.
The first-person narrative pulls readers in quickly and introduces them to the action and the world effortlessly. I like the humor, the puns and the jokes, a lot. It fits the characters perfectly. And now, with Ravirn's mysterious future slightly more clear, I can't wait to see where the third book takes him. I'm definitely going along for the trip when the book comes out.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Solid Second Book in the Series, June 21, 2008
Jumped into it after enjoying the first book. Had fun with it all the way through. Another roller coaster ride with a guy who's heart's in the right place, but who has a knack for making enemies by doing the right thing. He really is the poster boy for saying "No Good Deed Ever Goes Unpunished". The more he helps the more things seem to get out of whack. I think we all can relate to that in some way.
Ravirn's character develops more here, as he's trying to fix his past mistake, save a damsel in distress, deal with crazy relatives and come to terms with his new name. And what is the new name "Raven" that Clotho gave him all about? What does it have to do with him, and does he even want to know?
Well, probably not, but in Ravirn's world, Fate really is a Bi*ch!
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