Customer Reviews

Servant of a Dark God

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book struck me as falling into the mold of classic fantasy somewhat, while at the same time doing everything just different enough to be seen as original. Sure, there's a young boy with a destiny of sorts, but his interaction with his family and their involvement in that destiny are very different than other fantasy offerings. Yes, there's an evil power seeking dominion over the entire world, but it's basically already got it, and we're looking at the beginning of a rebellion. This, too, has been done, but I think it was just different enough with the political intrigue and terrible power of the evil forces to keep things fresh and new.

The story revolves around The Order, a group of people who want to give the power to the people. The magic power, that is. The Divines rule the land with an almost godlike status, hiding the reality that magic is for everyone in order to hold onto their power over the people. The story mainly revolves around two families who are caught up in the trouble brewing between the Order and the Divines.

I really enjoyed the emotional attachment that I developed to the characters, particularly to their interaction with one another. From the outset I was drawn in as Talen embarked upon the noble quest of finding his pants. It was a fun way to start a book, and a good way to see the humor in the characters before the try/fail cycles of the novel kicked in and we got to see the deeper side of each character. For me, the interaction in the emotional scene between Argoth and his son Nettle was particularly heart-wrenching, and signaled strong writing on the part of Mr. Brown. I also enjoyed the inner demons of Sugar, having to deal with the terrible things that she saw, particularly her reaction to them. Hunger was an excellent sort of anti-villain, someone you felt terrible for and routed against almost at the same time. In short, characters make a book, and this one is full of quality characters.

Rather than start with the young boy who gathers friends along the way for the great quest, this book begins with a well organized group, and that was refreshing in a way. Readers who aren't as experienced in the genre might struggle a little bit to understand everything that's going on, since Brown doesn't just hand it out to everyone. However, it's not nearly as difficult as, say, Gardens of the Moon by Erikson, where as a teenager I remember reading the entire first book and still asking myself, "What's going on here?" In fact, I now enjoy this approach, where the author doesn't explain every single detail of the world or the magic system. It should, in my opinion, come in parts, just like everything we learn in life comes in chunks that build together to become total knowledge. Think about it, when was the last time you went to Pep Boys for an oil change and the mechanic talked with you for nine hours about exactly how the car runs?

The book did have a couple of slow spots, where I felt like my emotions, fears and trust in the characters should have been building a little more dramatically rather than just maintaining, but I can't point them out specifically without a re-read, so that means they're not glaring enough to hinder anyone's reading of the tale.

The best compliment that I can give John Brown is this: Servant of a Dark God does not feel like it's his first published novel. It's more mature, and far more well-written than some of the first offerings of other authors I've come across. I would compare Servant of a Dark God to Brandon Sanderson's first offering, Elantris. Now, I didn't stay up all night reading Servant of a Dark God like I did Elantris but I'm also not 17 anymore, and have a 5 month old baby, so I can no longer base the quality of a work on how late it keeps me up at night. Also, let's remember that Sanderson wrote something like 12 books before he got Elantris published, so I'd say Brown's writing is definitely up to snuff. I'm eagerly awaiting the second book, and John, if you need an alpha reader, I'm right here baby!

A fresh new voice in fantasy is always welcome, and Mr. Brown's epic will undoubtedly claim its place on my shelves, right next to those other people I like enough to buy. A solid mix of humor and heart-wrenching sadness combine with plenty of well-done action to produce a novel that new readers as well as experienced hands will enjoy.

So first of all I am not a critic or a professional book reviewer so if you are expecting something brilliant well written and flowery then read another review. I am not even very good at punctuation and spelling :)

But I will say this - I LOVED THIS BOOK!

Totally new approach and a totally original world. I literally couldn't put this book down. I felt a tight connection with both the hero's and the villain. When I wasn't reading the book I was worried about what was going to happen to them and I even had dreams about them or about me in their world.

This book isn't necessarily great for young readers (it's no harry potter) - It's isn't excessively violent, or sexual and there isn't any rough language it is just you would probably need an 8th or 9th grade reading level to understand it.

"Mother is Watching!"

In the New Lands, the Koramites who have settled on the land are vassals to the Mokaddians. There is danger in this mostly unexplored place; the least of which are Bone Faces who attack the colonists from the south. They cut off a person's pinky and use black magic to bind that individual to them. More dangerous are the Sleths who use Fire (another person's life force) to give them incredible strength and speed. Only the Divines are allowed to use Fire because they feel anyone else would over use and over time would tirn into something evil. A monster nesting amidst the colonist has turned others into monsters.

Charity has come to the attention of authorities when her dead baby with parts of a stork and a stork with body parts of a human were found when the rains washed up the casket. Her husband was killed but her children blind Legs and Sugar seek shelter at the home if a member of the Order who use magic for good purposes. Talen, the man's son wants to turn them in but his father refuses. The monster Hunger seeks Charity and brings her to his master. Soon many members of the Order are trapped in the monster's cave and only a miracle can save everyone.

This is the first book in the Dark Gods series and it uses action to introduce the reader to the dangerous New Lands in which life is not precious. Readers get a sense of the differing species competing for power. For instance the Divines want more power to strengthen their hold at the top of the food chain. The monster who creates monsters out of humans wants to go back to where humans were herded like cattle. The Order is mankind's only hope for a free life, but many doubt the lords and the commoners will believe in their cause due to prejudice against magic users who are not Sleth. John Brown has written a compelling but bleak fantasy world filled with a complex and convoluted social structure that will grip readers from the onset.

Harriet Klausner

It starts out with Talen sitting pantless at the kitchen table, plotting revenge. After some whirlwind antics between Talen and his two older siblings -- revealing much of their situation and personalities -- Talen heads out to the next village for some normal chores. But nothing will ever be so simple again.

Terrifying magic is affecting people who had appeared to be normal, and rumors are flying. Talen himself is accused, though he is as ordinary and suspicious of the dark arts as any teenage farm boy. Or is he?

And this question leads to one of the most appealing aspects of SERVANT OF A DARK GOD: the mystery. Talen's people live in a colonized land, remote from their imperial overlords, still marked with the ruins of ancient, extinct powers. Magic which grants vast power through the consumption of both people's lifespans and their souls is undeniably real. But who really controls it? Who is using this power for good, and who for evil? Is anyone telling the truth?

As Talen's life crumbles around him, he, his family, friends, neighbors, and even their leaders are all are in for some surprises -- at least the ones who survive.

The style is pleasant, elegant, easy to read, and occasionally quite humorous. This is a long tale, appropriately epic, but it never drags. The story is told through multiple points of view, but mostly centers on young Talen. Descriptions are vivid and precise. All the characters are distinctive and interesting, without being ridiculous caricatures typical of some fantasy fiction. The characters themselves don't know much about the powers of their world, and as they learn, everything is also clearly explained to the reader. So, while the events are complex, they're never confusing.

The story has a complete plot arc and a satisfying conclusion, even though there are sequels on the way. No need to wait for the series to end to enjoy this story now.

Overall highly recommended, especially if you're a fan of epic fantasy.

The novel's events take place in a world where the use of magic is strictly controlled by powerful magic wielders know as Divines. A rebel group, the Order, is secretly growing their organization in the hope they will one day overthrow the Divines. When one of the rebels is exposed, Talen, a young farm boy, finds himself caught in the middle of the ensuing conflict.

Characters

The novel does not have a single protagonist, nor does it have a single point of view. The main character is Talen, the son of a prosperous farmer. He is a well-written, but sometimes irritating character who steadfastly stays true to his beliefs. I didn't always like his thoughts or actions, but they were realistic and believable actions for him to take. The reader also spends a good bit of the book in other characters' POV's--for most part those of Talen's friends and family. I will not go through all of them, but will simply say that they were distinct characters with their own interesting story lines. One of my favorite POV's was that of Hunger, a dreadful, powerful monster.

World Building

Good world building is extremely important for me as a reader. Without it I cannot build the willing suspension of disbelief required to become fully engaged in the novel. Having said that, John Brown has done an fabulous job at world building. The magic system is unique and interesting. There are no fireballs or spells of invisibility, instead magic-capable people steal Fire and Soul from others in an effort to multiply their own strength and longevity. The world building also includes a very realistic conflict between foreign overlords and the oppressed locals they have conquered. The cultures are creative and believable, with their own rules and rites. I'm also pleased by the fact that Brown knows his weapons and armor (as well as the tools of everyday living). Nobody tries to "load" a bow (is that longbow magazine fed, or bolt action?) and they draw their bows with a thumb-ring. Small details like these, well-placed, enhance the realism of Servants of a Dark God.

Engagement/Willing suspension of disbelief

For most of the novel I was completely engaged in the story. The process of discovery and the ever-growing threat to the protagonists had me reading the novel as fast as I could. As the novel reached its climax there were two elements that pulled me out of the story. One was the non-stop series of disasters that befell the protagonists. It was relentlessly grim--to the point I believed only a miracle could save the day. The problem is, miracles are really unbelievable. I want the protagonists to save the day. The story got to the point where I didn't believe they could realistically do it. This left me expecting an unrealistic ending and not fully engaged. The other aspect that pulled me out was the incredible power some of the magic wielding humans and creatures possessed. Anyone on the next "level" above you in the hierarchy of magical power was completely out of your league. You had absolutely no hope of defeating them.

These were not major flaws in the novel, but they did create some space between me and the story. They certainly did not slow the pace of my reading. I had the novel in my hands every moment I could spare.

Impact

Despite the small complaints, I highly recommend this book. It was a great adventure in a wonderfully realized world. The richly textured world and unique magic system are still with me days after finishing the novel. I look forward to what the author will bring us in his next novel.

This is the best fantasy I've read in quite a while, and there were lots of things to like. A diverse, interesting cast of characters that I nonetheless could keep straight (unlike the zillion characters in Wheel of Time). A great system of magic with costs, drawbacks, limitations, and checks-and-balances, but still plenty of power, flexibility, and plain old coolness. The pace was beautiful--some parts had rip-roaring action that practically made me want to skim just to find out what was going to happen, but that pace was balanced with slower parts. Not slow as in boring, but the necessary tension-building phases in which characters are deepened, new plot threads woven in, mysteries unearthed or revealed. Fans of fantasy, this is good stuff. Highly recommended!

I argue fine points of LDS doctrine with John Brown on Facebook, so I wanted to read his book. I was genuinely, deeply moved. This book feels real. The book started with a description of a pretty basic day on a farm. At one point, when two kids asked their brother to guard a fugitive, he said, "Who will do the farm chores?" I liked that. So real and so easily missed.

Brown doesn't have Sanderson's gaming-module glee in his confusing magic system, though his characters are more real. Any government-unauthorized magic identifies one as a Darkfriend (called Sleth, but it's the same idea). One of the characters, Argoth, was a former Darkfriend. He had gone from stealing life from others to hoarding it in small increments from donations--I think?--from his Sekrit Order.

The best parts are the moments where children face up to their parents' problems. Talen, the main character, had to accept how his dad is, to all appearances, a dark wizard. It reminded me of conversations with my dad; he always told me that my rigid view of religion needed more gray areas. I thought he was on the road to hell. The book might have been better if Talen had maintained his definition of wizardry and betrayed his dad.

For more baggage, the character Argoth challenges a corrupt ruling wizard. To do so, he draws strength from his son, almost killing the kid. Armed with his son's energy, Argoth battles bad guy , and the wizard makes him into a mental slave. He took his son's life-force to conquer this baddie, and it DIDN'T WORK. I would kill to pull that off in a book. Brown plays for keeps,; well done in a world of fantasy comfort-food.

This is a fantasy that beats up other epic fantasies and steals their lunch money. Seriously if you're a geek like me you've read a million rehashes of Tolkien. Servant of a Dark God is not one of them. The world is different, the magic system is amazing and unique. No chugging mana potions or fatigue and memorization here. Using magic in this world takes a lot out of you. It's different and well written.

The characters, politics and baddies are very well done. The bad guy called "Hunger" is amazing. No he's not a mindless eating machine, by the end of the book I felt sorry for him, even though he's made from stone dirt and grass.

The main characters Talen and River, (No not River Tam!) are great, you really feel like you're getting inside their heads and that the things they do are done for a reason.

Anyway I recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy, and to people who are burned out with carbon copies of JRR Tolkien. No Elves or Dwarves are to be found inside a Servant of a Dark God.

Buy it. You won't regret it. Oh did I mention this is the first in a series, so there will be more goodness to come later.

Brown wrote a very descriptive, very thought out narrative. He didn't spend paragraphs commenting on how the trees felt and how the birds chirped and I always find an author to be successful right there. However, you get a feeling right from the first few chapters that he had to cut a lot from the book. The world he's currently creating is far too large for this stand alone book and the reader starts feeling that right about halfway when the story gets deep.
Its fun hearing about all the different locations in his book, but I did get a bit disappointed with how short the book was and what its true potential could have been. Speaking of potential, the main character Talen feels a lot like a young Rand Al'thor,a man raised in a small homestead and developing into his power. A little more thickheaded than Al'thor, but you can definitely see how Brown tries to connect Talen's struggle to the everyday struggles of real life. Always nice to see an author introduce the idea that there may be more than 2 sides to a story. Great book, but it could have been so, so much more.

This is the debut novel from John Brown, the first of an epic new fantasy trilogy that is ambitious and sprawling. Brown stats off using what seems to be traditional fantasy plot elements of a simple boy, this time named Talen, seeking out his destiny, but Brown puts subtle twists on everything he touches making it unique. The world of Talen is governed by The Divines, a group of powers whose power is absolute and rigid. A rebellious group known as The Order is seeking to usurp the magical power of the Divines and give it over to the people of the lands. Talen and his clan are caught up in this uprising.

Brown's system of magic is extremely detailed and intricate. Magic is derived from one of three sources: Fire, Soul and Body. In order to increase their strength, magic users can draw Fire from others either forcibly which is deemed highly illegal. In addition, Brown also excels at world building, and dare I say, his skill is rather "Jordan-like". He paints a picture that is vast yet colorful in scope.

The Story is sometimes overly complex. Too many characters tell the story from their point of view, leading to some confusion and also failing to really pinpoint one character as the single, sympathetic protagonist. That said, Brown has produced a remarkable debut novel which tackles many sociological ideas that are often untouched in fantasy.