Witness: Book One of All Prophets Are Liars [Paperback]

Bill Blais (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 14, 2008

Rick, a phone rep for a credit card company, and Stephen, an ex-college sports star turned successful sales manager, have nothing in common except Sarah, but when Stephen tries to scare Rick away from her, he accidentally kills the prophesied hero of another world, and both men are thrown headlong into a land of magic and treachery.

Without explanation or preparation, the two unlikely companions are hunted by all sides of a growing conflict, the only constant of which is conspiracy. Chased by warring factions, deceived and distrusted by nearly all they meet, and dragged from one terror to another, Rick and Stephen soon learn that the age-old rules of the story books don’t seem to apply here.

Bound by little more than mutual confusion, the two men are soon at odds as they struggle to survive their inexplicable situation. In the face of the deceit and brutality surrounding them, their own natures threaten to split them apart and ruin any chance they might have to return home.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bill Blais has a Master’s Degree in Medieval Studies, which has made for consistently interesting interview conversations throughout his work in web and database development and in the corporate world. He’d like to believe it helped his occasional stints as a college writing instructor, but his students probably would disagree. Bill lives in Maine with his wife Mary, and their small tribe of cats and dogs.

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse, Inc. (February 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595471900
• ISBN-13: 978-0595471904
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,476,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bill Blais has been absurdly fortunate in love and life, living as he does in Maine with his wife, Mary, and their small tribe of dogs and cats. He is interested in quite a number of different things, which can be dangerous for someone with deadlines.

His studies in the US and England led to a Master's Degree in Medieval Studies, as well as an almost compulsive fear of student loan companies. It also led to a very nice piece of paper whose sole purpose for many years appeared to be the generation of interesting conversations during job interviews for IT companies. He'd like to say he impressed them with his worldliness, but it was probably pity. His work in IT has ranged from dot-coms to international businesses, and he still spends more time than is really healthy in front of a computer screen.

That very nice piece of paper also qualified him to teach English to college students, a career which has tested his sanity off and on over the years. He compares his work teaching to his stint rowing for the crew team at college: the most deeply satisfying, and the most drainingly painful, of experiences. And yet, he keeps going back for more.

None of which, arguably, has anything to do with his writing, which has been published in print and online. In addition, his self-published novel, Witness, won the 2009 Independent Book Publishers Award for Fantasy, which was a great surprise, though he doubts he'll ever wear the lapel pin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Something new and different, March 2, 2008

By 

J. Swan - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Witness: Book One of All Prophets Are Liars (Hardcover)

If you are looking for something new and different, without the same old cookie-cutter characters I highly recommend this book! Anyone who likes fantasy has probably dreamed of being thrust into that magical world and dream of instantly being able to sling those spells or wield a sword like a samurai warrior, but would that really happen? This book takes you down just that road and without wanting to give anything away it is quite a ride! So I wouldn't hesitate taking a chance on this book and would recommend it to anyone who asked.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Once your hooked, you're really hooked., March 31, 2008

By 

J. Turner (E. Kingston, NH USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Witness: Book One of All Prophets Are Liars (Hardcover)

Let me start by saying that when I got to the last page, I was so depressed the book was over! I was left wondering just how long it's going to take to publish book two. The feeling was similar to how I felt when the "Fellowship of the Ring" movie ended and I realized I was going to have to wait another year to see the next one, and not because I didn't know what was going to happen, I was just so engrossed in the visualization of the story.

Witness didn't quite start out for me that way. It took about a quarter of the book for the characters to start developing into ones I could tell apart so that I wasn't struggling to remember them. If I have one critique of the book it would be that you don't get quite enough of the supporting characters early enough to immerse yourself in the plot. There are so many different characters with either similar or difficult to recognize names that I found myself confused on several occasions and had to go back and re-read so I could understand the plot.

However, that said, after I got past my early confusion, the book drags you under with its fast-paced, twisting and turning plot that leaves you thinking "Wow, I didn't see that coming" at the end of every chapter. I had to force myself to put it down, and now that it's over I'm chomping at the bit to see what happens next.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great story, compelling characters., March 19, 2008

By 

M. Fraser (Portland, ME USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Witness: Book One of All Prophets Are Liars (Paperback)

While I think this novel would be shelved with fantasy/adventure novels, I think that it goes beyond the exciting ride to get at genuine human emotion, conflict and struggle in ways that I have not typically found in fantasy novels. I think that it would appeal to readers interested in genre-bending novels like The Time Traveller's Wife, Practical Magic and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.

The story is certainly exciting, a real world/ fantasy world chase involving warriors, shape-shifters and sorcerers on multiple sides of a conflict. Rick and Stephen, in the wrong place at the wrong time, are dropped into a fantasy world where their arrival is viewed with suspicion, fear and hope by competing factions attempting to seize power in the world. The mystery of who is good and who isn't unfolds slowly through Rick's point of view. His mix of fear and excitement at what he encounters is made more honest by his conscience, self-doubt and resentment of Stephen who is quickly adopted as a hero warrior. Interspersed with Rick and Stephen's adventure is the parallel story of Sarah, ex-girlfriend to Stephen and potential girlfriend for Rick, and how she is impacted by and copes with their sudden disappearance.

The story propells the reader in satisfying arcs of action and exposition that hint at a larger plot that I assume will be expanded on in future books. But what compelled me was the characters and their real relationships and believable dialogue in the midst of unreal circumstances. Even the minor characters Paqua, Luska and brothers Daski and Vaos each made a distinct impression on me and I hope to read more about them in the next installment.