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Seven Princes: Books of the Shaper: Volume 1 by John R Fultz (view source)
Revision as of 16:41, 14 March 2018
, 16:41, 14 March 2018no edit summary
{{infoboxinfobox1|title=Seven Princes: Books of the Shaper: Volume 1
|author=John R Fultz
|reviewer=Ani Johnson
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-0356500812
|pages=480
|publisher=Orbit
|date=January 2012
|website=http://johnrfultz.wordpress.com
|summary=Fantasy for those who like it dark. Prince D’zan, deposed by evil, travels towards his destiny, intricately linked with those of six princes.
|cover=0356500810
|aznuk=0356500810
|aznus=0316187860
}}
Elhathym gatecrashes a feast at the court of Vod-the-Giant-King demanding the throne, which he asserts was his 3,000 years ago. Vod is a little incredulous and refuses to abdicate. Elhathym then lives up to his job description (evil sorcerer), destroying the entire court... apart from his son, Prince D’zan who manages to escape with his bodyguard, Olthacus the Stone. Prince D’zan wants to fight to regain his kingdom but the only way to counter Elhathym and his armies of the dead is to form alliances with other nations; alliances that create friendships but also bring treachery and betrayal. Behind it all is Iardu the Shaper, a creation god-like figure who plans and plots.
''Seven Princes'' is John R Fultz’s first full length novel. His influences include Tolkien’s ''Simarillion'', the history book of Middle Earth that prequels ''[[The Hobbit'' by J R R Tolkien|The Hobbit]] and ''Lord of the Rings'' and it shows. Fultz has created a world with a mythical feel, where giants walk and inter-marry with humans, where the snow-covered cold lands of the north are inhabited by giants coloured blue, where evil walks and a young prince is forced to travel to its edges in order to build an army and royal allies from other nations. The reader is thrown into the action. The prologue hasn’t even finished before King Vod is killed.
Fultz’s use of language is also clever and, sometimes, despite the darkness of the journey (more on that later), beautiful. For instance: ''An arc of rubies hung across his chest like drops of frozen blood, mimicking the cold moon with a red smile.'' There are books that, as you read, you see with your mind’s eye. This one you also luxuriate in with your mind’s voice.
If you enjoyed this and would like to remain with a mythical fantasy theme, try [[Eon: Rise of the Dragoneye by Alison Goodman]].
{{amazontext|amazon=0356500810}} {{waterstonestextamazonUStext|waterstonesamazon=84706010356500810}}
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