4 out of 4 stars
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The Four Powers by J. A. Cummings is a novel focused on the great powers of the Loadstone. The Loadstone was created many years ago by the gods and split to maintain equal power corresponding to the four elements air, fire, water, and earth. Each piece was placed in a tower with an immortal Guardian to represent each cardinal direction. After the completion of the towers, tribes formed great cities around them to aid in their protection. Pedar Toloris is the second son of the Great Chieftain of the Water Tribe and self-made dragon expert. The Water tribe is in a constant feud with the dragons.
After a giant crack appears on the side of the Mountain Shadowtop, he is sought out to come and determine what the Dragon Council is scheming. Upon the return of the great Dragon Goddess Xetith, the Council aims to gain the Loadstone pieces to reunite them and reset the fabric of time to regain control of the land and destroy the humans. In preparation to prevent this from happening Pedar is chosen as the Dragon Bard and merges his soul with the soul shard of the great dragon Xaramuth. With the aid of representatives from the other elemental tribes and the Pheonix, he sets out to stop Xetith and the council and return peace to the land.
The Four Powers is a great Sci-Fi/Fantasy novel that is 357 standard pages. Written in the first person the book is narrated by the main character Pedar. It focuses on the theme of magic being present in the world as well as many other types of magical creatures. Pedar is a young bard who is forced to grow up quickly after the Dragon Council makes its plans known. The development of his character throughout this story is fantastic. The author portrays him with a great sense of humor and also an emotional side to remind the reader that he is still very young to be dealing with such hardships.
The female author of this book has a variety of knowledge related to the human condition which I feel helped her create the many different characters featured in her work. She is a historian and anthropologist by training, receiving a degree in Interdisciplinary Humanities from the Michigan State University Honors College.
Another thing I like about this novel is how the author would have occasional breaks where Pedar would explain several of the different races or gods mentioned in detail. I found that to be very refreshing and entertaining. I also liked how the author provided many different twists throughout the story. It kept me interested and focused to the point that I could hardly put the book down.
I had a hard time finding anything I did not like about this book. It appeared that the author took the time to have her book edited well in that there were very few mistakes. The story had a great plot and climax as well as great conclusion. Since I struggled to find anything I did not like about this book, I give it a 4 out of 4 stars. I feel this book would by very appealing to any Sci-Fi/Fantasy lover. There was some romance in the book that would appeal to Romance fans but also some scenes that were quite gory. If you are not a fan of blood and guts, you should probably avoid this book.
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The Four Powers
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