Official Review: Korian by Giorgio Garofalo
18 posts
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Korian" by Giorgio Garofalo.]
[rbc=3]id369230-125[/rbc]
Garofalo featured several pages of Endura's history at the start of the book, including much useful prefatory information for the reader. Though it was a slow way to start the book, I would have been a bit lost in this strange new world without it. His writing style throughout the book was neat, concise, and easy to read. The descriptive writing was of high quality; for example: "The exquisite linen, held moments ago in the delicate hand of the mysterious woman, settled gently onto the surface of the river." As with all good fantasy writers, his imagination was impressive, and I got the sense he clearly saw all the scenes and settings in his mind while describing them.
The character development was solid, with character histories fleshed out nicely without overdoing the detail. The author explored relationships similarly, always in the course of advancing the plot. The story always moved at a decent pace, never stagnating or becoming boring. Overall, I found the narrative highly entertaining, filled with action and conflict. It spanned many years and included some of the history and mythology of Endura, largely retold to Doric by his new friend, Oren, during a period of incarceration by the enemy. Many situations the characters got into seemed inescapable, almost impossible to survive, which pushed me to keep reading. The climactic scenes were grand in their scale and ferocity, and a clever revelation at the end definitely hooked me for future books in this series.
On the negative side, this book still needed further editing. The author often omitted or misused commas; for example: "A faint, sound came from somewhere..." He occasionally switched back and forth between past and present tense, with some sentences worded a little awkwardly, such as: "The impact fractured its jaw and what little cartilage remained of its nose, shattered completely." There were also a few incorrect words used, such as "lightening" for "lightning" and "pours" for "pores". One example that annoyed me repeatedly was "taught" used in place of "taut", since the first means someone gaining knowledge from a teacher; the second means stretched or pulled tight.
Overall, however, I found The Manian's Spear, Book 1 of the Korian series, a highly entertaining fantasy novel. I enjoyed the characters, the action, and the insidious nature of the evil force pervading the planet of Endura. The only problem for me was the editing. For this reason, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I would recommend it to any reader who enjoys dark fantasy novels, especially fans of The Lord of the Rings.
******
Korian
View: on Bookshelves
Like joshfee77's review? Post a comment saying so!
Garofalo featured several pages of Endura's history at the start of the book, including much useful prefatory information for the reader. Though it was a slow way to start the book, I would have been a bit lost in this strange new world without it. His writing style throughout the book was neat, concise, and easy to read. The descriptive writing was of high quality; for example: "The exquisite linen, held moments ago in the delicate hand of the mysterious woman, settled gently onto the surface of the river." As with all good fantasy writers, his imagination was impressive, and I got the sense he clearly saw all the scenes and settings in his mind while describing them.
The character development was solid, with character histories fleshed out nicely without overdoing the detail. The author explored relationships similarly, always in the course of advancing the plot. The story always moved at a decent pace, never stagnating or becoming boring. Overall, I found the narrative highly entertaining, filled with action and conflict. It spanned many years and included some of the history and mythology of Endura, largely retold to Doric by his new friend, Oren, during a period of incarceration by the enemy. Many situations the characters got into seemed inescapable, almost impossible to survive, which pushed me to keep reading. The climactic scenes were grand in their scale and ferocity, and a clever revelation at the end definitely hooked me for future books in this series.
On the negative side, this book still needed further editing. The author often omitted or misused commas; for example: "A faint, sound came from somewhere..." He occasionally switched back and forth between past and present tense, with some sentences worded a little awkwardly, such as: "The impact fractured its jaw and what little cartilage remained of its nose, shattered completely." There were also a few incorrect words used, such as "lightening" for "lightning" and "pours" for "pores". One example that annoyed me repeatedly was "taught" used in place of "taut", since the first means someone gaining knowledge from a teacher; the second means stretched or pulled tight.
Overall, however, I found The Manian's Spear, Book 1 of the Korian series, a highly entertaining fantasy novel. I enjoyed the characters, the action, and the insidious nature of the evil force pervading the planet of Endura. The only problem for me was the editing. For this reason, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I would recommend it to any reader who enjoys dark fantasy novels, especially fans of The Lord of the Rings.
******
Korian
View: on Bookshelves
Like joshfee77's review? Post a comment saying so!
You are not logged in. Please log in or sign up to view members replies, participate in the discussion, and access more features.
