3 out of 4 stars
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The Edelion by M J Zeller is yet another fantasy book following in Tolkien's footsteps. It follows Harth, a twelve-year-old aspiring thief, as he attempts to join the Thieves Guild in a high-fantasy setting populated by dwarves, elves, goblins, and more. Harth has an incredible amount of magical power, and it seems he is destined to fight the Dark One, an evil force that is slowly awakening and overtaking the land. If this seems like a familiar premise, it is; the "chosen one" narrative is a staple of the fantasy genre. The question here is: does The Edelion have enough individuality to rise above the masses?
The answer is, of course, subjective. The book has some interesting elements, including orcs that are enslaved by goblin hordes, but nothing incredibly unique in the fantasy genre. Harth himself is a typical protagonist in every sense, and I never felt that his mindset or worldview was challenged by the trials he went through. That said, he never became unlikeable, and while he was usually saved at the last minute by his magical power, most of the time, Harth proved himself through cunning and sheer willpower that was very engaging to read about.
My biggest gripe with this book, though, is its relentless misogyny. This is thrown into almost every Tolkien-esque fantasy book, it seems, as a clumsy attempt at realistically invoking medieval times. In actuality, it comes off as flat and unrealistic. The only female characters in the book are defined by their sex appeal - there's one character who is a master thief, but her skill is never shown, and her only interactions with other characters involve them watching her "backside sway this way and that," particularly in "tight leathers that fit in all the right places." Every other significant character is male.
The book's writing style had some glaring grammatical errors, such as using the word "shown" rather than "shone," but it was extremely strong otherwise. The action scenes are compelling, and the language is descriptive without being overly wordy, painting a wonderful picture of the world Harth inhabits. It took a while for the plot to actually begin, though. The beginning section that follows Xavier, Harth's de facto mentor, reads like a worldbuilding experiment, rather than a part of a finished novel.
The Edelion is an engaging book with interesting characters and fleshed-out action sequences that, ultimately, falls short due to unoriginal worldbuilding. I rate it 3 out of 4 stars, and I'd recommend it to fans of fantasy books emulating Middle Earth that don't mind a rather overdone level of misogyny. With a bit more originality and a bit less reliance on overused and potentially harmful tropes, Zeller's writing could be truly exceptional.
******
The Edelion
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