2 out of 4 stars
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The Darziods' Stone is a sci-fi fantasy novel written by Richard Smith. The book revolves around five teenagers and their unintentional involvement in a two hundred-year-old curse. The teenagers, Harry, Asad, Amelia, Ryan, and Mitch, are visiting Cornwall on a holiday from school. While exploring an old building, the friends find an ancient code detailing the location of a mysterious treasure. This discovery launches them into a centuries-old battle between good and evil.
I thought that Smith did a good job of expanding upon historical information within this novel. Smith utilized events and groups such as the French Revolution, the Knights Templar, and the Freemasons to shape and add credibility to the plot. I also appreciated that the main cast had distinct personalities. For example, Harry was portrayed as being extremely intelligent and often took the lead in stressful situations. On the other hand, Asad was a bit of a scaredy-cat. Additionally, the novel was fairly action-packed. Insight into the curse and action scenes were included frequently and in great detail. One tense scene involved the teenagers trying to navigate rough waters while attempting to gain information on the location of the treasure. I found myself on the edge of my seat in anticipation of what was going to happen next.
One of my major complaints concerned the ages of the characters. The characters were around 14 years old. However, some of the topics discussed in the book as well as the writing style made their ages questionable. For example, situations involving underage drinking and graphic depictions of violence were present. This made me confused about the target audience of the book. The characters’ ages implied that the book was targeted toward young adult readers, but the actual content of the book seemed more suited for older audiences. Additionally, small sketches were included intermittently throughout the novel. While the sketches were of good quality, they were too small and scarce for me to truly appreciate them. It may be better to dedicate a whole page to the pictures. I also found issue with some of the characterization. At times, the characters seemed flat and uncaring. For example, Mitch is seriously injured during a car chase. Instead of helping him or at least showing some concern, one of the good guys helping the teens tells the rest of the cast to abandon Mitch. This seemed very heartless, especially considering that Mitch is a minor.
The Darziods' Stone contained errors. While they were not grave enough to detract from my enjoyment of the novel, the errors indicated that the book still needs to undergo another round of editing. A common error present in the book involved missing quotation marks.
I rate The Darziods' Stone 2 out of 4 stars. While I enjoyed the historical background of the novel, the issues concerning the intended audience and characterization were significant detractors for me. I would recommend the novel to readers with a background in French history and who are interested in science fiction. Readers who do not enjoy large amounts of historical information may be bored by the book.
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The Darziods' Stone
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