Review by Stacy_Morgan -- Fish Wielder
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Stacy_Morgan
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Review by Stacy_Morgan -- Fish Wielder
[Following is a volunteer review of "Fish Wielder" by J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Thoral Mighty Fist--the strange and courageous adventurer with the mysterious past--and his mount, Warlordhorse--the last lord of the great Brendylschmylyn, have been joined by Bradfast, their talking Koi companion, on many adventures. They've ridden far and wide across all the word of Grome, defeating great adversaries and becoming famous the world over.
But when you've gotten to the top... Where from there? That's the start of The Fish Wielder.
When Brad enters The Inn of the Gruesomely Gashed Gnome which is run by, well, a gruesomely gashed gnome, he finds his friend brooding over a tankard of warm ale, and is told by the strange man-in his strange accent from nowhere on Grome-that this is the end of the line for him. Through logic that makes sense to the drunken man, if no one else, Brad convinces Thoral to go on one last adventure to earn himself a hero's death; as that is the only kind that would suit him.
As so often happens in great stories, things don't exactly go as planned. The adventurous group of man, horse, and anthropomorphic fish expands to include others; specifically an Elf Princess. What starts as a heroic-death-quest becomes something more resembling Frodo on his way to destroy the Ring of Power.
This was a riveting tale told hilariously. I often found myself laughing aloud at incredibly specific similes. Other descriptions and names were so well done that my writer heart was sighing with pleasure even as I giggled. One example of this is the name of the Elf King: Elfrod. This sounds like Alfred, which fittingly means, 'elf friend'.
As I came to find out, in a world where magic is an everyday occurrence, some things will happen that seem a bit convenient. However, by continuing to read, you find out that they’re not as fortuitous as one would've thought. That said, there were a few coincidences that seemed like they could've been worked out another way. One example is an enemy reaching up to wipe sweat off his brow and nicking himself with the poison blade in his hand; effectively killing an antagonist with little to no effort on the part of Thoral. To me, that just seemed a touch too convenient.
There were details in this story that many other stories seem to be missing. The antagonist has a solid metal door and an enchanted maze protecting his secret, hidden room—a good defense for once. And a dismembered head--while enchanted to stay alive--cannot talk due to the fact that the lungs and vocal cords are no longer attached. Not to mention that things--in this case Brad--fall out of the pouch of one doing acrobatics. I was thankful that--even in a world held together by magic--these little realistic details were not neglected. This and the descriptions were probably my favorite part. Can’t make it too easy on the characters, now can you?
There is a romance. However, this seemed to be thrown in just to up the ante of several scenes. Granted, it did. The chemistry between these two, however, could've used a bit more work. The whole thing felt pretty forced. For the first half of the book, I was convinced she was faking it to get him close to her leader--the evil wizard. That wasn't how it turned out, as it was an authentic romance. Or meant to be, at any rate, making me feel a bit cheated in the romance department. This was probably my least favorite thing about the book. It didn’t deliver on something that much of the plot depended on.
There were a number of obvious Lord of the Rings references; lots of them. They're so clear and blatantly pointed out that I have to believe the author wasn't trying to copy another writer's work; but merely create a world parallel to several stories. The fact that there's also a yellow brick road, and The Wizard of Oz is mentioned as having the same, seems to support this theory. Still, the names and details are different enough that it bears mentioning that it could be mistaken as plagiarism.
Contributing to the rating I give this book were a few things. The typos weren’t many, but some of them were pretty easy to catch. Some convenient circumstances that—even as few as there were--suspended the reality of the story, also bore weight here. The forced romance and guesswork about the Lord of the Rings references influenced this decision as well.
However, there was also a large number of things I thoroughly enjoyed, and those also had to be considered. The sheer enjoyment I received simply reading this book and its humorous components was large. The satisfaction I got from realistic characters, details, and a well-built world was akin to a bookworm’s aesthetic. Not to mention the thrill I got at being surprised by new turns the story took—things I can usually predict, but not here. I also learned new words—which I will always be thankful for.
Overall, I give The Fish Wielder 3 out of 4 stars. It was an incredibly delightful read and the shortcomings were fairly easy to ignore as I read. Well, maybe all except the romance one.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the sci-fi/fantasy genre. As long as they don't need a romance to keep them riveted.
******
Fish Wielder
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3 out of 4 stars
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Thoral Mighty Fist--the strange and courageous adventurer with the mysterious past--and his mount, Warlordhorse--the last lord of the great Brendylschmylyn, have been joined by Bradfast, their talking Koi companion, on many adventures. They've ridden far and wide across all the word of Grome, defeating great adversaries and becoming famous the world over.
But when you've gotten to the top... Where from there? That's the start of The Fish Wielder.
When Brad enters The Inn of the Gruesomely Gashed Gnome which is run by, well, a gruesomely gashed gnome, he finds his friend brooding over a tankard of warm ale, and is told by the strange man-in his strange accent from nowhere on Grome-that this is the end of the line for him. Through logic that makes sense to the drunken man, if no one else, Brad convinces Thoral to go on one last adventure to earn himself a hero's death; as that is the only kind that would suit him.
As so often happens in great stories, things don't exactly go as planned. The adventurous group of man, horse, and anthropomorphic fish expands to include others; specifically an Elf Princess. What starts as a heroic-death-quest becomes something more resembling Frodo on his way to destroy the Ring of Power.
This was a riveting tale told hilariously. I often found myself laughing aloud at incredibly specific similes. Other descriptions and names were so well done that my writer heart was sighing with pleasure even as I giggled. One example of this is the name of the Elf King: Elfrod. This sounds like Alfred, which fittingly means, 'elf friend'.
As I came to find out, in a world where magic is an everyday occurrence, some things will happen that seem a bit convenient. However, by continuing to read, you find out that they’re not as fortuitous as one would've thought. That said, there were a few coincidences that seemed like they could've been worked out another way. One example is an enemy reaching up to wipe sweat off his brow and nicking himself with the poison blade in his hand; effectively killing an antagonist with little to no effort on the part of Thoral. To me, that just seemed a touch too convenient.
There were details in this story that many other stories seem to be missing. The antagonist has a solid metal door and an enchanted maze protecting his secret, hidden room—a good defense for once. And a dismembered head--while enchanted to stay alive--cannot talk due to the fact that the lungs and vocal cords are no longer attached. Not to mention that things--in this case Brad--fall out of the pouch of one doing acrobatics. I was thankful that--even in a world held together by magic--these little realistic details were not neglected. This and the descriptions were probably my favorite part. Can’t make it too easy on the characters, now can you?
There is a romance. However, this seemed to be thrown in just to up the ante of several scenes. Granted, it did. The chemistry between these two, however, could've used a bit more work. The whole thing felt pretty forced. For the first half of the book, I was convinced she was faking it to get him close to her leader--the evil wizard. That wasn't how it turned out, as it was an authentic romance. Or meant to be, at any rate, making me feel a bit cheated in the romance department. This was probably my least favorite thing about the book. It didn’t deliver on something that much of the plot depended on.
There were a number of obvious Lord of the Rings references; lots of them. They're so clear and blatantly pointed out that I have to believe the author wasn't trying to copy another writer's work; but merely create a world parallel to several stories. The fact that there's also a yellow brick road, and The Wizard of Oz is mentioned as having the same, seems to support this theory. Still, the names and details are different enough that it bears mentioning that it could be mistaken as plagiarism.
Contributing to the rating I give this book were a few things. The typos weren’t many, but some of them were pretty easy to catch. Some convenient circumstances that—even as few as there were--suspended the reality of the story, also bore weight here. The forced romance and guesswork about the Lord of the Rings references influenced this decision as well.
However, there was also a large number of things I thoroughly enjoyed, and those also had to be considered. The sheer enjoyment I received simply reading this book and its humorous components was large. The satisfaction I got from realistic characters, details, and a well-built world was akin to a bookworm’s aesthetic. Not to mention the thrill I got at being surprised by new turns the story took—things I can usually predict, but not here. I also learned new words—which I will always be thankful for.
Overall, I give The Fish Wielder 3 out of 4 stars. It was an incredibly delightful read and the shortcomings were fairly easy to ignore as I read. Well, maybe all except the romance one.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the sci-fi/fantasy genre. As long as they don't need a romance to keep them riveted.
******
Fish Wielder
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Like Stacy_Morgan's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: Toni the Superhero by R.D. Base
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revna01
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Thank you for a very nice review! I like that you were able to consider the author was referencing famous literary works on purpose rather than trying to get away with copycatting. I'm not sure everyone would have been as objective. Despite its faults, this sounds like an innovative read. 
