Book Review: The Name of Death by Joshua Robertson

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Book Review, Crimson Edge Press, Dark Fantasy, Joshua Robertson, Short Stories, The Name of Death

Title: The Name of Death

Author: Joshua Robertson

Published by: Crimson Edge Press (January 2, 2017)

Page Count: 39 (ebook)

Blurb: Drada Koehn is a fearless, formidable fighter ensnared in a presaged war against the northern humans. When the Speaker foretells their victory upon discovery of the name of death, she sets out to unravel the mysterious prophecy. Now, bound by duty and honor, Drada faces untold horrors with her companions, searching for what may never be found. In a story of unexpected twists, she soon finds that her resolve to see the quest done will be the fortune or doom of her people.

My Take: I had the impression, after reading Grimsdalr and Anaerfell, that Joshua Robertson was a talented writer. This novella confirmed everything I believed about his talent level and more.

The tale begins with Drada, a fierce female who is on a quest to learn the name of death. Early in the tale, it becomes clear that death is pursuing her and her companions. The tale is short, yet in that space of time there is plenty of development for the characters, the location, and even some backstory about what is taking place in the world beyond what these characters are experiencing. Joshua is able to weave so much into such a short space, and it is all done extremely well. I felt like I knew the characters and some of their struggles and the reasons behind the war raging among the races.

Joshua is an author of Dark Fantasy, and there certainly is no departure from that genre in this story. But that is to be expected with a title like The Name of Death. If you picked it up seeking a happy ending, you didn’t really pay attention to the title. But this story is worth it. So, so worth it. And at the current price of FREE, there is no reason to not download and read this one. It will end up being worth the 30-60 minutes of your time.

I look forward to reading more by Joshua, including his trilogy of books now that they are all available. If you haven’t read anything by this talented author, do yourself a favor and pick up this book and start reading today.

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Book Review: After Avalon

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18th Wall Production, After Avalon, Anthology, Colin Fisher, david wiley, Fantasy, King Arthur, Nicole Petit, Short Stories, The May Hawk's Daughter

Title: After Avalon

Authors: Various, anthology of short stories curated by Nicole Petit

Published by: 18th Wall Productions (August 12, 2016)

Pages: 248 Pages (Paperback)

Blurb: King Arthur is dead. Camelot has fallen. Britain drowns in Saxons.

These are the stories of what came after.

Merlin’s prophecies begin such, in introduction:

“In the days when Arthur’s dream was dimmed, as grey embers under storm, actors from our reverie still acted. A boy ventures into decaying Broceliande with the May Hawk’s daughter, both in search of fathers. Sir Gawain, bereft of his nation, rides in search of my tomb—but finds a friend turned enemy. In the Britain’s hour of need, the round table will be restored to defend Logres in the sky, in the London Blitz.

“My tutor, Bleys, will take a fool’s horse, and two adventurers will trace my dying steps across the world. Sir Lionel’s remains will visit the remains of the Arthurian world, and the Victorians will strive to make a gentleman of Mordred. The Questing Beast will never cease to haunt Pellinore’s line, no matter how far north they trend. The old witch, Morgan, will seek forgiveness. The holy lance will appear once more. And a queen who is no longer a queen will meet a knight who is no longer a knight, and both will marvel at the grave of the greatest king who served his country.

“These may be read, in full, inside.

“But I am tired now, and Nimue calls for me…”

An all-new anthology from the award-winning curator Nicole Petit, featuring stories by Colin Fisher, Leigh Ann Cowan, Amy Wolf, Thomas Olivieri, Jon Black, Patricia S. Bowne, Claudia Quint, David Wiley, Christian Bone, Patrick S. Baker, and Elizabeth Zuckerman.

My Thoughts: This collection is among the greatest in any anthology I have ever picked up. It starts out by delivering a strong story with “The May Hawk’s Daughter” by Colin Fisher which is, arguably, itself worth the price of the anthology. There are many other gems within these pages, with some that will hold strong appeal for certain readers while others may fall flat. This is the problem with any anthology: even the best set of stories will have ones that fall flat for a reader. Yet the diversity in an anthology is one of the most exciting things about it.

The stories in this collection are all bound by a loose thread: they are taking some aspect of Arthurian lore and imagining what happened to it after Arthur’s death. In some stories it follows the characters from the story shortly after Arthur’s death. Others follow objects, such as the holy lance, as they travel into new places in history. They are as diverse in approach and subject matter as the authors themselves, making for a solid collection that will hold appeal to a multitude of readers.

If you are a fan of King Arthur, you will not be disappointed by the treatment of the material by these writers. If you are looking for modern writers to discover, this would be an excellent investment. I have already made note of a few from this collection that I will be following closely, looking back at what they have published and looking ahead to their future publications and contributions. All in all, this is a beautiful book for your shelf filled with a variety of wonderful stories that will whisk you along to various eras and follow along various characters that you are familiar with from the Arthurian legend. You will not regret purchasing a copy of this anthology.