James Gault reviews The Braxin King Book I by John Dill This book is a sexy, romantic, sci-fi fantasy adventure with undercurrents of philosophy, psychology and religion and a strong moral message. If that sounds to you like a book where the author has pretty well thrown in everything, I would say you’re pretty well right. There is plenty in this novel to exercise the brain cells and keep you involved right to the end. I could say it’s a standard alien invasion plot, where the good band together to save the universe and eliminate evil, but this would be undervaluing the novel. It is so much more. The love interest is prominent throughout, and love here is the ultimate utopia of romance: total dedication, loyalty and consideration. And of course, great sex. The strong points of the writing are good characterisation and an excellent portrayal of interaction between the players. The way the author tackles various themes is also impressive. Postulating an advanced alien world gives the writer the chance to make metaphysical projections based on the current state of knowledge in physics and cosmology and to develop ideas on morality and religion. The book is not just a simple adventure story, it is an allegory: a vison of an ideal world and the struggle to overcome the obstacles to achieve that ideal. Although I loved the richness of the ideas in this novel, there were some aspects that I personally didn’t like so much. To me, the writing tended to be a bit self-indulgent. Sometimes I felt that the author over-explained, slowing down the action. I also found places where there was repetition. For example, something is explained to one character, and then it is explained again to others. As a reader, I didn’t need to read it twice. I think the pace of the story would have benefited from ruthless editing and cutting out everything that wasn’t really needed. Also, although this is the first book in a series, I was expecting it to have a stronger resolution in itself. But these are minor points. Overall, this is the beginning of an intriguing and complex story which will enthral readers from book one to the end. |
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