Queen of Demons is the middle volume of a mammoth heroic fantasy trilogy that begins with __. After dealing with a variety of menaces in book one, shepherd-boy hero Garric is on course to unite his archipelago world against the remaining forces of chaos, evil, and unpleasantness, thus earning the title Lord of the Isles.
Again Garric's allies--including some interesting new helpers--are widely scattered in a tangle of linked story lines and headlong action, featuring many exhilarating fights against monsters, chimeras, phantoms, revenants, Hairy Men, Scaly Men, a cyclops, wicked wizards, and the book's two biggies: the unspeakable Beast that demands a diet of young girls and the title's evilly beautiful demon-spawned Queen. At regular intervals characters fall through another magic portal to find themselves in a new plane or dimension or hellworld, there to discover mislaid friends, deadly peril, or more likely both.
Drake keeps his narrative bowling along with plenty of color, occasional doses of practical politics, and no time at all for boredom. Arbitrary transitions and wild coincidences make it seem slightly tongue in cheek, soap-operatic entertainment with an endless series of hissable villains to be zapped, outwitted, or skewered with a trusty blade. At the very end, with Good seemingly triumphant, up pops another one:
The wizard stood on the back of the monster he had called to him. He raised his head, and the heavens echoed with his laughter.
More in book three.... --David Langford, Amazon.co.uk
From Publishers Weekly
As the protagonists in this sequel to Lord of the Isles (1997) journey through multiple worlds, Drake conjures a sense of enchantment?and danger?with original and convincing settings, situations and characters. Moreover, unlike too many fantasy characters, these protagonists mature through their adventures. Garric, aided by the ancient but lively spirit of King Carus, assumes the throne and grows into the unexpected?and often boring?demands of true kingship. His sister, Sharina, finds more male protectors but also learns to protect herself. Cashel rescues a princess?though the result is no fairy tale, and Cashel's sister, Ilna, seeks worthwhile purposes for her weaving-magic and expiation for the sins of its past uses. Liane emerges as a major character, dependable adviser to Prince Garric; other intriguing folk are introduced, from a drug-addicted wizard to Zahag, an ape magically given speech but still nonhuman in personality. If anything, the book covers too many stories, and so the reader is relieved when the protagonists are united at book's end. And though the evil eponymous Queen and the blood-hungry Beast have been defeated, more adventures await in implied future volumes. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Description:
Amazon.com Review
Queen of Demons is the middle volume of a mammoth heroic fantasy trilogy that begins with __. After dealing with a variety of menaces in book one, shepherd-boy hero Garric is on course to unite his archipelago world against the remaining forces of chaos, evil, and unpleasantness, thus earning the title Lord of the Isles.
Again Garric's allies--including some interesting new helpers--are widely scattered in a tangle of linked story lines and headlong action, featuring many exhilarating fights against monsters, chimeras, phantoms, revenants, Hairy Men, Scaly Men, a cyclops, wicked wizards, and the book's two biggies: the unspeakable Beast that demands a diet of young girls and the title's evilly beautiful demon-spawned Queen. At regular intervals characters fall through another magic portal to find themselves in a new plane or dimension or hellworld, there to discover mislaid friends, deadly peril, or more likely both.
Drake keeps his narrative bowling along with plenty of color, occasional doses of practical politics, and no time at all for boredom. Arbitrary transitions and wild coincidences make it seem slightly tongue in cheek, soap-operatic entertainment with an endless series of hissable villains to be zapped, outwitted, or skewered with a trusty blade. At the very end, with Good seemingly triumphant, up pops another one:
More in book three.... --David Langford, Amazon.co.uk
From Publishers Weekly
As the protagonists in this sequel to Lord of the Isles (1997) journey through multiple worlds, Drake conjures a sense of enchantment?and danger?with original and convincing settings, situations and characters. Moreover, unlike too many fantasy characters, these protagonists mature through their adventures. Garric, aided by the ancient but lively spirit of King Carus, assumes the throne and grows into the unexpected?and often boring?demands of true kingship. His sister, Sharina, finds more male protectors but also learns to protect herself. Cashel rescues a princess?though the result is no fairy tale, and Cashel's sister, Ilna, seeks worthwhile purposes for her weaving-magic and expiation for the sins of its past uses. Liane emerges as a major character, dependable adviser to Prince Garric; other intriguing folk are introduced, from a drug-addicted wizard to Zahag, an ape magically given speech but still nonhuman in personality. If anything, the book covers too many stories, and so the reader is relieved when the protagonists are united at book's end. And though the evil eponymous Queen and the blood-hungry Beast have been defeated, more adventures await in implied future volumes.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.