Good must triumph or all is lost...
Once again Thomas Locke drew me in and held me hostage with the pages of a book. And just like last time with Emissary I finished Merchant Of Alyss in fairly short order. I just couldn't seem to put it down. The story was enthralling and the writing is top-notch in quality.
Reminiscent of Tolkein, in that, the story gets darker and more desperate as the quest goes on, but still told in Locke's own distinctive voice. Merchant Of Alyss is definitely what I would call epic fantasy. It isn't one of those dauntingly thick paperbacks of years gone by, but it is an all encompassing, all engrossing tale. Complete in 350+ pages and yet with the perfect, almost cliffhanger, ending to draw you onward in anxious anticipation for the next book.
If you like fantasy Merchant Of Alyss has it all. A desperate quest, dragons, magic, mysterious forces of both good and evil, and a small band of companions trying to conquer the darkness before it's too late. For years I kept my fantasy reading to pretty much J.R.R. Tolkein and C.S. Lewis but in recent years I have discovered some pretty talented current fantasy authors. Thomas Locke is one of those I consider a must-read, if I see his name on the cover I'll definitely pick it up.
A great book that will appeal to teens and adults alike, Merchant Of Alyss, Thomas Locke's latest installment in the Legends Of The Realm series, is a MUST read for fans of fantasy and quality, well-written fiction.
(I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my review. All opinions are entirely my own.)
