Talion: Revenant (Project Reread #7)

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Title: Talion: Revenant
Series: -----
Author: Michael Stackpole
Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 467
Format: Kindle digital edition

Project Reread:

I am attempting to reread 10+ books in 2016 that I have rated highly in the past. I am not attempting to second guess or denigrate my younger self in any way but am wanting to compare how my tastes have changed and possibly matured. I am certainly much more widely read now [both in the good and bad quality sadly] than then.
I will hopefully be going into the reasons for any differences of opinions between then and now. If there is no difference of opinion, then it was a hellfire'd fine book!
Links may link to either Booklikes or Blogspot, depending on when the original review was.

Synopsis:

Young Nolan survives an attack that kills off the rest of his family. He proceeds, on foot and alone, to Talianna, the city of the Talions to join. Talions are the impartial Law Enforcers of the nations of the Shattered Empire.
Years later Nolan, now a Talion Justice, with mystical abilities, is called upon to protect the King of Hamis, who was the king that ordered the attacks on Nolan's family all those years ago.
Now Nolan must protect a man he hates, from a magical creature that can't be killed, all the while aware that there is a traitor among the Talions.

My Thoughts:

This book was originally published in 1997. I read it then, then again before 2000, then in 2001 and again in 2006. Each time I enjoyed it. My start this time was a little rough and I was worried.

The writing started off clunky with a lot of "he did X, she said X, they ate X" kind of declaration statements. Had me thinking I was going to have to downgrade this to a 3 star. Thankfully, things took off. The writing smoothed out and the story, once again, enveloped me. I think that if I was reading this for the first time now, I'd probably give it a "meh" rating. However, my enjoyment is still as much as the previous times and that is why the rating is staying up high.

Stackpole excells at writing standalone stories and this is a great example. He has an idea, he has just enough "oomph" to get it out and then that is it. While there are lots of threads left open that "could" make for more stories, I wouldn't want a sequel to this. Sadly, Stackpole seems to have gotten out of the writing game in recent years and those projects that he has undertaken seem to have been abandoned. His Crown Colonies books are the prime example. His skill had grown in those books but that "oomph" wasn't there and the series was abandoned after the second book, on a cliffhanger.

On a side note, I find that I don't like this cover, black and white skull, at all. Give me the other original cover which just screams "Fantasy".

   


This review has been more about Stackpole than Talion, but Talion has been the vehicle by which I've traveled Stackpole's career.