Neversfall: The Citadels [Mass Market Paperback]

Neversfall by Ed Gentry is the first novel in a series of stand-alone novels titled The Citadels. The second novel in this series is titled Obsidian Ridge: The Citadels by Jess Lebow and is scheduled for release in April of 2008. Lately, Wizards of the Coast has been releasing these stand-alone novels in series form seemingly to give new authors a chance and to expand on some areas that are rarely written about in the Forgotten Realms. If you have read any of the previous stand-alone series i.e. The Fighters, The Clerics, The Dungeons etc. You know what to expect here. A nice compact story, where previous reading is not necessary. That is one thing I really appreciate about these books, as a reader you don't have to have tomes of past knowledge under your belt to understand the story.

The plot of this book, at least at the start, is there is a citadel in the untamed wilderness where everyone has went missing. No one knows why or how. Pretty simple storyline. However, Mr. Gentry adds several sub plots to the mix to liven things up. For starters the replacement regiment sent to investigate the disappearance is made up of two different military groups. One being the hard lined Maquar and the other being a mercenary band from Durpari. Later in the book there is a bit of a political sub plot, as well as something that is present in many books, but the way Mr. Gentry presents it makes it much more poignant and that is morality. While I enjoyed the book, I really enjoyed the last two to three chapters when the morality issue came to a head. There are a few other things mixed in for good measure, but I will let you find them for yourselves, you know those dreaded spoiler things.

The characters in this novel are equally as entertaining as the plot. The main character is Adeenya, the mercenary leader. I was a little surprised that this book featured a strong female lead character. However, after finishing the novel, I think that choice was perfect. I like how Mr. Gentry explained how she came into the life of a mercenary as well. Another character that features prominently in this novel is Taennen who is the Maquar second in command. He is a solid character, well written and just enough depth and back story to be interesting without overburdening the reader with needless details. There are several other characters that are equally as interesting, but in an effort to keep this review succinct, I'll refrain from listing all of them. I will say this though, for only three hundred and twelve pages, there is a great deal of character development with the majority of the characters. Mr. Gentry obviously put a lot of thought into how the characters were going to act, their motivations, and he succeeded in giving each one of them a voice.
The only criticism I have for this novel is I wish we could have learned more about the Durpari mercenaries that were present. It seemed aside from Adeenya and her second the rest were just fodder. I understand word count issues and such, I just thought a little more there may have helped.

I really enjoyed this novel from start to finish. I am not a role player, so I am sure some of the details that Mr. Gentry included were lost on me. For instance I do not know anything about the Durpari or Maquar but Mr. Gentry provided enough information that I was able to glean a general idea of what they were. The prose that Mr. Gentry writes is like a familiar song on the radio that you can listen to time and time again. It's easy, smooth, and just has a natural feel to it. At no time did I get the sense hat he was forcing something on the reader. I enjoyed the little details that he tosses in as well, it makes the setting, characters, and plot come alive without plodding though useless details.

This is the first book in the citadel series, and I must say that if this is the quality of all the books in the series it will be a fantastic series. This may be Mr. Gentry's first Forgotten Realms novel, but he writes like a seasoned veteran and other authors need to be on alert, there is a new voice in the Realms and he is playing for keeps. I am eager to get my hands on his next novel. Looking back on all the novels I have read in 2007, I am thinking this novel may be in my top ten for the year. I will certainly be recommending this novel to many, many readers. Well done Mr. Gentry, this is what a Forgotten Realms book should be!

Neversfall is a very well crafted novel for a first effort from Mr Gentry. Interesting characters with nice depth and development, very beievable. It was fun to see them struggle with the changes in themselves that were dictated by their dire circumstances. Which would you chose? To uphold the Law at all cost or challenge laws that are unjust? The easy road of duty or the hard path of doing what is right, no matter the cost? These are but two of the choices faced by our main characters.
I also enjoyed the contrast in the two groups working together to reclaim the citadel of Neversfall. The Marquar, the professional, honor bound, strict and unyielding soldiers who consider others unworthy to serve in their ranks. But, they somehow do not mind others dying for them in battle. Then heir are the Durpari, called mercenaries by the Marquar, who have their own code of honor and duty that the rigid Marquar can not comprehend or acknowledge. Can they overcome their differences to defeat a common enemy? Or is it too late?

If you like action this novel has a lot of it, which I like! Unfortunately, the Editor didn't do a good job and Mr. Gentry seemed to me leave a few loose ends open. They do not keep count of their soldiers in this story, in the beginning the two companys started with 40 each and the third company arrived with 36. If you keep track throughout the story the numbers don't add up. The story is suppose to be a mystery about Neversfall and the missing company. You really don't find out too much about Neversfall and never really find out what happened to the missing company. In the beginning, a new race of beings is introduced and is controlling an mixed being army that the relief force fights. This new race of beings, with frightful powers, is never explored by any characters in the book. They are just used to solve the new problems that arise, when in anyones mind they would be the biggest threat to everyone. The person behind everything is so obvious and what befalls certain characters is so scripted that the only thing that saved this novel was the action. The author has forgets about the wounds he gives characters, he has them shot in the leg with an arrow than sprinting accros the courtyard. If you want something to read with a lot of action, pick it up but it could have been so much more!

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