★ 06/10/2019
Ryan (The Empire of Ashes) introduces a monster-riddled fantasy world with a perfectly balanced novella, including just enough backstory to create a cohesive story line and flesh out the characters. Pilgrim, a stoic warrior, undertakes a dangerous journey across the wasteland known as Execration to seek out the Mad God. Pilgrim hopes a granted prayer will rid him of the demon-possessed sword that’s whispering its bloodthirsty desires into his mind. Driven by vengeance but not twisted by hate, Pilgrim risks himself repeatedly to save the god’s six other petitioners, despite knowing only one prayer may be granted. But not all those seeking the Mad God are who they pretend to be, and each hidden agenda puts Pilgrim’s redemption in jeopardy. Ryan wows readers with a conflicted antihero and an action-packed, bloody trip through a harrowing, war-ravaged landscape. Pilgrim’s confrontation with the Mad God leads to unexpected revelations and sets Pilgrim on a new, far more worthy path. Fans of quick, descriptive tales built around shadowy figures with murky motives will enjoy this quest-based story and come away craving more (and longer) works set in this fascinating world. Agent: Paul Lucas, Janklow & Nesbit Assoc. (Oct.)
07/01/2019
Pilgrim joins a group of supplicants seeking the ear of the Mad God, who laid waste to his own kingdom 200 years ago. Together they traverse a path across the Execration, an unforgiving landscape inhabited by all manner of horrors, under the guidance of a young priest—the last of the faithful. They number only six, but some will be lost along the way. The travelers have their own reasons, their own prayers to offer up to the god, and their own fervent hopes that they will be answered. All of the supplicants have secrets and would keep them hidden. Whose prayer will be answered? Will Pilgrim at last find release from his cursed sword and their mutual obsession with vengeance? Ryan ("Raven's Shadow" series) populates his newest fantasy novella with a curious group of characters, each thinned down to their singular motivations in seeking out the Mad God, and thrown together like Geoffrey Chaucer's pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales. VERDICT This grim, succinct tale should find an eager audience among fans of sword-and-sorcery fare and short stories.—Karin Thogersen, Huntley Area P.L., IL
