by Annette Young
It’s rare that I wax lyrical about a book but I do so today because not only have I had the great pleasure of working with the author for a few years, but I think that his books are an absolute master class in fiction writing.
I must confess that while I do like sci-fi, it’s never been my chosen genre when I’ve had time to read. My time is limited, so I have always chosen my favourite genre for those rare moments when I can completely switch off and become absorbed in a novel. But, also, I believe that it’s a difficult genre and it takes great imagination and technique to bring it to life, and many authors don’t quite achieve this – in my opinion.
A few years ago, I was approached by author Mark Whiteway who wanted me to provide a manuscript evaluation on a book in his Lodestone series. When I started reading, I was hooked. Even though I had started the book well into the series, his writing was poetic, dramatic, insightful and yes, just a little compelling. Over the years, I have been lucky enough to have been involved with subsequent books in the series and they continue to delight.
His latest book(pictured here) is probably his best yet. It brings all of the favourite characters to the fore, but also, he does something quite difficult in Eternity’s Shadow, he introduces new alien beings into the plot which not only have to be accepted by the reader, but must also fit in with the existing central characters. I am happy to say that he does this effortlessly. More, the new characters evoke emotion from the reader, and I found my opinions changing rapidly as he threw them into a variety of complex and dangerous situations. This book has so much in it. There’s deception, lies, secrets and even a little humour. There’s even the only and only human, McCann, who can often be found, ‘slightly inebriated’ in the alien bars, he is a great character but one who is viewed with much suspicion on this strange world.
This book is gripping, its entertaining, it’s thoroughly enjoyable. If you just want to escape the mundane and fancy curling up in a corner and being transported to a strange new world filled to overflowing with vivid imagery, then this is the book for you. Equally, if you want to enjoy a novel that has been beautifully written so as to gain an insight into the techniques used, then you will learn a lot.
Eternity’s Shadow is available to pre-order here with Amazon, but you can check out all of his books including his first in the series:
