Heather’s Bookshelf: Cathedral of Silver
Author: Ian Wall
Released: 03/04/22
Genre: SciFi Novel
“The man in black robes stood in the corner of the room; his yellow eyes and melted face peered silently from beneath a cowl. Oily humanoid shadows meandered aimlessly. Icy shivers ran up Paul’s spine and reverberated through his skin. The inexplicable fear and anger that gripped him were prevalent as usual, but this time there was a stirring in the air, like an invincible whirlwind overhead that seemed to hunger, to have some malevolent rage.”
“Cathedral of Silver” introduces Paul Tarseus is a Lord of the Tuyet Voi and also known as Lord Nefarous. His nickname is reminiscent of things he has done in the past and the reputation he has earned through his actions.
When Paul is hunted and captured by his own army, he escapes on a mysterious ship to a place called Kanchi. It is here that he meets a young woman named Ramona—-a dronesmith who is passionate about her art and her drones. While shopping for a drone to help him out, Ramona reluctantly offers her favorite drone, Eights. But Eights isn’t interested in moving on from Ramona and she’s not ready to let him go. She follows Paul in an attempt to steal back her drone, but he catches her and somehow ends up agreeing to dinner at her place with her mother. The trio become close, making friends, enemies, and revealing secrets of all involved along the way. If they hope to escape being caught or killed, they must work with one of the people hunting them- Abel and his drone Rex. But they have their fill of secrets too…
Trigger Warning: violence
Overall, I enjoyed this scifi tale. The main character of Ramona was really well developed- complicated, funny, lost, and eager. Abel was also a really complex character who evolved throughout the story. Their drones- Eights and Rex were written in a way that made them stand out as characters with their own personalities, issues, and emotions. My only issue with character development was with Nefarious. I felt his character was a bit on the superficial side for me. I genuinely cared about many of the characters, but didn’t quite connect with him. I did think the relationship between Ramona and Nefarious was especially sweet. The story pacing is good and moves along quickly. The different points of view help to push it along and also helps to develop the main characters. There are a few reveals throughout the story. A couple are pretty obvious, but there’s one or two that surprised me and made sense to the tale. The ending felt complete while also leaving the story open to a sequel if desired.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A character-forward scifi with fast-pacing and secrets revealed throughout
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