Scan barcode
A review by barb4ry1
A Star-Reckoner's Lot by Darrell Drake
3.0
Ashtadukht is a star-reckoner. The worst there's ever been.
Who the hell is a star-reckoner you may ask? Well, they’re a bunch of mysterious ritualist-astronomers who dispatch divs – malevolent and depraved creatures. Think of them as of Persian monster hunters who’re able to command the might of constellations in a fight. Their power is rooted in astronomy and given by stars and planet. Drawing a lot isn’t always safe, it can go bad as planets aren’t always favorable to star-reckoner. When it backfires, consequences may be serious and undesired.
A Star Reckoner’s Lot was founded through Kickstarter campaign that allowed the author to polish the book by using the help of a professional editor and buying fantastic cover. A lot of attention was put to book content quality and presentation. I appreciate this a lot.
The story is, undoubtedly, unique as it happens in the Sasanian Empire. Not a usual fantasy setting. If you’re becoming tired of pseudo-medieval Europe flavor in books, this one will be refreshing. It’s worth noting it’s work of fiction so it isn’t actual Iran portrayed in a book although the lore is permeated with tons of research the author’s done on the topic of Sasanian Empire, Persian mythos, and other things.
It’s actually difficult to summarize the plot as the story is told in loose arcs and at times it jumps few months from page to page. Basically, we follow the story of Ashtadukht – a star – reckoner who’s driven by the need to find the div that murdered her husband. The path of Ashtadukht's troubled life weaves through the lands and culture of Sasanian Iran, taking purchase on its lore and landmarks, and often leaving the mundane behind for otherworldly creatures and settings. Ashtadukht seeks revenge but she usually gives divs a chance to live. It’s up to them if they use it.
She's followed by her cousin Tirdad and Waray who is mischievous, bloodthirsty and crazy. It's not surprising as she's a half-div who tries to fight against her nature. Characters in this book are flawed and complex. We don't get much backstory, rather we observe their development through few arcs/episodes. It's, for me, one of the issues - some of these episodes diverge strongly from the tone of the rest of the book. Also, block structure isn't my favorite one -the main plot and foreshadowed twist emerge from loose story arcs. Personally, I find this choice of narration difficult to follow, it breaks the flow of the story. As a result, at times, I felt disconnected from the events.
There are few twists in the book, the main twist was foreshadowed throughout the book but is a bold one. It can be emotionally devastating to some. I'm not sure I really buy character change that happens after the incident (I don't want to spoil things so I use very general terms). The twist is rooted in a backstory we don't actually get enough to fully understand / appreciate it. As a result, things turned out a little flat.
And here lies a problem and a reason I couldn't give this book 4 stars. At a certain moment, I lost interest in the story. Yes, the twist was strong, the writing was rich and Darrell Drake certainly doesn't lack creativity and imagination. On the other hand I can't help but notice and admit that I finished the book only for sake of finishing it. I wasn't really invested in the story, I wasn't engaged in characters arcs. I felt disconnected more often than not.
Maybe if the narration wasn't as wry and distant as it is, I would engage more in the story? There weren't enough shifts of tone that would allow to dig deeper in backstories of characters. There was quite a lot of puns, many of them were rather cheap.
Overall I think it's a book with an interesting premise and good prose. The author certainly knows his craft and has rich vocabulary (something I always appreciate as non-native english speaker). The setting is pretty unique and we observe plenty of bizarre creatures. What was lacking for me, may not be an issue for you :)
Who the hell is a star-reckoner you may ask? Well, they’re a bunch of mysterious ritualist-astronomers who dispatch divs – malevolent and depraved creatures. Think of them as of Persian monster hunters who’re able to command the might of constellations in a fight. Their power is rooted in astronomy and given by stars and planet. Drawing a lot isn’t always safe, it can go bad as planets aren’t always favorable to star-reckoner. When it backfires, consequences may be serious and undesired.
A Star Reckoner’s Lot was founded through Kickstarter campaign that allowed the author to polish the book by using the help of a professional editor and buying fantastic cover. A lot of attention was put to book content quality and presentation. I appreciate this a lot.
The story is, undoubtedly, unique as it happens in the Sasanian Empire. Not a usual fantasy setting. If you’re becoming tired of pseudo-medieval Europe flavor in books, this one will be refreshing. It’s worth noting it’s work of fiction so it isn’t actual Iran portrayed in a book although the lore is permeated with tons of research the author’s done on the topic of Sasanian Empire, Persian mythos, and other things.
It’s actually difficult to summarize the plot as the story is told in loose arcs and at times it jumps few months from page to page. Basically, we follow the story of Ashtadukht – a star – reckoner who’s driven by the need to find the div that murdered her husband. The path of Ashtadukht's troubled life weaves through the lands and culture of Sasanian Iran, taking purchase on its lore and landmarks, and often leaving the mundane behind for otherworldly creatures and settings. Ashtadukht seeks revenge but she usually gives divs a chance to live. It’s up to them if they use it.
She's followed by her cousin Tirdad and Waray who is mischievous, bloodthirsty and crazy. It's not surprising as she's a half-div who tries to fight against her nature. Characters in this book are flawed and complex. We don't get much backstory, rather we observe their development through few arcs/episodes. It's, for me, one of the issues - some of these episodes diverge strongly from the tone of the rest of the book. Also, block structure isn't my favorite one -the main plot and foreshadowed twist emerge from loose story arcs. Personally, I find this choice of narration difficult to follow, it breaks the flow of the story. As a result, at times, I felt disconnected from the events.
There are few twists in the book, the main twist was foreshadowed throughout the book but is a bold one. It can be emotionally devastating to some. I'm not sure I really buy character change that happens after the incident (I don't want to spoil things so I use very general terms). The twist is rooted in a backstory we don't actually get enough to fully understand / appreciate it. As a result, things turned out a little flat.
And here lies a problem and a reason I couldn't give this book 4 stars. At a certain moment, I lost interest in the story. Yes, the twist was strong, the writing was rich and Darrell Drake certainly doesn't lack creativity and imagination. On the other hand I can't help but notice and admit that I finished the book only for sake of finishing it. I wasn't really invested in the story, I wasn't engaged in characters arcs. I felt disconnected more often than not.
Maybe if the narration wasn't as wry and distant as it is, I would engage more in the story? There weren't enough shifts of tone that would allow to dig deeper in backstories of characters. There was quite a lot of puns, many of them were rather cheap.
Overall I think it's a book with an interesting premise and good prose. The author certainly knows his craft and has rich vocabulary (something I always appreciate as non-native english speaker). The setting is pretty unique and we observe plenty of bizarre creatures. What was lacking for me, may not be an issue for you :)