Craig Smith (5) (1983–)

This is a fantasy story about a set of friends on two very different quests.

Disaster has struck the land of Melin; the Chalice of Ringtar has been stolen. It is a sacred relic, and its absence will make Melin look weak and incompetent in the eyes of their neighbors. A young man named Tennen, newly selected earlier that day as Lord Protector, leads an expedition to track down the chalice. Accompanying them is the wizard Rimotar, carrying a type of homing beacon, keeping them going in the right direction. When they aren't fighting off mud and stone creatures, the group hears stories of a being of great power, dressed all in black, a day or two ahead of them. Whoever stole the Chalice is not your everyday thief.

Devlin, Tyvn and Myke, friends of Tennen, are on a different sort of quest. Devlin has just learned that a long time ago, his parents were kidnapped and sold into slavery. Devlin was occupied at the time, having just escaped from an evil warlock who kidnapped and brainwashed him. On their journey, they rescue an imp named Hugen, who was tricked into going down to the bottom of a well, and was left there. The neighboring land of Welkland, where Devlin is from, is without a king. A grand contest, open to all comers, will choose the next ruler. The four are accosted by a man who says that he has given Hugen and Tyvn a special kind of poison. Only he has the antidote. To stay alive, the four must enter the contest, held at a place called Zoolin Vale. If any of them win, and become King, they are supposed to rsign in favor of their tormenter. Hugen doesn't make the cut, but the others make it to the finals. Along the way, Devlin gets closer and closer to finding his parents. When he finally finds them, things are not what he expected.

Here is a really good piece of writing. It's interesting, it has plenty of action, and it has intelligence. The reader will enjoy this.… (plus d'informations)

The best thing about Craig Smith's fantasy novel, The Red Stone, is the cover illustration by A. R. Yngve. Too bad it has nothing to do with the story. Oh, a sword comes into play near the end of the book, but its addition to the plot is unnecessary and distracting. But then, the whole story has trouble holding itself together in this meandering and poorly written quest and conquest tale.

Smith (an author from South Africa, not the illustrator from Australia) offers a coming-of-age adventure featuring young Tennen, a nascent wizard under the tutelage of Rimotar, who is given a red gem with mysterious powers. Rimotar promises to reveal the purpose and powers of the stone to his protégé when the need arises. Fair enough, The Red Stone is a story about a young hero with a destiny to fulfill.

This is, of course, a common storyline with some potential depending on how the other factors that constitute a good yarn are utilized – like a compelling plot, strong characterization, solid narrative skills, and believable dialog. Along with a bit of romance, betrayal, and a satisfying resolution to the conflict, we could have an enjoyable read. Unfortunately, the author doesn't score very high in any of the aforementioned categories.

Now all the seeds are there, but the novel struggles to rise above many of the cliché and overused fantasy tropes that inexperienced authors employ. The setting is Elfwood, for heaven's sake – but no elfs appear! We have instead a succession of wizards, ogres, orcs, trolls, giants, knights, an evil count, a dragon, a battle (too many of them), a magical sword (empowered by the gem), and a fair maiden. This book was simply trying to do too much with too little, in my opinion.

By far my biggest complaint, however, is the sloppy editing that allows a typographical or punctuation error and/or grammatical mistake to appear on practically every page. And I'm not exaggerating. I opened page after random page and found commas placed arbitrarily within sentences, periods where commas should have been, capitalization flubs, and basic vocabulary blunders (your for you're, etc.). As one who supports small press and self-published POD projects, it was embarrassing and painful to read.

The Red Stone is one of forty or so titles in the catalog of StoneGarden.net Publishing. I'm unfamiliar with this company, but if the other offerings are similarly unedited and unprofessional, I doubt we'll see very many of their books positively reviewed.

I give it a 3 out of 10.… (plus d'informations)