{first of 2 Tales from Ondiran; fantasy, adventure, Early Reviewers} (2023)

The Eye of Ksera is a fabulous magical gem which was created over six hundred years before the time of this story by the sorceress Ksera to preserve the arcane knowledge of her husband, the sorcerer Ilkvir. The gem stores power as well as knowledge fed into it (both magical and non-magical, dark or light) by its successive owners and is therefore a legendary, powerful item coveted by magic users of the world this story is set in.

We meet Colmar as the story opens. He is not a magic user but is the current possessor of the Eye and is being hotly pursued by the sorceress Valdira; she studied the properties of the Eye for three years before going in search of it and therefore regards it as rightfully hers - but she was just beaten to it by Colmar. The necromancer, Rendor (with his lizard Angvar), is also following Colmar in the hopes of taking the Eye from him.

We then follow the adventures of Colmar and his friends as they use the Eye of Ksera and other means - both magical and mundane - to defeat their enemies, live well and prosper. The book is divided into four parts, each dealing with a different undertaking.

I enjoyed this book, which I received from LibraryThing Early Reviewers; I thought it was quirky, light-hearted and fun. I found the map at the beginning of the book very useful for following the routes that the different adventures took. However I felt that the conflicts were resolved rather easily without too many issues (thus 'light-hearted').

I did find the narrative style a bit awkward. There was a superfluity of adjectives and adverbs and, around chapter 4, an overabundance of unnecessary parentheses (though I did learn about frazil ice along the way).

Valdira sweet-talked her susceptible friend Taro into a longer-term loan of the flying wagon to which she had taken such a liking. That mission accomplished, they booked passage on a ship sailing back to the Continent (though several days passed before it could safely depart, as the competing gravities of two moons can have dangerous effects on the tides). Once there they caught a barge up the Vassata River to the Principality of Fendoran.

I suspect, given the 'quotes' from guide books which frequently mentioned motor cars and which prefaced each chapter, that this story was set further back in the past than when it was supposedly written and the style was possibly meant to convey that. However, since we didn't have any indication of that until chapter 15 (of 20):

The flying wagon enchanted by the eccentric Tseren sorcerer Taro has passed into legend, in no small part due to the daring uses to which the Fendoric sorceress Valdira put it.

I wasn't sure if it was intentional or just not well written and it didn't really work for me.

The narrative quirk was easy enough to ignore after a while since I found the story itself entertaining and - apart from the overuse of descriptive words - I liked the author's style. I wouldn't mind reading further [[[Tales from Ondiran]]].

(December 2023)
3.5 stars ( )

I enjoyed this light romantasy. It’s a fun romp through a magic-infused land where a necromancer can be persuaded to mend his ways with a “stern talking” by a perennially positive magic user who avoids using spells that might injure anyone. It’s an enjoyable read and a pleasant distraction.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily submitting a review. ( )