In what appears to be a loose imitation of the writings of Tolkein and other legendary storytellers of the epic fantasy realm, Corsana tells the tale of a group of adventurers brought together for their love of a challenge and need of a job. These relatively inexperienced, for-hire fighters and mages work at the bidding of the city’s mayor, eliminating bands of raiding orcs and goblins. The more missions they are sent on, the closer they come to realizing that a larger plot is bubbling.

This fantasy is filled with sword fighting and magical battles, as well as mystery and romance; a little something for everyone. The world built behind the story is a complex one, yet lies on the bedrock that this is the Earth some time in a distant future and reality. Written in third-person, the narration toggles neatly between characters to give more than a limited view of the story, but without giving away too much of the plot.

The novel falls a bit short in momentum in the beginning. The author inundates the reader with the stalled details of written map layouts and descriptions that might be better served woven into the narrative to propel the story line, or perhaps nestled into any of several natural lulls in the overall action of the story.

3 Stars – A valiant attempt at epic fiction, and a decent story past the boggy details.

Available on Amazon.com