‘Cursor’s Fury’ Book Review

Mount Readmore Book Review, 2017 92/100

Cursor’s Fury By Jim Butcher

Audiobook edition

Finished on 11/2/2017

Goodreads

Description: The power-hungry High Lord of Kalare has launched a rebellion against the aging First Lord, Gaius Sextus, who with the loyal forces of Alera must fight beside the unlikeliest of allies-the equally contentious High Lord of Aquitaine.
Meanwhile, young Tavi of Calderon joins a newly formed legion under an assumed name even as the ruthless Kalare unites with the Canim, bestial enemies of the realm whose vast numbers spell certain doom for Alera. When treachery from within destroys the army’s command structure, Tavi finds himself leading an inexperienced, poorly equipped legion-the only force standing between the Canim horde and the war-torn realm.

Genres: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery

A Roman Legionary, a Werewolf and a Pokemon-Empowered Spy walk into a bar…

Spoiler-tastic review

Book 3 in the Codex Alera series. Start with book 1, Furies of Calderon, in you’re curious.

Jim Butcher is a good author. He writes good dialog, his plots are strong, his characters are well-written. He’s not a ‘literary’ type of fantasy author a la Guy Gavriel Kay or Patricia McKillip, where the text of the work itself is a joy to read, but a meat-and-potatoes author who writes enthralling texts. This is one such text.

The characters in this book are by and large enjoyable to read about. Their dialog is entertaining, their characterization is consistent. I will dock some points for a lack of darkness in any of the heroes or any light in the villains. Butcher writes about noble heroes and despicable villains, and I’ve come to expect that (with one or two notable exceptions). Don’t go in expecting anything else.

The plot is fun. The main plot is a civil war going on in alternate-Rome between different factions of elemental-Pokemon controlling city-state kings, with two minor plots of hostage-rescuing and werewolf invasion rebuffing. It was weird, and delightful.

This book is not a ‘subtle’ book. There are no themes underlying the text, no secret meanings or social commentaries. This is a just for fun book, and I had fun reading it. I am presently reading Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace,’ and this was a refreshing romp in the middle of Napoleonic-era Russian machinations.