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Shadows of Asphodel Karen Kincy 9781492790112 Books

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Shadows of Asphodel Karen Kincy 9781492790112 Books

This was a good-enough story with good-enough characters but I felt that it could have used more polish. Specifically the dialogue and the timeline were muddled in places. All the characters speak in the same (modern American) voice although they have wildly different backgrounds and should have some distinguishing characteristics. At least our three main characters (Ardis, Wendell, and Konstantin) should have had their own peculiarities given their disparate personalities and nationalities. The timeline of the story is off in places too (i.e. Ardis will stay up through one night but suddenly will say that the previous evening was three days ago with no accounting of the intervening time). I think that the ideas in this story are quite good, but the execution did not live up to these ideas.


Tags : Shadows of Asphodel [Karen Kincy] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <div><b>She never asked for the undying loyalty of a necromancer.</b></div><div><br /><b></b></div><div><b></b></div><b></b><b></b><div> 1913. Austria-Hungary. </i>Ardis knows better than to save a man on the battlefield. Even if he manages to be a charming bastard while bleeding out in the snow. She hasn't survived this long as a mercenary without some common sense.</div><div></div><div></div><br /><b></b><div>When she rescues Wendel,Karen Kincy,Shadows of Asphodel,CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform,1492790117,Alternative History,Science Fiction - Steampunk,FICTION Alternative History,FICTION Romance Historical Victorian,FICTION Science Fiction Steampunk,Fiction,Fiction - Science Fiction,Fiction-Science Fiction,FictionRomance - Action & Adventure,FictionScience Fiction - Steampunk,PRINT ON DEMAND,Science fiction

Shadows of Asphodel Karen Kincy 9781492790112 Books Reviews

Great story with two interesting histories blending into one future. My only problem is it's a bit graphic and I prefer the fade-to-black school of lovemaking.
Shadows of Asphodel wasn't what I expected, but I found myself drawn into this alternate earth, that runs on a combination of magic and technology.
I loved both Ardis and Wendel - neither of them denying that they had blood on their hands, or had done things neither good nor heroic.
But while Wendel is teetering on the brink of letting his (admittedly horrific) past lead him to his own destruction in an attempt to escape it - Ardis, while not proud of her past, has come to terms with the fact that as a mercenary part of her living comes from killing people.
It is this acceptance that enables Ardis to see past Wendel's past deeds as a necromancer and assassin for the Order of Asphodel to the man struggling with his smothering guilt of what he let the Order turn him into.
In Ardis Wendel has finally found someone that sees more than a necromancer when they look at him, but while he may wish to stay with her, he knows that the order will never give up trying to control and use him as long as he lives.

There was refreshingly little wallowing and self-pity while they had to deal with the shitty hand life dealt them. Even aware of the almost inevitable outcome, Ardis sticks by Wendel's side, refusing to let him go after his nemesis, the Grandmaster of the Order, on his own.

The story was well written, and the characters both likable and relate-able. There were some things only hinted at that would have been interesting to explore in a bit more depth (such as the hint at the Grandmaster having been instrumental in the raising and training of Wendel after his family handed him over to the order - or the obvious love his two younger siblings still had for Wendel even though they had been told that he had died at the age of eleven, for example), but the story is certainly worth reading as it is and I will keep a look out for more books by this author.
Wow, was I ever disappointed in this book. Not just because it was a disappointing read, but because it was a disappointing read that was almost something wonderful. It's that close shave with loving a book that serves to exaggerate ones disappointment.

The problem really comes down to the romance and the fact that it's not at all supported. Ardis meets Wendel on the battle field and on discovering he's a necromancer, she's so afraid of him that she's not even willing to let him die (for fear he'll come back from the dead for revenge). Further, she so disgusted by him she can't even touch his hand with her fingers.

Then, less than a day later she's grabbing him by the back of the neck and dragging him down for an impassioned kiss, but turning down sex because she wants something more than just a one-night stand. But the reader sees NOTHING to change her opinion or feelings toward him and honestly in less than 24 hours what conceivably could?

Then the next time they meet, meaning they've now known eachother a collective 36 hours (at most) and very little of that time is spent in conversation, they have sex and he's telling her he loves her. They then are swearing to defend eachother to the death, etc. etc. etc. It's not insta-love, it's just insta-meaningful relationship. And there is nothing at all in the story to leave the reader feeling as if they've seen this relationship grow. What's more, Ardis' love seems to be wholly based on some cliché female need to heal the broken soul of an abused man. Ugh, please.

Plus, I was embarrassed for Ardis and the way she always seemed to be subtly demanding love from Wendel. She always behaved as if their relationship was more than he was offering. It was like seeing a woman trying to trap a man into marriage. Now, I'm fairly sure it wasn't meant to feel like that. I think she was supposed to just have a big heart that she was offering to Wendel and that is what he responded to and changed his rogue-like ways. But it didn't feel like it to me. She just felt clingy and demanding. (Though I appreciated her demanding nature in the sex scenes; I like encountering a female character who knows what she wants and is willing to say it.)

So, since the romance that was the reason the two characters were together to do the things they were doing felt hollow and unsupported, nothing else in the book felt believable to me either. Every-time Ardis ran off to save Wendel again, I wondered why. Every-time Wendel declared his adoration for Ardis, I wondered based on what. Every-time Ardis disregarded people's warning about Wendel I thought, idiot, they're probably right. The underlying scaffolding of the story was weak, thus everything else felt wobbly.

Beyond that, the story is mildly interesting, until the end when you reach a patently ridiculous ending where the ultimate baddie essentially allows them to waltz in, fight and waltz out again. How is that believable?

The writing is fine. The editing is fine (a few hiccups, but not many). The dialogue is fine. I liked the idea behind the book and the world. I almost liked the characters. I thought that Ardis, for a mercenary, was awful weepy and Wendel's fragility felt contrived. But, for the most part, it was all passable.

I'd also like to comment on the cover. It's a cool cover. I like it, but I don't understand it. One can only assume that is meant to be Ardis on the cover, but quite a big deal is made out of her appearance in the book. She's half Chinese and half American. She inherited her mother's eyes and her father's corn-silk blond hair. Why do publishers insist on putting characters on covers that look nothing like the characters are described in the book? It's a huge pet peeve of mine. Either make them match or don't bother, is my opinion.
This was a good-enough story with good-enough characters but I felt that it could have used more polish. Specifically the dialogue and the timeline were muddled in places. All the characters speak in the same (modern American) voice although they have wildly different backgrounds and should have some distinguishing characteristics. At least our three main characters (Ardis, Wendell, and Konstantin) should have had their own peculiarities given their disparate personalities and nationalities. The timeline of the story is off in places too (i.e. Ardis will stay up through one night but suddenly will say that the previous evening was three days ago with no accounting of the intervening time). I think that the ideas in this story are quite good, but the execution did not live up to these ideas.