John F. Raines brings an imaginary world of the Kingdom of
Shale to life with his clever fantasy creation of magical characters, each part
human and morphed with a beast of
daunting powers, within the covers of his premier novel titled, “In the Shadows of the Gods: The Rise of the
Guard.”
As a mysterious “Hooded Man” is dead set on possessing the
“Relic Sword,” a weapon with magical powers, he travels throughout the Kingdom
in search of his trophy. Pitted against
the Royal Guard, comprised of a dozen or so hybrid creatures, the battles and
episodes of confrontation become legendary in the archives of fantasy
storytelling. The Royal Guard has a
unique team, such as Demon, Mer, Sting, Silver, and my favorites, Crunch &
Crash. Each being part human and part
“something else,” their magic and powers are blended into the story with clever
associations of tasks. For example,
Silver is part Unicorn, with majestically illuminating hair and silvery
irises. Strong and bold, arrogant and
cunning, his powers instill danger to his enemies. Freeze is part woman, part drake – better
known in contemporary terms as a dragon. She has a long curved sword, like that of a Japanese Samurai warrior, and able to move things
by scientifically inexplicable means, as by the exercise of an occult power or
brain wave - telepathically. Then there
is Sting, a Royal Guardsman with a part manticore, having the head of a man,
the body of a lion, and the tail of a scorpion. Crash is part sasquatch, and Crunch is part troll, both large and strong
and most formidable in battle, as well as being best friends. Then there are others, named Rocky (made of
stone), Mer (part merman), Howl (part werewolf), Sinister (part lizard with hypnotizing
red eyes), Blade, Shadow, Jinx and more – you get the point.
By having these clever names chosen with use of onomatopoeia or nicknamed by their
physical attributes, John Raines gives the reader a quick and easy way to
remember the character’s skill set, personality and battle function. Unlike other fantasy books that arbitrarily
name characters, I really took favor to John Raines’ nomenclature methodology,
as it saved unnecessary memorization in my mind and brought the book quickly in
to understanding the story. This makes, In the Shadows of the Gods a wonderful
book for young adults or for a youthful audience to enjoy. Even those seasoned fantasy book fans will
enjoy how it gives a set of heroes and villains special magical talents, with
names like DC Comics would have
picked – terse and to the point.
The story has a crisp mix of clever dialog and an
imaginative plot, although a bit wordy at times, it creates a world unto
itself. John Raines has a knack to keep the
story original and suspenseful. All
readers can easily appreciate the Herculean task of work that has gone into this
refreshing and memorable book. In the Shadows
of the Gods: Rise of the Guards seems
well positioned for a sequel as John F. Raines will surely amass a dedicated
group of fans and followers.
