THE FIFTH SORCERESS
Chronicles of Blood and Stone, Book 1
By Robert Newcomb
Bantam Press (Transworld) - September 2002
ISBN 0593049616 Trade PB
Fantasy

Reviewed by Rachel A Hyde, MyShelf.Com
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Robert Newcomb bursts onto the fantasy scene with this big book, the tale of the irresponsible Prince Tristan, heir to the throne of Eutracia and a lot more besides, for he is the Chosen One, a wizard like no other. He is destined to fight the dreaded five sorceresses who were exiled across a seemingly uncrossable ocean three hundred years earlier. But when the unthinkable happens, Tristan will have to grow up suddenly and set forth with Wigg, the most powerful wizard in the kingdom to defeat the evil. There are currently only four sorceresses, so who is the fifth going to be?

Nothing new here perhaps, but plenty to enjoy. This novel is sure to appeal to fans of Terry Goodkind, in whose steps it surely follows. It has a relatively small cast of characters, but by the end of the book the reader is sure to feel that they know them all very well, and though there is, as is usual with fantasy, a lot of book here, it is never boring. Newcomb believes in putting his characters through the mincer and they certainly have some hair-raising trials to face and some nasty villains to overcome. There is a lot of action and the pace doesn't flag. It is the kind of novel that seems to be interesting even when nothing particular is happening which, for a fat fantasy tome, is a good thing. I can't wait to read what happens next. It is too soon to tell if this is indeed the best fantasy novel of 2002, but it is sure to be one of the top ten.

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