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Godforsaken

by Steven Shrewsbury



      Steven Shrewsbury has written a book that will pique the interest of even the most hard-edged against fantasy writers ever. I generally do not like high-brutality, epic stories about those things that engender fear in the hearts of normal man. However, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Steven has gone to a lot of in-depth research and study to make his characters and the circumstances real and able to be seen and felt and more importantly, revered with an understanding that these things may actually have happened in the history of man in the ages long past our presently known civilization. The writing is very well done, the characters are solid and the historical value is well researched.

Godforsaken starts with a war and a goddess, Fey, coming in to save Lucan Mac Aliester, a strikingly handsome human Druid warrior. Fey is a Goddess in every way, complete with the body, the hair that would drive a man to madness. This war is brutal, fiery and untamed in modern senses. There are pagan Gods and Goddesses, rituals that visit places where the soul is barely in existence. The Druids are fighting for their future as a country and their lives against a bitter, hard, well-trained enemy from the very young, impatient, edgy dynasty of Rome that is trying to dominate the world. You have to read the story to find out what happens to Lucan and to Fey, as well as to the Druids as a race that gave no quarter. A very interesting interpretation of how history really was.

Shrewsbury is a very up and coming young writer that will have a fantastic future ahead of him in every respect. One day I will look back and say to others in passing conversations "I reviewed one of his first books, and it was a privilege to do it." He has written many short stories, articles and shockingly, poems. His name will soon start flying off the tongue whenever a person who loves the fantasy world starts talking about books they have read lately. Soon, he will be getting the respect of many better-known writers of the genre with his upcoming new stories. He is a very prolific young man, who will go far in whatever sort of genre he chooses, and he has already ably demonstrated that talent.

The Book

Behler Publications
August 2005
SoftCover Paperback
1-933016-10-8
Fantasy
More at Amazon.com
Excerpt
NOTE: Older Teen, Adult. This is a brutal fantasy book, with much killing, gore, paganism and ways of life filled with horrible realism that may be stunning and hard for the normal reader; however, that is not to say the book should not be read, just be warned that you will be in deep over your normal senses.

The Reviewer

Claudia Turner VanLydegraf
Reviewed 2005
NOTE:
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