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by P. R. Frost P. R. Frost’s Hounding the Moon is an impressive first novel. In it, she introduces Tess Noncoire, a fantasy novelist who frequents science fiction conventions. Tess also is an outcast member of the Sisterhood of the Celestial Blade Warriors, a very real order that tries to prevent evil from entering this dimension. Each woman is trained in several martial arts, as well as the use of the Celestial Blade. This staff-like weapon bears a curved blade on each end. But it isn’t something Tess or any other of her Sisters carries around conspicuously. It appears at her command when evil is nearby, and it takes its form through the shapeshifting of an imp from another dimension. Tess’s imp is named Scrap, a runt among his peers, who found Tess in despair when she had wrecked her car after her husband’s death. Scrap had fought the Sisters and his fellows to be Tess’s bonded familiar. Together, Scrap and Tess battle evil at the very location where her husband died. Frost is wise in creating a brand new world for readers to explore. The whole concept of a wise-cracking, cigar-smoking imp who can’t be seen by most humans is not only fresh, but very funny. Though I’ve never liked the comic relief characters in most fantasies, including Jar-Jar in the first prequel episode of Star Wars, I did find Scrap essential to the plot and even enjoyed his antics. What I realized, through Frost’s rendering of the very different kinds of love of which Tess is the center, is that Scrap’s was the fiercest and most loyal. Hounding the Moon pits Tess against different forms of evil, while linking her to unexpected companions in the fight. There are Native American shamans and even an avid researcher by the nickname of "Gollum." This book was a great read. At the end, I wanted to travel some more with Tess and find out what else she’ll encounter and how she’ll rise to the occasion. Ms. Frost, we can’t wait for book number two. |
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Hounding the Moon