The Rats of Acomar: Book Review

 

Book: The Rats of Acomar
Author: Pauli Kidd
Pages: 396
Hard Core Scale: 2/4
Normal Scale: 7/10
Publish Date: 2000
About: The valley is separated from Acomar by a giant wall. Its purpose, to keep the wild rat men from entering and devouring the rest of the world. G’kaa seeks to rally the rat clans and do the impossible. However, a wandering dreaming rat, a hoopey coyote, a dutiful dog, and a white furred rat who sees the world differently are pulled in the strings of fate to determine their world’s future.

Review: This sadness me of things that could have been. A first of a shared universe with many powerhouses that I love. Jeff Grubb and Lynn Abbey were supposed to write books in this shared world and never happened because Vision went up in smoke in September 11th. Wonder what their books would have been.  Lots of power houses. This is probably Pauli’s worst book mechanically. Very cut and chunky in its parts. The beginning has a lot of tell issues to tell the world. Sometimes redundantly though when Pauli is capable of showing easily. The rising and falling action in that bad quick step of hers common to a lot of their books. Here though it is very detached from character with no time to digest gravitas or combat. Not sure if there was a publisher word count or a tight schedule. A lot of stuff does not line up right up in scope. Some could be explained later in other works about the world of course. Tupan is another of their Hoopey Fairy girls all over again. Makes me nervous about Spirit Hunters. Troublesome when it is a main character in different skins multiple different novels. They are capable of writing other types of strong female characters. Glad I am taking a break from it though to other authors.

Ultimately a short cut story in a fascinating world. Fun on the page. Not the strongest from the author. A good almost turn your brain off novel whose morals even if common are to good purpose against racism, orators, terfs, and conflict. Alas not seeing what other writer’s could do here.

 

                                                        Cover by Legendary Terrie Smith. Alas another great thing gone from the world. 200, copyright Vision Press.
 

Popular posts from this blog

Book Diary Entry: Whispering Woods Review

Image
  Book: Whispering Woods Author: Clayton Emery Pages: 294 Hard Core Scale: 3/4 Normal Scale: 8/10 Publish Date: 1995 About: The beginning of the first MTG book series. Gull after the destruction of his village by wizards is offered a job by a wizard to lead his mule teams. He accepts despite his hatred against casters as long as he can bring his special needs sister along. However, wizards attract other wizards after all. Review: A simple fantasy romp of middle ground. Well written it is an enjoyable read. Things are more concrete and in line with the card game. The first mention of Urza and Mishra used as curse words in the lore which is interesting. More and better card name drops than arena. Interesting look into morality and suffering   of summons reflecting a actual player. Funny that the first two MTG books and wizards are terrible people. Emery has a bad issue with crazy none sensual similes that I will have to put up for two more books, but if that is the on...
Read more

Writing Treatie IX. Defending Purple Prose and Writing with a capitol W:

IX. Defending Purple Prose and Writing with a capitol W:                 So, there is a story of why I am bringing this up. Once there was a terrible story in my review slush pile, and I mean incredibly terrible. It was already published, but here it was in my review slush pile. It was extra insulting to my senses because it was in a shared universe started off by a majestic, master writer many decades ago who had lost his right to the universe due to some copyright fiasco and here was this stinking mass of pure excrement in that legacy. Now, I make many friends with my editors, a good thing to do. So I grabbed several writers’ old manuscripts that wrote in this shared universe and sent them to such editor so we could despair at what had happened. At the same time, since this freighting editor never gave me the freight, and only ever said good things about my works I secretly slipped a story of my own into ...
Read more