This is my review of Rise of the Ranger by Philip C Quaintrell, the first book in The Echoes Saga, a 9 book series.
I had seen a lot of positive reviews and noted that the author started out self-published. I decided to give it a try and found myself struggling to get through it.
It’s a massive world build that is revealed to the reader through many shifting points of view.
Elves. Humans. Mages. Dragons. Strange creatures. Broad sweeping landscape with cities, towns, valleys and woods.
The Paldora’s Gem.
While I don’t personally have a problem with shifting points of view, I felt there needed to be more solid markers in place that distinguished characters from one another, that gave readers a legitimate reason to like or hate the characters, or at the very least, remember them and want to know more about them.
I didn’t establish any connection with these characters for at least the first thirty percent of the book. At that point, the characters were still just a series of names and titles moving through various unfamiliar places and none of it seemed to mesh or stand out.
It felt like an over complicated jigsaw puzzle with no art to base it on.
It wasn’t bad writing. There were plenty of decent details and substance for the world itself although I thought some of the fight scenes were oversimplified and uneventful. Slash. Cut. Head falls off.
The story was missing characters with heart and soul.
Halfway through the book, I reached a point where I better understood the characters and several plot points. Some of it, however, was still a mystery to me. Having some understanding of goals and ambitions helped. Characters still remained rather one dimensional.
Sixty to seventy percent in and the book began to feel long because of the missing tangibles and lack of emotional connection with the characters.
The expansive storyline seemed, to me, borrowed a lot on the lore of the Lord of the Rings and the Witcher. This makes it difficult to elaborate on the contents.
The start with Asher I understood and was excited for.
But Asher later comes across as nothing more than a lonely unfriendly Witcher figure who proves to be friendly too easily at times. Asher allowing himself to get captured by the Greycoats and tortured didn’t seem to make any sense unless examined from a self-destructive point of view.
The relationship that developed between Nathaniel and Reyna was quick and unexpected and didn’t feel romantic at all. It felt forced like something the author wanted to happen more than the characters wanted it. As a reader I felt uncomfortable with it.
Alidyr’s story never really rose above being strange. Why did he purposefully keep holding back only to manipulate others to do what he himself could and should do until the very end.
I think the summary of the book the author provides is sufficient for any reader who wants to start this book because I don’t think there is a way to grasp it until you are deep in it.
Overall, it’s an average epic fantasy book, which isn’t a bad thing. It’s a decent enough start to a far more complex and lengthy adventure tale. I think less world building and more character development would have helped immensely. I will add that the book does have an interesting ending to send the reader into the next book.
I may come back to it one day but for now I’m in no hurry to read the second book.
Three stars.