Friday, April 1, 2011

The Chaos Crystal-Jennifer Fallon

The Chaos Crystal
Jennifer Fallon
Tor, May 10 2011, $27.99
ISBN 9780765316851

With the turn of the Tide once again complete, the Immortal Lords return with their power at its acme. Mortal Arkady Desean knows the fickleness of the Lords as she fell in love with Immortal Lord Cayal who selfishly prefers death over her adulation. Still Arkady is a strong person in spite of her trials and tribulations as she went from marital slavery to deity slavery to her sale as chattel into slavery; somehow she escapes her latest yoke.

Rumors abound that Chaos Crystal has surfaced. This ancient arcane cystal is allegedly the gem that enabled the Immortal Lords to surface in the mortal plane. Lord Cayal believes the jewel is the means for him to finally end his worthless existence. Another of the Immortal Lords Jaxyn has other plans for when he retrieves the Chaos Crystal. He captures Arkady who he believes is the weakness of his rival Cayal, but after learning of what he plans to do to the realm with the magical gem, she gets away. She and rebel leader Declan Hawkes team up to try to prevent the use of the Chaos Crystal that could prove the end of all mortal life as a byproduct; the Lords deem the species as “Rodent”.

The fourth Tide Lords fantasy (see The Palace of Impossible Dreams, The Immortal Prince and the Gods of Amyrantha) is a terrific extremely dark (even for Jennifer Fallon) finish. Loaded with action, the exhilarating story line is driven by the characters as the audience anticipates the lead quartet meeting for a power showdown. Fans of Ms. Fallon will relish the strong saga as the entertaining Chaos Crystal may mean the end of life as the beleaguered female Job knows it.

Harriet Klausner

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