Published: May 28, 2011
Words: 180,137 (approximate)
Language: English
ISBN: 9781458082428

Short description

In a world of airships and alchemy, war rages across the land. A war with the opportunity for untold fortunes.

Extended description

In a world at war, three people may decide the fate of an entire country.

Nathaniel An’Rieyr, captain of the Storm Brother, has no interest in the war. He has made a career avoiding it whilst simultaneously profiting from it. War might be waging across the world, but that’s none of his business. Except even the best laid plans can fail utterly, and there’s not a damned thing he can do about it ...

As the last surviving member of the Illysian Royal Family, the war is all Anna has left. The Rhivellian Empire took her family, her throne and her country. Unable to compete against the might of the Rhivellian war machine, Anna enacts a plan to retrieve a mighty artefact from a long-forgotten time. With it, she will finally have the power to force the Empire from her land. A goal for which she will sacrifice anyone, even her closest ally.

Thomas Ras’Kar, High Inquisitor of the Rhivellian Empire, has been sent to the capital of Illys in disgrace, where he will be forced to contend.. (Read more) In a world at war, three people may decide the fate of an entire country.

Nathaniel An’Rieyr, captain of the Storm Brother, has no interest in the war. He has made a career avoiding it whilst simultaneously profiting from it. War might be waging across the world, but that’s none of his business. Except even the best laid plans can fail utterly, and there’s not a damned thing he can do about it ...

As the last surviving member of the Illysian Royal Family, the war is all Anna has left. The Rhivellian Empire took her family, her throne and her country. Unable to compete against the might of the Rhivellian war machine, Anna enacts a plan to retrieve a mighty artefact from a long-forgotten time. With it, she will finally have the power to force the Empire from her land. A goal for which she will sacrifice anyone, even her closest ally.

Thomas Ras’Kar, High Inquisitor of the Rhivellian Empire, has been sent to the capital of Illys in disgrace, where he will be forced to contend with the incompetent Thane Charles. Three years of occupation has seen the people of Illum cowed and the Thane’s interest turned to his own pleasures. A fate worse than death for a man of honour and action such as Thomas. But the Princess is returning to Illum, and she may be the key to Thomas’ redemption.
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Tags

fantasy, science fiction, steampunk, fantasy adventure, sf, airships, science fantasy, steampunk fantasy, war adventure, steampunk adventure, p j johns, phillip j johns

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Reviews

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Review by: Bookblogger on Oct. 11, 2011 :
Liberator's Ruin by P.J. Johns was a wonderful book. It takes place in a world of interesting technology. It has a bit of a steampunk feel to it, but there is not the steam driven technology that is required for that genre to truly fit. The truly unique feature of the world is a mineral that is used in what are basically anti-gravity engines. That is what allows the giant airships to rule the skies and even enables floating island colonies.

There are some wonderful characters in the book, my favorites being Nathaniel, Fran, Grekhis, and even Thomas. There are several story lines active through the book following the different characters and no surprise I enjoyed Nathaniel's crew the most by far. They have some great interactions and all seem to be good people despite the morally gray area that many of their jobs fall in.

I despised the character Anna. Now that seems bad, but in reality I think it reflects very well on how she was written. If I was apathetic to her it would show much less depth to her character, however I wanted terrible things to happen to her.

Liberator's Ruin is an extremely enjoyable read and well worth the .99 that it costs for a copy.

Review copy provided by the author.
(reviewed long after purchase)

Review by: Charlotte E. English on Sep. 29, 2011 :
It’s hard to know how how to classify this book. It’s been called steampunk, which it certainly isn’t. It’s full of gadgets, yes, but the level of technology is more twentieth century. There are cars, planes, radios, movies and telephones. It makes for a very interesting world; I don’t think I’ve ever read a work of fantasy fiction (including a form of magic) that featured essentially modern technology. A refreshing change.

The story centres around the country of Illum, which has been conquered and absorbed into the Rhivellian Empire. A deposed princess is determined to take it back, but a High Inquisitor stands in her way. And around the edges of this is one airship captain and his crew, just trying to make a living.

The characters are a high point in this story. One thing I liked best about the book is the lack of real heroes. Everyone has an agenda, everyone has their strengths and their moral weak points. My favourites were Airship Captain Nathaniel and his crew; there’s a hint of Firefly about this group that’s highly appealing. The ending also turns some expectations around, giving a resolution that’s something of a surprise. Like I said, there are no heroes.

The book is sadly let down by very poor editing. I noticed typographical errors on nearly every page, and there are areas where the writing needs some tidying up. It says a lot, though, that I thoroughly enjoyed the book anyway. My rating would hover between four and four-and-a-half stars if not for the editing issues. As it is, I give three-and-a-half, rounded up to four.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

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