Location: United Kingdom
Member Since:
May 31, 2011
Simon Perkins
Simon Perkins' favorite authors on Smashwords
Smashwords book reviews by Simon Perkins
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Legacies (The SCI'ON Trilogy #2)
on Feb. 02, 2012
SCI'ON II, Legacies is the second volume in Nicola Rhodes Shadow Worlds series. It is a fitting successor to SCI'ON. It's scope is truly breathtaking, incorporating all of time & space & a myriad worlds again. While the metaphysics are sometimes mind-boggling, they are never quite beyond reach & the story holds together through it's own internal logic. As we again follow the Undying, (children of the first Gods), through the rich tapestry of their own histories. Also, without falling into the fallacy of addressing authorial intent, I felt that within it a number of interesting questions are raised about the human condition & causality. Among them, what, if anything we should change if we had the opportunity, in our own past? Whether we should do so? & whether even evil acts can ultimately result in good & vice versa? The characters from the first volume in the series are further fleshed out & remain both sympathetic & believable as they cope with the obsessions, difficulties & temptations they are presented with throughout the course of the story. Once more, the plotting is intricate & elegant, combining classical mythology, science fiction & fantasy in a seamless whole which synergistically presents a broad canvas upon which the events take place. More intense, & with a darker feel to it than the first installment of the series, there is less humour in Legacies than in SCI'ON. But what humour there is, still displays that dry, almost acerbic wit that I have found throughout all of Nicola Rhodes writing. My overall view is that this is an author in complete control of her medium & at the height of her powers. To combine such disparate elements as are found within this novel can be no mean feat, & I hope she continues to impress in like fashion. Full marks for another great piece of work.
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Faerie Tale (The Tamar Black Saga #5)
on Feb. 12, 2012
This is the first Tamar Black book that I've come across. The narrative style I found to be very engaging & informal, almost conversational, which I felt was refreshing after all the doom-laden, overly dramatic purple prose found in so much fantasy literature. The characters are well observed & believable, with well written, fluent dialogue, rather than the often rather wooden stereotypical architypes favoured by many authors. The story is original, while still managing to incorporate many mythic elements from differing cultures woven together seamlessly into a highly enjoyable tale that carries the reader along effortlessly, through setbacks & reversals of fortune to a very pleasing conclusion. I enjoyed this introduction to Nicola Rhodes work immensely & would recommend it without reservation, even to those whose palate for fantasy fiction, like mine has become quite jaded through over-exposure. I shall be reading a lot more by this author & hope that she continues to produce work of such quality. (reviewed within a week of purchase)
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Dragon's Teeth (The Iphigenia Black Series #1)
on Feb. 12, 2012
Dragon's Teeth is the first volume in the Iphigenia Black series. It follows on from Nicola Rhodes' Tamar Black series, (after Tamar & Denny have retired to the end of time, 25 years before). Iphegenia, (Iffie), is their daughter, (who arrived as a character so spectacularly in the Tamar Black novel Rise of the Nephilim. Although Dragon's Teeth may be read without having read any of the Tamar Black stories, (since previous events are dealt with by brief footnotes), I would recommend reading the Tamar books first, so as to become familiar with the universe/reality within, (& occasionally outside of), which they are set, as one of Nicola Rhodes' strengths is realistic world-building on a breathtakingly epic scale. Plus they are also just a stonking good read! As with the Tamar books, Dragon's Teeth is a cross-genre science fiction/fantasy mix, which Rhodes has seamlessly woven together, with her usual effortless-looking aplomb. Told mostly as a retrospective narrative, (with the framing of this story neatly dealt with in the form of conversations between Iffie & Bel). Dragon's Teeth has Iffie & Jack, (witch Cindy's changling faerie child, see Faerie Tale, (see, I said read Tamar first)), embroiled in an earth-shaking conflict with the mysterious Bel. Although Dragon's Teeth displays much of the wittily humorous narrative style which informs all the Tamar books, much of it's narrative has a darker & more Gothic feel to it which marks it as a departure from Tamar. This is a distinctly different animal from the Tamar series & not just the derivitive "franchise" follow-on series that many authors seem content with. Structurally it is a more sophisticated & mature work than the Tamar books. Yet I do not decry the Tamar novels, as I found them a delightful & engaging read. . As always, Nicola Rhodes' plotting is clever & involved. Easy enough to follow, but with twists & turns aplenty. I lost count of the times I said "I didn't see that coming", to myself, as I was led on an emotional roller-coaster from The Infinite to The Void, via the modern day & Poseidon's lair, (one thing Rhodes does like is a BIG canvas to work on). The characters are believable & engaging. The ones from the Tamar books also having an emotional resonance for me, from there. Again the pacing of the story is well judged & tends to drag you along with it's impetus. There were a couple of nights I didn't get to bed until much later than I planned, as I did that, "right... one more chapter... just one more..." thing, as I approached the dramatic climax of the story, which, again, I did not see coming. This was a worthy & fitting successor to Nicola Rhodes' superb Tamar Black series. I would recommend it without reservation, (unless that reservation was to read Tamar first & THEN Dragon's Teeth). However the one thing I would urge people to do is read it! Go on, treat yourselves. Another 5 stars, for Nicola Rhodes.
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Djinnx'd (The Tamar Black Saga #1)
on April 15, 2012
(no rating)
This is the first in an octet of novels dealing with the adventures of a djinn called Tamar the Black, all of which I have read & thoroughly enjoyed. Unlike the usual, over-written, unnecessarily purple-prose-ridden fare of your average, run-of-the-mill pulp fantasy, these books have a wonderfully light, witty, almost conversational tone to their prose. This carries the reader through adventures & setbacks to a satisfying conclusion. The plots are convoluted & clever, yet engaging. The author has a deep knowledge of various pantheons & mythoi, which she weaves unobtrusively, yet entertainingly, into her stories. She effortlessly meshes fantasy & magic with the prosaic modern world. Her characters are both believable & likeable. I would recomend everything in this series, (the other 7 Tamar books & the rest of her work, including the SCI'ON sci-fi/fantasy crossover series is available in a number of formats from Smashwords & Goodreads). I can't understand why Nicola Rhodes work isn't massive! It is a hackneyed cliche you hear all the time about authors, but, in my opinion, (& I only have an English degree), I truly feel the quality of her writing is on a par with Pratchett & Tom Holt. Her fiction has had me both laughing my arse off & brought a tear to my eye. Like a refreshing, breath of fresh air, I can recommend this novel without reservation. Even to those, like me whose palate for fantasy has become jaded through over-exposure.
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Long Time Dead (The Iphigenia Black Series #2)
on July 22, 2012
Another triumph in the Black Chronicles. Long Time Dead has everything anybody could ask for. Magic, derring-do, time travel, unrequited love, all wrapped up in Nicola Rhodes unique blend of disparate traditional mythologies woven seamlessly & wittily together, with her own fictional additions, creating at the end, an artifact of storytelling in style which is entirely her own. I was gripped by the story from the very beginning. Then taken on a roller-coaster ride through curiosity, adventure, adversity, set-backs & reversals of fate, to a most satisfying conclusion. Eminently readable, the pacing was well judged, the characetrs sympathetic & believable. The wit of the prose containing an almost mordant humour at times. But maintaining a delicately judged light tone despite some very dark themes, without trivialising those themes. Nicola Rhodes narrative powers continue to go from strength to strength. I have read all of her work & of the dozen novels she's published this is my favourite. It is by far the best new work I have read this year, & have no reservations about recommending it unreservedly.
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The Citadel -Part Three of The SCI'ON Trilogy
on Jan. 02, 2013
The Citadel, last of the SCI’ON trilogy is outstanding. The scope & depth of Nicola Rhodes’ plot is staggering. Yet, despite encompassing the whole of time & the myriad planes of the multiverse, she also delineates just the right amount of minutiae to make her story credible & incredibly engaging. Her characters are also believable, & solid to the point where I feel like I have lost sone friends, now I have finished this epic journey. The pacing of the narrative is just brilliant, constantly pulling you along to the next chapter & the next, until you are left exhilarated & fulfilled, at the end. The twists & turns in the plot, along the way are convoluted & clever. A constant source of surprise & delight. & the denouement is at once both entirely unexpected & the only way it COULD really finish. I absolutely loved this whole series. & I wholeheartedly recommend all 3 books unreservedly. A complete tour de force! Ms. Rhodes is an extraordinary talent, who seems able to master any genre to which she decides to turn her hand.