Retribution Falls: A book review!!
Ok, this review may be a bit bias and may turn into a long tirade of gushing praise. I apologize ahead of time. That being said, this book is one of the best, greatest book I’ve read in recent memory! I can’t think of a single major issue I had with this story and I loved every second I spent reading it! It’s damn near perfect and I’ll fight anyone who disagrees. I mean it.
Beating people who disagree with me aside, let’s look at the story. The book is called Retribution Falls and was written by a guy named Chris Wooding. It’s a swashbuckling, character driven adventure of epic proportions. It’s the kind of story that would almost certainly be ruined if made into a movie but I would see it anyway, if only to lament about it later. I was depressed when I finished it (for I wanted the story to continue) and ecstatic when I learned that it is book one in a four part series (book 4 comes out in Britain this September). But enough of this! On to the synopsis! This is Retribution Falls!
The book is about an airship captain named Darian Frey, his crew, and the trouble that befalls them. Fate has not been kind to any of them and they’re all running from something or have something to hide. There’s Crake, a daemonist in hiding, burdened by guilt, with his golem named Bess, Jez the navigator, a woman with a secret she desperately wants to keep hidden, Malvery the doctor, disgraced and drinking himself to death, and Frey himself, a man whose haunted past may very well be catching up to him.
They take a job to steal a chest of gems from a vulnerable airship; an easy take that may finally be a ticket to riches and escape for all of them. Naturally, it all goes horribly wrong and Frey soon finds himself to be the most wanted man in all of Vardia, hunted by bounty hunters, the famous Century Knights, and even the dread queen of the skies, Trinica Dracken. It’s clear they’ve been set up but by who and why? On the run, Frey and his crew realize that the ultimate answer and way out of their predicament may lie in finding the legendary pirate town of Retribution Falls. And so the adventure begins.
Now as you may already know, I’m an obsessive bibliophile. It was on one of my many quests to buy more books and feed my habit that I discovered this book, sitting all lonely on a shelf, tucked away near the floor and sandwiched between some bad urban fantasy. The cover didn’t draw my attention as well as some other covers do but it was enough to spark my interest. The description did all the rest and I bought the book then and there, thinking that if anything, I’d have an enjoyable adventure story to occupy my time. Once I started reading, I knew I was holding written gold and I blazed through the story in two days (I would have finished it in one but work and school have a habit of ruining things).
What can I say about this book? The characters, setting, and plot are all great. I was surprised to find that every member of Frey’s crew was a fully fleshed out individual, each unique and believable. I understood their struggles, their motivations, their fears, and hopes and I loved every moment of it. For example, a misinformed person might be inclined to dismiss Darian Frey as an archetypal rogue. Granted, he is a rogue, but he’s a rogue done right. If anyone wants to know how to properly write an antihero, Darian is your answer (chapter 32 is a great window into his mind and psyche). The same can be said about all the others as well.
The world itself is enthralling, being a strange mix of steampunk, fantasy, and science fiction. Everyone I know who has read this book thinks of something different as they read. My friend Anthony declared it to be a better version of Pirates of the Caribbean that had been moved to the skies. Another said it reminded her of her favorite manga, One Piece. I’ve even heard people describe it as Firefly but since I’ve never watched Firefly I can’t really comment. The land of Vardia is interesting, with an interesting history, with an interesting and mysterious religion on the rise, and even an interesting card game (an intriguing variation of poker that I would like to play one day).
The plot itself is superb. When the action comes, it comes hard and turns into an adrenaline powered storm. That’s not to say that the quiet moments are lacking. In fact, it’s the quiet, emotional moments, when the characters are most vulnerable and show who they really are. It is in those moments that the book really shines. There’s humor, intrigue, action, virtually everything but romance.
Some may say that the book is nothing special, that it has a familiar setting (a world of airships), it’s predictable (they’ll all come together in the end and become a real crew and friends) and a familiar plot (heist gone wrong for a rogue and his crew/ overcoming an obstacle and coming together) but to that I say, so what? There are very few unique plots, I think around 9? What sets a good story apart is how well it tells it, even if it is a familiar plot. The key is to be just different or interesting enough. Besides, nobody likes a cynic, even cynics hate themselves.
I can’t recommend this story enough. Go get it, buy it now, and read. Oh, and do you know what’s great? There’s a sequel that surpasses this book in every way! It’s called The Black Lung Captain. But that’s for another time.
And there was much rejoicing