Patrick Carr

Dear Readers,

I am always on the lookout for good fantasy/sci fi/spec fiction.  There can be some really bad stories in this genre and there are some really good ones that have stood the test of time.  The much beloved The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien comes to mind along with his Lord of the Rings series.  Narnia by C.S. Lewis is another one of those must reads for fantasy fans.  But it is hard to tell if a book is going to stand the test of time as it first releases.  I know publishing houses would offer huge amounts of money for the formula that makes a book a best seller.

Now I am not saying this next book is going to be a book that stands the test of time, but it is one that I enjoyed immensely.   I know when I first learned about the book I could hardly wait to get my hands on a copy, not only for myself to read, but also for my daughter to read.  We both love this genre and it is fun to bounce the storylines off each other.  We are in agreement that A Cast of Stones by Patrick W. Carr is a good read.

Errol Stone is a very unlikely hero.  He is the village drunk and he carries his station in life, orphan, in his name.   He volunteers to deliver a message to the hermits in the hills; little does he know how that will change his life forever.  

Errol then joins a quest to save the kingdom.  He is not a willing participant to the quest.  He doesn’t feel like he is qualified to go and he also misses his old life.  The call of the cups calls loudly some nights and he isn’t sure he will survive being separate from it. 

I have to say that at first I wasn’t sure where Patrick was going with the book, but once it got moving it was a delight to read.  I can’t wait for book two in the series to come out.  Errol is a character that I found myself loving him and yet frustrated with him.  He is someone I personally would have left behind instead of taking on the quest, but I would have missed out on a very important part of the journey. 

Happy Reading