Talion: Revenant

Michael A. Stckpole said this was the first novel he ever wrote. As an aspiring author I have to say, I wish my first efforts were this good.Fantasy books are very difficult to write for several reasons. Far too many people have tried to ride Tolkien's momentum. Consequently, many books feel like the author was afraid to try some original ideas. Conversely, some go so far off of the path that it's difficult to identify the work as fantasy. Then you have repetitive characters and plots, thin worlds, and thousands of undefined theologies. These are just a few of the snares waiting for aspiring writers. Stackpole deftly avoided all of these traps, and gave us a book that is a plain and simple good read. The story moves at a good pace. Characters and lands are very well defined. And, it's easy to understand, and identify with the main character Nolan.To me it's quite amazing. This story has many of the elements that one would expect to come off as repetitive, and maybe even a little cheesy. There's a beautiful princess in it for crying out loud. But, with a slick plot, frequent and well thought out fights, and exceptional characters this story pulls it off.My last thought goes out to Mr. Stackpole. I'm sure he's heard it before, but one more won't hurt. How about a sequal?MhalkyChris

In the afterword to Talion: Revenant, author Michael Stackpole states that this novel initially went unpublished because, at 175,000 words, it was too long for an unknown author. Whoever said that must have not read the book, because the problem is that it is too SHORT, not too long! This is one of those titles that you just don't want to end, and that make you seriously depressed when you realize there is no sequel, even by another author.The world that Stackpole has created in this stand-alone adventure is original, detailed, and has incredible potential. His characters, as always, are so real that you start wondering if you actually know them. This novel, like Once A Hero and I, Jedi is told from the first person perspective. This isn't an easy way to write a good novel, but Stackpole certainly makes it seem that way. The protagonist is Nolan, a Talion Justice with a tragic history that has some serious scores to settle. The story switches between his time training as a Talion and his missions as a Justice. At first this might be a bit confusing, but you will soon get accustomed to it, and it quickly becomes apparent that the author has turned this potentially unwieldy scheme into an elegant and pivotal element of his tale. Some fantasy authors write works that are what I like to call 'borderline romance,' with an obvious love scheme that is typically invincible and an almost fairy-tale style of storytelling. Don't expect this from Stackpole. Talion: Revenant is traditional purebred fantasy, and it doesn't get much better than this. If you are even remotely interested in fantasy, or just a very deep, compelling story, then look no further. Summon your tsincaat and pick a good Imperial hawk- Talion: Revenant will certainly sweep you off your feet.

This was the first book that I read by Michael A. Stackpole, and after three chapters he was my favorite author. Now that's gotta be a good sign. This perfect work of art is about Nolan ra Sinjaria, whose family has been wiped out by the Hamisians (another country). Nolan travels to Talianna to be trained as a Justice in order to avenge his family. (Justices are the best of the group of peace-keepers called the Talions.) Anyway, after he is fully trained in the art of war, he is assigned to protect the life of the king that had his family slaughtered. The book is set up in a kind of strange way where all odd-numbered chapters (ie: 1,3,5,7, etc) are after his training where he is grown up and on assignments, and all odd-numbered chapters are during his training where he is a kid. Some find this setup confusing, but I thought that it was very appropriate because the chapters during his training link up with the odd-numbered chapters althroughout and most importantly, at the end of the book, and make it less typical than most fantasy books. All in all, it is a fabulous book that really gets to you and makes you love the characters. I highly recommend it to anyone that likes an entertaining story.

I originally grabbed this book because I enjoyed Mike's X-Wing books. However, the moment I began reading I liked it more than Star Wars. The story is similar to Star Wars and caused me to neglect homework to read on and on into the night.

I orginally picked up the book because I was familiar with Mr. Stackpole's X-Wing books. I was hooked from the first page. The most suprising part is that this book is acutally his the first book he ever wrote. Simply stunning. I hope he writes a sequel.