The Rover

THE ROVER begins in the Vault of All Known Knowledge in Graydawn Moors. Years prior to the story, the Cataclysm decimated populations and ravaged whole races, and the world's books were brought to the vault where they have been stored and protected for many years. Edgewick "Wick" Lamplighter, a young (only seventy years old) dweller is a Third Level Librarian at the Vault. Wick loves his work as a librarian and especially enjoys books from Hralbomm's Wing, the area of the library where imaginative, adventure stories are kept. Throughout his own adventures, Wick never strays from describing himself as a librarian but by the end of THE ROVER, his work experience on a resume would be quite extensive. Wick is captured by pirates and aboard the One-Eyed Peggie, he progresses from potato peeler and dishwasher to proper pirate in just eight days. He and the other pirates have many encounters while sailing on the Blood-Soaked Sea, but Wick becomes a hero when he saves the ship from being burned by an Embyr, a princess who is caught in a spell that has taken away her memory and requires her to burn for revenge. The Captain offers Wick a reward for saving the ship, and Wick asks for the packing paper so he can record his experiences in pictures and words. Historian can be added to his resume at this point as he tells tales from the past, writes the stories of the pirates, and of course, records his own adventures. When the One-Eyed Peggie is threatened by a slave ship of goblinkin, Wick is forced to surrender himself to the goblinkin in order to save the pirates who have become his friends. Wick's life becomes even more complicated after he is sold on the slave market, and by the end of his adventures, he can add thief, artist, author, and dragon slayer to his resume.Mel Odom, author of THE ROVER, received the Alex Award from the American Library Association. This award recognizes outstanding adult fiction and non-fiction books that appeal to a broad cross-section of teen readers. Odom has had over 100 books published, including books in the SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH series and BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER series.Action in THE ROVER centers on Wick, the little librarian, but the other characters are also intriguing. Wick's encounter with the Embyr is brief, but she makes a distinct impression because of Wick's story about her past and her reaction to his story. Brant, the leader of the group of thieves, is also a fascinating individual, a mysterious figure in black who emerges as a likeable protector of a band of misfits. Some of the other characters who appear for a short time make a strong impact, and they make the reader hope for more of their stories in future Mel Odom novels. The settings are always clear - from the depiction of the differences between the dweller and the dwarven homes in Graydawn Moors to the complicated description of the tunnels, lakes, and caverns in the mine shaft. The story moves smoothly, taking time to provide background informat

THE ROVER by Mel Odom is an entertaining tale about Edgewick (Wick) Lamplighter, a librarian in the Vault of All Known Knowledge. Wick, a three foot high dwarf-"dweller", is shanghaied by pirates and experiences an heroic journey that takes him to many exotic and dangerous places. During his adventures his curious nature slowly evolves and he becomes a giant of heroic proportions. The bad guys in Wick's world are goblinkin who delight in torturing dwellers, an Embyr who is a beautiful young woman trapped in a forgetful and flaming body, and Shengharck, a vicious dragon who can crisp his enemies in a heartbeat. When Wick finally gets back home to Greydawn Moors, he realizes that the books he'd chosen to read had provided him with lots of important knowledge about the world unknown to him previously.Mel Odom is a gifted writer who works in many fields: fantasy, game related fiction, science fiction, movie novelizations, horror, young adult, juvenile computer strategy guides, action-adventure, and comics.Wick's growth throughout the story is phenomenal. Frightened of shadows in the beginning, his courage is activated by evil doers and eventually zooms into the stratosphere at the end. Getting the answers to perplexing questions and mysteries is no problem for Wick because he draws on a vast reservoir of knowledge extracted from books deemed frivolous by Grandmagister Frollo. Because none of the bad guys can read, Wick's story reveals how evil is perpetuated by ignorance and superstition.The "little librarian" will capture the interest of an extensive array of readers who can look forward to two more books in this series of page-turners. Don't miss them.Mel Odom's huge and loyal following of readers have loved these novels in the fantasy genre: THE LOST LIBRARY OF CORMANTHYR, THE THREAT FROM THE SEA TRILOGY, and RESSURECTION.

I really enjoyed this book. It is one of the best adventures I've read since The Hobbit. The story is fast paced. The characters are so believable you care about them. If you are looking for a fantasy novel with classic adventure, read The Rover.

Edgewick "Wick" Lamplighter, Third Level Librarian and (Hobbit-like) Dweller, spends all of his life in the service of the Vault of All Known Knowledge. However, though the library is his job, his mind rests on the adventure novels that form a small corner of it. He dreams of adventure, until one day, much to his dismay, his dreams come true. Shanghaied at the docks, he finds himself amongst pirates, slavers, thieves, mercenaries, goblins, wizards, and a whole horde of nasties! This is the roller coaster-ride story of a little man in a big world!This book started out somewhat slow, and I began to fear that the whole thing would be too slow and verbose. However, once Wick's adventures began, the whole story took off! In this book, Mel Odem paints a picture of a fascinating world, which he populates with interesting characters, and fills with gripping adventure.Unlike many other Fantasy books, which focus on an era of climactic struggle between good and evil, this one looks at such a world some hundreds of years later. The pieces were not put back together, but instead a Dark Age descended. This is a great book, one that I highly recommend to all Fantasy readers (especially fans of Dungeons and Dragons).

Just when the little librarian, Wick, thinks that life can't get any better than being a Third Level Librarian, with access to all the books in the Vault of All Known Knowledge, he is sent on a mission for the Grandmagister. But Wick, like ALL LIBRARIANS, is a curious little dweller... and finds himself launched into adventures on the high seas and involved with goblins galore.Like any good library, this book is full of adventure, stories and excitement! (Librarians will love the portrayal as Librarian as Hero and the subtle questioning of the mission of libraries-- Are they there to protect knowledge or share it??) The characters in this book came alive-- pirates, goblins, halflings and ---more!Read it! It is absolutely wonderful. I am sure Mel will gift us with further adventures of Wick!!PS Mel-- could you put in a map next time?