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The Vast White: The Murderer’s Edge Part 1 by Jason Walters reviewed on Fantasy Book Review

Consisting of seven chapters, plus an interesting glossary of characters, peoples, places and languages, The Vast White is the first part of a dark fantasy series. It takes the reader to a distant land where war and the fantastic reign hand in hand. The preface has Archivist Zephyrus Livius presenting a light-hearted look at language and its meaning within this novel, including himself as the editor of the piece as though it is a chronicling of past times when darkness was all around and war never ended. The Vast White in this tale refers to the white desert where two armies fight to the death for supremacy over land.

Jason Walters changed his vocation as a bike messenger, moved house with his wife to Nevada and now writes full time, enjoying the desert which was the inspiration for this novel. One of the interesting aspects of this novel is the
glossary at the end that explains the peoples, places, languages of the various areas, nations, monsters and more. It goes into great detail. Sam Kennedy’s cover illustration shows the devastating battle between the two warring factions in the vast white desert, where evil lurks and blood spills. It is the huge white horse that looms over the heads of the fighters that will give an idea of the size of some of the monsters that are in this novel and the danger that they provide.

Two armies, the Etrusian and Bedune make war against each other for their own reasons. Their hatred and greed make it harder for others caught up in the warring to lead a normal life, those hurt have to survive as best they can while all out carnage happens all around them. The narrator of this first book is Highdome, a reveller, skirmisher and all round bad guy that  leads his band of cruel men and monsters against his enemies.

The book has a rich set of characters, their names as interesting as their temperaments. Horsehead, the general/wizard given the task of conquering the spice cities, instils terror in all who he comes across. Horsehead is a person of dubious morals, living by his own code of conduct, a dangerous person indeed; Shortround, a slave of Highdome, is an amiable character but also a member of the Red Regiment, a great fighter who acts as a comical relief; Morlock, a master of handling the sword in combat; Trog, a lizardman and friend of Highdome; Skulker, Highdome’s necromancer and a well-known stealth master; Virago, Highdome’s feral wyzard, a crazy woman who has an unpronounceable real name.

Aimed at age 14+ readers, The Murderer’s Edge acts as a beginning and an introduction to the characters and creatures that inhabit this world. Amid the carnage and war there is also strategy, and a surprisingly healthy amount of humour. It is a complex book to read but an engaging one. It would be advisable for the reader to visit the glossary at the back of the book before starting to read as the characters will be fresh in the reader’s minds once they do. There is plenty of intrigue, shocking moments, combat and humour that will keep the reader’s interest throughout.

A big thank you to Blackwyrm Books for the review copy.

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Posted: November 8th, 2009
Author: Lee
Categories: Blackwyrm Books