The Whitefire Crossing

Shattered Sigil #1

by Courtney Schafer

Dev is a smuggler with the perfect cover. He's in high demand as a guide for the caravans that carry legitimate goods from the city of Ninavel into the country of Alathia. The route through the Whitefire Mountains is treacherous, and Dev is one of the few climbers who knows how to cross them safely. With his skill and connections, it's easy enough to slip contraband charms from Ninavel - where any magic is fair game, no matter how dark - into Alathia, where most magic is outlawed.

But smuggling a few charms is one thing; smuggling a person through the warded Alathian border is near suicidal. Having made a promise to a dying friend, Dev is forced to take on a singularly dangerous cargo: Kiran. A young apprentice on the run from one of the most powerful mages in Ninavel, Kiran is desperate enough to pay a fortune to sneak into a country where discovery means certain execution - and he'll do whatever it takes to prevent Dev from finding out the terrible truth behind his getaway.

Yet Kiran isn't the only one harboring a deadly secret. Caught up in a web of subterfuge and dark magic, Dev and Kiran must find a way to trust each other - or face not only their own destruction, but that of the entire city of Ninavel.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Magic, Adventure, Ebooks

375 pages, Paperback

First published July 26, 2011

About the author

A voracious reader, Courtney Schafer took up writing when she found that fantasy books weren't published fast enough to satisfy her craving for new worlds full of magic and wonder. When not writing, Courtney figure skates, climbs mountains, squeezes through desert slot canyons, and skis way too fast through trees. To support her adrenaline-fueled hobbies and writing habit, she received a degree in electrical engineering from Caltech and works in the aerospace industry. After many years living and working in Colorado, she moved with her husband and son to Lake Hawea, New Zealand.

Reviews

[Mark Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

woah, I've been reading this book forever! Just as with my last 10 books this is a reflection of my stupidly small amount of free time! I'm now supposed to read 2 books by the 5th of May for a newspaper review - help!

Anyhow, putting the focus back on The Whitefire Crossing: This is an excellent fantasy tale with an original form and interesting setting. The story is told from two points of view, two halves of a developing friendship, one told in the first person and the other in third person. It's cool to see events interpreted by two very different characters.

The setting isn't so much new (it's mountains for a lot of the book) as given new meaning by one character's particular interest/skill in climbing (the author is given to scaling sheer rockfaces too and this expertise gives the climbing scenes great authenticity and fills them with enthusiasm.)

So we have a twisty plot with unexpected turns, an odd couple/buddy movie vibe, an interesting type of magic with lots of possibilities, and all sorts of problem solving going on. It's good, trust me.

There aren't any knights in shining armour, no sword fights, it's ... refreshing. I insist you try it.


Book 2 is just as good - now waiting on the concluding volume of the trilogy.

Edit: I now have book 3! But my wife's stolen it as per normal.



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[seak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hey, I have a booktube channel (youtube for book reviews, etc.), and I include Courtney Schafer and her Shattered Sigil Series in my Top 10 Underrated Books list here. Please subscribe if I earned it!

In 2007, a good friend of mine took me to a movie called Into the Wild . You may already know it, but the short version of this true story is that a guy on his way to Harvard and a hugely successful career decides to give up all his money and stuff and make his way to Alaska.



When I walked out, all I wanted to do was go on one big, epic adventure meeting random people, learning how to survive on leaves and grass (hehe) and sky and rainbows.

I think we ended up heading to Vegas a week later on a sweet road trip, nothing too life-changing though.

Now, this does have a point. When I finished The Whitefire Crossing, not only did I want to be able to wield sweet magical powers and amulets and charms and stuff, but I really wanted to go mountain climbing.

That's one of the greatest parts of this book, you can just feel the author's love of climbing and the outdoors and then she's created this amazing world around it that will suck you in right from the beginning.

Dev is a guide for caravans through the Whitefire mountains from Ninavel to the country of Alathia, but he also makes money on the side by smuggling. And by makes money on the side, I mean the side job is really guiding the caravans.

You see, the country of Alathia is a highly restrictive place when it comes to magic and you can make good money smuggling charms and magical artifacts through the border. If you get caught, though, you're in really big trouble...not to mention the border magic that detects and prevents magic from entering the country.

So his job ain't no walk in the park (wow, did I just write that?) on an average day, but this time he's agreed to smuggle something else into Alathia...a person. Not that easy to do, but still Dev isn't getting the whole story. Luckily for Kiran, the person to be smuggled, Dev's in dire need of money and the price is right. They head out on the first caravan of the season.

Just when you think things are going well, or about to go well, there is always another problem around the corner, whether it's the weather (go homophones!), people in the caravan, or other things I'm really trying not to spoil, but it's so cool, but I promise I won't spoil.

And the best part is it's not contrived. Each new problem is logical and fits so perfectly in the world Schafer's created. I've always been a fan of more magic over less (although A Song of Ice and Fire is still a favorite), it's one of the reasons I love Erikson so much.

The city of Ninavel, where the story begins, was founded to be place for magicians to practice freely and some are even really scary. There are charms for most things such as healing or hurting things, there are all types of magicians, including the worst of which, bloodmages, and the story involves magic constantly.

Told in first person from Dev's point of view and then third person limited when it comes to Kiran, there are chapters, but each section is also divided up between (Dev) and (Kiran). I thought this was a bit odd at the beginning, but it proved to move the story along quite well and it worked, so who am I to say.

When To Read The Whitefire Crossing?

I'm going back to discussing when you should read a book. Sometimes you need to be in a certain mood to jump into a book no matter how good it is.

As you may have noticed, I really enjoyed myself with this one. The Whitefire Crossing is perfect if you want something straight-forward and fun, focused on only a few characters and filled with magic. Also, be ready to go on your own adventures, this may just be the incentive you need.

4 out of 5 Stars (Loved it)

I just got an interview up with the author herself.

[Nimrod Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Whitefire Crossing is a very enjoyable adventure-fantasy read, that is somewhere between epic fantasy and sword & sorcery. It starts more like a S&S novel but gets a lot of epic fantasy flavors as you go along. Fantasy enthusiasts who like these sub-genres might find it to their liking. I definitely count myself as one of them :)

Setting - the setting is pretty interesting, and mainly focuses on two cities and the mountains between them. While one city allows the use of magic with almost no limitations, the other city has very strict rules against any use of magic beyond very simple charms. These rules are enforced by pretty strong magic wards. Yeah, you got it right, they have mages that enforce the rules against the use of magic :) .
As for the mountains - it's very clear that mountaineering is more than just a hobby for the author. Writing about things you love is always a good recipe for a great outcome, and I liked that part. There's some added value for the readers, as they get a glimpse into this world, that's at least how see it.

Magic system - the magic system is intriguing and it seems like more will be revealed in the following books, as there are still a few types of mages that we're not familiar with yet. Plus, there's another type of magic that only children can use. Unfortunately for those kids who can tap this special power - they lose it on puberty, which is in contrast to what we're familiar with in the genre as magic users gain more power as they get older. That puts those children in a very interesting situation when they get older and lose their power. Ask yourself, how losing a special power would affect you psychologically?

Characterization - the characterization is really good and is definitely among Courtney's strengths as an author. Dev and Kiran, our two main characters, are very-well portrayed characters and both are also very compelling. The supporting cast of characters were also well-drawn and feel quite real.

Plot - The plot is quite intriguing with a few twists that I liked, especially one surprising plot-twist towards the end. More than that, the book has a satisfying ending and leaves a few loose ends that make you curious to know how things will turn for Dev and Kiran.

Writing-style - the writing-style is very engaging and fun to read. While most fantasy novels opt for a third-person narrative (excluding UF and YA), this book combines first and third-person perspectives in the same book.
Kiran's POV is written in a third person narrative, while Dev's POV is written is a first person narrative. This approach works really good here, and this did a great service to the plot, as it keeps Kiran's secrets not only from Dev but also from the reader. The transition between the two narratives feels very natural, and there is no confusion.

All in all, it's a good debut, that would appeal to S&S/epic fantasy enthusiasts. I really liked it, and I'm looking forward to reading book 2 :)

4-4.25/5

Note: if you live outside of North-America then you can get the ebook only directly from the author only (at least for now), that's what I did :) . You can find her email address on her site.

[Milda Page Runner · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*
Loved it! It’s been awhile since I had so much fun with epic fantasy. Story hooks you in with mystery from the get go and then keeps the suspense with the journey through treacherous mountain passes, murder, blood magic, twists and betrayals, politics and budding friendship. Smooth and flowing prose without unnecessary flourishes or philosophising; there is no romance and it’s not too dark – all focus is to action adventure and characterisation. Very engaging book with likeable characters and good pacing.



It is clear that author has first-hand experience in rock climbing. Passion for the mountains is palpable and along with the knowledge adds an authentic touch to this story. Adventures there felt so real I was exhausted and exhilarated just as the characters! :)

Highly recommended for anyone who likes fantasy. A must read for people who love mountains.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A smuggler named Dev is hired to escort a young man from Ninavel to Alathia, taking him through the treacherous Whitefire Mountains. But when the young man turns out to be an apprentice Blood Mage with an angry master on his backtrail, Dev gets a lot more than he bargained for...

I had this on my radar for about a year. When the ebook went on sale for $1.99, I knew the time was right.

The Whitefire Crossing is a refreshing change of pace from most fantasy novels on the racks. Gone is the pseudo-medieval Europe setting and generic quest story. The setting of The Whitefire Crossing reminds me much more of the American West. Ninavel is an analog to Las Vegas, with it's dependence on Mages for water and its lawlessness. The Whitefire mountains are a stand-in for the Rockies and the protected border of Alathia could easy represent the US-Mexican border.

Dev, smuggler with a heart of gold, reminds me of a mountain-climbing Han Solo, in it for the money but also having a kind streak. Kyran, apprentice Blood Mage, is a pretty believable pissed off young man wanting to escape his master's hold on him.

The magic system was pretty interesting. I like the idea of kids born with magical talents, The Taint, and losing them once they hit puberty. Dev's origins did a lot to explain why he was who he was. Ruslan was a pretty vile villain and Blood Mage reminds me of the dark side of the Force quite a bit.

The Whitefire Mountains setting did a lot to separate this one from the rest of the fantasy herd. I saw on Courtney Schafer's bio that she's into mountain climbing and her love of it shows through in the descriptions of mountain terrain, flora and fauna.

I liked the book quite a bit but it wasn't without its flaws. For one thing, the story took a nosedive for me at the 60% mark, once they left the Whitefire Mountains behind. A new threat was introduced and the story lost some of its luster. That's about my only complaint, though.

The Whitefire Crossing is the first book in a series but it stands pretty well on its own and was well worth the $1.99 price tag I paid for it. Four out of five stars.

[Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a decent fantasy adventure story. The plot was interesting and the characters were a likeable enough bunch.

Dev is a guide who takes merchant caravans through the Whitefire Crossing mountain paths. The mountain crossing is what links the city state of Ninavel to the country of Alathia. Dev also has a secondary job as a smuggler. He mostly smuggles small charms into the restrictive Alathia. In need of money quickly Dev accepts a riskier than normal job. Instead of smuggling goods he agrees to smuggle a Ninavel noble to Alathia in disguise as his new apprentice. The runaway is Kyran. What Dev does not know is that Kyran has a few secrets of his own and is not just running away from his family, but from one of the most powerful men in all of Ninavel and that the man will do anything to get him back!

The story was engaging without ever really being all that exciting. Both Dev and Kyran were likeable characters and I did enjoy watching their friendship grow as they learned more about each other.

The world was a small one but it was well developed. I'm on the fence about the magic system. It had an old school fantasy feel to it.

All in all this was an enjoyable read, but probably not a memorable one.

Rating: 3.5 stars.

Audio Note: This was narrated by Andy Caploe. His performance was nothing special but it was decent enough.

[Sad Sunday (Books? Me?!? NEVER!!!)]

DNF at 25%

Two dudes travel trough mountains. And they travel. And travel. Travel. And travel.



It's solid classic fantasy. Too solid. Too classic. Nothing unexpected happens. There is evil, there is good. It might be a "bromance" tale, but characters seems too generic to "master" and "apprentice" roles. To quote Heidi Klum: "Snoozefest".

[Jeff Salyards · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are two things I really look for in any fiction: compelling characters that feel fleshed out, full of contradictory impulses, doubts, jealousies, and all the other human foible stuff; and a clever or unique take or treatment, an angle that separates it from everything else out there. The second is especially important in fantasy novels, which has a history almost as long as storytelling itself if you go back to Odysseus and Gilglamesh, so sometimes falls into the unpleasant habit of recycling tropes without bringing anything new to the table.

And I’m here to say, The Whitefire Crossing, the debut effort by Courtney Schafer, has both of those elements in spades. On its surface, it doesn’t appear all crazy unusual. It has a scoundrel with a complicated history named Dev, who’s a smuggler, but in the Locke Lamora mold as far as criminals go—he’s clever, likable, and not completely amoral or bloodthirsty. His sections of the book are told in first person.

And then there’s Kiran, a young secretive mage’s apprentice who’s on the run for reasons that aren’t immediately clear. He needs to get out of the city of Ninavel and into the country of Alathia undetected. There are plenty of obstacles (most won’t touch for fear of spoilage) but none greater than the inconvenient mountain range in between. In an interesting and bold choice (perhaps to help maintain the mystery for the bulk of the novel), Kiran’s sections are presented in third person limited.

This violates a cardinal precept most creative writing instructors proclaim from on high: don’t mix and match your POVS—pick one, and stick with it. So the story goes, mixing them confuses, frustrates, and potentially alienates readers. And while that’s not the worst advice, Schafer pulls it off here. It does take a chapter or two to adjust to the shifts between the characters/alternating POVs, and while this helps maintain some of the secrets both from Dev and the reader, it seems a natural rather than contrived choice once you get used to it.

So, structurally you have something that sets the novel apart (and in a good way, since it works!). But once of the other things that immediately sets this novel apart is the smuggling itself—it requires traveling through the mountains, and while Dev is skilled at transporting gems and small charms over the mountains, getting an inexperienced person through the mountains is a different proposition.

The characters themselves are well-drawn, their exchanges believable, and they’re both pretty well layered, as they each harbor their own secrets. But while there are plenty of other good things going on in the novel, the mountain crossing itself is where it truly shines. Most authors, gloss over travel of this kind (ocean in pre-modern times, mountains anytime, desert pretty much any time, hellish swamps, etc.), and because most readers aren’t experts on the topic, we grant authors a lot of latitude and suspend our disbelief, unless the writer clearly makes some horrible gaffes.

But when an author DOES know the terrain and territory, and is really familiar with all the challenges and dangers involved, it can turn a rote journey into a gripping one filled with tension and terrific realism. And boy, does Schafer know mountaineering. While the sections of the book that take place in urban environments are certainly handled well enough, the mountain crossing is absolutely fantastic in its rendering,

At the end of the day, the main characters are front and center, and they carry the novel, but the pure verisimilitude achieved in the mountaineering section really elevates this novel (pardon the pun) to another level.

I look forward to reading the next in the series. Although I’ll be sad if the mountains don’t feature prominently. Unless Schafer is also an expert in spelunking. Which is entirely possible.

[Michael]

I've had this on my to be read pile for some time now, and thanks to being picked by a group I'm in I have a good excuse to move it to the top of the TBR pile. I'm excited to get started.

[Blake Charlton · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. an excellent start to what promises to be an lively and epic series. the two PoV characters are likeable, vastly different. the interplay between the two as the cross a vivid mountain scape make the book come alive. in fact, the whitefire mountain range and the surrounding lands place such a vibrant role they become, in effect, as memorable as the characters.

my only qualm is with the magic system, which is to my tastes too soft. to be clear, there is nothing wrong with soft magical systems; some of the best fantasies out there use soft magic system (e.g. game of thrones, harry potter, lord of the rings). however, the lack of rules to magic, or in this case, the multiplicity of different rules, can lead to some confusion about what is possible. here characters sometimes had to explain why special circumstances of magic--for which the reader could not have had an appreciation--were necessary. i admit to being biased on this front, given that i write only hard magical systems. moreover, i have in the past been guilty of requiring characters to explain the laws of magic, so i am perhaps hypersensitive to the issue. most importantly, though i object to the softness of the magic systems, it was not significant enough to detract from the book, which was wonderful fun.

i'm very excited for the next book in the series. highly recommended for any fan of epic fantasy.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, character driven fantasy adventure, but Schafer also builds here a fascinating world to boot. Our led, Dev, works as an 'outrider', e.g., he helps clear the trails between the city Nivavel and the empire of Alathia. Nivavel exists as a city of mages, born from mages to be more exact, but also a host of human normals live there, helping to work the extensive mines locally, but also involved in more illegal trades. Alathia prohibits most forms of magic, ruled by a council of mage lords, and a magic barrier surrounds the empire. While Dev works as an outrider, he also has a smuggling gig on the side to take prohibited magical charms, etc., into Alathia.

Dev's contact makes him an offer at the start of the tale. The mountains between Nivavel and Alathia will shortly be passible now that spring has arrived and hence the first caravan will journey there. The offer consists of transporting/smuggling a young man (Kiran) to Alathia, along with his usual odds and ends. Dev feels the pressure to take the gig due to financial reasons; his (now) ex bilked him of all his savings and he is broke. Worse, he needs a pile of cash to buy a young woman he was entrusted with out of slavery. Once they hit the road, however, things get interesting!

Without any more spoilers than on the back blurb, we soon find out that the man Dev is smuggling is actually a blood mage, and worse, is hunted by another blood mage. Mages apparently come in many flavors here, but blood mages may be the most powerful and feared. Once the beans are spilt, Dev and Kiran need to trust one another, but they start off rather shakily, both of them enmeshed in lies of their own making...

Schafer does a great job here building tension and suspense, and paces the tale will with her rather journeymen prose. I enjoyed the world building, which she constructed in dribs and drabs without info dumps. Looking forward to the next installment! 4 strong stars!

[T. Frohock · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, I enjoyed this novel. I wouldn’t be writing like this if I didn’t. I mean, I really, really had a good time reading it, and hey, isn’t that what it’s all about?

So what can you expect from Schafer’s debut? I know we all like to pigeon-hole books into categories. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just so we can have some kind of idea of what to expect. I think the best way to describe The Whitefire Crossing is to use Schafer’s label of an “adventure fantasy.” With a heavy emphasis on adventure.

I’m not going to rehash the blurb. You’re smart. You read it before you ever scrolled down to the reviews and if you didn’t, go read the blurb and come back. Otherwise, I’m going to talk to you like one fantasy reader to another.

I quit reading epic fantasy for a long time, mainly because the emphasis was on epic and the reader could have inserted cardboard standouts for the characters. Schafer brings in wonderful, full dimensional characters without missing a beat on the adventure side of the story. I was pulling for Dev and Kiran from page one.

Dev is a smuggler, who was abandoned to the streets as a child, and Schafer hits the right note with Dev’s adult character and his myriad trust issues. Kiran, a mage of great power, was also abandoned, but he had the advantage of being taken into a structured home. The two characters counterbalance one another beautifully and Schafer leads them to trust one another with skill.

Schafer creates a believable world full of magic and danger. I especially liked the tension between the two rival countries of Ninavel and Alathia. The delicate balance between Ninavel and Alathia mirrored the complex relationship between Dev and Kiran throughout the novel.

It was just a wonderful read and I’m looking forward to the next book in her Shattered Sigil series, The Tainted City. I think you will be too.

[Bastard · Rating 4 out of 5]

**I posted my review on Only the Best, while Seak posted his on Bastard Books and other crap.**

You read fantasy and you wish you could become a wizard detective, a clever thief, Superman...but, a rock-climber? That's precisely what I wished to become after I was done with Courtney Schafer's debut novel, The Whitefire Crossing . Not that the book itself was about rock-climbing, but the passages in which it was featured, were quite compelling. I'm scared shitless of heights, so one can dream. It's the first book in The Shattered Sigil series, followed by The Tainted City projected for a 2012 release.

Dev is an outrider for caravans as they travel from one city to another, particularly through the mountains in which he uses his mountaineering expertise to scout for any danger. He also takes smuggling jobs on the side. He's been lauded to be very good at his job, though a risk taker for his love and thrill of rock climbing, he's been risk averse on the smuggling jobs he takes; until now. Losing all his savings due to some circumstances, savings he needed to save the life of someone he cares and is responsible for, he's forced into smuggling a young man, Kiran, into a city with a heavily guarded border against his better judgement. Unbeknownst to him, Kiran is a mage on the run from a very powerful and dangerous mage who'd stop at nothing to get him back.

The book is narrated in both first and third person limited perspectives. First person belongs to Dev, while the third person limited belongs to Kiran. I personally love this exercise, while I know some will find the style not to their liking, but I thought it was handled quite well. The switches in POV are marked preceding the passages, so there will be no confusion. I don't think readers will have problem getting into rhythm if that is of concern.

The Whitefire Crossing was a real treat of a novel. I'm not a fan of books that spend a good portion travelling, yet this novel packs some good energy and enthusiasm along with a thriller element through this making it quite entertaining and fresh. It's in fact the best part of novel. Two thirds of the novel in or so, the energy of the book drops substantially as the action and movement slows down and the plot not as interesting as what came before it. Main problem for me that some of the "reveals" were already heavily foreshadowed and easily inferred so they lost the impact when introduced along with the emotional impact in our characters. Picks right back up towards the end though with some exciting turn of events followed by an aftermath portion which sets up the next stage of the series in a manner which is of great interest to me with some promise of political intrigue which I enjoy very much.

The novel itself can be characterized as one about choices and consequences, juxtaposed with themes of trust and freedom. Throughout the whole novel both of our main characters are presented with a myriad of choices, choices that weigh heavy on them. It's these dilemmas that drive the character conflicts throughout the novel. There's a lot of introspection in which these struggles are depicted, in particular when they involve questions of trust versus risking freedom. If that isn't enough, both characters are confined by self-interest agendas that may force them to betray each other, and themselves for that matter, as they view it as an inevitability of their situation charged by shackles from their past and potential future, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The book features plenty of magic use, and I thought some of it was quite interesting when considering the cost-benefit analysis of magic usage. Personally would like to see more details of how the magic works and what limits does it actually have. For purposes of what was featured in this novel, they're not that important but some events towards the end hints to me that they might be in the future. The Whitefire Crossing is limited in scope as plot needs demand, so worldbuilding suffers a bit because of it. But don't ignore that which was featured coming to life in the pages, particularly through the mountain trek. There's plenty of anecdotal evidence throughout the novel though, which fuels the imagination about the possibilities in this world. Very much looking forward to how the boundaries of what we've been educated on expand in future installments.

Courtney Schafer has written a very promising debut which I highly recommend. Well written in an unorthodox style giving a fresh energy to some traditional ideas among the new. Main strength being the character conflicts presented throughout, and the enthusiastic and detailed narrative of mountaineering portions of the novel energized by Schafer's expertise of rock climbing. Plenty of action and a fast moving book which should keep readers entertained and turning the pages. Sequel of the novel is The Tainted City , very much looking forward to it, and hope many of you give this series a try.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://staffersmusings.blogspot.com/2...

I always hear the phrase, "write what you know." My reaction has typically been who the hell would want to read a fantasy novel about bodybuilding, basketball, or energy policy? Of course the answer is - my mom. Thankfully for me, and everyone else who will have the pleasure of reading The Whitefire Crossing, Courtney Schafer's knowledge of mountaineering has a much broader appeal.

When I received my advanced copy of Whitefire, I took a minute to read about the author's background. As it turns out she's an avid rock climber with years of experience. She even has a picture of herself inverted on her "About" page on her website. I always find it difficult to walk the line between writing what I know and committing mental masturbation. Look how much I know about this! In a surprising development (notice the sarcasm here) Schafer is a better writer than I am. While she may have shared my same concerns, she shouldn't have.

Every second spent on rock climbing or related activities in Whitefire is a breath of fresh air. Her enthusiasm bleeds through the page infusing her main character Dev with vigor and life that couldn't have been accomplished any other way. It's clear that when Schafer put fingers to keys she was excited to write this story. This passion sustains the novel in its early stages and provides the momentum that carries it to a great conclusion.

Schafer's main character Dev is an outrider for a merchant caravan with a penchant for scaling difficult mountain sides. He's also a part time smuggler who gets talked into bringing the mage Kiran across the border that divides two nations with diametrically opposed viewpoints on the legality of magic. Kiran ends up posing as Dev's apprentice which provides Schafer adequate opportunities to wax about talus, pinions, scree, and a host of other climbing nuances.

Once Dev and Kiran get out of the mountains, the story is only half done. Schafer proves that she's not a one trick pony immediately delving into a far more gritty and urban setting. While some of the urban world felt flat in comparison to the lushness of the mountains, by the novels conclusion it starts to reveal itself in more depth opening up a host of avenues for future installments in the series.

I always find that when reading a review, one of the things I want to know about is point of view and how the novel handles it. In this case, Whitefire is written with two different narrative perspectives. Dev is given the first person treatment where Kiran's point of view is from the third person. If I’m being honest, I really struggled at times from the switching points of view. When I read my eyes train themselves on where to focus in sentences for pertinent information and when the switch occurs in point of view from first to third these information cues switch too. Ultimately, it was a small annoyance (and possibly exclusive only to me and the way I read) and given the inherent bias in a first person narrative getting an additional point of view was refreshing.

Equally refreshing was Schafer's decision to write two male protagonists. Every female fantasy reader is now saying - ugh, all fantasy books have male protagonists! And they'd be right. But not all male protagonists are written by women - in fact, very few are. The only thing rarer is male writers writing female protagonists. I can only hope that more male authors look to Schafer's cross gender example and attempt to write stronger women. There's no doubt a few male fantasy authors could use to imagine being in woman's shoes a little more and in their undergarments a little less.

Whitefire is one of the best novels I've read in 2011 (out of 38 so far, but who's counting?). What starts off as an adventure novel of rock climbing and trekking quickly turns into a full blown fantasy romp full of magic, ne'er-do-wells, and flawed heroes. I'm always nervous when I recommend a book this highly, especially when it doesn't do something that's going to change the genre. But what can I say? Schafer's debut novel totally charmed me and I can't wait to read her sequel, The Tainted City, due out late next year.

The Whitefire Crossing will be available in stores on August 16.

[Kaila · Rating 5 out of 5]

I honestly don't even know where to begin with this review. I LOVED this book. And if you look through my review history, you'll know that's a rarity. How do I even write 5-star reviews? I don't get much practice!

The story:

The story presented is a simple enough concept: Dev is a smuggler of magical goods. He crosses the Whitefire Mountains in order to smuggle these goods into a neighboring kingdom. This time, his cargo isn't merely a few trinkets or amulets, but a young man, Kiran. Hijinks ensue.

The characters:

Sounds simple, right? I thought it was going to be, too. I thought it was going to be formulaic, but immediately I was caught off guard - the narrator changed to Kiran, the young man paying to be smuggled across the border. Not only does it change to him, but it shifts from Dev's first person narration, to Kiran's third person. That means that while we get to listen in on Dev's thoughts and get to know him intimately, Kiran remains a mystery for much longer. I'm pretty sure Dev only swears in his thoughts, never out loud, but I can't find my notes now. Have some examples! These are each character's opening lines.

Dev:

I knew right from the moment I opened Bren's back room door this job was going to be trouble. See, here's how it should go: Bren, waiting, alone, with a packet on the table and my advance payment in his hand. Simple and no surprises. So when I saw Bren, waiting, not alone, and no package on the table, I got a little twitchy.

Kiran:

Kiran shifted from foot to foot beside a trellis covered in night-blooming jasmine. For the hundredth time, he stared up at the pattern of stars visible above Lizaveta's courtyard wall. The hour of his rendezvous with Dev was fast approaching. Yet without Lizaveta's promised aid, he dared not leave Ninaval.

You can already tell so much about the characters just from those few lines. Dev is abrupt and a little uncouth, Kiran is educated and cautious.

So just the simple act of reading is an enjoyable experience. You jump back and forth between the two narrators, but it is never jolting, it is always a fluid transition. You never get to see the same scene twice, for example. If something happens during Kiran's chapters, Dev's will pick up right where it left off.

This book was character driven. I fell instantly in love with both characters for completely different reasons, but I HAD to know what was going on.

The setting:

Like most fantasy novels, we're dropped in the middle of a setting and expected to play catch up. This novel REALLY expects you to play catch up, as the characters drop hints to their back story that we do not get to see until they say it to each other. This might drive you crazy. I thought it fit in perfectly. Why would Dev be thinking about his past in simple black and white terms for us to understand? That's not how thoughts work! We only get to see his past when he starts explaining it to Kiran.

A lot of fuss has been made about making the mountains in this book approachable. I live in the PAC NW so I get to see beautiful mountains a lot. Driving over the I-405 bridge on a clear day is an amazing treat, offering a view of both Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens. I think they are very pretty mountains.

And that's about where my knowledge of mountains ends!

Trust me, you do not need to know anything about mountains to still find them majestic, gigantic, and deadly in this book. They are the background for the journey part of the novel, but they are just as easy to imagine as any well-written fantasy setting.

Honestly, the first part of the book, being the actual "crossing" part, is a little slow. Everything I said earlier about loving that we don't get the character's pasts right away also means we have to stay interested without much to show for it for a while.

Trust me my friends, it is worth it!

The bottom line:

One of my favorite novels of the year so far. The character voices are unique and memorable, without any unnecessary romance, blood, or evilness mucking it up or forcing the characters into stupid decisions.

I loved it.

[Jennifer (bunnyreads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s taken me years to get around to reading this book something I kind of regret now because it was quite enjoyable, I blew through it in just a few sittings. The first half of the story moves at decent clip and is damned hard to put down.

Kirin, escaping from Ruslan his mentor and a powerful Blood Mage, with the hired help of Dev, a smuggler, attempts crossing the mountain pass into the protective walls of Alathia where he hopes to hide behind their magic blocking barrier. With Ruslan hot on his heels, Kirin’s jump from the frying pan, lands him in the proverbial fire, when he falls onto the radar of another powerful and possibly crueler blood mage, who wants to use Kirin’s strong magic to get a foothold of power in the country.

The flight through the dangerous mountain path combined with the threat of Ruslan finding them made for some nice tense reading and there was just enough of the mountaineering and cold weather/snow details, to really bring home the risks that were involved (outside of the risk of being captured by an angry mage).

The middle is maybe not as tense but still has enough going on to keep you turning the pages and gives us a little bit of time to get to know Dev and Kirin’s characters separate from one another- which I think is a good thing when reading buddy stories, that they have personalities outside of how they play off one another.

The end was a bit rougher and not near as strong as the beginning. There were some minor points that could have been stronger for me- with Simon, Ruslan’s return, and one little thing with Cara and Kirin, but all very subjective to my tastes, and super hard to go in-depth about without spoilers.

There are a couple types of magic. I’m not quite sure I understand them fully, yet. The Tainted like Dev had, is in kids and they lose it when they hit puberty, though I’m not sure if this is restricted to Dev’s people only.
And then there are the mages like Kirin, who are trained to use the magic and I assume have the magic always. It works for me as is, and I never worry about explanations of magic in a series when things will most likely get more explanation as it goes anyway.

This story finishes up tidily, while leaving lots of space to continue. I really liked how it set itself up for book two. There were a couple of additional characters added that I am excited to come back for- one of them being Captain Martennan and I’m hoping for more Cara. Overall this was a quick enjoyable read and I’m excited to continue this series.


3.75

[Liviu · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished the novel and while the style flowed well and the book makes you want to turn the pages and see what happens, I ultimately did not care that much about it.

To be honest this is a book I would have taken a look and after the first page said, nice prose but I have 50 or more books of much higher interest and put it down, but Robert's review (my coeditor at FBC) made me curious so i gave it a higher priority. In the end as mentioned I enjoyed it more than i expected but it never rose to the level of something like Sword of Fire and sea by Erin Hoffman to which this book has some similarities in style and content - frantic action, fasten your seat belt and ride but do not think too deeply and so much magic to make any consistency/possibility of taking the story seriously, moot.

In structure there are also similarities to the superb S. Monette Melusine series but this book is very light and fluffy and you cannot really take the dark parts seriously, the tension/believability is not there.

All in all if you want a fast adventure with lots of magic, this one may be for you and while considering the semi-cliffhanger ending I may take a look at the second book, I do not feel a particular urge to do so since I simply do not care enough to see where the characters go from here

As compared to recent fantasy reads, I definitely enjoyed this more than Prince of Thorns and a little less than Heart of Iron which despite its very YA second half action had a very believable and enchanting voice, while here Dev is a by the numbers character I've seen a million times before, Kiran same though he gets a little more interesting as the story goes, while the baddies are really caricatures - Ruslan for example is a very pale imitation of Malkar, Felix's "mentor" and the uber bad guy in Melusine...

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Here's another I'm going to open with...I'm sorry, but I don't really like it.

I do like fantasy, epic fantasy, urban fantasy. sword and sorcery fantasy....but sometimes I find that even with a fairly well written book, I'm just not the "target audience".

The characters do get well filled out here and the plot while meandering kind of moves along. The first half of the book takes place in crossing the mountains and the varied dangers (both natural and magical) faced. Then the book moves into a sort of extended hostage/magical espionage/crime story. I had laid this book aside several times and was never in a hurry to get back to it.

A bad sign.

By the time I got through it I was just glad it was over...yeah, I was tired of it.

Please enjoy if it's for you. I don't think I'll be reading any more by the author...at least not for a while.

[wishforagiraffe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book blew me away. As a debut, it's awesome. It's tight, the editing is great, the concept is well executed. The characters are distinct people who are all motivated by reasons that make sense, even if for narrative tension, we don't find those reasons out right away. I really enjoy the narration style, where you switch POV between the two main characters and that's it. There isn't a huge cast to keep track of, but it's still a rather epic scale story. Courtney does a great job ramping up the tension, you really think that getting to Alathia is the difficult part of the trip, but when your Kindle shows you that's only about 50% of the way through the story, suddenly you get much more stressed out. I finished the second half of the story much more quickly than the first half... And the climbing. There is, frankly, not enough climbing description in this book for how well Courtney describes climbing. It's obvious that Courtney is good at this outdoor adventuring thing, because she knows how to talk about it properly. The magic system is good, the tension between countries because of magic is good, and the characterization is really top notch. I'm excited to blast through the rest of this trilogy. I'm glad I don't have to wait.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beside all the stress I finished reading another great fantasy reading.

There is more behind the story as you think at first sight.
Mountain climbing plays an important part in the book. I do not have any experience in this area but Courtney created breathtaking scenes.

I liked the two main characters - Dev and Kiran - more and more after every revelation.

I look forward to read the next book in the series. I hope I will write and finish my full review before the publishing date of the next book.

[Alissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 heartfelt stars. Only, don't try to read this book without the second installment ready at hand!

[Mihir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Courtney Schafer's debut was a breath of fresh air amid all the wonderful debuts from Nightshade books, combing excellent characterization with a rollicking story, she wove the story of 2 different but strong willed individuals that have to come together to survive and find a new way to outlive their persecutors. Can't wait for the Tainted City...

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up The Whitefire Crossing a while ago - I had seen it mentioned on r/fantasy a few times, and really enjoyed Courtney Schafer's AMA, as well as random comments and conversations I'd seen her have online. The book's premise interested me, and the mountaineering aspect was something you don't see a ton of in fantasy. I nominated the book for the r/Fantasy Book Club's July book of the month, and was thrilled to see it win, and numerous people pick up the book and help discuss it.

To describe how I felt about TWC in one word: shocked. Shocked that it was this good. First time novels are always a dicey proposition, especially ones that are on a mid-sized publisher and there isn't a massive review base for. However, Courtney seemed well-thought-of in the community and the book interested me. However, I wasn't prepared for the level of excitement, the twists and turns of the plotline, the depth of the characters or the quality of the writing. The book was very professionally written, felt real and visceral, the characters reacting in ways that seemed to make sense for their characters, not arbitrarily making decisions for the sake of the plot. The dialogue was realistic and witty, and the character conflicts felt solid.

The magic system in the novel wasn't anything groundbreaking, but it worked perfectly for what it needed to in this novel, and was more than adequately presented as extremely powerful and very scary. The mages are borderline omnipotent when left with their powers unchecked, and the blood mages in particular were scary as hell. The antagonists had a very hard edge to them, and their evil deeds presented and left for judgement.

The mountaineering was an aspect that both excited and concerned me - Courtney's climbing and outdoors background is well documented, and I did have a bit of concern that the climbing aspects would be overdone, hard to follow, far too prevalent. The opposite was true - it made for a very nice augment, a bit of something different in the story, as well as something that moved the plot along. Courtney's love for climbing and the outdoors is very apparent, however is not something you're bludgeoned with. The actual mountaineering is easy to follow and not overly technical, presented in a manner that is digestible for those of us who would just rather not be hanging off the side of a cliff for funsies.

Overall, I honestly loved this book. I blasted through it in general (in what little reading time I've had of late), and looked forward to the next time I could read it. I had a couple late nights because I couldn't put it down, and the final 75 pages absolutely flew by last night. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book to people.

[Maja · Rating 5 out of 5]

2025
4,5 might have kept it 4 stars if it was my first read, I don't know. However, this is a reread and a lot of this is nostalgia, so keeping the 5 star. Still mad that out of 74 effing books, a reread is my first 5 star of the year (I have HOPES on a few new releases later this year though).

The writing is gripping with a nice flow and easy got get into from the beginning. The plot is fun and engaging. The travels through the mountains is so much fun and so much had me on the edge of my seat even if I had vague memories of what was going to happen! I still adore both main characters, especially Dev. Most of the side characters are also well written.

The choice of PoV is jarring. I just don't really like it when an author mixes first and third PoV. Schafer does an okay work with it, since the book is only dual-PoV. But yeah, it's partly why it's 4,5 stars and not a solid 5.

I'm bit wary of continuing my reread of the series, since judging on my ratings I seem to have disliked it more with each book (third book a 3 star so still not terrible).

- -

2017
Last book of the year done!

This book far exceeded my expectations. I adored both main characters, Dev and Kiran. I've got a soft spot for characters in thieving business (smuggling count in there right?) and those with magical abilities and they fit snuggly in there.

The plot was great! I had first thought a larger portion would take place during the trip through the mountains, but that was only like half of the book. The rest in Alathia or around there. No details there because spoilers. Also fuck that cliffhanger of an ending.

My biggest concern so far is the PoVs the author choose to write. Dev is first person past tense. Kiran is third person past tense. By default I prefer third person. I can in some way sort of see why Schafer chose to do this, but in another I can't. It also threw of my reading a little because it kept switching between first and third PoV. This is not the first book I've read that mixes first and third PoV. Some do it so good, while other make it a total disaster. Right now I feel Whitefire Crossing is somewhere in-between. Wasn't too messy but also didn't really feel necessary. You catch my thoughts?

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read it.

I read it all the way through, and once again I have to feel guilty about leaving a bad review for a book I wouldn't normally pick up. (I won this as a Reddit prize.)

Here we have a fairly standard fantasy tale with a Big Bad and an ingenue and a jaded thief. OK, so some people like that. What I liked was that the jaded thief was a rock climber and held an in-world profession related to that. The rock climbing passion from the character/author started shining through around the 20% mark, and that coincided with an uptick in my interest.

What I hated was the writing. It was lackluster at best, and the mix of tenses between POVs just made it all the more obvious.

Read it if you like fantasy focused on a limited number of characters and/or unusual fantasy jobs.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Whitefire Crossing, the debut novel of Courtney Schafer, is an exciting adventure fantasy in a unique world. On its surface the plot is a simple one: Dev, a smuggler and talented climber, is in desperate need of cash and so takes on a dangerous mission to smuggle a person out of the city of Ninavel and into the country of Alathia. What makes the tale interesting are the complications surrounding that job and the rich sense of history behind each character.


I’m rather a fan of the working class hero. Dev is a prime example of that trope. He is a simple man who is good at his job. Sure his smuggling activities are something less-than-legal but the only reason he does that it is to earn the much needed cash to fulfill a promise to his deceased mentor. That is rich and familiar territory. There is more to it than that as well though. Dev, a mountain guide and outrider, has a deep seeded love of climbing. In truth, it is almost an addiction and one tied deeply to his past. The children of Ninavel, the city where Dev lives, are often born with the ability to float and fly. The orphan children are almost always taken in by gangs of thieves and trained to use their magical talent to break walls and steel. Eventually the gift fades and the children are sold off to often unsavory types. For Dev his skill at climbing is an attempt to recreate the glory of his former gifts. There is a certain Dickensian feel to his back story, orphaned thief turned semi-honest outrider, that gives his character a bittersweet and borderline tragic feeling.

Our other main character Kiran is interesting in a different way. Born with the innate magical talent that didn’t go away he was taken in by mages; the elite upper-class of the mage-founded Ninavel. Isolated at a young age he is reared to be a wielder of great magical power and to look down at the lesser untalented people of the world. Like Dev’s climbing, Kiran’s gift of magic is very much like an addiction constantly tempting him and undeniably dangerous. That discussion of innate abilities, whether it is Dev’s faded gifts or Kiran’s magical abilities, is one of the novels most important aspects and the examination of who we are is a result of those gifts, despite those gifts, or something else all together. What defines these characters is at the crux of both their internal and external conflicts.

The Whitefire Crossing is completely character driven. The narrative split more-or-less evenly between Kiran and Dev. There are blessedly few moments where Schafer detours from the novels conflicts to provide necessary exposition and most of the world building comes as a direct result of learning who these characters are. By providing readers with the perspectives of two character with wildly different viewpoints experiencing the same things it allows Schafer to enrich the world she has created and give readers a more complete view of things. This is particularly evident during Dev and Kiran’s flight over the mountains where switching back and forth between the characters allows for a very natural exploration of the mechanics behind Kiran’s magic. Later, towards the novel’s end there are similar moments with the magicians of Alathia and contrast between their methods and that of Kiran and his former master is explicitly examined in a way that feels surprisingly subtle.

While I found the opening of The Whitefire Crossing a bit slow once Dev and Kiran are on the road the novel picks up and never slows down. Schafer does an phenomenal job of making you care about these characters, calling that feeling into question, and bringing you right back to caring again. The world building is just present enough to provide detail for current and past of our leads without getting in the way of plot. There is certainly a lot of room to explore world beyond both Ninavel and Alathia but I never felt deprived by the lack of that exploration. The Whitefire Crossing is a complete tale that comes to a satisfying conclusion that simultaneously introduces a complication that sets up a future volume and I am looking forward to seeing future adventures with Kiran and Dev.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantasy Review Barn

Good Idea: Taking advantage of a free book deal and downloading a book that has received good ratings from all of your friends.

Bad Idea: Not reading the book for over a year because you are scared the “rock climbing elements” will overshadow everything else in the book.

I can’t believe I let this sit on my Kindle without reading it for so long. I truly did put it off because all the talk was about how the author is a rock climber and put it into her book; my brain went meh and I skipped it repeatedly. My loss.

Yes, the book does contain some rock climbing elements. Protagonist Dev is an outrider who scouts the terrain for trade caravans with climbing being one of the many duties. Dev is also making a bit of a side profit by smuggling magical items into a city with very strict controls on magic. The book starts with almost no bull****; Dev going to his usual contact and learning that this time he is being asked to smuggle a person across the border. With reasons of his own to take the cash he reluctantly agrees, taking on Kiran as an “assistant” to provide cover on the next run.

Bouncing back and forth between the point of view of both Dev and Kiran (with Dev’s chapters being in the first person) the author artfully makes us care about both characters; even when their goals may not be aligned. Strong engaging characters may have been my favorite thing of many this story. Not only do we have Dev and Kiran, both good people hiding something; but several of the support characters had almost as much life as the two protagonists. Villains were pure evil but for some reason this was a story where that didn’t bother me as much. Usually I like my villains to have a human element, but complete monster worked in this environment surprisingly well.

Pacing was a huge point in this story’s favor. A good amount of the background info was told within the journey rather than funneled down our throat. There was plenty of action, with magic that was enough of a threat to matter. By switching PoV’s regularly I never got bored with one character, and by keeping it at two I never god mad when a switch happened; I knew I would see him again soon. I have learned over time that I almost always prefer my fantasy in shorter chunks, at about 350 pages this book was perfect for what I needed.

“World building” doesn’t really occur here, but there is some very good “small area building.” Only hints of a larger world are shown, this book deals with two cities and the passage between them. But it is so full of life! One city thrives on magic, living in an almost magical anarchy where mages of different types can do anything they want. The other is almost Orwellian in their attempt to keep people safe from the magic; using the very magic they are suppressing to enforce the rules. Charms are sold for different uses, some quite powerful. Different mages use different power bases, and if some of the “blood mage” power felt like mana in a video game to me it is probably proof that I have played too many damn video games.

My only real complaint comes the warded city of Alathia, it of magical suppression. The city is protected by spells that will alert the guard if the wrong types of magic are used, while ignoring the more benign. In theory. In reality it felt like one of the most blatant author’s conveniences I have ever read, a nice security blanket that let the author do just about anything with it. We see all kinds of magic take place within it without setting off the alarms, but also see the guards called in for something they didn’t come for the first time we saw it. I would have liked some more consistency on that front, but maybe it is addressed in later books as a misconception (or deliberate misleading). In any case, it didn’t distract much from the reading.

Oh yes, I even liked the areas of the book that dealt with mountain climbing.

4 stars

[Blaise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I discovered this book many years ago on the recommendation of Mark Lawrence. The eBook was on sale and I decided to give the story a shot thinking I would enjoy it. What I didn’t expect was to be completely absorbed and engrossed in a story we have seen before, but with wonderful twist, worldbuilding, and beloved characters who will surprise you at every turn. Cities are built in environments seemingly unable to support human life, but that us where the magic kicks in and there is plenty of it in The Whitefire Crossing. This book is a relatively unknown series in the SFF community and I look forward to sharing it with the ambitious readers.

We follow two main POV characters in The Whitefire Crossing and they both have their secrets and mysteries to be discovered. Dev is a smuggler with the perfect cover story. He’s in high demand as a guide for the caravans that carry legitimate goods from the city of Ninavel into the country of Alathia. The route through the Whitefire Mountains is treacherous, and Dev is one of the few climbers who knows how to cross them safely. With his skill and connections, it’s easy enough to slip contraband charms from Ninavel – where any magic is fair game, no matter how dark – into Alathia, where most magic is outlawed.

Transporting cargo and supplies is one thing, but the smuggle in a person into Alathia is a whole different matter. The borders are guarded by magic warders, but Dev made a promise to a dying friend and he takes the job and the dangerous cargo Kiran. Kiran is a young apprentice mage and decides to pay a small fortune to run far away to Alathia and one of the most powerful mages in Ninavel. Dev is unaware of Kiran’s past and they will traverse the mountains and desert terrains to accomplish their tasks.

What makes this book such a compelling story is the pacing, character depth, and interesting magic system. The background for the characters is told organically throughout the journey with our characters as opposed to huge info dumps. The chapters switch back and forth between Dev and Kiran with you never feeling let down. What I loved most about the plot was Kiran’s flashback episodes involving his training, use of magic, and tragedy he had to endure. You will know why he is on the run from his master at all costs.

Finally we have the magic in this world. Mages have different skills based on there power base and strength. For example, the city of Alathia has water mages to control the water supply into the desert city and I find it ironic that the city where magic is banned uses magic in order to exist. It is very much in the same vain as a leader saying one thing but doing another. The world also possesses charms which can be bought and sold with varying powers. This was a nice touch to a fantasy novel.

This is a story about secrets, politics, and survival and its most pure form. The story will not be made clear from the start and it is just a taste of the larger world we get to explore. You will definitely have more questions than answers upon completion of this book especially with the ending we get. Stakes will be high, but the characters will be their along the way. I’m sure some of you have never heard of this story before and I’m am happy to put this on your radar!

Cheers!

[Stefan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dev works as an outrider for caravans crossing the Whitefire mountains, going from the city of Ninavel to the kingdom of Alathia. To pad his income, Dev also does some smuggling on the side. After all, there’s a prohibition on magic in Alathia, so Dev can make a handsome amount of money transporting various magical items from magic-friendly Ninavel across the border. As The Whitefire Crossing starts, Dev is asked by his contact to take along an unusual package: a young man called Kiran. The surprisingly high reward is what finally convinces Dev to take on this risk, because he is hoping to raise enough money to free a young girl before she is sold into slavery...

Dev is an interesting main character, especially because of his history as a “Tainted” youngster. Some prepubescent children have minor magical skills, making them ideal assistants in various criminal enterprises. Unfortunately, the magical “Taint” usually wears off with the onset of puberty, at which point the children become useless for crime and are often sold into a much less savory business... Dev’s history makes him especially sensitive to this — hence his desire to save children from this fate.

The first half of The Whitefire Crossing is excellent, entertaining adventure fantasy. The descriptions of the journey through the Whitefire mountains are fascinating. Author Courtney Schafer is a mountain climber, and it shows in the many knowledgeable and exciting descriptions of climbing expeditions. To explain Kiran’s presence, Dev pretends that the young man is learning to be an outrider, but when it becomes clear what he really is — the apprentice of a feared bloodmage — the adventure takes on a completely different tone. What’s more, there’s a spy in the convoy who may put the entire venture in jeopardy.

Unfortunately, The Whitefire Crossing loses steam in the second half, once the caravan arrives in Alathia. The tension and beauty of the mountain scenes disappear and are replaced by a more standard fantasy plot involving a rivalry between two mages, with Dev and Kiran stuck in the middle. While this section of the novel isn’t bad at all, it lacks the originality and excitement of the first half. If I could give star ratings to separate sections of novels, the first part of The Whitefire Crossing would get a solid 4 stars. The rest isn’t quite as good, but Courtney Schafer still shows that she can write a compelling and original fantasy story with original world-building, interesting characters, and surprisingly confident prose.

The Whitefire Crossing is a fun fantasy adventure that’s incredibly polished for a first effort. Based on its first half, I was at one point looking around on the Internet to see if this was an established author working under a pseudonym. I felt that the novel lost steam in the second half, but I nevertheless plan to keep an eye on this series and author for the future, because there’s real promise here for many good stories to come.

(This review was originally published on www.fantasyliterature.com on 8/19/2011)

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is told from the points of view of the two main male characters, Dev and Kiran. The unique feature is that Dev's point of view is told in the first person while Kiran's is from the third person. This varying perspective gives you a bit of a double take at first but you quickly settle in to enjoy the tale.

Dev and Kiran were thrown together out of necessity. Dev was an expert mountain guide and Kiran needed a guide to smuggle him out of one city into another in the quickest and most inconspicuous way. At first, it seemed like they were two people with little in common. As the tale progresses though, you realize that they are not much different beneath the surface. They form an unexpected bond and friendship despite the secrets they each keep and the unfortunate infractions they commit against each other.

The author is a rock climbing enthusiast and it shows in the description of the terrain and in the adventures of the characters. She makes you fall in love with the setting and the exhilaration of climbing. Her descriptions make you feel the beauty and the danger of that endeavor.

The Whitefire Crossing takes you from the mountainside to the city and Schafer does a commendable job in both venues. You get a good feel of the life of a caravan outrider as well as the politics and life in the cities. There are surprising twists and turns and yet more twists and turns on top of those. While the main intrigues are resolved, the conclusion is a bit of a cliifhanger, setting the stage for the next book which I will definitely read soon.