Thagoth

Amra Thetys #1.5

by Michael McClung

After surviving Thagoth and returning rich to Lucernis, Amra and Holgren have settled down to a very comfortable, if decidedly unexciting life…until the night Amra receives an old enemy's head in a box.

A longstanding debt calls her home to Bellarius, the scene of many childhood horrors she would much rather forget. Yet, as bad as memories of the past might be, present-day Bellarius has become far worse, for the Eightfold Goddess has not forgotten about Amra. And another of the goddess’s Blades, the Knife that Parts the Night, now threatens to tear the very fabric of reality apart. All that stands in the way of utter destruction is one small, scarred thief and her mage companion.

Genres: Fantasy

ebook

Published August 28, 2011

About the author

Michael McClung was born in San Antonio, Texas, but now lives in Europe. He has had the requisite number of odd jobs expected of a speculative fiction author, including soldier, book store manager, and bowling alley pin boy. His first book, the Sword & Sorcery novel "Thagoth," won the Del Rey Digital first novel competition in 2002 and was published by Random House in 2003.

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brief glimpse into the world of the feisty thief Amra and that of her secretive mage/partner Holgren. McClung's writing has a wonderfully solid, lyrical style and the narrative flows smoothly and feels quite rooted in the classic swashbuckling sense. But, as a standalone, the characters here lack much definition and the plot runs a bit too hurriedly, seemingly fleshing out ideas for the finished novel. All things considered, it indeed kept my interest, and I'm looking forward to reading the full story and that of his other works as well.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read that just draws you right in. A great cast of characters-Gods, a thief, a mage and an evil Shadow King-what more could you ask for? The humor is wry, the adventure is fascinating and the action is well written. The only drawback (minor as it is), is that I felt the final chapter unnecessary and a trifle dull after such an thrilling adventure. I will be reading the others in this series for certain!

[Irene (formerly Lacrymosa) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to meet Amra and hug her

[Michelle Alamdari · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't necessarily bad, but neither was it something to write home about. It was a pretty basic becoming-a-hero tale, like a Greek myth. Lots of seemingly indestructable monsters, life-threatening situations, and hopeless odds that are miraculously overcome by pure luck, it would seem. Everything happened too quickly, none of the characters were particularly memorable, and the end was a rather disappointing happily-ever-after deal.

That being said, I did enjoy Amra's (the main character's) snarkiness and the simplistic writing style. Sometimes it's nice to read something that doesn't require you to read into every little detail of everything to squeeze out some symbolic meaning. It was a hero's tale, nothing more and nothing less. It was worth the couple dollars I spent on it:)

[Antonis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this short story 4 stars but for me it definitely deserves a bit more, so let's just say it's 4,5 stars out of five. The story is very interesting and the characters are both realistic and uncommon but what sets this short story appart is the writing. I found McClung's style to be exactly what I've been looking for in a fantasy book. It's smooth, clear and fast while being descriptive, atmospheric and very beautiful. After reading many books lately with clunky writing that usually felt off-target, this short story was a much welcomed change! I will definitely check his fantasy book "Thagoth" when I get the chance!

[Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a wild ride. Four weeks ago I had a heart attack. I tried to pick up my read of Far Tortuga but I had lost some brain power and I haven't been able to put sentence sense, dialect and a classic foundation together since August ??
I tried something simpler, defending Jacob, but it was too much too. So I got the second of the Pulled, Spit, ... Set. I got through it, which shows you what a half brain dead reader can pull off. I wasn't the least interested. Too many threats to be scary. I think my mind wandered as I read, so I missed stuff. I can't imagine it was important. But I'm happy at some level I can put a book together.

[Michael Kotsarinis · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was nice for a short piece but it left me with more questions than I would have liked. The idea and the setting are OK but some things in the story I found "too much" for my tastes. Maybe they are in context in the complete story. It's definitively fun to read but you then have to decide whether to go for the whole thing or not and that may prove difficult.

[Jenny T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fantasy short story that introduces a thief named Amra who is partnered with a mage, Holgren. The pair devise a way to travel to the land of Thagoth and are faced with life and death decisions. I think the author did a good job developing a new land and populating it with a feisty heroine.

[Steve Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun

[Aline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it . Go Amra!