Dragon: The Tower of Tamerlane

by James Austin McCormick

After the death of the Tuolon Ambassador Lagua and the failure to bring the non-humanoid worlds into the Alliance, Sillow and Brok’s long partnership is finally at an end. Now a reluctant solo agent, Sillow is called upon to undertake his first mission, investigate the Tower, a high-tech prison complex along with the oligarch who runs it, a mysterious nobleman who calls himself Tamerlane.

Seeking evidence to prove Tamerlane is responsible for a series of terrorist attacks, Sillow quickly uncovers the sheer scale of his plans, a lethal military strike on all four humanoid home worlds.

Caught and imprisoned however, the Sylvan finds himself helpless to warn the Alliance of the coming danger
.
All the while, something has been evolving, growing stronger inside the Tower, something intangible yet far more dangerous than Tamerlane ever could be, a being implacably opposed to all life in the galaxy.

And only Sillow has any chance of stopping it.

96 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 14, 2015

About the author

I'm a college lecturer from England and a fan of all types of speculative fiction, most notably science fiction, horror & sword and sorcery fantasy. Where possible I try to blend these elements together in my own writing.

H. P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard and Edgar Rice Burroughs were my first writing inspirations and more recently Frank Herbert and Clive Barker whose works I never grow tired of re-reading.

I live in the rainy city of Manchester with my wife and two young daughters, the elder of which is something of a budding writer herself.

You can find my Amazon author page at:
http://www.amazon.com/James-McCormick...

Reviews

[Mike Robbins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sillow is a member of an elf-like race, the Sylvans. They are serious people who keep themselves to themselves and rarely travel. Sillow, though, is a miscreant who likes to spend his time off-planet. When we first met him, in James McCormick’s Dragon, he was in a gambling den in a sort of intergalactic Las Vegas. He has a taste for liquor (which Sylvans metabolize quickly) and good cigars. But he has a serious side, doing intelligence work for the Alliance, the network of humanoid races that is trying to avoid war with the non-humanoids.

In Dragon: The Tower of Tamerlane, Sillow’s mission is to look into the warlord Tamerlane, a descendant of the earthly Great Khan, who the Alliance suspects is up to no good. They are right. But Tamerlane has an enemy of his own, the strange and brilliant Darius Drake; and Sillow will become embroiled in a deadly conflict between the two. Along the way there’s a lethal explosive that can blow up whole planets, rodent-like IT technicians, a factory for evil cyborgs, a droid like a jackal and Titanya, a pirate princess with enormous breasts. But it’s all salted with wit, so things never quite go over the top.

Dragon: The Tower of Tamerlane is a spin-off from the earlier Dragon, and it does help if you’ve read that (I had). Readers who haven’t will find some things confusing. For example, the Dragon is actually Sillow’s ship, a “relic tech” survival from an earlier, advanced, civilization that can mesh with him so that they become half-Sylvan, half-machine. This was explained in the main book. But even if you haven’t read Dragon, this novella is still a good read.

In fact, I liked this more than the original Dragon. That certainly had its moments, but the plot tended to dart about a bit and introduce too many characters. Dragon: The Tower of Tamerlane is better-paced. It is also free of production and editing mistakes. Dragon wasn’t, at least in the early copy I saw. I’d still suggest reading it first, as it sets the scene, and has some great characters you don’t meet in Tower of Tamerlane – my favourite was Lagua, the elderly and kindly ambassador of the Tuolon, a race of lizards. There are also lots more fruits of McCormick’s outrageous imagination, such as a fungal spore that targets the DNA of humanoids, causing them to mutate into horrific creatures. Even so, Tower of Tamerlane is better-written, better-edited and a better read.

The Dragon books are entertainment. But there’s a hint that McCormick can do heavyweight speculative fiction if he wants to. In particular, he has thought about the border between organic and artificial intelligence, and where that line could get blurred. That’s especially evident at the end of Tower of Tamerlane, when we find out about Darius Drake’s plans not just for Tamerlane but for the rest of the universe. It will be interesting to see where McCormick goes as a writer.

In the meantime, the Dragon books are clearly meant to be fun, and they are. They’d be good on the big screen, as animations. I wonder if McCormick’s working on that.

The author kindly supplied an electronic copy for review purposes.

[Cassandra Larsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dragon: The Tower of Tamerlane is very well written and I found the fast paced story to be entertaining and exciting—once I was able to figure out what was happening. This is obviously a continuation from a previous book, and as I hadn’t read the first one, I struggled with the many unfamiliar terms and characters.

The biggest problem for me was trying to figure out who was who. It didn't help that each character is continuously referred to by several different names and epithets, so not only did I have to remember the names of several characters all introduced in a short span of time, but I also had to keep track of two or three descriptive titles and nicknames for each, such as "the little Sylvan" "his buxom companion" or “the big Herkulun”. I really struggled with this for the first 25% of the novella, having to continually re-read sentences and paragraphs, sometime several times over, before I could grasp what was happening and who was speaking to whom.

However, once I became familiar with the characters and their various names, I flew through this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. The story was exciting and action packed and Mr. McCormick has created a rich and wonderfully unique world (or should I say universe) that sci-fi and fantasy fans will really appreciate.

[Dean C. Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, what this isn’t. This isn’t heady sci-fi stuffed with the outcome of prolonged trend tracking analysis that gives way to predictions of the future; the novel isn’t overflowing with ideas that make your brain bleed. Just the opposite; it’s lightweight, escapist sci-fi fare, and as such, just sheer fun. It will appeal, moreover, to a hybrid audience who enjoys fantasy as much as sci-fi and can deal with equal measures of each. If you’re a purist, once again, you’ll probably want to stay away; some folks simply refuse to read one or the other genre. I guess I’m that kind of hybrid reader that finds a pretty comfortable home here. If you like rollicking space operas, moreover, in the vein of a good Star Wars adventure, (with few exceptions) that’s pretty much what this writer does from one novella and one novel to the next. This is also not a dig in deep for the duration novel that you can get lost in for a week or more. Again, just the opposite. At just under a hundred pages, this is a short breezy novella that some people (not me) can probably read in one sitting rather effortlessly. Some folks prefer this format, some don’t, so it’s something to think about. If you weren’t a fan of the earlier Dragon tales, you’ll also want to stay away because this is more of the same. On the other hand, if you enjoyed them like I did, purchasing it is that much more of a no brainer.

Okay, what it is. Our Sylvan hero who we met in a prior novel and collection of shorts is back, this time without his protective bodyguard. This gives a chance for his character arc to mature nicely, as the Sylvan has always been something of a coward. To this end, our hero finds himself trapped in a castle against impossible odds, facing a jailor that has no shortage of tech for prying his secrets from him, secrets he will then use to subjugate the alliance of galactic civilizations. If the Sylvan fails to escape, and fails the trials before him, then he will not only have his cowardice to reflect on, but how he was instrumental in the undoing of a fragile peace and the decimation of countless lives. The high stakes game he’s playing for the salvation of his own soul and the fate of the galaxy is an effective page turner. We discovered in earlier installments the enchanting nature of the Sylvan’s unique space cruising vessel, considered the most advanced among known galactic civilizations. But this installment goes into far more detail about just how advanced this ship is and what it can and can’t do, and it makes for seductive storytelling. With plenty of nonstop action, the writer still manages to give us characters well-enough developed to root for or against, something that’s hard to do with any fast-moving action tale. There’s also a decent amount of tongue-in-cheek humor throughout, as is consistent with the author’s other titles. The Sylvan himself is a serio-comic character.

Not too much to complain about as to the story’s flaws. I did feel characters kept popping up seemingly out of nowhere that could have been set up better. This tends to give the story an episodic flavor despite a clear three act story structure. I find this kind of thing happens in fantasies more often than with sci-fi because of the questing nature of the tales, so if you lean more to the fantasy side of things, you may find this a trivial point. What’s more, I found each addition to the cast, once they did pop up, quite intriguing, including the Amazonian prisoner Sylvan finds himself thrown in a cell with. Only one of many action-packed scenes caused me to raise an eyebrow as far as credibility. It was the one where our hero and his new cohort fight off a swarm of bug-sized robots with no more than a futuristic sword and the Amazonian’s ability to deliver high impact punches. Barring this, I found the action scenes got the blood rushing, and realistic, so much so that the book takes on the feel of a thriller at these points.

Though it works fine in short form, this book could easily have been a full size novel to accompany the epic elements in it. For that matter the concept and central story thread could easily support a series of books.

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed almost all of this fast ride through a challenging episode in the life of Sillow and his spaceship Dragon.

While you can read this as a standalone, it follows from a previous adventure in which burly Brok was smuggling in order to amass a wedding tribute. Anyone who read that Dragon - Smuggler's Tales will be pleased for him as he prepares for his wedding.

Unknown to the friends, there's more than one megalomaniac out in the vastness of space. A large crook who runs a for-profit prison planet, calling himself Tamerlane, is about to have his computers invaded by another crook, a more shrivelled and sinister personality who intends to turn the planet to his own ends.

Sillow the smuggler is asked to make his adroit way in to spy on the situation, which he thinks will be no trouble at all. That's his first mistake. The action is fast and furious, involving swords and lasers, a plague of zombie droids (that's the bit I didn't enjoy) and an Amazonian lady with an attitude. Anyone who needs some fun in their SF will relish this Dragon adventure, especially, I have to say, if you like zombie stories more than I do.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

This time around, SIllow the Sylvan is going it alone. With his Herkulun partner Brok now married and settled on his own planet, SIllow takes on an assignment in a maximum-security prison where the adage is "Abandon all hope ye who enter here." An evil genius has been installed as a new prisoner...at the warden's request. What nefarious plan are the two hatching?

This time, however, when he's not attempting to discover the villain's plan and who's double-crossing who, SIllow finds a new partner, an amazon with a bionic arm and the lady can match him word for word as well as weapon-for-weapon. The intelligent ship Dragon hovers in the background, waiting its master's telepathic call. There's the usual smart-ass Syllow badinage, the hair-breadth escapes, and plenty of action. Though mention of previous storylines may be a bit confusing to those not having read the other novels in the series, that can be easily overcome so this one is as enjoyable as the rest.

I always enjoy SIllow's adventures and look forward to the next...perhaps with Brok returning?

[Barry West · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this novel we follow the impish Sillow on another adventure on his own as plunges headfirst into dangerous waters. What I’ve always enjoyed about this series is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. Sci fi seems to be going in a very hard direction, where the science gets all of the attention and the fiction seems to be a second thought. Not so here. We get an intergalactic grudge, incredible weapons, and pirates, all provided through the eyes of Sillow, a thief with a heart of gold who’s now working for the Alliance against the threat of destruction from the would be greatest Khan, Tamerlane.

Something I noticed in this work, that I think was very subtle, was the Frank Herbert Dune-like nods here and there. The Islamic roots of some of the conquering characters, the poison/explosive tooth, the unfolding sand dunes in one scene (a little on the nose, but still), Mother Tamalane/Tamerlane, and the descriptions of citadels and fortresses all ring of Arrakis. I could be imagining it, but it felt like it borrowed visuals from the classic series, and I think Mr. McCormick did a great job weaving them into his story.

I did miss Brok, though. I’m hoping that he won’t be bogged down too much in the future adventures with his duties as Ambassador because the big, bad Herkulun provided a really good counterpoint to the puckish Sillow. Granted, Titanya the Amazonian Earther does a good job filling in, but I prefer Brok’s general gruffness as it’s a lot of fun. Still, Sillow shines, and in having to take control of his own fate provides us a chance to see his greater depths and complete a character arc that began in the first novel.

[Bill Leviathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dragon: The Tower Of Tamerlane is a fast past, and often hectic, science fiction adventure story that follows main character 'Sillow', and the titular Dragon ship with whom he is bonded to.

The first third or so of the story was rather confusing to a reader new to the series. It was unclear who was doing what in the opening scenes, as characters are referred to by their names, titles, and race, which are difficult to keep track of at the beginning. It becomes clearer half way through the story, largely due to number of significant characters being reduced to three.

The plot is action packed, with the focus going from one action sequence to the next. While exciting to read, the plot of the story doesn't do much. It seemed like much of the conflict in the story was resolved abruptly, with just a "Oh, and this fixes that", and then creating a loose justification to barrel into the next action set piece. This also contributed somewhat to my confusion while reading, as I never got an interest in what was happening behind the action.

The interaction between characters is largely through one liners interspersed during the action. Deep, meaningful conversations aren't going to be had while being chased and under constant attack. Still, the two main protagonists of the story feel well developed. The same can't be said about the villains, but as characters they are inconsequential. They are there to move the action along, and they do that job well.

I was provided a free copy of this book for an honest review.

[Yvonne Crowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sillow the Sylvan is off on another quest for the Alliance, in Dragon, his intelligent galactic cruiser that can interface with him.
The fate of the galaxy is in his hands as he pits himself against the warlord Tamerlane, the earthly Great Khan’s descendant who has inherited most of his less endearing traits.
With his deft touch, the author James McCormick tells a rolling high adventure story with a dry wit that makes it pure escapism at its best. Crossing with ease the boundaries of sci fi and fantasy, the reader quickly gets caught up in Sillow’s ripening from one with a cowardly bent to that of a fully-fledged hero. This time he is on his own as he comes up against an Amazonian princess who you would not want to take home to meet mother, the deadly conflict between Tamerlane and his sworn enemy Darius Drake, Armageddon-like explosives, evil cyborgs, droids and IT technicians of the distinctly rodent type. All of which he takes in his stride.
Loved the Vermilion temple. Want one of my own. Complete with poetry reading Herkulons.
His erstwhile companion Brok has retired from smuggling, which he undertook to pay for his wedding and has taken his place in the Herkulon senate.
The Dragon series are space opera at its best and would make great episodic films and give Star Wars a run for its money.

[John Autero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kudos to the author of “Dragon: The Tower of Tamerlane”, Mr. James McCormick for developing an extremely creative and action packed story that anyone will enjoy reading. His writing skills are excellent and his descriptions of the action and technology in the book make you feel as if you were walking side by side with the characters as the story develops. Creative creatures such as bug-like drones, mechanized jackals and a telepathic space ship (The Dragon) provide an interesting and high-tech aspect to the story-line. The story merges together a variety of characters such as, Herkuluns, Slyvans, Amazonians and nasty warriors named the Daichin into a world of action packed scenes that make the story-line fun to follow. If this book was to be made into a major motion picture, it would be similar to the extremely successful Guardians of the Galaxy series created by Marvel. Overall, I liked the story-line and I also liked the characters which are the two key parts of any good book. I see there is another Dragon book on Amazon (Dragon: Smuggler Tales) and look forward to reading that one as well.

[Scott Spotson · Rating 5 out of 5]

James McCormick has proven again that he is a master of pulp science fiction, and with this sweet but short fable it is easy to imagine him churning out the weekly science fiction journals that were a mainstay in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Alas, that era is no longer with us, but had he been of age back then, he would have fit in easily.

Sillow of the Dragon Tales is back, but thankfully this time, his usual companion Brok only puts in a cameo appearance, and his partner is now a curvaceous, fearless, and statuesque Amazon named Titanya. And while she is the everyday stereotypical sci-fi babe with a hot body that has the typical male geek fan salivating, she has more than enough smarts and strength to earn our admiration, and does her turn of saving the day (and the universe) repeatedly. It was also nice to see the sentient ship Dragon play a small role this time, although vital.

The author excels the best when describing sci-fi battles and robotic villains, and again, he does not disappoint.

While you read this tale, also check out the incredible “Sunfall” written by the same author!