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Malkonar Trilogy #1
Malkonar
Peter Vaughan's first mistake was to answer the phone and let a malicious voice known only as Malkonar demand he return a seemingly harmless stone to its former home. His second mistake was to turn him down. Before he knows it Peter is in a race to uncover Malkonar's true identity as his pursuit of the stone descends into violence. The truth is worse than anything he could imagine: Malkonar is not a person, but a species. Dragon-like creatures with the power to possess and even consume the minds of others. His only hope of survival hinges on the knowledge of Septimus, a young malkonar he rescued from certain death, but there's one small problem: he can't speak English. WARNING: This book is not suitable for younger readers.
- GenresFantasy
262 pages, Paperback
First published March 8, 2015
About the author
Alex Jackson
25 books30 followersI am a writer and semi-professional contrarian twat from England. I dabble in urban fantasy, science fiction, dystopia, and whatever's occupied my mind at a particular moment. My latest novel, Sarvala Express, was published in 2017.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 28, 2017
Synopsis: Peter Vaughan receives a mysterious phone call one night and ignores the caller's one request. This simple action leads to unforeseen consequences as Peter finds his life turned upside down as he struggles to solve the mystery of Malkonar, keep up with his mundane job, and figure out new living arrangements with his newfound "pet", Septimus. Peter is forced to use all his resources and wit to survive. After all, one doesn't meddle in the affairs of dragons lightly.
Thoughts: As I began Malkonar, I felt a little like the main character, Peter. I had so many questions about what was going on, I almost wanted to pull out my own sheet of paper and write them down. Don't get me wrong, Alex Jackson does a great job at organically growing the situation and not just throwing every plot device in the book at you immediately, but he also paces the answers out along the whole book. The sense of discover along the way mirrors Peter's own. There is still plenty of plot hooks waiting for you in the last third of the book, but there is plenty along the way where you find yourself thinking "Ah ha! I was waiting to find out what that was!" There's action, mystery, and a good sense of danger throughout the entire book, but there is also a light-hearted tone and a good amount of humor that keeps the book from feeling overwhelmingly dark.
Jackson does a good job of developing the relationship between Peter and Septimus. Initially, Peter is forced to learn how to communicate with Septimus without just speaking (Septimus doesn't speak English). Peter still has to worry about his job and leaving Septimus alone. As a reader, I really appreciated both of those aspects and the life they brought to the story. Peter is a bit of a spastic character, as some of the things he didn't seem to make sense except to drive the story forward, but that is fairly minor and doesn't happen too often. I really liked how Septimus is written (he's probably my favorite character), as Jackson does a fantastic job of making him seem vulnerable while still giving him a haughty attitude. Also of mention, Malkonar himself is fantastic. You really hate him and, as the villain, you should. He is just so smug and cruel, demonstrating at every turn just how much disdain he has for Peter, he's a great villain.
Indeed, if there was anything negative I'd have to write about the book, it would have to be a number of deus ex machina moments that occur in a few places. Thhings such as a library having a copy of some obscure text that helps Peter find out what he is up against, or Peter's friend being in just the right place. I'd also include the few times where Peter seems to do something irrational just to advance the plot. All in all, not enough for me to rate the book down, but those moments did stand out for me.
So, in closing, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for an enjoyable urban fantasy book. It's not too heavy, but the story is solid enough that you will want to keep reading. I look forward to continuing the story of Peter and Septimus in the second book.
Thoughts: As I began Malkonar, I felt a little like the main character, Peter. I had so many questions about what was going on, I almost wanted to pull out my own sheet of paper and write them down. Don't get me wrong, Alex Jackson does a great job at organically growing the situation and not just throwing every plot device in the book at you immediately, but he also paces the answers out along the whole book. The sense of discover along the way mirrors Peter's own. There is still plenty of plot hooks waiting for you in the last third of the book, but there is plenty along the way where you find yourself thinking "Ah ha! I was waiting to find out what that was!" There's action, mystery, and a good sense of danger throughout the entire book, but there is also a light-hearted tone and a good amount of humor that keeps the book from feeling overwhelmingly dark.
Jackson does a good job of developing the relationship between Peter and Septimus. Initially, Peter is forced to learn how to communicate with Septimus without just speaking (Septimus doesn't speak English). Peter still has to worry about his job and leaving Septimus alone. As a reader, I really appreciated both of those aspects and the life they brought to the story. Peter is a bit of a spastic character, as some of the things he didn't seem to make sense except to drive the story forward, but that is fairly minor and doesn't happen too often. I really liked how Septimus is written (he's probably my favorite character), as Jackson does a fantastic job of making him seem vulnerable while still giving him a haughty attitude. Also of mention, Malkonar himself is fantastic. You really hate him and, as the villain, you should. He is just so smug and cruel, demonstrating at every turn just how much disdain he has for Peter, he's a great villain.
Indeed, if there was anything negative I'd have to write about the book, it would have to be a number of deus ex machina moments that occur in a few places. Thhings such as a library having a copy of some obscure text that helps Peter find out what he is up against, or Peter's friend being in just the right place. I'd also include the few times where Peter seems to do something irrational just to advance the plot. All in all, not enough for me to rate the book down, but those moments did stand out for me.
So, in closing, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for an enjoyable urban fantasy book. It's not too heavy, but the story is solid enough that you will want to keep reading. I look forward to continuing the story of Peter and Septimus in the second book.
October 9, 2023
I received a copy of this book via a Goodreads Giveaway.
I really liked the book. You're sucked into the story from page one, and it stays interesting till the end. Not surprising, I would say. Who doesn't like dragons? The information is presented piece by piece, so you keep turning the pages. The story shows some character development and especially Septimus is a very likeable character. Also, I like the art work. And I saw the covers of the other two books, they look nice too.
[spoiler below]
Personally, I did not like the end of book, though. To me it would have made more sense to let Malkonar die. It feels like he is kept alive, just to let the story continue in the second book. I would like to read a second book about Peter and Septimus (and maybe some other malkonars), but Malkonar is not needed for such a story to be interesting. Now the fight with Malkonar will keep going on, which feels unnecessary. Apart from that, I enjoyed reading the book.
I really liked the book. You're sucked into the story from page one, and it stays interesting till the end. Not surprising, I would say. Who doesn't like dragons? The information is presented piece by piece, so you keep turning the pages. The story shows some character development and especially Septimus is a very likeable character. Also, I like the art work. And I saw the covers of the other two books, they look nice too.
[spoiler below]
Personally, I did not like the end of book, though. To me it would have made more sense to let Malkonar die. It feels like he is kept alive, just to let the story continue in the second book. I would like to read a second book about Peter and Septimus (and maybe some other malkonars), but Malkonar is not needed for such a story to be interesting. Now the fight with Malkonar will keep going on, which feels unnecessary. Apart from that, I enjoyed reading the book.
March 8, 2017
I really liked this book. It read very easily. he book flowed well and had me captivated. I plan on reading the other books. It does get dark and I know now why the Warning was placed on the back of the book as well as with all the blurbs about it. I highly recommend it I had hoped to win this book through the Giveaways, although I did not, I felt impelled to hunt it down and buy a copy of the first book
April 24, 2016
I started reading this book on a whim, just to sample the first chapter without the intention of actually reading the entire thing at this time. I was sucked in halfway through the first chapter, and it never lets up until the end. I will definitely be picking up the rest of the books in this series in the near future.
June 12, 2016
I adore dragons so this book was wonderful for me. Thank you for the giveaway. Excellent book.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews