A young man’s anger and gun An old man’s secrets and magic A moment that binds them forever
Teer was forced into exile in the Spehari’s Eastern Territories after they betrayed his father’s memory, leaving him and his mother destitute. He has grown up on the ranch of his mother’s new husband, nursing the skills of a cowboy and the anger of a betrayed child.
When one of the demigod-like Spehari walks into his bar, Teer gives in to a pointless moment of anger—opening fire on one of the rulers of the Unity!
Sentenced to hang for his crime, Teer’s life hangs by the slimmest of threads: the mercy and secrets of the very immortal he tried to kill…
Glynn Stewart is the author of over 60 books, including Starship’s Mage, a bestselling science fiction and fantasy series where faster-than-light travel is possible–but only because of magic.
Writing managed to liberate Glynn from a bleak future as an accountant. With his personality and hope for a high-tech future intact, he lives in Southern Ontario with his partner, their cats, and an unstoppable writing habit.
Glynn has done it again creating a new world with interesting characters. The world is at the cultural and technological level of the old west and has magic and cowboys. The characters particularly Teer are interesting and really left me wanting more. I can only hope this was a small sample of a greater work with more to follow. Recommended
Goodreads have blocked my seeing other reviews as is usual on all my review pages for a year now. 🤔 I am suggesting that you browse all the others, for details that I may have missed. At this rewrite, I can not claim to remember this story and am working from my previous reaction to it.
Goodreads also masked the ID's of commenters on all my reviews. 🤔 After I mentioned that in other reviews, they removed the masks from Powers of the Earth. How sad is this site. 🙂
That last convinced me to close my pages to comments and purge all my lurkers, but one. Goodreads will not allow me to remove my last lurker, Dr Susan Hamilton (a Maths professor at University of Tennessee ?). 🤔🤔🤔 She posted nothing for more than 2 years after her friend request. She has not responded to four requests that she unfriend me. I do not know if this is a stolen ID but why she should need to be my "friend" is beyond me. Trust me, I am the least interesting person whom I know.😊
As they say, "Write one brutal review of an 'ode to the heroes of the January 6, 2021 insurrection' and suddenly being a communist is a bad thing". How surprising. 😃
If curious, see my review of "Stowaway", a poor space adventure or Powers of the Earth (an ode to the heroes of the January 6, 2021 insurrection) and the comments of a Claes Rees, Jr/cgr710 (a self-identified NeoNazi and US patriot).
To Claes Rees, Rees, Jr/cgr710 Don't be a numpty. Be a smarty. Come and join the Communist Party.
I wonder sometimes what motivates US patriots (Tucker Carlson, Claes Rees Jr and the US Republican Party, for example) to support Putin who has threatened nuclear war against their own country. Besides the huge gold transfers, I now think that it may be the lure of acquiring their own Ukrainian slaves (I mean several of the 2 million forcibly relocated Ukrainians sent to Siberia). In any case.
Today Kherson! Tomorrow Crimea! GLORY TO UKRAINE !!! and GLORY TO THE HEROES !!!
This is a western with aliens and no clear picture of the why or even where of it. The only western stories that I have read, are science fiction novels. They are not usually the best thought out and skimp on the world building. I did not find this interesting enough to want to read any later books.
The nineteenth century general tech is combined with cold hard magic, which has limits that are fairly clear. The mention that the overlords arrived from another world raises all manner of question but of answers there are none.
The mix of races implies that more than one originates off world, which juices up the background but again no answer. That is the extent of the background. Is this Earth? Why are the various aliens on this planet? How long have they been there? As a reader, like me you will not know.
The book fell to the bane of the low end novel, ominous drum roll please --- "no serious world building". It had to be said. Once you settle your nerves, you will thank me. Forget the character work, the plot, the scene descriptions because without context, the characters will not engage you. If they do not, the book will have failed no matter how pretty the prose.
As an adventure read, it is flat. If made as a movie it would not be as entertaining as "Cowboys vs Aliens". That movie was bad (and I loved it) but this book has all of its illogic and takes more than ninety minutes to finish.
Most of current US low end science fiction is much worse than this. The streaming services offer stories that have some ideas worth exploring or characters that capture your attention. If the movie fails, you have spent only ninety minutes and did not have to decipher unedited text to be disappointed. Netflix also have a good multinational selection.
I began searching YouTube two years ago for science fiction channels. I discovered all manner of special interest channels. Finally I stumbled upon the book channels and it was love at first video. 😍😍 The varied channels address library redecorating through book challenges, in short they are a bibliophile's dream. The reader communities are thoughtful, with varied interests and tastes but above all embrace the entirety of the bookish experience. They are completely opposite to whatever Goodreads are. I recommend a visit to several book channels, for any reader and have listed some below.
In addition to the essay and documentary channels hosted by YouTube, I found through their YouTube advertisements the dedicated educational video sites.They are all good but I tried Curiosity Stream/Nebula first at a cost of about $15 USD for a yearly subscription.
Last note about Goodreads. Minimize information on your profile. Remove the lurkers (he or she who has a handful of friends and never posts anything). I had the experience regularly of two to four commenters within two or three hours on a newly posted negative Goodreads only review. 🤔
Please protect yourself. Treat Goodreads as a potentially hostile site.
My YouTube picks of the moment. TVP News, Jacobin, Filaxim Historia, Danni and Joe, Adult Wednesday Addams, Philomena Cunk, The Researcher. 2Cellos, Philosophy Tube, May Moon Narrowboat, Vlad Vexler, Physics Girl, Alt Shift X, NFKRZ, New Economic Thinking.
Some of my favorite channels are.
Chugging Along, Ship Happens, Munecat, Novara Media, Eleanor Morton, Some More News, Tulia, Tara Mooknee, Second Thought, The Juice Media, Lindsey Stirling, Book Odyssey, Owen Jones, Philosophy Tube, Sabine Hossenfelder, Sort of Interesting, Cruising the Cut, Then & Now, Kings and Generals, Linguoer Mechanic, The Gravel Institute, Prime of Midlife, Real Time History, Aaron Bastani, Real Science, Tibees, Autumn's Boutique, Real Crusades History, Redcoat British Military History, BrandonF, Atun Shei, A Clockwork Reader, The Angry Astronaut, Hakim, Tom Nicholas, The Piano Guys, Big Maj Studios, Noah Samsen, Adult Wednesday Addams, Traveling K, Ben and Emily, Overly Sarcastic Productions, Engineering with Rosie, Three Arrows, Sarah Z, Brittany the Bibliophile, Hello Future Me, We're in Hell, Celtica, What Vivi did next, Casey Aonso, Karolina Zebrowska, Jill Bearup, Depressed Russian, Boat Time, Lilly's expat life, The Shades of Orange, Double Down News, The European, Bovington Tank Museum, Denys Davydov, With Olivia, Chloe Stafler, Real Engineering, Pro Robotics, Ryan Chapman, Books with Chloe, UA Courage, A Cup of Nicole, A Life of Lit, Useful Idiots, !Kathy's Flog in France, Camper Vibe, History Marche, Crecganford, Paleo Analysis, Caspian Report, Ancient Geographics, Quinn's Ideas, Vlad Vexler, Spacedock, The Tesla Domain, WION, DUST, Janelle Kayla, Autumn's Boutique, Rowan J Coleman, Mythic Concepts, Diane Callahan Quotidian Writer, Storyworldling, Natasha's Adventures, Trek Culture, Steve Shives, Jessie Gender, The People Profiles, Jabzy, IzzzYzzz, Zoe Baker, May Moon Narrowboat, Northern Narrowboaters, Holly the Cafe Boat, Danica Patrick.
I wish you a glorious morning, a splendid afternoon, a wonderful evening, a relaxing night and may we all keep learning.
Hope is not an expression of hopelessness. William Wallace
Glynn has changed it up this time - the world AND the main character. Normally Glynn's main characters are the best of the best; smart, funny, charismatic, good people. Ok, so now that I think about it, the only difference with Teer is he's not a brainiac. But, I wouldn't love Glynn's work so much if his characters weren't all so genuinely wonderful.
I am a big fan of Westerns, and this does not disappoint. Yeah it has magic, too, but that doesn't detract from the wild west feel.
I really look forward to the next book in the series!
Stewart, Glynn. Wardtown. Teer and Kard No. 1. Kindle, 2020. Glynn Stewart is one of the most prolific independently published authors of space opera fantasies. In his Starship Mage series, he trades in wormholes and hyperdrives for spellcasting to power starships. In Wardtown, he mashes up magic with a bounty-hunter western. Teer, the stepson of a successful cattle rancher, gets drunk when he learns he won’t inherit the ranch. He sees a member of a race he blames for killing his father in a recent war and fires a pistol at him. The bullet bounces off a magical shield, but Teer is sentenced to death. His would-be victim saves him from execution by making him a bondslave and bounty-hunting partner. There are no big infodumps in this quick-reading novella, so most of a reader’s mental effort involves putting the pieces of its world together. I used to read pulp westerns all the time, so 3.5 stars.
Maybe there’s a sub-genre that follows similar plot, story. This is my first and darn glad I read it.
Character driven and author makes them unique but very relatable. Whether alive and living in Old West or some ‘solids’ living on the West Side of Chicago, I enjoyed the characters. The set of circumstances that MC goes through is fresh, different but as old as the dime novels of the late 1880-90’s. Been stuck in a genre for awhile now and most of the storylines follow one of 3-4 common formulas. It gets boring with little rewards.
This is Interesting, different, well written with characters you can embrace and care about. Only issue worth commenting on,IMO , is that the ending is a tad abrupt. I was expecting more story and took me awhile to realize it was ‘The End’. Don’t let that stop you!
An excellent start to, hopefully, a new series by Glynn Stewart with this novella. It has a “western” feel as made clear by the cover art. The background to the world isn’t made clear with this story. There’s magic, but there’s also reference to a “landing”, which may be sea, or may be from space... so, I’m not sure if it’s fantasy, sci-fi, or a mixture.
It’s a very enjoyable short story, with lots of scope for future stories, which I hope we get to read.
Dating myself but this novel reminded me of the sheer fun i had the first time i ever read Resnick's Santiago. The story, the characters and the setting are a perfect example of a fun read. A good old fashioned white hat cowboy in the making bonded to an elfin like grizzled, magical veteran. Throw in a shaman saloon woman/tracker, a bounty and a legend is being crafted for a magical, wild West world. I can't wait for the series to continue.
As with many of Glynn Stewart's works, this is (the first chapter of) a charming coming of age tale. Set in not quite the wild wild west, just as the Ranger's Apprentice isn't quite the height of medieval Europe. Fascinating central and supporting characters making understandable blunders and of course our MC Teer is also special in ways he is only gradually realising under pressure. Adult content is referred to but occurs off page.
Take a Western (as in the American West-gunslingers etc) setting, add 'elves', magic and racial tensions, and you have the bachdrop for some remarkable characters in this coming of age drama. Stewart has delivered again and we are the richer for it. I cannot wait for book two!
Glynn does it again with another great book. I really hope this series continues. Characters were enjoyable and believable. His penchant for creating other races that FEEL like another race and not just a re-skinned human was on display here as well.
Howdy! This is a departure from some of Glenn Stewart's other work. I was hesitating to start reading... But the writing is excellent. The storyline is great -- magic conquerors, a great backstory, and some excellent character development. I was really impressed and looking forward to the rest of the series.
Wow I really, really enjoyed this one, my only complaint is that it was far too short and well I have already guessed on thing, plot wise, which is a little obvious!
I hope there will be another in this series soon. I just found this author and I dunno how quickly he churns out books but I hope it is quickly!
I find this a wonderfully unique world with fantastic characters. They all have secrets and they all make this story truly delightful. Great new world to explore and I look forward to more!
This is a SiFi with some western tones. The characters are good, story well written. World is slowly developing. Evil has not shown up yet hit is hinted at. Best of all—-magic. Story about coming of age with a new career and a mentor with secrets.
Glynn Stewart is one of my favorite authors. Every book that he writes is a pleasure to read. Wardtown is a complete departure from Glynn’s other books but I really enjoyed reading this fantasy Western hybrid. I can’t wait for the next installment!
One of the best sf/fantasy authors out there introduces a new tale. Common theme of mc on the cusp of adulthood radically dislocated into new challenges and relationships. As told by a master of the genre, never gets old. Enjoy.
Throughly enjoyable read. I stay up way too late reading Teer’s adventure with Ward. Can’t wait for the sequel. As usual, Glynn Stewart crates a rich universe with a feeling of weight and history.
Glynn Is there anything you can't tackle! I bought Ward town based on the quality of all of you previous books. I had low expectations since I could not think how you could pull it off. Well you've done it again! Thanks from a loyal reader!!!!!
After reading the Ship's Mage series by Glynn Stewart, I wanted to try another of his series. This is only two books so far, but after enjoying his military sci-fi/fantasy, I was totally up for a western/fantasy series.
Review is for all 3 books. It's interesting, I can't wait for the 4th volume. However, it's short. First and second one finish in very strange place, nothing really happens until then. For me all of the 3 available should be one volume. But apart from that really gripping read.
It's short (a novella), and it's the introduction to an interesting bland of fantasy and western. I've enjoyed the second and third novellas in the series as well, and I'll likely read more as they're released.
Was completely surprised how good this book was. I loved the wild west type fantasy and am intrigued and curious to learn more about this world. I also liked the characters and humor in the book!! I eagerly await the next book in the series!!
Standard fare with a magic and old west on alien planet feel. Biggest complaint is book 1 felt like it ended very abruptly and suddenly. Almost novella like length.