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Classic World of Darkness Fiction
The Ebon Mask: Dark Kingdoms Volume 1
James Graham, Marquess of Montrose, lived a life of valor and principle -- a life that ended in betrayal and defeat. Now in the Underworld, he embraces deceit and unbridled ambition -- he's no one's idea of a hero. That's too bad because something truly evil is stirring, and Montrose is the only being with a prayer of stopping it.
385 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
64 people want to read
About the author
Richard Lee Byers
199 books370 followersA resident of the Tampa Bay area, Richard spends much of his leisure time fencing, playing poker, shooting pool and is a frequent guest at Florida science-fiction conventions. His current projects include new novels set in the Forgotten Realms universe and the eBook post-apocalyptic superhero series The Impostor.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 31, 2024
THE EBON MASK by Richard Lee Byers is a novel set in the WRAITH: THE OBLIVION gameline. I was never a fan of Wraith while it was being printed but am reasonably familiar with the world. You play as one of the truly dead, a spirit who has found themselves in the Underworld, and must figure out how to deal with the complicated relationship between this world (called the Skinlands) and the politics of the great beyond.
The Ebon Mask, book one of the Dark Kingdoms Trilogy, is divided between living and dead protagonists. On one hand, there is James Graham AKA the Maquis of Montrose, who is a former Protestant rebel against King Charles I. Now a servant of the Smiing Lord, he spends his days hunting down and attempting to destroy Heretics. He long ago sold his soul because he doesn't believe there's anything worth pursuing with his soul other than power. Montrose also still pines for the woman who betrayed him to death in life, Louise, who has discovered religion postmortem and become a priestess of the Norse Gods.
On the living side of things, Frank Bellamy is an FBI agent that is investigating a series of brutal murders of clergymen throughout the American South. "The Atheist" serial killer is obviously something supernatural but Bellamy doesn't know anything about such things. So much so that when he finally does find out something weird, he is warned off by both his psychologist as well as a mysterious branch of the FBI called the Special Affairs Division.
I really liked the characters in this book with both leads being strong enough that they could have handled the role of lead by themselves. Of the two, I think I prefer Frank a lot more than Montrose. Montrose is deliberately despicable and someone who is the worst sort of Heirachy slaver. He's worse than an overt sadist because he genuinely believes all of the atrocities he's doing are justified because the Hierarchy doesn't offer what he views as a false sense of salvation.
Frank, by contrast, is the classic archetype of a cop who has a case he's been put off and does his best to solve it anyway. He ends up in New Orleans, the perfect city for an occult investigation and meets a colorful cast of characters each attracted to the supernatural for their own reasons. There's members of the Arcanum, hippie New Age girls, and the leader of a gay night club who aspires to Awakening. All of them provide new and interesting twists to the puzzle that is who wants to cover up these murders and why.
If you're not familiar with Wraith: The Oblivion, probable since it was the lowest selling of the World of Darkness gamelines, you should still be able to enjoy the setting as well as its characters. The universal themes of death and afterlife are ones that resonate through the pages. This is only book one of a trilogy and ends on a cliffhanger but I think it is definitely worth continuing after finishing. Richard Lee Byers is a fantastic author and this is a book trilogy that I think really "gets" the World of Darkness without going grimdark.
The Ebon Mask, book one of the Dark Kingdoms Trilogy, is divided between living and dead protagonists. On one hand, there is James Graham AKA the Maquis of Montrose, who is a former Protestant rebel against King Charles I. Now a servant of the Smiing Lord, he spends his days hunting down and attempting to destroy Heretics. He long ago sold his soul because he doesn't believe there's anything worth pursuing with his soul other than power. Montrose also still pines for the woman who betrayed him to death in life, Louise, who has discovered religion postmortem and become a priestess of the Norse Gods.
On the living side of things, Frank Bellamy is an FBI agent that is investigating a series of brutal murders of clergymen throughout the American South. "The Atheist" serial killer is obviously something supernatural but Bellamy doesn't know anything about such things. So much so that when he finally does find out something weird, he is warned off by both his psychologist as well as a mysterious branch of the FBI called the Special Affairs Division.
I really liked the characters in this book with both leads being strong enough that they could have handled the role of lead by themselves. Of the two, I think I prefer Frank a lot more than Montrose. Montrose is deliberately despicable and someone who is the worst sort of Heirachy slaver. He's worse than an overt sadist because he genuinely believes all of the atrocities he's doing are justified because the Hierarchy doesn't offer what he views as a false sense of salvation.
Frank, by contrast, is the classic archetype of a cop who has a case he's been put off and does his best to solve it anyway. He ends up in New Orleans, the perfect city for an occult investigation and meets a colorful cast of characters each attracted to the supernatural for their own reasons. There's members of the Arcanum, hippie New Age girls, and the leader of a gay night club who aspires to Awakening. All of them provide new and interesting twists to the puzzle that is who wants to cover up these murders and why.
If you're not familiar with Wraith: The Oblivion, probable since it was the lowest selling of the World of Darkness gamelines, you should still be able to enjoy the setting as well as its characters. The universal themes of death and afterlife are ones that resonate through the pages. This is only book one of a trilogy and ends on a cliffhanger but I think it is definitely worth continuing after finishing. Richard Lee Byers is a fantastic author and this is a book trilogy that I think really "gets" the World of Darkness without going grimdark.
June 3, 2019
This is possibly the best written and most badly mismanaged fiction book to ever be published by White Wolf.
It takes place prior (and leading to) the events of the Sixth Maelstrom that basically ended the 2nd Edition WoD.
You have two main POVs, one from Agent Bellamy of the FBI, hunting down the so-called Atheist, a serial killer of religious figures, and the other from James Graham, Earl of Montrose (a historical figure no less), a 300 year old Wraith.
What makes this book so good is that there are mysteries both in the human world and the Underworld, that the reader gets to investigate along with the characters. In the case of Montrose, it is very interesting to see the approach on the psyche of Wraiths, the struggle with their Shadow, the petty and grand schemes that tie everything together.
In the case of Bellamy, it's probably the best piece of fiction I have read describing how mortals discover (and react to) the paranormal that lies hidden from sight in their world, the effect of Werewolf Delirium on humans and much more besides. The book does not resort to name dropping, assuming it is addressed to rolepalyers who already know the lore, but instead presents the whole world and plot as genuine literature.
Even someone who DOES know the lore is left to wonder what exactly is going on. For instance, at some point Bellamy encounters a Werebeast and although signs point to it being a very specific thing, you cannot really be sure until the writer decides to reveal it.
As to the mismanagement, the book is not without flaws such as shoddy editing and quite a few typos, but still is so good a read that it truly deserves its five stars. Furthermore, near as I can tell, the other two volumes were never published individually, and the whole story simply came out as the Dark Kingdoms volume - which I fully intend to read.
Kudos to Mr. Buyers, truly.
It takes place prior (and leading to) the events of the Sixth Maelstrom that basically ended the 2nd Edition WoD.
You have two main POVs, one from Agent Bellamy of the FBI, hunting down the so-called Atheist, a serial killer of religious figures, and the other from James Graham, Earl of Montrose (a historical figure no less), a 300 year old Wraith.
What makes this book so good is that there are mysteries both in the human world and the Underworld, that the reader gets to investigate along with the characters. In the case of Montrose, it is very interesting to see the approach on the psyche of Wraiths, the struggle with their Shadow, the petty and grand schemes that tie everything together.
In the case of Bellamy, it's probably the best piece of fiction I have read describing how mortals discover (and react to) the paranormal that lies hidden from sight in their world, the effect of Werewolf Delirium on humans and much more besides. The book does not resort to name dropping, assuming it is addressed to rolepalyers who already know the lore, but instead presents the whole world and plot as genuine literature.
Even someone who DOES know the lore is left to wonder what exactly is going on. For instance, at some point Bellamy encounters a Werebeast and although signs point to it being a very specific thing, you cannot really be sure until the writer decides to reveal it.
As to the mismanagement, the book is not without flaws such as shoddy editing and quite a few typos, but still is so good a read that it truly deserves its five stars. Furthermore, near as I can tell, the other two volumes were never published individually, and the whole story simply came out as the Dark Kingdoms volume - which I fully intend to read.
Kudos to Mr. Buyers, truly.
March 9, 2019
One of White Wolf's better fiction offerings. One should buy the collection containing all three volumes, though.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews