What’s it about?
Kara was thirteen when she learned her mother was dying. Five years later, the last component of her mother’s cure waits in the city of Tarna, but that is one journey she may not survive.
Even as a Glyphbinder, a wielder of blood glyphs created by a people long dead, Kara is no match for the madman that hunts her or the dark forces at his beck and call. As those Kara loves fall one by one, her hunter’s purpose is finally revealed.
Demons thought long defeated stir now in the shadows of her world, seeking a dark power hidden in Kara’s blood. Tireless and without pity, these demons will not be satisfied until they claim Kara’s world … and her soul.
-Goodreads Synopsis
My Review of Glyphbinder
Glyphbinder is a fantastic story of magic, trust, and perseverance woven by an author packing some serious talent under his belt. With a strong female heroine who understands that she can’t do it alone, and a supporting cast that you can’t help but like, Bakutis effortly draws you in to the story of Kara and her dyn. By the time the story is done, and you close the final page, you feel like you’re saying goodbye to a set of dear friends.
Fantasy is a genre that is definitely more miss than hit with me. I like fantasy, but I don’t like most authors predilection towards going into massive amounts of worldbuilding. Maybe, as my fellow blogger Clayton is find of saying, they feel they have to follow in Tolkein’s footsteps. To which I say: back… away… from… the… hero-worship. There are plenty of people out there that like fantasy, but don’t like (or at least aren’t fangirling over) Tolkein. *cough*IshouldknowIamone*cough* Bakutis doesn’t fall into this common fantasy trope of spending too much time world-building. Instead he concentrates on the truly important parts. The characters, and the plot.
This made him an absolute pleasure to read.
That’s not to say that Glyphbinder is perfect, because its not. At least not in my opinion. However, the main thing I dislike about it is probably something that lots of other people love. (Trying desperately not to spoil here) I hate endings where everything is tied up perfectly. I mean, I like having all the threads come together, but I feel like a lot of authors, Bakutis included, are a little too focused on making sure that there are no loose ends, unless its deliberate. That, in the end, the scales are as near to being balanced as they can be.
On one hand, I understand the desire to give as many characters as possible a good ending. On the other hand, that makes it very unrealistic to me. I like it when characters have solid but not good endings. I like, er, tortured souls and realism, to put it plainly.
I laughed at this book. I cursed at this book. I sighed in frustration and mentally beat my head against a wall at this book. Basically, against the type of books I normally read, it was a good book. For a fantasy book? Its the best I’ve read in several years.
Click here to find Glyphbinder (Tales of the Five Provinces Book 1) now on Amazon.com
Title: Glyphbinder | Author: T. Eric Bakutis (site) | Publisher: Kindle Edition
| Publication Date: 2015-5-21 | Pages: 320 | ASIN: B00WHGYFGU |
Genre: Fantasy | Language: English | Rating: 4 out of 5 | Triggers: None |Date Read: 2015-10-8 | Source: Received copy from author in exchange for honest review.
Lilyn G is the founder of Sci-Fi & Scary, and leader of the Kali Krew. She does book and film reviews for both genres the site focuses on. Her tastes run towards creature features, hard science fiction, and lots and lots of action. She also has a soft spot for middle-grade fiction that rears its head frequently.
Though no longer involved with Ladies of Horror Fiction due to other responsibilities and a too-full plate, she was one of the original 4 co-founders.
Feel free to chat her up on Twitter as long as you aren’t hitting her up to review your book.
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[…] was a solid read, and I think most traditional fantasy fans would be fine with this sequel to Glyphbinder . Unfortunately, I’m not a traditional fantasy fan, and this book, 2nd in the Tale of the […]
[…] 2.) T. Eric Bakutis – His debut novel was Glyphbinder. […]
This book sounds cool! I shall add it to my reading list.
I love fantasy, and I love Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings was my bedtime story when I was seven. But, like you, I mostly don’t love heavy worldbuilding. I think that the main reason I dislike it is that a lot of these books end up kind of similar, particularly in high-fantasy style books. However, I do still get a kick out of the ones that are a bit different, have interesting worlds or use worldbuilding in clever ways to reveal things about the characters or humanity in general. Also I am a sucker for surreal worlds and will read any and all worldbuilding Jasper Fforde graces us with.
I think in the end it’s just a different preference. Some people really love reading about worldbuilding, and it’s great that there are books around for them. I like lots of things in books that other people don’t, and I’m glad books that suit my preferences are there for me too.
P.S. Confession: I enjoy the odd happy ending with everything nicely closed off, provided (like with all kinds of endings) it is done well and suits the story 🙂
When I’m reading a romance, I demand a happy ending. But a sci-fi or fantasy or horror? Not so much
The appropriateness of a happy ending in horror is definitely much lower than for other genres.
Exactly but way too many like to wrap it up with a sunrise outlook
It is honestly one of the best fantasy novels I have read as well.
And yea, the obsession with coping Tolkein needs to STOP.
I get that part of Tolkien’s appeal is that he did this completely immersive fantasy world, but… the dude had the chops to pull it off (I can admit that even as I admit it bored me a bit). Very, very few people have that and they need to stop trying. Embrace your strengths!