Kindle Edition, Erinyes Press
Review by Melissa Conway
Full disclosure: I know Rebecca Lochlann through social
media, and was privileged to be a beta reader of this manuscript, which she
provided to me free for the purpose. I am under no obligation to review the
novel, nor am I under any pressure to say nice things. In fact, the only
pressure I’m under is to write a review that does the book justice!
It’s difficult to write a
review for the third book in a series without touching on plot points in the
first two that would amount to spoilers for anyone who hasn’t read them. But if
you have read them (and you really should), you’ll understand why I’ve
excerpted the following from dictionary.com:
Tragedy [traj-i-dee], noun.
A dramatic composition, often in verse, dealing with a serious or somber theme,
typically that of a great person destined through a flaw of character or conflict
with some overpowering force, as fate or society, to downfall or
destruction.
In The Moon of Asterion may be the grand finale of The Child
of the Erinyes trilogy, but as the author points out in the blurb for the first
book, “What seems the end is only the beginning.”
The mythological Erinyes are more commonly known as
Furies; goddesses of the earth, the incarnation of vengeance on those who have
sworn false oaths. From the name of the series alone we expect to read of classically
tragic, legendary matters - and Lochlann does not disappoint. However, as it
turns out, the scope of the legend is grander than a single trilogy can
portray. The first trilogy is set in the Bronze Age, but it’s the first in a
series, or perhaps the better description would be to call it a saga that
continues through time - eventually to the present day.
In the first three books, our main players are known as Aridela,
princess of Crete; Chrysaleon, son of the High
King of Mycenae; and Menoetius, his bastard brother. The complicated
relationship between them is not that of a mere love triangle - no, the nature
of the bond between the brothers makes their situation uniquely bleak, with a
divine twist of epic proportions.
Themiste, the prophetess whose job it has been to
interpret her own visions and those of others, is given hints throughout the
narrative from the goddess Athene regarding the importance of this bond:
Aridela
told me she looked first at Menoetius then Chrysaleon, and for one strange
instant, she said they merged into each other, and wore each other’s faces.
Then the voice said more.
“I have split one into two. Mortal
men have burned my shrines and pulled down my statues. Their arrogance has
upended the holy ways. I decree that men will resurrect me or the earth will
die.”
So much in this book rides on each character making
the right choices, and yet, always the wants and desires of humanity assert
themselves, leaving them seemingly blind to the big picture. And here is where
I begin to verge on giving too much away. I don’t want to spoil the ending with
this review; just perhaps prepare the reader for the shocking, yet ultimately
satisfying finish. All I can say is that as a reader, I was captivated, caught up in a boiling whirlpool pulling me
toward the inevitable conclusion. Now that I’ve reached the end, I can’t wait
for the next beginning.
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