I’ve long been a fan of Chris Lester’s work. In the spirit of full disclosure, I helped produce part of the podcast that features his stories. The reason I did that is that I was already a fan of his and he needed help. So, I was a fan first. He sent me a copy of his latest e-book for review and here it is.
Synopsis: In the Year 1974 CR, a team of explorers vanished at the mysterious Telvari Rift. 25 years later, a new group of adventurers has braved this forbidden zone. Some sought power. Some sought answers. None expected what they found. Now a trail of death follows them from the jungles of the Rift to the towers of Metamor City, and only police detectives Kathryn Kitaen and David Silverleaf can stop it.
Here’s what you need to know about the world Chris has created. It started as a role playing exercise and the original universe was hatched by Chris and his friends. He took that fantasy world and fast forwarded to the futuristic world of his novels. The stories possess a blend of fantasy and technology that’s easily the best of its genre. Here you’ll find vampires, lycanthropes, wizards, and otherworldly creatures. In addition to taking those and putting his own spin on them, he’s created new races and concepts that provide tons of fodder.
What can you expect from Things Unseen? On a very basic level it’s a police procedural. People are dead and dying and Kitaen, a talented illusionist, and Silverleaf, an elven healer, are assigned to the case. To complicate matters, members of Metamor City’s royalty are missing and the detectives have to deal with political intrigue, a vampire crime lord, possessions, and an ocean of read tape. Along the way, Kitaen learns some disturbing things about her own past and about the future of their city.
This is a whopper of a book, clocking in at 140,000 words. It’s a fast read for its size. There’s plenty of sex (though nothing so explicit as to be labeled erotica), action, and intrigue. We see the world through several sets of eyes, but its done in such a way that I never got “head hopping” motion sickness. At any given time we’re only getting one character’s point of view. It makes the experience of the world deeper in this case. What makes this story even better is that it doesn’t stop at the surface level. Underneath the excitement and mystery, this story is about identity and how much you can lose or gain before you stop being “you”. Most of the main characters undergo some significant changes in body, mind and/or spirit. The experience tears some of them down, killing them, and causes tremendous growth in others. It’s that character development that really makes this book worth reading.
If you’re a fan of urban fantasy, Shadowrun, or just good old fashioned adventure then you should check this book out. I give it five out of five elf ears.