Mr. Allan Batchelder

Would have been a decent if unexceptional Fantasy, if it wasn't narratively shot down by most of the passages involving the main villain.

The main protagonist is collared into service by a strange queen with an obviously better grasp of the overall situation that she won't share, intent on "fighting fire with fire". His past deeds would amply qualify him for villain of many other tales, so of course the major antagonist needs to be quite over the top.

The enemy army would give Steven Erikson's Tenescowri of the Pannion Domin a run for their money and isn't too badly done. But handling of interactions between the upper echelons and their leader, or the parts in the antagonist's point of view or that of characters closest to him simply don't work. Vacuous, entirely gratuitous, puppy-kicking, baby-eating villainy that only manages to induce eyerolls.… (mehr)