The Phoenix Ring (The Thunderheart Chronicles Book 1) uses the standard fantasy plot “Boy Discovers He Is a Wizard and Saves the World” and mixes in some fun elements and characters. Aiden, the hero (who discovers he is a wizard) has help from Timothy, a normal wizard from a normal wizard family, and from Aaliyah, a magic-resistant amogh. Aiden leaves home for the big city to join the King’s Rangers but gets recruited/forced into the wizards and sent to their school Fort Phoenix to learn wizardry.
Besides the character count and school background The Phoenix Ring is not much like Harry Potter. Aiden is angry, as in furious, all the time, although we readers don’t see much to be angry about during much of it. The anger helps fuel his magic and he is powerful. He masters some elements of magic immediately and takes the Phoenix Ring that had been Marcus Thunderheart’s until Marcus left physical existence 63 years earlier when fighting Macommmer and his renegade wizards and dragons. We then get a bit of whining, a trip, a few side trips and then conflict with the renegade Edwin.
Good Points
There are some fun plot twists and the book is an easy, extremely fast read (about 2 hours and that includes stopping for tea).
The subplot with Timothy and goblin Grogg is excellent and author Brockman could have done more with it. The Phoenix Ring would have been richer and more complex and enjoyable had Brockman added more subplots like this one.
Bartemus and the other adult wizards appear sparingly during the novel which is a shame as they are interesting characters.
Not So Good Points
There is almost no transition between points of view and even between physical locations and times and this gets confusing and tiresome. Even if the author didn’t want to say “meanwhile back at the ranch…” he could indicate a change in viewpoint by typography, a line of asterisks or similar.
Character development is spotty. We don’t see why Aiden is so angry nor learn much about Timothy. Aaliyah is a cipher.
The characters live in an interesting world and I’d like to see Brockman do more with the setting, the back story and the magic system.
Summary
As the title shows, The Phoenix Ring is the first book in a fantasy series. I don’t expect I’ll buy the next books in the series as this was just a bit better than OK, a solid 3 stars.
Amazon lists this as for older teens, which is probably right. As an adult I found the book a bit too slapdash and lacking in the rich detail and conflicts that make fantasy believable.
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