If anyone asks you the riddle, “What do Merrie Olde England, Celtic stories, the Queen of Punt, evil mummified priests, Queen Hatshepsut and drought in Ethiopia have in common?” you now know the answer. Chasing Embers by James Bennet combines all of these into an interesting story. Hero Ben Garston is a Remnant, the single member of his magical race allowed to live awake in our world by virtue of the ancient Lore, the agreement brokered by King John of England between men and magical beings in 1215.
Ben is a dragon, and if another dragon awakens then the Lore will break and humans and the magicals will once more be at war. So how do Hatshepsut, mummies and Punt get in the middle of this? Simple. Hatshepsut’s evil undead priest Baba Kamenwati wants to entice Anubis to the world and uses Ben’s girlfriend Rose as bait. A young girl hoping for a miracle to end the hideous drought that is killing everyone wakes up Atiya, Queen of Punt, a demigoddess of sorts, who can take on dragon form. Clear yes?
Chasing Embers is easier to follow than it sounds but it took me several pages to get into the story.
Characters
Chasing Embers is not a character-centric novel, in fact Bennet builds only enough character to prop up the story. Characterization is weak and people seem to do things just to do them.
Despite spending nearly the entire novel with Ben we don’t know him well. He is idealistic, cynical, acts to protect his girlfriend Rose, curious, resourceful but felt like a character and not a person. Ben is a dragon who can shapeshift to human, and as a human youth he fell in love and agreed to stop hunting people to please his beloved. He has loved other human women and loves and wants to protect Rose, but she senses there is something off about Ben and rejects him.
Ben isn’t a happy person and he’s lonely and feels sorry for himself. He isn’t happy with his life and does nothing to change it.
The most interesting character is Blaise Van Hart, the Fae envoy, a remnant himself in a way, left behind when the other Fae withdrew after King Arthur died at Camlann. He plays a major role that gives the story a backbone. We don’t know him well either, which makes sense since he cultivates mystery.
Villains read like comic book characters, seeming to enjoy villainy for evil’s sake. Undead priest Baba Kamenwati wants Anubis God of Death to rule the world, not a wise desire. The Coven Royal is three nasty witches, happy to hurt anyone but it’s not clear what they want to obtain beyond making trouble. Minor villain Fulk Fitzwarren wants to reclaim the title, house and lands that his ancestor lost back in 1215. I don’t think he would be all that happy owning a ruined castle but his family has schemed and fought Ben Garsten for the last 800 years to reclaim it, so why not.
Setting
The best parts of the book are in Egypt and Punt/Ethiopia. Bennet helps us feel the hopeless drought, the hot dry air, the sand that gets into everything, the spectacle of Hatshepsut’s entourage, the sun baking Punt and the people who eack out their living in ancient Egyptian tombs today.
Writing Style
Bennet manages to juggle all the pieces and keep his complex plot up in the air. While he isn’t a gifted storyteller he writes clearly enough that this complicated story with jogs back in time to 1215 AD and 1470 BC makes sense and we can keep the various characters clear. Chasing Embers is Bennet’s first published novel and writing is fairly decent considering that.
The first part of the story is boring and doesn’t make a lot of sense as we hop from modern New York to modern Ethiopia. When Chasing Embers finally got interesting and I was compelled to keep reading, my tablet said I was 18% through the novel. If you are like me, 18% is a long way to go before a story coalesces and starts to move forward.
Overall
Chasing Embers is fantasy with an unusual, interesting premise (the Lore and Remnants), a vivid glimpse of ancient Punt and the meeting of two queens. Ben is a dragon but this is not just another dragon story as it combines history and myths from multiple eras and peoples. The weak characters are offset by the setting and Bennet’s imaginative use of Egypt ancient and modern, Ethiopia and Punt.
I enjoyed reading Chasing Embers – once past the magic 18% point it was no hardship to finish unlike many fantasies – but didn’t like the novel enough to look for the sequel, if one is written. Overall 3+ stars.
NetGalley gave me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
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