The first Rojan Dizon novel
Mahala: a city built in the dark depths of a valley. A city built up in layers, not across – where streets are built upon streets, buildings balance precariously upon buildings. A city that the Ministry rules from its lofty perch at the sunlit summit & where the forsaken lurk in the shadowy depths of the Pit.
Rojan is a bounty hunter trying to make his way in the city. Everyone knows he’s a womaniser, a shirker of all responsibility, but they don’t know he’s also a pain-mage: able to draw magic from his own & other people’s pain. He’s not keen on using it (not least because it’s outlawed), but when his niece is abducted and taken to the dark depths of the Pit, he may just be forced to unleash his power…
Ever since I first saw the artwork for this novel, I’ve been dying to read Fade to Black. I was lucky enough to get an early copy, and damn did it live up to my expectations! Actually, it exceeded them. Given how much I enjoyed this novel, writing a review for it is unlikely to be easy, or do it justice. Part of me wishes to go ahead and write a calm, collected (translation: bit staid) review, while the other just wants to type “ZOMG! This is amazeballs!” and leave it at that. [Incidentally, does anyone know what the “Z” stands for…? Apparently, I am i-leet-arate.]
This is a great fantasy debut, introducing us to an intriguing new character, and the beginning of something really quite brilliant.
