Curtis Lee Williams Lee Williams itibaren Ли, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire DN21 5JP, UK itibaren Ли, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire DN21 5JP, UK

Actually this is a re-read. Goodreads doesn't offer a button choice to indictate thus. Mr. Whittington wrote a bunch of noirs. This one is generally acknowledged as his cream of the crop. It reminds me of Westlake's early noirs.

Why? Why must fantasy novels like this exist? Is it to prove to the critics it's a genre meant only for those who sift through Dungeon Master Guides, scratch pencils across their character sheets & chuck dice for Saving Throws? To sum up this novel (& the one that follows it because I was stupid enough to read that one too) in one word: "Cliche". & I do mean cliche. It has them all: orphaned farmer boy who is part of a prophecy, the guardian magic user, the romance with royalty, the all evil/dark shadow magic throwing bringer of Doom, a quest, etc., etc. Oh, holy hell, just put the damn book down & go read something else! The late '70s & early '80s were not kind to those of us who like fantasy novels--not kind at all.