Author, Maggie Secara sent me a copy of the first and second of her Harper Errant series, The Dragon Ring and King’s Raven. I’ve only read the first so far, but I figured I might as well go ahead and review it.
Description from Goodreads:
Reality TV host Ben Harper has a problem: he owes the king of Faerie a favor. So now he has to track down the three parts of a Viking arm-ring, and return them to their place in time. This takes him through the wolf-haunted forests of Viking Age Wessex, the rowdy back streets of Shakespeare’s London, and a derelict Georgian country house. Partnered with caustic, shape-changing Raven and guided by a slightly wacky goblin diary, Ben must rediscover his own gifts while facing his doubts and the queen of Faerie’s minions, who will do anything to stop him.
The Dragon Ring, the first in the Harper Errant series, is a time travelling epic adventure which takes you to Old England, and beyond.
Review:
The Dragon Ring is a bit like a grownup Harry Potter, with bawdy ballads and raunchy riddles. There’s a magic book or two, endless magical music, self-regulating clothing, time travel, mystic doors, mythical beasts, prophetic icons, bewitchments, bespelling, and even an imaginative curse on occasion. And poor Ben Harper is stuck right in the middle of it all.
Image a young Alan Titmarsh, or better yet, Justin Ryan or Colin McAllister contracted by the King of Faerie to save the world. Not the likeliest of heroes I’ll admit, but Ben does a decent job of it. He seems to have an amazing knack for simply accepting the absurdities that come along with the unexplainable magic in and around the land of Fae. If he hadn’t been American, I would blame it on that much-touted stiff upper lip. As a reader, I had a little harder time of it. Some of the ‘it’s magic, just accept it’ felt a little too convenient for me. Most especially when considering the diary that miraculously held ALL the answers.
I was extremely disappointed in the treatment of Mellis’, Ben’s wife, character. Her role was important as a motivator to Ben, but she seemed to be pointedly left out of much of the book. She might as well have been a cardboard cutout. Then, in the mere 10 or so percent at the tail end of the book that she was active for, she managed to fall and twist an ankle (though I give her credit for not whinging about it) and lose an important artifact. As enamored as Ben was with her, I would have liked her to have a little more depth.
The narrative style is marvellous. There is a lot of humour in it. The writing is tight and elegant. It strikes the right tone for a book about Oberon and Titania. The book does feel a tad like it goes on forever and a day, though. Plus, it isn’t the sort of book that builds to a peak and then settles back down before ending. It kind of builds to a plateau and then continues on until the end. Ben is given his tasks, and then he systematically goes about completing them until he is finished. It’s very much a ‘quest to collect the magical shards’ kind of story.
I’d especially recommend the book for music lovers. There are a lot of music references and melodies play an important role in the story. Additionally, thespians and Renaissance festival regulars will likely have little trouble relating to Ben and his personality. All-in-all an interesting read. I have the sequel, King’s Raven, which I also look forward to reading. (Speaking of Ravens, Raven was my all-out favorite character in the book.)