Comments on: BOOK REVIEW: Scourge of the Betrayer by Jeff Salyards

By: Mieneke

Mieneke — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 06:49:58 +0000

I really enjoyed Scourge of the Betrayer too. I agree with Paul that it had some first novel flaws, but Salyards’ voice was undeniably strong and I really loved Arki, which helps as if you don’t connect to him, I can see this being a tough novel to swallow.

By: Nick Sharps

Nick Sharps — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 17:29:39 +0000

I’m saving my “crappy one” for NO RETURN >:)

By: Zachary Jernigan

Zachary Jernigan — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 15:45:43 +0000

Sorry for the strong language, but I thought it was pretty DARN good. It was mature in a way most debuts are not. I can see how Salyards’ pacing and subtle world-building might not appeal to everyone, but his sentence-level writing is certainly stronger than Abercrombie displayed in his first novel.

Great review, Nick, as usual. Why not, just for kicks, every now and then write a crappy one? Y’know, throw everyone for a loop?

By: Nick Sharps

Nick Sharps — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 09:13:13 +0000

Nothing to worry about. No one is ever going to like every book, no matter how well received it was. I didn’t like Lawrence’s Prince of Thorns but it still makes it onto a lot of Best Fantasy lists. I can see the appeal of it even if I don’t personally dig it. If you like black humor, subtlety, intimate-unglorified violence, and down to Earth characters then you’ll likely enjoy Scourge. If you look for something else in your fantasy then you might not.

By: Robert Mammone

Robert Mammone — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 09:02:02 +0000

I get worried when I read contrasting views like this. My reading in 2012 was blighted by some very well received books turning out (for me) to be utter rubbish.

Decisions, decisions…

By: Paul (@princejvstin)

Paul (@princejvstin) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 01:22:13 +0000

I liked it, Nick, although not quite to the level of enthusiasm you did. I did see some first novel flaws, definitely. On the other hand, I liked the conceit of the point of view, and that does do the novel a lot of credit. Had the POV been more pedestrian, the novel wouldn’t be as interesting.

By: Sean Philips

Sean Philips — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 20:33:08 +0000

Didn’t care for it myself. The ‘big reveal’ was anything but. Little to no interaction/character development among the other mercs in the group other than Killcoin and Lloi. “Arki” as a nickname for the main character is as irritating if not more so than “Annie” was for Anakin Skywalker. Killcoin’s redundant monologs were only fun for the first dozen or so times, then they got old around page 10.

The novel is not without merit for a first novel, but mentioning Abercrombie and Martin in the same review as Scourge is like including Jar Jar Binks along side Obi Wan and Darth Vader in a list of best Star Wars characters.