What is SPFBO 9?  This is  a competition where authors of self-published fantasy can enter their work. The objective to find a winner out of the 300 entries submitted.  Ten judges (or judging teams) each receive 30 entrants.  Each judge/team will eventually submit one finalist to the second round where a winner will eventually be decided upon. Check out Mark Lawrence’s post here to look at this year’s entrants, judges and allocations list.

Our batch of 30 books was split equally between myself and the Critiquing Chemist’s team.  I have now completed my batch and announced my semi finalists and the CC have also now chosen their three semi finalists.

My three semi finalists can be found here.

So, my review today is for The Many Shades of Midnight by CM Debell, the second Semi Finalist chosen by my partners.

What a totally intriguing nugget of a book.  This is a standalone novel that takes a close look at power and greed, corruption and the misuse of power, and, whilst the main drivers of the story have massive implications for the world portrayed the author manages to shine the spotlight on a small group of characters to show the role they will play in the potential devastation and giving the story a much more intense and personal feel.

As the book begins we join a small envoy on a search for someone.  The former Duke of Agrathon, Alyas-Raine Sera, was exiled in disgrace, the King removed his titles and estates and he was banished.  Since then he has managed to establish a name for himself fighting against the syndicates.  Over the years as an outcast he has amassed loyal followers and a winning reputation which is why the King is anxious to secure his help now when the country is threatened by a strange new plague.   Of course, the former Duke could be forgiven if he’s not quite willing to entirely forgive and forget certain injustices from the past.  Regardless, Alyas does agree to return and he and his foster brother Esar undertake the return home.

By way of background, Elaysia is threatened by a new plague which renders it’s victims into a strange state, no longer themselves and with violent tendencies.  Over the years the mining syndicates have pushed the excavation of Isyr, a precious metal that has become almost fundamental to everyone’s way of life, when the supply ran out the syndicates found a new way to extract elements of Isyr from other substances, a process that leaves a rather toxic waste product.  Unfortunately, this intensive mining and lack of care over disposal of waste products have finally caused devastation, the culprits of course are keen to keep these issues close to their chests, pushing for yet more ways to find Isyr with never any thought given to the calamity that is brewing.

On top of this Alyas has a secret of his own.  One that he is also keen to keep from the syndicates.

Of course, nothing goes to plan and eventually the price must be paid.

What I really liked about this is it’s a very grounded book.  It takes a little while to establish what’s truly going on but the author really develops the world and the characters and this attention to detail really pays off.  You feel comfortable with the setting and the characters and though there’s plenty of politics at play there’s no confusion.

Surprisingly, the author makes the decision to provide, primarily, three povs and oddly enough Alyas is not one of these (well, he has a very minor pov in the latter sections). However, I think this worked excellently.  Instead of sticking with the central character, or at least the person affecting change, we instead look at this character through the eyes of those closest to him.  His foster brother Esar who spends most of his time trying to protect Alyas.  A former romantic interest, Mari, who is now the Queen.  And an apprentice surgeon, Brivar, who gains Alyas’s trust by saving his life.  I really liked this way of telling the story.  Because we’re not in Alyas’s head we’re not privy to his thoughts or why he’s acting in a certain way.  We instead get a bird’s eye view of what the other characters are thinking about him and the way he acts,and we also have a fly on the wall perspectives outside the camp, Brivar taking us into the Temple and Mari giving us access to the Palace, the King and his contacts in the syndicate.

In a nutshell, if you’re hoping for a sweeping saga with thousands of creatures racing across the battlefield to kill, maim and disfigure, then this might not be for you.  Neither do we have dragons and magic.  The fantasy elements come from the secondary world itself, the Isyr and the effects that are spreading across this world as a result of such intensive plundering of the land.  People who are infected, die if they’re lucky, if not they become monsters.

The intensity really builds during the last third of the book.  The stakes are high and our central character, Alyas comes up with a drastic solution.

Well written, intriguing and absolutely character driven this was a very enjoyable read full of twists, secrets, deception and lies and at the same time bringing to us some intensely loyal characters not to mention those prepared to pay the price for change.

I received a copy courtesy of the author, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.