Finished #2!

2 down, 50 to go!

I finished book one of Jim Butcher's Codex Alera series, Furies of Calderon. It was great and has made me very excited to continue the series. The series is comprised of 6 books. I have no idea what the future story lines will but the author does a great job introducing future potential plot lines in this book.

Book one sets the stage for an epic fantasy story (my favorite kind, by the way). It has all the elements you expect from the genre: sweeping story lines, intrigue, betrayal, romance and epic battles. The author also introduces a new spin with the magic system used in the world he created. Magic is called "fury crafting". Every person is born with the ability to control a fury, some stronger and more adeptly than others. Some can even control more than one. Every "fury" is tied to an element, earth, water, wind, fire, etc. The fury is summoned and does the summoner's bidding. Very similar to the daemons from The Golden Compass books, except not always in a physical form. Anyway, it's a nice spin on a genre that sometimes struggles to be original.

The storyline in the first book is solid, as is the authors portrayal of the characters. The main character, Tavi, is a boy without the ability to control a fury. This weakness is overcome by his intellect and bravery. The author also does a great job getting you emotionally invested in the characters....especially the way he writes some of the villains. My only complaint with the first book is the lack of history the author provides. He does a great job portraying the current state of things but leaves you wondering how they got there. We'll see if more unfolds in the future books in the series.

Off to start #3!