I had the great pleasure and honor of being able to “beta read” Exile, Magus and I must that it doesn’t disappoint. The descriptive writing of this story ranks up there with Tolkien and has an eye for intricate detail that it’s difficult not to see each character, region, or creatures vividly in your mind and it has many well-developed and diverse characters. The story is about a dwarf named Pentaz who uses his magic abilities to save his people from the massive troll army that would have annihilated his kingdom and in doing this, he’s seen as evil because of an old belief that those that dabble in magic are consorting with the devils. Yeah, that’s gratitude for you! So instead of being punished, Pentaz runs away, leaving his life of underground dwelling to the topside where his ignorance, stubbornness, and sense of honor get him in trouble. There are plenty of twists and turns with not only with Pentaz but with his companion Buscidia as they travel together fighting many creatures while butting heads with each other. There’s so many great chapters that it’s hard to chose what to write about, but I believe I enjoyed Pentaz’s battle with the Giants and his inventive way of battling them, especially the mother (I’ll leave it at that ;)). It’s a tale that has werewolves, slavers, giants, cannibals, and dragons (it isn’t a good story without dragons!) I highly recommend this one to any and all epic fantasy lovers out there and I plan on adding this one to my collection once it gets published! Thanks for allowing me to read your manuscript and keep up the epic storytelling, Thomas!
