Uther by James M. Butler
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by AstilbeUther Pendragon is hunted by something otherworldly. His crown is stolen and the voice in his head torments him. His closest companions think he’s a coward, and they aren’t far off. Dark forces and thoughts cloud his every step.
Vortigern sends an army to destroy Uther and his allies. When things look darkest, that’s when Sir Ector arrives: a shimmering ray of sunlight. Ector brings news of a powerful wizard Uther must recruit.
When he and his companions rescue Alfwen, a Saxon maiden and the promised wizard, they are plunged into the depths of the underworld. That’s when elves, long hidden away in the darkest recesses of the earth, attack. Uther and his allies must find a way to work together to escape.
Not only that, but Uther must turn his image around and learn to stand up for himself before he can become the legendary father of Arthur. But are legends really what they seem to be?
Will the beast that stalks him sink its teeth into his soft flesh, or will they perish in the underworld before Uther can rise?
Even kings have to get their hands dirty sometimes.
The world building was multi-layered and well done. I’d recommend reading this with as few assumptions about what will happen as possible as the Uther in this tale was quite different from how he was generally described in the original King Arthur legends. It was so interesting to me to explore this world again from a darker perspective, and I thought that the horror elements added some fresh twists to what I’d typically expect from these characters and universe.
Had there been more character development in this book, I would have given it a full five star rating. Everything else about it was excellent, including the pacing, plot, and dialogue, but I never felt like I got to know the main characters that well. Obviously, battles are no place for anyone to stop and have a conversation and I’d never expect that to happen, but there were some moments that could have either been expanded upon or added as flashbacks in order to explain why Uther behaved the way that he did and what those closest to him truly thought of him.
One of the things I hope to find when reading the fantasy genre is a magical system that is logical and consistent. That was exactly what was written here, and I was soon able to make rough guesses about how the various spells Alfwen cast would affect everyone around her. Plot twists and occasional exceptions to the rules are welcomed as well, of course, but I sure do appreciate it when writers take the time to hammer out the most important details about how magic works in their worlds and use those rules to help guide their characters from one scene to the next. Kudos to Mr. Butler for doing exactly that.
Uther made me wish for a sequel. What a wild ride!
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