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In one night, the long rule
of Chot Es-Kalin over the race of the minotaur has ended. Nephera, wife
of General Hotak de-Droka, and high priestess of the temple of the
Forerunners, has helped coordinate an attack that will leave the empire
without their ruler of 30 years. Along with her husband, they kill
almost every single member of the royal family and imprison most of
Chot's loyal followers. Only one minotaur related to Chot escapes during
the night. Faros Es-Kalin disguises himself, but is soon captured and
sent to one of the mining colonies, where his is little better than a
slave. There he makes two friends who help him plot their escape, even
though they do not know who he really is. Meanwhile, General Rahm Es-Hestos,
the former Commander of the Emperor's elite Imperial Guard, avoids
capture by sailing away with Azak de-Genjis, the captain of the ship
Dragon's Crest. After joining forces with a few other captains that
survived the night of blood, they begin making small attacks against the
new rule of Hotak. Hotak's goal is to bring the minotaur race back to
what they were, a strong and powerful race that is slave to no one. But
Nephera has plans of her own. Her main goal is to see her first son,
Ardnor, as emperor, not Hotak. Thus the power struggle for the empire of
the minotaur begins . . .
Night of Blood
is the first book of three
in The Minotaur Wars trilogy. This story takes place in the
fantasy realm of DragonLance. It occurs during the same time as
The War of Souls.
If you are looking for a
fantasy tale strictly about the race of minotaur, then Night of Blood
by Richard A. Knaak is the book for you. I did like reading about both
Faros and Rahm, but also was at a loss as to whom I was supposed to be
voting for. What I never got out of this book was who the main character
was that I was supposed to latch on to. This left me confused for most
of the story. Was it good that Chot had been overthrown? After all, he
had let the race of minotaurs decline as he lived his life of luxury. If
Faros is the main character, why isn't more of the story about him? As
for General Rahn, who I also liked, is he the main character? After
finishing the book, I still am not sure. The book starts off with the
bloody night that ends Chot's rule, then moves along rather slowly until
the last 70 or so pages, when the action finally picks up. This book
would appear to be a builder for what is to follow in The Minotaur Wars
series. I only hope that the story focuses a little more on the main
characters and gives the reader someone to cling on to. I do look
forward to seeing what happens in the next book,
Tides of Blood.
I rated this book a 6½ out of 10. |
