SPOIL-FREE SUMMARY
Tommo escapes his life as a slave and meets Akenna, a young woman with her own problems. They end up together trying to escape trouble.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Tommo is resigned to the fact that he is going to die from his disease. He has no family ties and only wants to be free.
Akenna is a young girl who is rather rough around the edges. She is used to being independent and is skilled when it comes to catching and deboning fish. She can lose her temper quite often.
Fallon is the Protector of the land, which is basically like a king (and the villain). He fears those with special gifts called Inward Power. The only one he loves is Vevena.
Kalen is the chief spellstone wielder for Fallen. But he is rather weak willed and fearful. He spends some of his time with Vevena.
Haversnatcher is the father of Vevena. When he was younger he used to hunt down those with inward power.
Vevena is a young woman married to Fallon against her will. She has a spell on her that causes her to have little control over her own thoughts.
PACING
The story starts with Tommo on the run, which is great. But we get some explanation about priests and such, that kinda slows things down. We meet Akenna quite fast, so that's good as well. Then Tommo recalls something from his past, revealing how difficult it was to be a spellgrinder.
Basically information is peppered throughout, but I was never dying to know more. Perhaps because Tommo himself had no real relationship with anyone before Akenna. So the story doesn't usually feel fast, even if there is action in it.
TOMMO'S DECEPTION
Since Tommo worked with spellstones (which allow people to cast their own spells) Akenna assumes that he can use what's called Thaumaturgy. He never corrects her, because he has to rely on her for food and a ride. Akenna is annoyed when she finds out the truth but it didn't feel very important. I kind of expected it to snowball and all come to a head.
TOMMO'S GIFTS
Tommo isn't aware of any gifts if he has any. But he does find a dead dolphin who speaks to him and says only he can free the dolphn. Also, later he turns invisible. But he seems to have no real control over these gifts and they are kind of confusing. I feel like the only reason they are there is to make the reader think that Tommo is the real threat, when it turns out to be someone else.
THE WORLD
In this story the world has something called Thaumaturgy and Inward Power. The first is more common and less powerful and the second is more dangerous.
They worship a goddess called Urtha who had priestesses who claimed inward power was good and not to be condemned. I admit, most of this went over my head, as I had no idea what this had to do with Tommo. He does go to her temple to claim sanctuary, but it still seems to have nothing to do with him.
There is a mention about equilibrium of thaumaturgy but I found it quite confusing.
We get other hints of history, like the Blue pox, which killed all the priests, as well as someone called Gildea.
I don't know quite why I found it all vague. Perhaps because a lot of information was given at once, or if it was given it was such a small hint that I didn't even notice, like the birds with faces. The first time they were noted, I didn't think they important. And when they mentioned one protecting Akenna, I still had no idea why. I think the fact that Fallon hated birds went completely past me.
THE PRISONER-SPOILERS
An old powerful man named Gildea was once kept in Fallon's prison. He introduced thaumaturgy to the Island. He also said that spellstones were living beings and not to be ground and used casually. Although he died Fallon still feels like he is threat.
PERSPECTIVES
We first meet Tommo, and get the story from his perspective. Then we meet Fallon and see some of his story. Eventually Vevena and Haversnatcher, and Akenna.
I expected to get to know both Vevena and Haversnatcher better then I did. And I thought it was odd that the villain had his own stories. I didn't really feel like there was much too him, certainly not enough to get into his head.
I found Vevena mainly played the part of victim with not much else to her character. And I never really got to know Haversnatcher. I felt like I was meeting these characters long after I should have. Like they had a story before this one with a firm relationship that had been shattered. Since her and her father were never really together, I just had to take their word that they cared deeply for each other.
Not that they are not important to the plot, it's Vevena who finds out that Gildea isn't even dead. Although he supposedly dies anyway. And Haversnatcher is the one who has to hunt down Sibeal.
OUR VILLAIN
Fallon came across as two dimensional for someone whose head the reader gets into. He loves Vevena, I guess because she is pretty. But he also married her so her father could do as he wills.
He put a spell on Vevena so she can't control her thoughts completely and he has zero chance to win her over. He doesn't even try (then again he is described as being ugly so maybe he knows he hasn't a chance).And yet Vevena notes he has never laid a finger on her, so he does respect her in some sense. Perhaps realizing he has turned her into a childlike doll. Although this is never expressed.
SIBEAL
I suppose Sibeal is a type of mentor character, although she barely spends any time with Akenna and Tommo. She was important because of the necklace she gave Akenna, and the fact that she is really the only person that Akenna knows of to run to when in trouble.
HEALING VEVENA
When Tommo finally meets Vevena he tells her to take off all of her jewelry. Turns out that they were what was keeping her enchanted. I thought it was strange that Vevena had never taken all of her jewelry off. It might have kept her from knowing, but how would Tommo merely telling her to do something make her do it? I don't think the spell made her obedient, just stupid. Perhaps Tommo should have been the one to remove the jewelry, making it clear that Vevena had not power to do so herself.
AKENNA & TOMMO
I thought the two of them played well off of each other. Tommo is quite willing to give up many times, and you can't really blame him. And yet Akenna is so stubborn that she just won't let him do it.
What starts out as a relationship of convenience (Akenna gives him food and a ride but expects payment) gradually turns into a friendship. It becomes clear that Akenna needs someone to care for and that Tommo needs to be cared for.
Both characters are victims, Tommo from his slavery and Akenna from her abusive father. And yet for the most part, they don't bring it up. Neither deny their abuse, but they don't whine about it and make it their whole lives. Although Akenna does get revenge on her father.
THE BIRDS-SPOILERS
All throughout the story there are these strange birds with human heads on them. They are not just creepy but mysterious. At first Tommo assumes people made them with spellstones but later they keep showing up. Once they even defend Akenna, like they know her.
I didnt think much of them, I admit. And when they turned out to be crucial to the climax, I shouldn't have been surprised.
After all, Vevena notes that Fallon hates birds and is always killing them. She just doesn't know why. And later Haversnatcher sees a bird with the face of Gildea on it.
THE TRUTH ABOUT AKENNA-SPOILERS
Turns out that it's Akenna who has inward power. There are hints, like the fact that while she was rejected by Sibeal, she was given a necklace for some unknown reason. Also she says spellstones feel wrong and Tommo agrees but notes that none of the other spell grinders seemed to notice.
THE TRUTH ABOUT KALEN-SPOILERS
Turns out that Kalen is Tommo's father. He thought his son was dead. The thing was, I didn't really expect Tommo to find his father, because there weren't any hints about it. We just learn that he is.
AKENNA'S DECEPTION-SPOILERS
When Akenna disappears, she later shows up with her father. She says she never liked Akenna and it was all a lie. Tommo believes her and feels miserable. But I didn't really buy it, as it was obvious that her father was abusive. Why would she side with him over Tommo, who has done nothing bad to her? I kind of wish I had hesitated, and really wondered if it had all been an act.
CLIMAX
All of the main characters end up together. The birds with faces are brought together along with the last part, an eagle. The birds have to pick a body for Gildea, the savior, to return to. Eventually it chooses a body but everyone is confused at the outcome. Tommo is healed from his affliction.
ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL
I was kind of disappointed that Tommo was unconscious at the climax. He gets carried around and finally is healed near the end.
EPILOGUE-SPOILERS
We learn that Akenna and Tommo are married, which is sweet, but I don't think it was completely obvious that they had romantic feelings. They were just so alone and needed a friend.
CONCLUSION
Both Akenna and Tommo are likable characters who, while both being victims, don't act like the world revolves around them. They compliment each other nicely and both rely on each other and this reliance develops into a friendship.
But I didn't really care much about the other characters, Vevena and Haversnatcher. And Fallon was rather a dull villain who seemed to love Vevena just because she was pretty.
The world itself had potentional and I do feel like effort was made. But it just never went deep enough. I would learn something about it, and instead of jumping out at me, I kinda just skimmed past it, not seeing the relevance to what was currently happening.
Certain aspects of the plot didn't fell well put together, like Tommo's father being alive. Or the idea of the birds being so important.
I give “Silver Boy” two and half stars.
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