Author: Ned Marcus
Website: https://www.nedmarcus.com/
Genre: Metaphysical Science Fantasy

Review: Young Aina, Prequel

Bittersweet.

This excellent piece of writing tells the tale of a young girl who lives in Silvan, a small, independent country on the cold planet of Prometheus (Uranus). Aina’s father teaches her to connect with the True Language of the plants, animals, and intelligent species who inhabit the vast wild forests that cover Prometheus, but the pair are not alone in their ability to wield natural magic. Silvan is on the verge of being overrun by troops from the neighboring colony of the Empire, and Aina and her father find themselves on the run, hunted by Lord Anlair, a sorcerer of the Imperial Order.

This novelette is fast-paced, gripping, and painfully sad. The language is lyrical, evocative, and brings up images and feelings that remain long after the pages come to an end. The story is an excellent beginning to what promises to be an engrossing series.

Review: The Huntress of Prometheus, Prequel

This second prequel takes place several years after the first. Aina has been living in the deep forests of Prometheus and feels the need to return to Silvan. She has yet another devastating encounter with imperial troops and meets one of the intelligent, telepathic bird beings known as rocs. The tale moves quickly and is beautifully told. The stage is set for the action in the Blue Prometheus series.

Review: Blue Prometheus, Book 1

Fast-paced political drama on a colorful world.

This series is an unusual, fascinating blend of urban fantasy and science fiction, set in a different version of our solar system. The protagonists encounter green humans, colonists from Venus, and even dragons as well as malevolent sorcerers and militia from the space-faring, system-wide Empire intent on conquering and absorbing the planet into its domain. We are also introduced to a wide array of intelligent plants, creatures, and spirit beings native to Prometheus (Uranus) in an ecosystem far removed from our own.

Like most good fantasy series, this story centers around a quest, and for the protagonists, it is a journey of self-realization. At the heart of the tale are two friends from contemporary London. Thomas is a man with little interest in the foolishness of magic, while his friend Lucy reads Tarot with an accepting, open mind. Curiously, when the pair find themselves boxed into a difficult encounter with irrational police, they readily accept the help of a bizarre, other-worldly being known as The Mariner who whisks them across time and space to the drama unfolding on Prometheus. Interesting.

The native guide who meets them is Aina, a young woman well versed in her own natural magic who sees Thomas and Lucy as “The Bright Ones,” a prophesied pair who will claim the keys of power that will turn the tide against the Empire. Aina’s small country of Silvan is about to be overrun with off-world mercenaries brought in by the Empire to shut down the resistance movement and install imperial rule. Thomas and Lucy are swept into Sylvan’s struggle alongside Aina as they search for the objects of power in the possession of the Empire and become targets for Lord Anlair and his dangerous minions.

The author’s writing style is clean and solid, and the dialog moves briskly. The aspects I love most about the book are the well thought-out and intuitively grasped psychic and magical abilities that awaken within the characters. Aina and Lucy’s talent for speaking telepathically with animals, plants, and beings of the deep forests as well as the technical devices of the Empire showed depth of understanding by the author. I was especially fascinated by the skills Thomas develops in reading and directing energy within the planet and his ability to move through “solid” rock. Waaaay cool!

The action is non-stop and gripping. The characters grow, make mistakes, lose friends. Sometimes their choices are not ones I would make and are frustrating to watch, but ultimately, their magical achievements, along with the imaginative scope of beings of Prometheus make this quite an exciting read. As soon as I finished the first book, I jumped onto Amazon to buy the second. This author is a talent to watch.

Review: The Darkling Odyssey, Book 2

A quest into the planet center.

The second installment of the Blue Prometheus trilogy is just as riveting as the first. This time, the action takes place in the underground layers of the planet which gives the whole book an alien, surreal feel. Thomas and Lucy descend deeper and deeper into Prometheus, intent on recovering their keys of power and taking them to the planet’s core to claim the Fire of Prometheus. They ally with an odd assortment of characters, including a rogue ice demon, one of the Empire’s vicious reptilian killers, and encounter strange cities and landscapes filled with humans, trolls, goblins, and bizarre fungal entities who populate the inner realms.

In this book, we encounter another imperial dark sorcerer, Lord Frore, who wants to claim the power of the keys and the Fire of Prometheus for himself in order to take over the Empire. He hunts Thomas and Lucy with a pack of hellhounds which calls up vivid images straight out of underworld mythology.

The action moves at a brisk clip. The characters are challenged to overcome their doubts and move past limitations. I found some of their choices poor, but I was quite captivated by the expansion of their psychic and magical abilities which are even more astounding and honed than in the first book. I’m looking forward to the final book of the trilogy and to finding out what these two humans from Earth do about the nasty Empire tyrannizing the solar system.

Review: Fire Rising, Book 3

Exciting conclusion!

In this final chapter of the Blue Prometheus Series, Lucy and Thomas struggle with the inner fire they claimed in the heart of the planet while the Emperor’s armies swarm into the ancient forest to subdue the wild animal life and lay claim to the rich resources. Lucy rallies the intelligent bird-like Rocs, Thomas chases his dream of finding Aina reborn, and the awakening dragon clans rise to meet the invasion.

As in the first two books, the pace moves quickly and the writing is well done. The author gives us superb insight into the intelligence, depth, and talents of the natural world, unseen and undervalued by most humans. He paints vivid, extraordinary examples of what humans have the potential to become by claiming their inherent psychic abilities and drawing on the power of the planet itself.

Another aspect of the series I greatly appreciate is the portrayal of the avaricious elite humans in this “alternate” version of our solar system. The reigning gentry rule and subdue through a combination of technology and dark sorcery, enslaving the willing masses through addictive mind control while harvesting the souls of the conquered to feed their perverted lust for “immortality.” Quite an accurate depiction of our own global elite. Gold star.

If you are looking for an unusual, imaginative fantasy saga with exciting action and well-developed characters, pick up all of the books of this series and dive in. You’ll find an exciting drama in which the natural world takes a stand against human arrogance and wins!