2007-11-09 An Unexpected Edition

An Unexpected Edition

The arrival of this sixth instalment from Brian John certainly came as a surprise. I spent many happy hours reading the entire "Angel Mountain" saga; deriving much pleasure from an overall fantastic series of novels. As soon as this new instalment became available I knew that I had to give it a go, even if I was slightly averse to the idea of resurrecting the series. The ending of the previous book had certainly marked a suitable end to this story's intriguing heroine. So I started working my way through the text not really knowing what to expect; the book's title led me to expect a far different storyline to the one present in the book. It starts off original and interesting but things unfortunately start to turn a little bit deflated. The so-called implacable enemy described at the back of the book emerges as a rather feeble and banal character; nothing near as evil as any of her previous adversaries. This left me rather disappointed and meant that the pinnacle of the story was far more diluted than I had wished. That said, it was very nice to once again read of such a brilliant and original character as Mistress Martha Morgan; even if from a slightly different perspective. Brian John also demonstrates a very good way with words, creating an aura of authenticity regarding the alleged date of authorship. This book had a lot to follow in order to bring justice to its predecessors and I do feel that it falls slightly short of the mark in that regard. "If it ain't broke then don't try to fix it" is about the most suitable quote I can find to sum up what it is I am trying to say. A lukewarm edition to a fantastic series.