Back cover:
(Note: This is only the blurb for the first book so no need to fear for spoilers)
Casting Shadows: The spectacular space epic continues, as the techno-mages face the growing threat of the Shadows... As Elric and his student Galen watch with taut anticipation, dragons, angels, and shooting stars rain from the sky, heralding the arrival of the techno-mages on the planet Soom. It's the first time Elric-a member of the ruling Circle-has hosted such a gathering, and if all goes well, Galen and the other apprentices will emerge triumphant from the grueling initiation rites, ready to embrace their roles as full mages among the most powerful beings in the known universe. But rumors fly of approaching danger and Galen and his young lover, Isabelle, are chosen to investigate the dark tidings. An ancient race has awakened after a thousand years, thirsty for war, slaughter, and annihilation. Will the techno-mages be the deciding factor in the war ahead? Or the first casualties?
My review:
A brilliant piece of writing and not only
because it followed the not-so-good Centauri Trilogy.
Cavelos has done her background work (see, for example,
Isabella's death, which is exactly what we saw on Crusade)
and she fleshes out the characters even better than she
did on Shadow Within.
Galen as the protagonist of the books is naturally given
most room to grow, but Cavelos also deepens characters
like Isabelle, Alwyn and Elric who were seen in one
episode each. She also continues the redemption of Morden
and Anna from Shadow Within. Cavelos' greatest
achievement, however, is the way she makes the reader
also care for her original characters who were never seen
on B5 or Crusade.
The first time I read the books I was
slighly disappointed by the way Cavelos 'explains' the
magic of the techno-mages by detailed descriptions of
their technology, but on a second reading I understood
more clearly that this was necessary to avoid having the
mages become all-powerfull fantasy-mages with magical powers of deus ex machina kind. The plot itself is fast-paced
even though there are long descriptive passages that are
occationally repetitive. Best of all, the books do feel
like a part of the Babylon 5 universe.
Finally, I would also like to thank
Cavelos for creating Johnny, the male counterpart of the
holo-Lochley from The River of Souls.
Notes:
- The trilogy is based on an outline by JMS and is generally concidered canon
- The first book is set between November 2258 and
January 2259, the second in January-February 2259,
and the last between August 2260 and January 2261
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