The First of Shadows by Deck Matthews

I read Nick’s review and Corey’s review (two reviewers who have very similar taste as I do), and they both made me want to pick up this book. I’m not sure if there’s anything more I can say about this book, but I’ll say a few things:

1. Deck Matthews has made a promise. On sword, amulet, and magical bracelet… A promise of a very good series. His wordbuilding has the depth required to carry a story arc.
2. A cross of influences: in magic, in fighting, in language… a great combination of the familiar and the new.
3. A wide range of characters whose stories dovetail into each other. I thought for a second that there where too many of them, that I would get confused… but what he does in just a novella is fantastic. Drifters who look for strange occurrences and drive the strange magical beasts back to wherever that come from… A young man named Caleb who fixes the airships in town, yet is slowly learning more about his deceased father and his proud mother. A blind monk whose secret society protects all the magical artifacts in the world 
4. Great storytelling: I thought everything fit together well… the background, the linking of the characters, the tension throughout. The story starts with a spectacular fight scene and takes that energy over the course of its pages. 

If you are a fan of fantasy, this is definitely one to pick up.