Sapphire of Souls by M.R. MathiasMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Sapphire of Souls is Book 2 of 3 in the Fantastica series by M.R. Mathias. I am coming in cold, having not read Book 1, Taerak's Void. In my opinion, you really need to start at the beginning to truly appreciate Fantastica. I have read many reviews saying that coming in on Book 2 was no problem, and to some degree I can see that. Fantastica was a solid science fiction/mythology novel and it could conceivably stand alone; I did enjoy it and didn't find myself confused or lost. Perhaps just knowing there was a previous book is what did me in. This is in no way the fault of the author.
The defining characteristic of a good sci-fi for me comes in both the world created by the writer and the array of creatures and the personalities he gives them. In Fantastica we have humans, elves, dwarves, dragons, wizards, and demons. Everything was vividly illustrated in the most colorful way, somehow making the reader forget they're reading rather than seeing the story in the mind's eye.
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