cover image Los Dias del Venado: La Saga de Los Confines

Los Dias del Venado: La Saga de Los Confines

Liliana Bodoc. Grupo Editorial Norma, $21.55 (322pp) ISBN 978-987-9334-90-4

Bodoc's debut is written in a style reminiscent of Tolkien, blending fantasy and historical fiction with powerful language and poetic imagery. When foreign ships from beyond the northern limits arrive in the Fertile Lands and mystical signs point to an impending and catastrophic battle, a High Council is called in Beleram, the City of the Stars. Traveling to Beleram as representative of his people, the Husiuilkes, Dulkancellin, a brutish and somewhat unwilling hero, ends up assisting the Astronomers, the Sun People, the Watchers of the Sea, the Shepherds, the Owl Clan, and the Lulus, a clan of four-legged creatures. As the visitors, known as the Eternal Hate, move southward through the peaceful continent, leaving a path of destruction, the Army of the Deer resists the approach and fights for the freedom of the Fertile Lands in a classic battle of Good vs. Evil. Bodoc has created an exceptional story that is also an allegory of the conquest of the Americas. Its unusual blend of fantasy and historical fiction should appeal to fans of either genre. The first quarter of the book moves slowly as the main characters and exotic setting are painstakingly detailed, but, as the opposing forces move closer to each other, the pace of the story quickens and a surprising victor eventually prevails. Recommended for readers of adult and YA science fiction. Daniel Lee, MLIS, Halifax, Nova Scotia