“Just be mindful to sacrifice your dark emotions whence you arrive. Your soul will pale. The hue of your memories will desaturate. You will be cleansed. Protected.”
This is a story of a man who worked to free himself from a lineage of bondage. He starts with simply denying the Rite of Inheritance of his forefathers, and soon finds himself undead and clothed in the skin of his enemies.
For this is the land of the Lords of Dyscrasia, a land where blood and ichor color the landscape.
Reanimation, specters and murderers are ever-present here, as are the traces of insectan elders and terrible harpies. They battle for the supremacy of their masters, fueled by contempt and guilty memories. They fill your senses with sanguine touches, and they haunt your soul with unforgiving murmurs.
I would definitely say that this is unique. I haven’t read a lot of this genre, of speculative/horror/gore, but I must say that I had quite an enjoyable ramble as I walked through a world where I could sink my feet in bloodied pools or rotten corpses.
While this is not a book for the sick of heart, it is a fairly great story told by quite a technical hand. You have to be rather good at context clues (but it wouldn’t be a problem if you’re paying enough attention), but the details are consistent, surprising, shocking. I had some problems with the storytelling (rather confusing at times), but I’m sure that some details may be bypassed while still enjoying the story. The unraveling of the plot itself, however, was pretty good. The little details were significant too, which surprised me as I went along.
(Oh, and just to add: I absolutely loved Dey’s parts. I liked this young artist of a man, with his sketches and searches for pigment. Bonus points for Dey!)
If you have no qualms reading dark fantasy (and feeling as if you’ve bathed in blood), pick up this book and enjoy. Come, the Lords of Dyscrasia are beckoning, calling you to claim your nightmares.
[ Note: I think this is more of a 3.5-3.75 for me, really… So I’ll peg this at 4, to be generous 😉 ]
Lords of Dyscrasia by S.E. Lindberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
