First Watch

July 10, 2017
Lucas (the Doc Voodoo series) opens the Fifth Ward series with a gritty tale set in the fantasy city of Yenara, where humans, orcs, elves, and dwarves coexist in an uneasy détente. Rem, a human new to the city, wakes up in a dungeon cell after a tavern brawl. Almost out of money, he is given the option to earn his freedom by serving in the city watch called the Fifth Ward, where he’s assigned to a partner, Torval, a maul-wielding dwarf. On their first night together, they stumble across a corpse that turns out to be Torval’s absent partner, Freygaf. Together, human and dwarf set out to find who is responsible for Freygaf’s death and search for a rich man’s missing daughter, battling assassins and using magic spells to get to the truth. Lovelorn Rem and family man Torval get along almost too well; there are echoes of Fritz Leiber’s classic Fafhrd and Gray Mouser tales in their relationship. The complicated rules governing Yenara are reminiscent of Steven Brust’s Vlad Taltos adventures. Readers who enjoy this combination of high and low fantasy will eagerly await Rem and Torval’s return for a second tour of duty.

July 1, 2017

Not long after waking up in the dungeons of the Fifth Ward in the city of Yenara, Rem talks his way into joining the ward watch. Partnered with the dwarf Torval, he isn't given much trust (or a weapon) at first, but as Rem and Torval stumble into a murder, they start to form a bond. Young women are being abducted from Yenara's streets, and to uncover the culprits, our duo will have to go up against orc crime lords, smooth-talking elves, and the vicious ward captain who thinks they're invading his patch. Rem is afraid a young woman he met in the marketplace might be one of the victims, and when an attempt is made to assassinate the pair, it looks like they might be getting close. VERDICT Fans of diverse cityscapes, mismatched buddy cops, and high adventure will relish this fantasy series launch by the author of the "Doc Voodoo" supernatural thrillers. One hopes the tantalizing clues about Rem's noble blood and the reason he ended up in Yenara will be addressed in the next volume.--MM

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