The Black Prism

July 19, 2010
With this complicated fantasy about family politics, bestseller Weeks (The Way of Shadows) moves into familiar territory. An unloved, orphaned boy is the offspring of someone important; twins assume each other's identities; an aged ruler clings to power. Weeks manages to ring new tunes on these old bells, letting a deep background slowly reveal its secrets and presenting his characters in a realistically flawed and human way. Gavin Guile is facing his final five years as leader of a magical college whose members turn colors of light into various materials. Seeking to rectify the lingering wrongs from the war against his twin, Dazen, he is instead forced to acknowledge a bastard son, face down a corrupt governor, and stop a challenge to the state religion. Frequent perspective shifts keep the reader guessing as to who is heretic and who is hero. Author tour.