Violette Malan

Dhulyn and Parno — (2007-2010) Publisher: Masters of weapons and martial arts, Mercenaries Dhulyn Wolfshead and Parno Lionsmane have just saved one of the Marked, those gifted with special powers, from a mob that appears to be under the influence of a priest of the Sleeping God. Learning that this is not an isolated incident and realizing that Dhulyn's own unique gift will make them a target, the two take ship for safer climes. Once ashore the partners take on a seemingly simple mission of escorting a young woman to distant relatives. But not even Dhulyn's talent can warn them of the threat that awaits at the far end of their journey.

The Sleeping God

The Sleeping God is the story of Dhulyn Wolfshead and Parno Lionsmane, Mercenary Brothers who share a Partnership that cannot be broken, even in death. This first novel in the Dhulyn and Parno series focuses on the Marked, people born with special powers to Find, or Heal, or Mend. Dhulyn is one of the rarest of the Marked, a Seer. However, her gift is sporadic and can be as much a curse as a blessing. When a vision sends her and her partner into a burning building to rescue children trapped on the second floor, they are drawn inexorably into a battle for the future of Imrion between the New Jaldeans, a fanatic religious group, and the Marked they are targeting, claiming that the Marked are trying to awake the Sleeping God and destroy the world.

The Sleeping God is an interesting mix of story types. It starts out feeling like a classic sword & sorcery novel, but morphs into a character-driven tale of political intrigue. For a book in which the two main characters are mercenaries, there is little actual fighting, but there is lots of adventure. Violette Malan has created a very interesting cultural background for all of the action. The extensive knowledge of the Brotherhood, the academic training of the Scholars, and the roles of Keys and Walls in the noble houses all combine to create a rich setting that feels simultaneously realistic and fantastical. The realism is also enhanced by the actions having consequences that actually matter for story development. I appreciated that killing has consequences — even if you are the hero and the person you killed deserved it.

In a book that is this character-driven, the author can make or break the story with her characterization, and Violette Malan shines with a rich pairing of characters in Dhulyn and Parno. Both of them have a lot of baggage which is revealed delicately and logically. Malan avoids the flaw of telling us all about the characters, instead showing us their true natures through their attitudes and behaviors. The relationship between Dhulyn and Parno is especially well done, with a depth and realism that is frequently lacking in the depiction of long-term relationships in fantasy.

All that said, there were a few flaws with The Sleeping God. The beginning is fairly clunky. I felt like I was watching someone set up a chess board as Malan laid out all the characters, down to the horses. The action did pick up, and by about 100 pages into the book, she had hit her stride. My other criticism is that the ending was a little obvious. There’s a fine line between foreshadowing and giving away the ending, and Malan showed her cards a little too much, diminishing the impact of the climax. And one completely inconsequential quibble: the series title for these books is “A Novel of Dhulyn and Parno.” They couldn’t have come up with something more interesting than that?

Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed The Sleeping God. By the end, I was bringing the book to work with me so I could sneak in a few more pages on my lunch break. The maturity of the storytelling allows what could have been a standard sword & sorcery tale to become something much richer and fulfilling. I have the next book in the series sitting on my bedside table already, so I can continue to follow the adventures of Dhulyn and Parno. I would recommend The Sleeping God for adult or YA readers with sufficient attention spans who enjoy good characters and intrigue along with their fantasy action. —Ruth Arnell

The Soldier King

The second book in the A Novel of Dhulyn and Parno series, The Soldier King is a fun sword and sorcery romp featuring engaging characters and an entertaining, multi-faceted world. Picking up about a year after The Sleeping God leaves off, Violette Malan starts the story on a battlefield at the end of a war. The Mercenary Brothers Dhulyn and Parno accept the surrender of the prince of the opposing side’s army. Their own commanders want to hold him hostage as a bargaining chip in opposition to the Common Rule of the Mercenary Guild, so Dhulyn and Parno smuggle Edmir, the young prince, out of the camp and make a run for his capital. On the way, they discover that it was his own army that had been subverted, and his own country is no longer safe because of power machinations of the mysterious Blue Mage.

Violette Malan excels at writing fun books with entertaining characters. There is a level of sophistication to her writing that is not commonly present in this style of book. This story is more action-driven than The Sleeping God, but it is still centered around the characters. The relationship between Dhulyn and Parno is complex, with layers of responsibility and trust that transcends the word “love.” The supporting characters are sympathetic and believable, from the young prince Edmir to the actress Zania to the members of the royal Houses. Malan even manages to riff on Hamlet throughout the entire plot, though luckily the two Mercenaries don’t pull a Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Her pacing is excellent, as the story ramps up to a thrilling, fast-paced climax that resolves all the story lines in a convenient, convincing package.

There were some serious missteps, however. Beyond a desperate need for editing, and an overly simplistic resolution to the love story, my biggest problem was with Malan’s choice of setting up the major conflict at the end of the story. It will ruin the plot to explain it here, but for those of you who don't care, I'll discuss this in the spoiler alert at the end of this review.

Even so, The Soldier King is an entertaining tale of intrigue and adventure. Malan excels at character-driven action novels, and this is a fun and worthwhile addition to this series. Recommended for all adult and advanced young adult readers. —Ruth Arnell

I understand that for the story to progress that Dhulyn needs to get captured by the Blue Mage, but there is no way you can convince me that a trained Mercenary — who has spent a book and a half being so overtly cautious that it borders on paranoia — decides, when she breaks into the Mage’s stronghold and locates the mysterious magical artifact locked in a chest in his workroom, that she is going to play, “Hey, what does this button do?” with a object of unknown powers and abilities. It was so out of character that it threw me out of my engagement with the story and I spent the rest of the book waiting for an explanation of that behavior. No explanation ever materialized. I knocked half a star off of the rating just for that one incident.