The re-readings continue. The condition of my copy of Crawford Kilian’s Eyas reveals that I read it numerous times. With a copyright of 1982, I most likely picked it up in one of the three (!) bookstores in Clackamas Town Center mall. I certainly liked it well enough to re-read three or four times, judging from the spine. I used to take meticulous care of my books, so degree of wear corresponded directly to number of readings. Did it hold up to young Ken’s opinion?
Close. For a book that gradually unveils secrets that, in the context of the novel, are of grand scale, it is at 350 pages, too short. And though as an action novel it succeeds in carrying the reader’s attention through battles, escapes, chases on land and water, etc., it also skips over scenes, as if Kilian just wasn’t interested in writing them. He simply provides the outcome later on. I’d like to have gotten more of the military campaign that occupies much of the second act, as well as more detail on the revelations from the third act and epilogue. But the very fact that I want more is evidence that I enjoyed what I did get.
And what did I get? Eyas fits in with John Maddox Roberts Stormlands series and, to a degree, Sterling Lanier’s Hiero books. It is post-apocalyptic action/adventure, with psychic powers serving as a minor form of magic. It gradually reveals its world, describing the various countries and cultures, human or otherwise, all of which are finely differentiated and interesting. It offers villains to despise and a hero to root for. And it provides an ending, a surprisingly hopeful and expansive ending.
It’s also, in some ways, quite weird. The plot driving device — the afterlife — is strange, and never truly explained. Sort of hand-waved. Something to do with gravity. Somehow. But that’s a quibble. Eyas rewarded re-reading.
Maybe you will find the Twilight Galaxy series worth re-reading. The first book is out, the second will be published soon. (I do have some other news to share, but I’m going to wait on contracts.)
