The Staff & The Sword #1
“The only thing the boy does well is drink. He’ll be the first to admit it.”
Cruk
My mom lent me this trilogy, and since I need to return it in December, I finally got started reading. I had never heard of this author before, but the synopsis looked appealing. A Cast of Stones is the first book in the trilogy and the logical starting point.
Errol Stone, an orphan, and the village drunk is the main character of the story. Despite his low status and addiction, he does not seek pity or charity. No one truly tries to help him or tries to find the driving reason behind his addiction. It is not until he is separated from his companions during a fight that he comes across someone compassionate enough to help him work through his emotional baggage. It is during this time that Errol truly begins to find himself and become the capable character that he had shown potential to be. Sadly, he is the only one of the main cast that I like.
His companions from the village tend to look down on him and are unhelpful in aiding him on their journey, even as they force him to come along. A distinctive scene that irks me is when they get horses to speed their progress. On learning that Errol doesn’t ride, they teach him the basics. Shortly after they begin to move, the rest of the group rides off and leaves Errol on his own to follow. This general disregard for Errol’s health and wellbeing is shown in various ways through the book. When he confronts them on their treatment of him, they give him a speech on how they are all pawns and essentially shrug it off.
The overarching plot behind the book is an intriguing journey into how the kingdom will select it’s next king as the current one has no heir. There are many plots afoot, and the book ends on an appealing cliffhanger for the next book.
Unfortunately, a good plot is not enough to save a book where I only like one character. I hope it gets better in the next two books, but I’m not holding my breath.
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