Under The Radar 02: Midwinter

When I pick up a new book for the first time a lot of questions go through my mind. Who is the author or in some cases the artist, what’s the books genre, have I read something similar before? It’s tough for me, as I often shop by novelty. “Hey! This book has an awesome cover!” or “I love zombie books!” are often heard in my local book stores, only for me to be sadly disappointed with a lackluster story. So one day while scouring through the Science Fiction section I came across an author I was already familiar with named Matthew Sturges. Sturges is best known for his work in comic books on titles like House of Mystery, Jack of Fables, Blue Beetle and JSA: All-Stars. As I inspected the book, Office of Shadows I learned it was actually the sequel to his first novel Midwinter. Realizing I enjoyed his work, I quickly ordered the first and did my best to wait.

Upon delving into the book I found it new but strangely familiar. I was never hugely interested in books about magical worlds, elves or anything like that. I barely made it through The Lord of the Rings and that was only because I didn’t want to wait two years to finish the story after the first film was released. Set in the world of the Seelie, Midwinter follows a disgraced former Captain in the Seelie Army named Mauritane who has been given a task that if completed will spell freedom and redemption for not only himself, but those he chooses to bring with him. Among this group is Raeive, a beautiful yet deadly warrior who finds herself trapped in a world that isn’t her own. Perrin Alt, better known as Lord Silverdun, a nobleman who has some degree of magical abilities who was sent to prison after being the victim of a coup by his Uncle to take his land. Then there is Brian Satterly, a human scientist, who is captured while traveling from our world to the Seelie in an attempt to free his niece from an almost slave trade like business.

Mauritane and crew are tasked by their Queen Regina Titania, with the task that is almost as vague as it is suicidal. They must travel across their land as fugitives and into the land of the UnSeelie, their mortal enemies led by the dreaded Queen Mab. The UnSeelie live in flying cities, which are constantly on the move which makes them hard to track as no city is ever in the same location as it was before. Master of the Black Arts, Hy Pezho, has given Mab a new weapon that can be used from one of these cities and wipe out an entire enemy city in one swift stroke. Our heroes find they must cross what are known as the Contested Lands, an area made as a result of the destruction from past wars and battles. Entering the Contested Lands would have similar effects as a person entering a room and instantly being on LSD, nothing around you is the same. Time can either pass slower or faster, depending on the area you enter, making it possible to travel the same distance in a few hours that would have otherwise had taken days. With their tasks needing to be completed before the end of Midwinter, Mauritane and company must hurry if they have any hope of saving the Seelie and earning their freedom.

As I said, I’ve never read a lot of this style of fiction so I was thankful for the inclusion of the Brian Satterly, who is luckily around to ask many of the questions I seemed to have as a new reader. The character makes it easy to pick up this book and enjoy it while having no knowledge of any other magical styled books. On the other hand, his questions and even ignorance of the magic of the Seelie wouldn’t throw off anyone who is a fan of this type of book either. Sturges kept the story well-paced, giving you action when you needed it and slowing down to let his characters become closer as well. By the time I was halfway through the book I found myself wanting more, but not wanting to read at the same time as I knew the story would eventually come to an end! When it sadly did reach that point, I immediately went out and picked up Office of Shadow, the sequel which ties up a few loose plot points and brings Lord Silverdun from supporting player to the main stage.

Whether you are a fan of Science Fiction or Fantasy types of stories, I would highly recommend you pick up both books. As someone who doesn’t normally suggest novels for people, I think you should take that statement very seriously! Matthew Sturges does not disappoint and I can only hope that he finds the time to write another in the series as I feel there is still so many more stories he can tell with these characters. Midwinter is both a straightforward action-fantasy book but has a few well done surprises that I dare not ruin! So whether you shop online or go to your local book store, pick it up and enjoy, I doubt you’ll be able to put it down.