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A.K. Larkwood: The Unspoken Name – Book Review

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A.K. Larkwood: The Unspoken Name - Book Cover

There’s no denying that with the Internet, the golden age of fantasy writers has arrived. With a slight exaggeration, publishers release every piece of crap. If someone reads a lot of fantasy, they can easily find that from the three newly released books in the genre, (at least) two are mediocre junk. Especially if it’s a debut author. Fortunately, this is not the case with A.K. Larkwood’s first book, “The Unspoken Name”.

Walking Pace

At the beginning of the book, your doubts may not completely dissipate though. “The Unspoken Name” immediately grabs your imagination with its completely unique world-building, but initially it still seems rather nondescript. When the Chosen Bride, Csorwe, starts climbing the stairs towards the mysterious god’s sanctuary, presumably to be consumed as their next meal, a more experienced writer might have written this scene as far more chilling. Csorwe just casually walks up.

But the same blandness is evident in the rescuer, the wizard Belthandros Sethennai. This gentleman is a powerful mage, but it doesn’t really come across. He seems more like someone who claims to be this, but doesn’t really provide any evidence of it.

It takes some time before you realize they’re both just like that.

A. K. Larkwood, however, ensures that you don’t give up until the real adventures begin.

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Locke & Key: Master Edition, Volume Three by Joe Hill – Gabriel Rodriguez – Comic Book Review

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Locke & Key: Master Edition, Volume Two by Joe Hill – Gabriel Rodriguez – Comic Book Cover

A Stunning Finale at Breakneck Speed

The grand finale. No dragging things out. (In case you were hoping for more installments.) But perhaps that’s for the best, because in the previous volume, while not excessively, Locke & Key did slow down a bit when the focus shifted to everyday teenage problems. Well, there’s none of that here. Not a single panel is wasted. The conclusion hurtles forward at breakneck speed, right up to the final frames.

You start in 1775, discovering how and why Ben Locke created the keys. Then, instead of immediately stashing them in a very dark place where no one would ever find them, you jump to 1988 to find out what his descendant, Rendell—the father of the Locke kids—messed up. Now, in the present, it’s up to the kids to fix his mistakes, though it will come at a great personal cost.

The Necessary Level of Acceptance

Joe Hill is absolutely a 21st-century, deeply politically correct author. Alongside the dizzying pace of his graphic novel’s plot, he also makes sure to sensitively highlight the importance of accepting others, whether that involves race, sexual orientation, or disabilities. His father must be very proud of him from a parenting perspective. And maybe Hill feels the same about his father, the great Stephen King, given the respectful nods, like the homage to the infamous scene in Carrie.

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