The Curse of the Thrax
Yes, Book One of The Bloodsword Trilogy
YA
CreateSpace
March 4, 2014
324
Blog tour, via PR by the Book
Jaykriss is a typical teenager. He’s bored with school, the girl he loves doesn’t even know he’s alive, and he and his mother disagree—a lot. The village Jaykriss lives in lies deep in a primevalforest. Life there is simple, and is predicated upon day-to-day survival. As his father is gone, Jaykriss must provide for his mother and sister. That is his primary role in life--and he is good at it. But Jaykriss is restless. He is curious and inquisitive. And he wants desperately to avenge the death of his father Glyndich--a warrior killed by a fearsome dragon known only as the Thrax. So how does a mere boy of fourteen who is simply trying to keep his family alive kill a legendary beast thought to be nearly invincible? To kill the Thrax, one must first find it. On a routine hunting trip, Jaykriss and his best friend encounter the Thrax at last. The terrifying creature chases them mercilessly through the darkening forest--and the boys eventually stumble into the refuge of an eccentric hermit whose home is filled with books from ancient times. The hermit teaches Jaykriss that all is not as it seems in his world. The mutants and dragons that populate their world are actually relics of a long-ago biological disaster. The Dark King, a ruler they revere as a god, is a vicious tyrant who will do anything to stay in power. Jaykriss realizes that there may be more to his life than he initially thought. He might be able to someday vanquish the Thrax. He may, in fact, be The One who Leads, prophesied to save the entire human race. But is Jaykriss truly ready for his destiny--or will that destiny consume him?
(This review contains some spoilers.)
This book’s description does not do it justice. Mark Murphy’s The Curse of the Thrax is a well developed, often humorous, yet somewhat deep fantasy story about 14-year-old Jaykriss and his best friend and cousin, Marda.
Jaykriss goes through many challenges as a young teenager. After the death of his father, he must protect his mother and sister, go hunting regularly for his village, and defend himself from attacks—all while going through puberty and falling in love for the first time.
All of the characters in The Curse of the Thrax are deeply developed, so it’s easy to know their motivations. A couple chapters reminded me of the Avatar: The Last Airbender storytelling techniques, which had stories within stories to provide the characters with lessons they’ll need to survive.
However, the story, though entertaining, often felt abrupt. Each chapter is jam-packed with high stakes and action. But then the chapter wraps up and the next chapter easily moves to a new section of the story, often breezing over potential issues and hardships the characters endured or were worried about in the previous chapter.
That said, Mark Murphy still manages to weave in some philosophical questions throughout the book. For example, most of the characters in the story believe in the gods, and look to the priests for help when they pray to the gods. But one so-called traitor and outlaw, Zamarcus, is a scientist, who freely shares his knowledge so others can make smart decisions based on knowledge. Interestingly, though Zamarcus is a scientist and firmly believes in science, he also reconciles science with religion.
Murphy also writes some touching and very realistic dialogue and interaction between Jaykriss and his girlfriend, Sola. They are adorable, though it’s hard to imagine that Jaykriss could so easily focus on his mission with Marda early on in the story and hardly think about Sola, especially after recently kissing her for the first time. It also doesn’t help that he’s a 14-year-old boy.
Still, there is not a dull moment in the book, and Murphy has set up an intriguing, complex world. World building is always a complicated task, but The Curse of the Thrax has an extra layer of complexity, because Murphy seems to blend traditional fantasy genre details—such as having priests, a Godswood, and fantastical creatures—with elements of dystopian novels and playful nods to modern times.
For example, one of the most feared and misunderstood cities used to be known as Atlanta Transit Authority. And after man’s downfall, humans forgot about their pasts, including their knowledge of medicine and technology, and started living simpler lives and believing in magic.
Overall, The Curse of the Thrax is an entertaining and fairly quick read. If you like fantasy, magic, science, and tales of underdogs fighting to right wrongs, then I highly recommend this first book in the Bloodsword Trilogy. The fight scenes alone are epic. I look forward to when the next two books in the series are out.
