Rover, The by Mel Odom

The thing about the Rover is that it hits as well as it misses. Personally, I found the attention to detail with regards to background stories as well as to the main characters wonderful. I enjoyed seeing such interesting tales create a world of long ago passing even if emphasis on the world as it was now didn't always live up to comparison.

I did think though that characteration, though aptly handled for the main characters could have been dealt a bit more generously to the subcharacters so that they didn't have just one or two adjectives describing them. For the most part, since Wick was the only constant throughout, he had the most work done to him.

This may be a pro as well as a con, it really depends on the reader, but Odom has the habit in this novel to "rush" into each part he's doing. By rush I don't mean the style of his writing was rush, but the flow of the story felt it was on one of those quick pace schedules. His main character wouldn't last long enough in one place before he'd be off shuffling elsewhere. I know it's titled "The Rover" but I expected a bit more plot and a bit more connection for the places his main character has been to. (They shouldn't compare him to Jordan or Tokien as book duration as well as world building was not THAT extensive!)

To me at least, I felt that this hampered the story's development. The world was developed through word of mouth stories told by Wick (main character), but the stories are of a world 1000 years ago. What you see instead is the current world and that's only mentioned in passing description as the character dances through each place he goes. While I loved the back history, I felt a lot more could be accomplished with using ideas from the present as well.

It was just "amazing" how many old things were still in its place even after 1000 years of passing.

A big negative was the destruction of a certain monster (i'm being vague so as not to completely spoil) who should not have been killed as it makes the story lack believability. Up onto that point you could rationalize and accept all that was happening... this "climax" so to say was more like a anti one. If Wick gets kidnapped, traded about, I should think the main climax would be trying to head home - not destroying a beast no one else could.

I felt the whole scene detered from the remainder of the novel as there really was no point for him in facing and killing it. You have all this development about Lord Kharrion and would think that something would comeof it, but nope. But speaking of endings, the one we're given feels tacked on as if he didn't know what else to do with it and said, "HERE, take this."

I don't know if there's a sequel or if there were books that came before. If so it might explain the looseness of this book, if not then I can only hope a sequel will tied in all the unanswered questions floating about: like where did the man at the beginning go to? Where did the boneblights go? What about Embyrs? Etc.

I'd love to read a follow up if only it can answer these questions.