Placement in series: First of three; books two and three are available
Cliffhanger: yes
Strong language: very minimal
Sexual situations: yes; non-graphic description of consensual sex;.implied rape, both past and present
Proofreading: very good--consistent quote marks errors; consistent bow and arrow errors
Editing: fair--awkward sentences; plot points introduced and never seen again; organization and management of characters needs improving; inconsistent use of descriptive words
Suggested age: high school
Humanity has been bombed back to little more than hunter-gatherers. Arranged in clans, the remaining people live a strict life as described in their books.
Jonah, a young man with a young family, unexpectedly inherits the Elk clan leadership after his father and his father's right hand man die only a day apart. It now falls to him to lead his clan on their yearly Walk from the north country to the south, a meeting point where all the clans over-winter. Along the way he deals with the reactions of the clan to their new leader, predation by both wild animals and highway men, and a mysterious stranger who tells the clan there is a different direction they can walk; one that will take them to the White Citadel.
At the heart of this book is the struggle between faiths, and the struggle between faith and the new. Both protagonists have an old book. We aren't told what's in them, just that they're different. The traditionalists have been following their book, which warns against staying in one place too long and describes their annual Walk south to avoid the winter. Jonah has inherited his clan's book from his father, and back through fathers to the beginning of the Elk clan.
Gaston,the other protaganist, also has a book, but his book doesn't require the Walk. Instead, this book describes a place in the south called the White Citadel; a place where winter never comes and the fields never go fallow in the cold.
Jonah's father was a hard-fisted bully, but Jonah is more willing to to compromise and give the benefit of the doubt. This backfires when the clan divides, Gaston having lured away many of the young warriors. However, this lets Jonah, who isn't impressed with what "tradition" entails, to start modifying some of the more draconian rules to benefit all the clans.
Jonah is a likable character, whereas Gaston is a villain from the beginning. We sympathize with Jonah as Gaston wiggles his way deeper into the Elk clan, betraying Jonah's willingness to let the man Walk with them. A young man, promoted into a leadership role before his education is done is a familiar trope, but Jonah is earnest and willing to bend, unlike his father, and we feel his frustration as matters slip through his control.
The proofreading is very good. A consistent error in the use of opening and closing quote marks is irritating as it muddies who is speaking. When a character has a multiple paragraph speech each paragraph should not end with quote marks, and then start with opening quote marks at the next paragraph.
A consistent error, which made this reader cringe, involves the character who uses a bow and arrows. She is described as "notching (her) bow." I doubt the character gets ready for a fight by carving small marks on her bow. The proper description should be "(she) nocked an arrow."
This book would benefit from closer editing. Plot points are introduced but not followed through on. Some sentences are awkwardly worded and would benefit from rephrasing. Inconsistent use of descriptive words, such as burned out vehicles sometimes referred to as cars, and sometimes as cart, makes it difficult to keep characters in their timeline. The time from the Event is sometimes related as happening at the time of their great grandfathers, and sometimes as several centuries ago. Apparently the leaders can read our modern English, but it isn't clear if anyone else can. This reader found similar editing errors to be small, but important to the understanding of of the plot.
Dustfall is an interesting start to an open ended series. It's a short read with compelling characters and backgrounds. It will be interesting to see if plot points introduced in this volume are expanded upon in the next.
Shadows of a Lost Age: Dustfall, Book 1
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Top reviews from other countries
Bookworm
Far future survival
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 22, 2016
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Excellent start to the series
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