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Alistair Potter writes Fantasy, Science Fiction, short stories and poetry. His work has been read on the BBC Radio4, Scottish Shorts series, and he is former recipient of a Scottish Arts Council New Writer's Bursary.
The Last Trollid started life as a writing group exercise that produced a scene between Ida and Bort, where Ida was trying to teach Bort how to cook pancakes. It just 'dropped out of the ether' onto the page. The characters were so much fun, I took it home and kept going until I'd written the book. It then became one of my 'apprentice pieces' - getting written and re-written to address all the usual 'beginner' problems most writers usually encounter. Sadly, in the rewrites, the 'pancake scene' was lost, as the story needed to start much later. I'll need to look it out and see how it stands as a short story!
Reviewed by Charles Remington for Readers' Favorite
An elderly wizard uses his awesome powers to open a world gate on the peaceful pastoral planet of Nephus and, as a result, enables an invading horde of reptilian aliens to pass through and launch a merciless attack on the mainly agricultural population. The Last Trollid (The Sunset of Magic – Book 1) by Alistair Potter chronicles how the unprepared and ill-equipped inhabitants fight a hopeless battle to try to save their planet. As the casualties mount, the operators of the field kitchen, one Ida Fairweather and her assistant, Bort, are enlisted to help with the wounded and transporting the unfortunate combatants to safety. But very quickly, they find themselves diverted and become a part of a small unlikely band which, almost by accident, becomes involved in a quest to find a fantastic hidden city and a fabled library, in which they hope to discover the means to save their embattled planet. The journey is arduous and fraught with danger, however, as a merciless enemy and a fabled dragon stalk their every step.
I had the privilege of reviewing The Box of Tricks by Alistair Potter some time ago, and, having found it an excellent book, was encouraged to take up The Last Trollid, and to my delight found it equally as good, if very different. Whereas The Box of Tricks was straightforward science fiction, The Last Trollid is straightforward fantasy. The pace is a little less frenetic, but it is lucid, full of interesting plot twists, and peopled with well-drawn, rounded characters set in an intricately imagined landscape. A fine example of the genre. I am pleased to note that there are more books in this particular series. Although I am not normally drawn to fantasy novels as such, I have become very fond of the planet Nephus and this set of rather interesting characters, so I will certainly make a point of reading the others. The Last Trollid is a cracking read and highly recommended.
