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Reviewed by Romuald Dzemo for Readers' Favorite
The Ring of Mann is the second book in the Circles of Time series by David Thomas Kay and is a well-written novel for fans of historical fiction and fantasy. Fans of psychological thrillers will enjoy this narrative. It is set in the English Lake District in 1663, a locality that is rife with folklore and tales of witches and where people live in fear of the devil. It is here that a runic ring and a black Arabian horse unleash the ghost of a female Viking warrior. A young innocent widow is possessed. The story follows very captivating and richly developed characters. A woodcutter’s disappearance is blamed on three young cousins and while Major Rathbone continues to persecute the Quakers, the young cousins must flee from the Major’s son, Rufus, who is after them with his Constables. It is pulsating and filled with action and romance.
The story is captivating and transporting, with a setting that is vividly described and where the day-to-day life of the characters is aptly captured with strong imagery. Readers are confronted with a culture enriched by superstitious beliefs and where people live in fear of those who hold power in the land and spiritual forces. Mary is one of my favorite characters, a widow of Viking descent, and one of the key characters in the story. Her brother is another interesting character and he, a gravedigger, epitomizes the superstitious nature of the people of the town. Thomas is one of the characters that I followed and his role in the narrative is indispensable. The writing is suspenseful and filled with situations that are strangely familiar and characters that, though living in another time and culture, are believable and memorable. The Ring of Mann has a setting that is well-written and I loved the way the author captures the details of the landscape, the politics of the town, and the general beliefs of the common people. It is highly descriptive and sprinkled with well-crafted dialogues. David Thomas Kay just became one of my favorite fantasy writers and the way he mixes fantasy and mystery won me over.