Telep is a cliff climber, higher in the caste system of the land of Eveloce than one of his trade should be, other than his mentor Caleb, who has served the upper tier of the secluded mountain country faithfully. When Caleb suffers an injury no climber can return from, he is forced to leave Eveloce, and take with him his daughter, Ell, the woman who holds Telep’s heart.
Unbeknownst to Caleb or Ell, Telep follows them outside their beloved homeland into exile, determined to be with his love again. When Telep enters parts of the world he’s only heard stories of, he finds Caleb and Ell working for a people whose drive to expand their land’s boundaries is equalled only by their desire for vengeance on the mysterious people who live beyond.
In TEMPLE OF CONQUEST, author Mark Broe creates a rich fantasy world different than any I’ve dipped my nose into. It’s a world of distinct kingdoms with distinct people, distinct traditions, and distinct goals. From the erudite people of the mountain kingdom Eveloce, to the ship and bridge builders of the West Isles, to the miners and refiners of the southernmost South Nexus, and beyond, each culture is unique and believable, the people Broe populates them with doubly so.
I felt for Telep, as the woman he planned to marry, and her father, were taken from him and cast into a less civilized part of the world (at least that’s what residents of Eveloce are led to believe). I felt for Caleb as the better life he’d struggled to earn for his daughter is destroyed by the pop of a safety strap. And I felt for characters I met deeper into the book (no spoilers, man). Broe not only fleshed these characters into people I could see and hear, he created an emotional attachment from the character to the reader.
Detail of the expansion from South Nexus into the wilds beyond kept me flipping pages to see how these people were going to accomplish the loftiest goal their world had ever seen. Broe’s world building made sense, the different motivations of Telep, of Caleb, and project leader Ep Brody and his brother, the angry, bitter Ep Salo, made sense. And the essential profession of Telep and Caleb made sense. Broe is a rock climber, and used his expertise to make me feel I was alone on a cold, hard cliffside. I also enjoyed the battle scenes. I’m not sure Broe’s battled mythical beasts, but he gave a good picture of it.
Telep’s motivations after a pivotal moment in the story could have gone a few different ways, but I believed it when Telep was too strong to quit. As I finished the last bits of TEMPLE OF CONQUEST I understood the temple, the people of the temple, and how much I wanted to see more of them. Not that the book needed to continue, because that story was over. There seems to be more stories in this world to tell.
TEMPLE OF CONQUEST is a fun, fast read, filled with danger, politics, and good old-fashioned human feelings. I recommend this for fans of fantasy and adventure.
Mark Broe is a rock climber, writer (yeah, those two were obvious), and sound recordist from Michigan. He wrote the first draft of TEMPLE OF CONQUEST during a two-month trip to Guyana. You can find TEMPLE OF CONQUEST at Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Camcatbooks.com, and the book website, www.templeofconquest.com.