Review: Star Clans: A Troll Hunt

        Star Clans: A Troll Hunt, by H.A. Austin and Peter Austin, follows the epic adventure of a young Viking Captain in space. He sets out on a complicated foray against the Trolls, who have captured his blood-brother. On the way, he is forced to deal with a new race of telepaths, the Amazons. It’s a good book to hand to a twelve-year-old. Clean language and  no improprieties. Violence (Viking and Troll battles), but minimal gore.

       The lore is alarmingly thorough. There is a clear understanding of Greek and Roman mythology, which constructs the basis of Viking and Amazon cultures. The Viking command structure follows traditional Norse military positions. Their loot division contracts are what one would expect of a sailing privateer. A particularly hilarious race of fairies hails straight from Shakespearean comedy.

If you enjoy Rick Riordan or John Flanagan, you will like this book.

       The weapons and ships are so detailed and well-described that it would be very possible to sketch in a CAD program and/or make 3D models. The female warriors are realistic, and tend to rely on strategy and skill rather than brute force. The Amazons are really interesting in this regard, as they have pushed their remote battlefield technologies to favor stealth and drone-based lethality. The Vikings’ primary occupation seems to be battle-craft, with an emphasis on Troll hunting. The Trolls themselves are extremely well-defended giants who travel in massive bands of hundreds and tens of thousands, and build massively fortified battlements.

Valkyrie by Peter Nicolai Arbo

       The space battles (to my limited understanding of military tactics) appear to be plausibly accurate. The crafts take advantage of all three dimensions, not just the traditional two used in land-based fighting. The ships’ technologies and use of their surroundings are grounded in scientific thought. It’s clear the authors did a lot of research.

The Drakkar shields

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Noveau Larousse Ilustré

       For a first book, this is excellent. It needs a proofreader to fix the typos, but first-time authors can be reluctant to relinquish control of their art. However, that is a minor concern in relation to the sheer quantity of science, mythology, and history packed into this volume. There is no shortage of plot, and clearly enough material here for a long series. My rating scale gives four stars if this book would cause me to read more by this author, and five if the book is worth rereading. Star Clans: A Troll Hunt is an action-packed adventure full of humor and camaraderie, and worth rereading, which would make it a five. The absence of proofreading is annoying enough to deduct half a point. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

4.5 stars

*The pictures are public domain art from the mid 1800s.
**This is a free review, and reflects my own personal opinion. I am related to the authors.