A Cavern of Black Ice - J.V. Jones

A cavern of Black Ice by JV Jones gives itself away in it's title. It is dark and it is cold. Now, those two words are rarely ever used in a positive light, but here they are. Raif Severance and his Brother are members of the Blackhail clan. They hunt, mine, farm and exist in the cold, wooded places called the bad lands. They're out on a hunting trip when they disappear from camp for a while, however when they return it seems everyone, including their father and the clan chief have been killed. The thing is, there is next to no blood shed and the brothers fear magic was involved. After preparing the bodies for their journey to the next world they travel home ...  Read the complete review

J V Jones is rapidly making a name for herself in the science fantasy genre. Cavern of Black Ice is the first of her new trilogy and has been out in paperback for some months now. For anyone familiar with the Robert Jordan type or the David / Leigh Eddings books this has a similar feel. The story is reasonably well paced, the major characters are well formed but there are loose strings in the story or minor themes that just don't fit. What makes her writing different? She has a quirk of writing about 'bodily functions'. As a female writer she feels permitted to write about urination, defecation, that's pissing and shitting to normal ...  Read the complete review