The second week of Black Library’s 2015 Advent Calendar comes to a close with The Crystal of Fate by Guy Haley, which sees a Tzeentchian champion hoping to usurp the absent Kairos Fateweaver and ascend to daemonhood. Determined to take back his domain from the invading Stormcasts, Duke Phostrin strikes a pact with the sorcerer Chalix to venture into the realm of Tzeentch himself and take ownership of the titular Crystal of Fate. Can he survive long enough to reach his goal, and will it give him everything he hopes?
As befits a story of Tzeentch it’s suitably twisted and unpredictable, holding off from fully explaining what it’s about until the very last moment. In the end it’s far from groundbreaking in terms of narrative, but it’s consistently enjoyable watching Phostrin’s progress through the changeable landscape of first the realm of Metal and then the realm of Chaos. Haley focuses on Phostrin’s actions over his thoughts, further adding to the mystery, and if it leaves Phostrin feeling a little bland there’s enough forward motion to keep the story going and the reader interested. Perhaps not the most unique of stories, but with Haley’s writing as engaging and interesting as always, it’s still worth reading.
Click here to go to the main Black Library Advent Calendar post and see the other reviews.
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