An ancient evil threatens the magical land of Lackanay, its presence held back by the great beasts known as fairrier cats. Unfortunately, Spelopokos seems to be the only one of these great felines left. If the land is to survive, he must find others of his kind.
Candlewax
by C. Bailey Sims
Terabyte Press
April 2012
Catherine is a princess of the kingdom of Crystallia, betrothed to the king of Candlewax, whom she has never even met. But when Catherine tries to run away, destiny forces her into a meeting with Spelopokos, a creature she didn't even believe still existed.
The fate of the entire land of Lackanay now rests on the shoulders of a princess and a cat, who must battle through a land of magic, survive a war, and destroy an ancient evil that will literally devour everything in its path. But time is running out.
Candlewax by C. Bailey Sims is very much a classic fairytale. And while the premise itself is not terribly original, there is a certain comfort in this type of story in which all the mainstays of fantasy are present.
There is also a very rich background of magic and legend behind the main story. Of course, at times the plot can seem a bit contrived, but then, what story about destiny isn't?
The characters are fleshed out and well-written as well, their evolution and growth throughout the story plain to see. Despite not caring much for Catherine in the beginning, I found myself cheering her on as the story progressed.
My only real complaint is Spelopokos, the great fairrier cat of legend. His character alone is haughty and self-assured, which I could honestly forgive if that were all there was to it. But is attitude is well justified by his endless number of abilities. He is simply too overpowered.
In fact, his list of abilities goes on so long that I honestly couldn't help but wonder why he even needed the other characters in the first place. This actually became somewhat of an issue for me in reading the story because Spelopokos is one of the main characters and features heavily.
Still, the overall book was entertaining and the characters, for the most part, enjoyable. If you're a fan of classic fantasy and fairytales, you should definitely read Candlewax.
