Witness: Book One of All Prophets Are Liars: Bill Blais

A world where magic and steel clash; a world where armored warriors, orcs, and animalistic people struggle daily for their very existence. In this place and time, as deception reigns and no one can be trusted, the people wait for their prophesied hero to return...

But the hero, who was biding his time in Boston, was just struck and killed by a drunk in an SUV. So much for the prophesied hero.

Now Stephen, the driver, and Rick, the man he was trying to simply scare have been accidentally drawn into an inter-dimensional war. The only connection between the two men is the girl they both want, Sarah. Now they'll find themselves much closer then they could ever want to be when they get tossed down the rabbit hole into a world they could never have imagined.

Upon waking in this strange new place Rick tries to draw upon his hard-earned D&D and Lord of the Rings skills to navigate the scenery. Unfortunately he's been sent here with the worst possible person: the anti-geek. As Rick attempts to make sense of the ever-worsening situation Stephen mocks his theories and finally makes him face the truth: it isn't supposed to be like this.

Heroic stories aren't supposed to be like this.

And that's the crux, and the very wonderful thing, about this book. It makes a mockery of the "little guys rises up and finds the hero inside of him" story. It's an almost anti-hero story. Rick tries valiantly but this is very much a "real world" fantasy, if such a thing could be said to exist. It may be upsetting, or jarring, for purist fantasy fans.

It isn't without its humor though. Humor in vast, laugh-out-loud doses. It's done very well and spaced to break up the more dramatic moments so that it doesn't get too serious.

There are some rough moments, where the writing needs to be smoother. The dialogue can feel forced at moments. Also, as with any new fantasy world there's no good way to build a whole new world and ease the reader in, not when the action starts immediately. It can be confusing but the author has done a good job of building his world and creating the path between this world and that one.

As the first book in the series, it definitely shows promise and is a good beginning to what I hope will become a favorite collection for many readers.
--------------------
Publisher: iUniverse, Incorporated
Pub. Date: February 2008
ISBN-13: 9780595715152