Bargain eBooks #87: Eel's Reverence by Marian Allen

Eel's Reverence by Marian Allen

Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Price: $2.99

Where to Get It:

Amazon.com (for Kindle)
OmniLit


When elderly priest of Micah, "Aunt" Libby, goes on a Final Wandering, she's accosted and then befriended by an amphibious mugger. The area known as The Eel is infested with worse than minor criminals--it's under the thumbs of a coalition of greedy, brutal priests. Aunt Libby is a frail barrier to stand between peace and violence, and the worst violence may not come from her enemies...but from her friends. Marian Allen's EEL'S REVERENCE explores what it means to be moral--and what it means to be human.

What they're saying about it:

Eel's Reverence is a fantasy allegory that wonderfully compares a humble heart of a "true" priest to "reaver priests" who would take advantage of others through a demanding litany of subservience. Eel's Reverence explores relationships between friends and enemies, and all the results of dealing with hard choices. As a Christian, I had no trouble relating to the allegory in this novel, and the conflicts that arise in real life. Very well done, with a new conflict, just as I thought the story would end. Marian Allen is an accomplished storyteller. My money was well spent - if you enjoy fantasy or allegorical stories, yours will be too!"--Amazon Reviewer


"Writing a fantasy that feels real is a delicate balancing act, one that Allen manages with deft humor, all-too-believable characters, and the occasional fantastical reference that reminds us that we’re not in Kansas anymore. Take, for instance, the reproductive cycle of mermayds. Like seahorses, the females lay eggs—but the males gestate them in a belly pouch. Like some amphibians, they are capable of switching gender at need. And yet they are physically like mermaids—half human, half fish. The fantasy is real, and believable, because it is rooted in similar structures in the “real” world.

Perhaps that’s the key to Eel’s Reverence both as a darned good read, and as a book that provokes questions about our own world—the fantasy is fantastical enough to be fun, and real enough to be believable."--Amazon Reviewer