Weekly Reader: Griffin's Perch by Ian Conner; Fantasy World With That Conner Touch
By Julie Sara Porter
Bookworm Reviews
Spoilers: Ian Conner appears to be the author's equivalent of throwing everything to the wall to see what sticks. I have a notion that he wants to write at least one book in every genre, just because he can. So far he has done Folkloric Ghost Stories/Horror (Dark Maiden ), Political Thrillers/Mystery (The Long Game: An Amy Radigan Mystery), Vampire Dark Fantasy/Horror (Cardinals), Science Fiction (Cooper's Ridge). Now he's taking on Epic Fantasy with his book, Griffin's Perch. I don't have one favorite specific author, but because of his versatility and willingness to write so many genres and do them so well, Conner has become one of them.
Denrael of Gesthamin, the last of the current order of wizards, has some big plans to make. His world is being ravaged by five dangerous dragons led by their leader, the diabolical Fury. This confrontation has been predicted for a long time and Denrael knows what he needs.
Some objects that he needs to defeat the dragons include a golden cluster and a silver scroll. He also needs to create an army that will fight against the dragons. He and his associates come upon some small griffins, created by a former colleague of Denrael's.
When they grow bigger, Griffin's can become large, strong, and formidable even against dragons. So he recruits the Delphens, a fox-like species, to ride, work with, and fight alongside these powerful creatures. He also has to broker peace between the feuding pixies, elves, and merpeople because the prophecy specifically required these species to work together to fight their same foes. All of these different species, creatures, and characters must find some common ground so they can cooperate and fight the destructive dragons.
This epic fantasy is like all good epic fantasies where the world building is impressive. The only completely original species created are the Delphens and Conner does a great job of creating their biology, social structure, and characteristics while making them individuals. The Delphens were once a mostly farming community but the arrival of dragons and griffins transformed some into a corps of warriors. The Griffin Corps are able to use their physical strength, hardiness, and closeness to nature to bond with and ride the griffins. They treat the griffins like more than just dumb steeds. They share consciousness, mind links, and emotions. The Delphens' relationships with their griffins are that of friends, companions, and siblings in arms.
Two of the best Delphens are Shala and Flinch. Flinch is a quick witted sometimes comic relief who has a running gag of dismounting badly. However, he also has inherited precognitive abilities which requires him to have some dark visions. For him, this quest is one of maturity as he has to shed his childlike impetuosity.
Shala is a much more serious character. She embodies both a hardened worrier and loving nurturer. The warrior aspects occur in her aerial battles. She earns the distinction of being one of the best in the Griffin Corps for her strategic thinking and quick stealth.
Her nurturing side is revealed when she is one of the character who sets up a nursery to care for and feed the griffins until they age and bond with a rider. This quest is one of independence in which she has to counter many of the requirements expected of her and bring out the best in her people and herself.
Even with characters that are common in other fantasies, Conner does different things with them. Pixies are present with their mischievous and naughtiness. One of the more humorous characters is Glow, a sweet energetic pixy who will give any information if you provide enough sugary snacks for a bribe. But however what we see is that their sense of mischief has harmful long term implications plus they, Glow in particular, suffered tremendous loss in the past.
The Merpeople are described here as they often are in legends: attractive, but stand offish and prone to emotion. However, they are capable of assisting others and looking at the big picture that what affects everyone else will affect them.
What makes the war between the pixies and merpeople so heartbreaking is that those specific personality traits that made them stand out were controlled and manipulated by outside forces that took advantage of those characteristics to create the conflict and the tremendous intergenerational loss that resulted.
The dragons are the characters with the most interesting backstory. The book even begins at the moment that Fury is awakened for the first time, filled with anger and, well, fury. It's a rich story on how he and his fellow dragons, Rage, Rampage, Wrath, and Scorn were created. I don't want to get into it, but let's just say there was a lot of greed, ambition, jealousy, anger, and complacency that led to their presence. Many of the same emotions that were found in the Pixy-Merpeople Conflict.
Of course there are the various romances, interspecies friendships and allyships, and tremendous loss that develops during these struggles. Naturally, their world is the site of much death and destruction.
In fact, probably the strongest theme in this book is the interconnectivity of the different species and how they are affected together. They benefit from mutual cooperation and when one species suffers, eventually they all do and their world suffers. Only in coming together can they defeat the darkness and evil around them.
