The Right Hand of Velachaz

Rating:
Summary: Timeless Tales 5 Star Review
Review: by Kassandra Washington

Rie Sheridan's The Right Hand of Velachaz is a charming fantastical tale that will be enjoyed by young readers and adults interested in reading short fiction. The format is difficult to handle on Palm Pilots and pocket PCs since the word wrap feature is not part of the format. Readers will find it easier to view the document on a full-size computer screen, laptop or printed copy. The action is fast-paced and the author provides a sufficient amount of details without slowing the reader.

The tale begins with Teman, a young boy, who finds himself fending for himself on the streets after the death of his mother and he runs away from an abusive father. His wandering brings him across the path of the evil wizard, Velachaz. Initially, terrified and apprehensive; Teman accepts Velachaz's offer of shelter and food. Teman quickly earns the nickname Tay and learns that the wizard is not as terrible as the rumors suggest. Tay finds himself an apprentice to the mage and soon he is off on his first quest to slay the evil dragon. He realizes that things are not as they appear... figuratively and literally speaking. Along the way Tay learns that this will not be the same old generic quest for him. With a little consideration and care for others, Tay a child, changes the ways of elders; among them a wizard and a would be knight, Galen.

Galen, the youngest of seven sons, was an unexpected arrival with his next eldest brother nearly twice his age. By the time of his birth, his family's inheritances were mostly decided, so his arrival threw his family's plans askew. Thanks to a curse foretold by a fortuneteller, he must slay a dragon before he comes of age or his life will come to a horrible end. He has but one last hope for an inheritance and long life; the king has charged him the duty of slaying a ferocious dragon that has been tormenting villagers. If Galen succeeds, the king will give him knighthood and a small holding of his own; thereby alleviating the need for his brothers to share their inheritance. If he fails his quest, his father's lands will be forfeit.

At Tay's insistence, the mighty Velachaz agrees to accompany him on his quest. As Tay realizes the extent of his natural magic, he meets new acquaintances and friends along the way, including a talking dragonfly and fairy people. Gifts given to him by strangers, for his good deeds, aid him in times of trouble. Despite the ups and downs, and the lucky additional traveling companion, Sally; the rumors about the dragon prove to be inaccurate at best. Apparently, there are always two sides to every story and this quest is no exception.

The Right Hand of Velachaz is riddled with plot twists, coincidences, and circumstantial evidence. It takes a young boy with good integrity and strength to stand his ground against a knight, a mage, and the odds; to set matters straight. When readers come to the end of this tale, they will be saddened to say goodbye to the delightful characters and will wait anxiously for Tay's next adventure.

Rating:
Summary: The Right Hand of Velachaz
Review: Rie Sheridan sets the stage for what could be a series of fun adventures spinning off virtually any character in her book, The Right Hand of Velachaz. Sheridan's story was a great introduction for beginning fantasy readers and I look forward to future stories from this author.

Rating:
Summary: Action-Packed Fantasy for the Younger Set
Review: Teman did his best to survive on the streets ever since his mother died and he was forced out of his home. He was only twelve, though, so he had to be careful to avoid all of the bullies as well as try and find somewhere decent to sleep at night where he wouldn't freeze. When the wizard Velachaz approached him one evening, Teman couldn't pass up the powerful man's offer for a bed and a full belly. Everyone knew that Velachaz was a powerful dark wizard, of course, but Teman was almost too desperate to care. So Teman was surprised when they arrived at Velachaz's home to discover that the man whose name was only spoken of in whispers throughout the kingdom was actually crippled on his right side. Velachaz had to spend a lot of energy and effort to keep up the illusion of his invincibility and was looking for a bright lad to help him out and Teman seemed to fit the bill perfectly. They were both pleasantly surprised to discover that Teman had a natural affinity for magic and Teman quickly became Velachaz's apprentice as well as errand boy.

While Teman was gathering some supplies for his master, he ran into the gallant knight, Galen, who narrowly avoided killing Teman and himself for Galen was truly the clumsiest person that Teman had ever met. However, Galen was a knight, clumsy or not, and was off to slay a dragon laying waste to a corner of the kingdom. Galen's family had more or less forced him to try to slay the dreadful dragon because they would lose all of their land if he did not. Teman decided that if anyone needed help on his quest, it was Galen. Luckily, Galen turns out to be Velachaz's nephew and so Teman is off on his first grand adventure. Along the way, he will meet the fairie folk, learn new magic spells, have a cat-woman ensorcell him, and confront the dragon itself...

This is an action-packed fantasy for younger readers. The tale is well written, but it is almost too full of adventures. Any one of the things that Teman does or any of the people that he encounters could have been a book all by itself so it was a little bit too relentless of a pace to have them all in one. Still, younger readers will enjoy the book because Teman does dabble in almost every aspect of traditional fantasy so it is a good introduction to that. Due to the involved plot, however, there is little if any character development and, while the characters are likeable, they are definitely 2-dimensional and you don't really feel anything for them. Still, it is a short, fun read for those looking for something in between Harry Potter books.

Rating:
Summary: Action-Packed Fantasy for the Younger Set
Review: Teman did his best to survive on the streets ever since his mother died and he was forced out of his home. He was only twelve, though, so he had to be careful to avoid all of the bullies as well as try and find somewhere decent to sleep at night where he wouldn't freeze. When the wizard Velachaz approached him one evening, Teman couldn't pass up the powerful man's offer for a bed and a full belly. Everyone knew that Velachaz was a powerful dark wizard, of course, but Teman was almost too desperate to care. So Teman was surprised when they arrived at Velachaz's home to discover that the man whose name was only spoken of in whispers throughout the kingdom was actually crippled on his right side. Velachaz had to spend a lot of energy and effort to keep up the illusion of his invincibility and was looking for a bright lad to help him out and Teman seemed to fit the bill perfectly. They were both pleasantly surprised to discover that Teman had a natural affinity for magic and Teman quickly became Velachaz's apprentice as well as errand boy.

While Teman was gathering some supplies for his master, he ran into the gallant knight, Galen, who narrowly avoided killing Teman and himself for Galen was truly the clumsiest person that Teman had ever met. However, Galen was a knight, clumsy or not, and was off to slay a dragon laying waste to a corner of the kingdom. Galen's family had more or less forced him to try to slay the dreadful dragon because they would lose all of their land if he did not. Teman decided that if anyone needed help on his quest, it was Galen. Luckily, Galen turns out to be Velachaz's nephew and so Teman is off on his first grand adventure. Along the way, he will meet the fairie folk, learn new magic spells, have a cat-woman ensorcell him, and confront the dragon itself...

This is an action-packed fantasy for younger readers. The tale is well written, but it is almost too full of adventures. Any one of the things that Teman does or any of the people that he encounters could have been a book all by itself so it was a little bit too relentless of a pace to have them all in one. Still, younger readers will enjoy the book because Teman does dabble in almost every aspect of traditional fantasy so it is a good introduction to that. Due to the involved plot, however, there is little if any character development and, while the characters are likeable, they are definitely 2-dimensional and you don't really feel anything for them. Still, it is a short, fun read for those looking for something in between Harry Potter books.