Product Description

For a thousand years, the people of Alera have united against the aggressive races that inhabit the world, using their unique bond with the furies - elementals of earth, air, fire, water and metal. But now, Gaius Sextus, First Lord of Alera, grows old and lacks an heir. Ambitious Lords manoeuvre to place their Houses in positions of power, and a war of succession looms on the horizon. Far from city politics in the Calderon Valley, young Tavi struggles with his lack of furycrafting. At fifteen, he has no wind fury to help him fly, no fire fury to light his lamps. Yet as the Alerans' most savage enemy - the Marat - return to the Valley, his world will change. Caught in a storm of deadly wind furies, Tavi saves the life of a runaway slave. But Amara is actually a spy, seeking intelligence on possible Marat traitors to the Crown. And when the Valley erupts into chaos - when rebels war with loyalists and furies clash with furies - Amara will find Tavi invaluable. His talents will outweigh any fury-born power - and could even turn the tides of war.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12362 in Books
• Published on: 2009-05-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 624 pages

Review
'A real page-turner' Booklist 'A marvellous read' Patricia Briggs 'A fascinating world and magic system ... start of a promising series' Locus 'Absorbing fantasy ... an abundance of convincing detail' Publishers Weekly

About the Author
Jim Butcher is a ten-year student of martial arts and works as a computer support technician. He lives in Missouri with his wife and son and a houseful of computers. Visit his website at www.jim-butcher.com

Customer Reviews

Great Fantasy
I bought this book having enjoyed Butcher's Harry Dresden Series on a whim and really enjoyed it. Unlike the Harry Dresden series which are based in the modern day world this more traditional fantasy. The Aleran people are supported by elemental 'furies' - earth, air, fire, water etc. that aid them to perform magic. The main protaganist, fifteen year old Tavi has no fury, highly unusual for one his age. However his intelligence and ingenuity compensate for his lack of magic. He is drawn into an adventure involving high treason and war with their savage neightbours - the Marat. A highly enjoyable tale that is captivating and engaging from the start. Other characters are well drawn and it is a complex and well written novel. This is the first in a series and although this is a complete story it leaves the reader hungry for the next installment - roll on July!

fast-paced popcorn fantasy
This was an enjoyable enough read: fast-paced almost from the beginning, moving quickly from one action set-piece to the next, with frequent cliff-hangers nudging you into reading 'just a little bit more.'
The world, although not laid out on an epic scale, is solidly thought through, with many references to greek and roman myth and culture, and the magic system described is interesting and original, (although the author's 'furies' are vaguely reminiscent of Pulman's 'daemons').
The writing style is solid, although without any real flare - dialogue is not particularly humorous or gripping.
The characters are an interesting bunch, although, again, no one really stands out, and i did not at any point feel any kind of tension or great concern for any of them.
I've given this book 3 stars, but if amazon did half marks i probably would have upped it to 3 and a half.
Overall an entertaining, but somewhat forgetable read, a bit like one of those 'time-filler' movies you rent on a saturday night when the movie you really wanted is gone. I will most likely get part two, but i will not rush.

A masterpiece of modern Fantasy Fiction.
This review is for books one, two and three of The Codex Alera.

We start the story with Tavi and his uncle looking for a lost herd of sheep, while looking they attacked by a Marat warrior.
Tavi is forced to flee while his uncle lies injured, his uncle finally manages to escape. This leaves only Tavi to hunt.
After several days of running Tavi manages to escape. While returning home he finds an injured woman, her name is Amara and she is a Cursor(warrior, spy, assassin) for the First High Lord.

And so Tavi's adventure begins through the invasion of the Marat and the treason of some of Alera's high lords. Through to his education at the Academy and to him joining the Cursors and stopping an assassination attempt by the dreaded Vord.
And then his adventure continues through civil war and to the invasion of the Cane, during this time he has command of his own Legion and eventually to the defeat of the Cane.

These are the first Jim Butcher novels I have read and they were brilliant, they were very well written, the magical elements of the story were great(they were almost as good as the magic in Erikson's books) and the battle scense's were AMAZING definatly in the top three of any fantasy I have ever read.

P.S, The forth book in this series is out now on hardback.

I hope this review was of some help to you.