Metaphorosis Reviews
Written on Aug 26, 2022
Summary
A serial killer is stalking Castle Faldorrah, murdering serving maids one by one. The grandson of the Castle's Lord (and of the King) is the prime suspect. But castellan Dubriec Brierly and his staff can't seem to either find definitive evidence or keep the other girls safe.
Review
I’ve been intrigued by Tambo Jones’ publication of alternate versions of her excellent series (less so by her breaking the original books into small pieces). This is the second book in the alternate chain. Since the chains share the same first section, this is the first alternate section after the fork.
Initially, not very much. In truth, I began to wonder whether this ‘alternate version’ was just the same book as The Lord Apparent’s Razor (the second piece of the main chain), but with the commas moved around. For about the first half of the book (about 50 pages), I noted only one small difference.
Happily, after the halfway point, that one small difference leads to some larger changes. The storyline remains largely the same, but there’s an important difference in how Ris protects Nella. I hope that these changes will continue to cascade through future installments, with greater and greater divergence from the original. Not because I don’t like the original, but simply because I look forward to a new(ish) story.
I’m not, in fact, sure that this version is better than the original. (Technically, I’m not sure which is the original, but by this I refer the version first published. It’s equally possible that this alternate was Jones’ first, pre-editing version.) While the changes here are intriguingly different, they and some of the supporting details don’t feel quite as smoothly integrated as the original did. Still, it’s a strong book, and I’m curious as to what comes next.