Title: Goldfield Forest

Author: Karen Black

Genre: Fantasy

 

In Goldfield Forest by Karen Black, a mythical lioness named Lena must come out of hiding after many decades and be accompanied by Maria, a witch and a guardian of the fae, back to the Amazon rainforest. An evil warlock named Bagrim will stop at nothing to destroy the little people if Lena doesn’t return in time to reclaim her rightful position as the queen and protector of the fae. In a seemingly everyday world, there is a whole other world filled with magic that most don’t see, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t there.

For lovers of fantasy, Goldfield Forest is an easy, fun read that isn’t too “high fantasy” and also keeps the reader grounded enough in the real world. Karen Black quickly establishes the nature of guardians, who are humans who have the ability to see and interact with the fae. In addition, guardians can communicate with animals and use telepathy. When Maria finds out her powers exceed even those of her ancestors, a line of guardians, she wastes no time in putting her life on the line to protect a whole magical realm.

Realizing the implications if she fails to return Lena, the protector queen of the little people, to her rightful place after centuries, Maria is every bit the strong, courageous, and admirable protagonist. In addition, she is dedicated to her family, as evidenced by her love for her father, Ross, and her daughter, Ashley.

Against the magical background, regular life must continue for the characters as well. Maria is friends with Chase and Marco, two other archeologists at her day job. Chase is an especially colorful character who brings humor to the story with his obvious crush on Maria, and their playful banter is a pleasure to read.

The antagonist, Bagrim, isn’t introduced until about a quarter of the way into the story, which feels rather late. Most of what we know about him is given to both Maria and the reader through backstory told from Malacai, a dragon. When we finally meet the evil warlock, he is as nasty as we’d imagine, but his motives for wanting to control the magical realm aren’t completely clear, other than he seems like another power-hungry, two-dimensional villain. Whereas Maria is well-rounded and defined, the antagonist could have been given certain qualities.

Because of the late introduction of the antagonist, the conflict isn’t apparent for quite a while into the narrative. We’re introduced to lovely characters and some nice worldbuilding happens, but there isn’t any serious conflict that defines what the protagonist wants and must overcome until about twenty-five percent of the way into the book. Conflict delivered earlier would move the narrative along at a better pace in the beginning, which Black certainly excels at after that point.

Goldfield Forest is a solid fantasy tale with an interesting premise. The well-rounded and developed female protagonist, who is also kind and values her friends and family, is a pleasure to read. Karen Black has crafted another story that will fit nicely into any fantasy lover’s library.

 

 

This Editorial Review was written by the Book Review Directory staff. To receive a similarly honest, professional review for one of your own books, click here.