A review of 'The Binding Returned' at SFFWorld.com

The following review appeared at SFFWorld.com:


The Binding Returned is the first installment in Jeffrey Morrow Miller’s The Books of Time series, and begins with the kind of deeply philosophical question posed in bars during the long hours of the night:

Have you ever wondered what lies beyond?

With this question Miller sets the theme to explore the life of Hamish, a teenaged apprentice bar back and brewer who struggles to meet the needs of the thirsty clients at the Beggin Inn in Riversea. The guided chaos of crowded bars is deftly crafted as Hamish flies between customers and disparate conversations until ending at the table of three travelers, Captain Grey, Navarra, and Falkyr, who have come to remind Hamish of his larger responsibilities to his family. Hamish is a prince from the Highlands, and has spent many years ignoring his obligation to return and undergo a rite of passage known as The Testing. His failure to return has placed the continued existence of his family’s lineage at risk, so Hamish leaves Riversea accompanied by two fishermen and Navarra and Falkyr (both sons of high kings who govern different realms). The men follow the river inland to the waters of the Silver Lake, and when Hamish chooses to accompany one of the fishermen onto the lake he is nearly killed when the dinghy is caught in a whirlpool.

The next day Hamish receives an invitation for dinner from the lake’s guardian, the Lady of the Silver Lake, and during the meeting the Lady acknowledges ‘the need of young men to test the boundaries and bonds of society.’ This statement strikes at the heart of Hamish’s dilemma as he chafes against his unavoidable destiny of governance. This is a story about fates both seen and unseen, however, and a young man who learns his actions or inactions have consequences that stretch beyond their immediate and foreseeable result. After the dinner Hamish engages the Lady in a game of strategy, and discovers that he holds an ability to make Magic when the game boards explode after he performs an unconventional move in the game. The following day Hamish, Navarra and Falkyr receive a proposal from the Lady that they attempt to cross the Silver Lake to its forbidden side and make contact with anyone living in the City of the Immortals. Hamish and his party encounter magical barriers that assail his ability to endure their challenges, and he soon learns the Nietzschean adage that what does not destroy us, makes us stronger.

The Binding Returned carries the rich historical detail of Tolkien and sets the groundwork for a storyline that spans the here and the hereafter. It is a world where imaginative rumor and the discrete use of Magic coexist, and a young man comes to understand the importance of keeping your eyes open when running away.

Reviewed by J. D. O’Guinn author of A World That We Expect.