Previously the story concentrated on events on Farholme, and although the main narrative still centres on accidental hero Merral D’Avanos, the scope broadens at the start of Dark Foundations, and we see the evil plottings of the bad guys beyond the Assembly, and the effects the limited news of these events has on distant Earth. Epic.
It is a dark tale; D’Avanos and his small, hurriedly formed armies face vast armies of mechanical orcs and strange, mind-reading demons. And as if that weren’t enough, evil is working in more subtle ways, turning the naïve, sinless humans of Farholme into the kind of secretive, backstabbing humans the reader can more readily identify with.
The battles, both internal and external, are nicely handled; I particularly liked the way spiritual warfare is brought into the realm of humans by means of that old sci-fi standby, sub-space (or more accurately ‘Below-Space’, since Star Trek is largely forgotten in the 130th Century). All in all, a highly recommended piece of Christian sci-fi.
If the final volume in the series ups the ante again, I may even see fit to forgive the overuse of italics.