The Fisherman's Son (The Fisherman's Son Book 1) - Marilyn Peake

Title: The Fisherman's Son (The Fisherman's Son Book 1)
Author: Marilyn Peake
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 2002
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

Review:
“The Fisherman’s Son” by Marilyn Peake is the first novel in a fantasy series aimed at a young audience. The story follows Wiley, a boy from a poor family whose mother dies from a disease that has infected his village. His drunk father isn’t around and so Wiley is forced to travel to the next village to find a priest so that his mother’s body is properly cared for. However, on the journey he encounters a mysterious woman who sets him off on an adventure that will lead to him to see wondrous things and also teach him the history the very land on which he lives.

I need to start by saying that I am clearly not the target audience for this book so perhaps some of my comments here are a bit unfair. Anyway, I struggled to read this story to be honest, yes the plot is interesting and quite unique but at times I couldn’t understand why anything was occurring or why things were linked. Seriously, I still don’t get what the magic cups, giant bears or talking dolphins have to do with a long dead civilisation or why the young lad Wiley was dragged into it all.

Then there are the problems with the writing itself which was quite uninspiring. Everything is described to a level beyond what is really needed and there are several logical inconsistences with the story. For example, I can’t imagine anyone finding strawberries in the frozen cold and not thinking that there is something odd there. Then there is the rather strange section in which is drinks himself full on milk and 5 minutes later is starving and fights some chickens for some food.

Overall, I found the entire book quite an unsatisfying experience, what could be an interesting plot is let down by how it is actually being told. I suspect its target audience of younger children would potentially still enjoy it as they are more likely to ignore the logical failings etc. but it just doesn’t work as a book which can reach other age groups. For myself, I can’t see myself picking up the other books in the series.