Review: Vallen by Kenton J. Moore

A coming-of-age steampunk adventure with classic fantasy foundations, Vallen (Cloudbreakers Book 1) by Kenton J. Moore is a richly imagined story of loyalty, memory, and the dreams that define us.

Cole Vallen is a simple country farmer who feels destined for something more, namely the sky-high ambition to become a noble Cloudbreaker – a revered warrior of the realm. However, when that dream is deferred by an unexpected peace, a night of bitterly drunken revelry sends his life spiraling in an entirely different direction. Awakening to find himself as the sole survivor of a mysterious explosion, with angry fingers pointing in his direction, his family’s curse once again rears its vicious head, but there is a far more sinister force behind the fiery tragedy.

An incredibly powerful alchemical substance is moving through the back alleys and underground networks of the city – an addictive drug with deadly and inexplicable consequences. Cole becomes a key witness in a barn-burner of a trial, but his salvation may spell his own doom if he isn’t careful; he does, after all, possess a rare genetic trait that was once linked to royalty, and proximity to power is just as dangerous as power itself. As his memory of that fateful night gradually returns, Cole becomes entangled in a sinister plot that runs to the very heart of the kingdom he calls home.

Cole’s lifelong dream of becoming a Cloudbreaker may be coming true, but in a way he could have never expected. The formulation now running rampant through the streets has the power to topple dynasties once it’s fully weaponized, and it is up to Cole and his mysteriously heightened consciousness to prevent a catastrophe of fire and light. From brash youth and accused murderer to invaluable asset and independent hero, Cole is a wounded and unpredictable protagonist. The arc of his development carries the thematic and dramatic energy of this impressive first piece of the series.

The prose throughout this fantasy mashup is tauntingly good, pulling readers into an expertly crafted world of light-worshipping drunks, drug-addled time bombs, flawed but humble heroes, and haughty villains, all swirled together in a classic steampunk stew. The world-building is remarkably thorough, without the usual clumsiness of long-winded dumps of exposition, which can so often slow down a narrative, and it feels entirely unique, without many echoes of other sci-fi/fantasy sagas. In a genre that so often feels recycled and repurposed, it is rare to find a book that feels entrancing on so many levels within the first few chapters.

The criticisms are minor – the slow-to-return memory trope may be relied on a bit too heavily to artificially create tension and drama, seeming more like a convenient plot device than organic to the story. Some dialogic exchanges can also feel inauthentic, purely serving the purpose of plot movement, rather than character development. On a technical level, there are some overly familiar or idiomatic phrases; the story and characters may be wholly original, but the language doesn’t always reflect that sense of exploration.

Even with these occasional rough edges, the immense creativity and authorial passion on display make this novel inspiring, thought-provoking, and invigorating about the continuing potential of fantasy fiction.