George Bryan Polivka's The Legend of the Firefish ~ Reviewed

The Legend of the Firefish
Book One of the Trophy Chase Trilogy
By George Bryan Polivka
Harvest House Publishers 2007
ISBN 13: 978-0-7369-1556-2


Packer Throme longs to bring prosperity back to his poor fishing village by discovering the trade secrets of Scat Wilkins, a notorious pirate who now seeks to hunt the legendary Firefish and sell its rare meat.

Packer begins his quest by stowing away aboard Scat’s ship, the Trophy Chase, bound for the open sea. Though he is armed with a hard-won mastery of the sword and the love of Panna Seline, daughter of a priest of the kingdom of Nearing Vast, many tests of his courage and his resolve will follow—beginning when the young voyager is discovered by Scat himself.

Will belief and vision be enough for Packer Throme to survive? And will Talon, the Drammune warrior woman who serves as Scat’s security officer, be Packer’s deliverance… or his death?

And what of the innocent young Panna Seline? In her determination not to lose Packer, she leaves home to follow the man she loves but is soon swept up in a perilous adventure of her own.

This heroic struggle of faith makes The Legend of the Firefish a compelling story that will be enjoyed the world over by fans of adventure, fantasy, and well-told tales of honor and sacrifice.

Author George Polivka does not shy away from portraying the hero, Packer Throme, as sincerely doubting and struggling with his faith. That’s what endeared me as a reader to Packer. This character is ‘real’, not a garden-variety Pollyanna type.

The villain, Talon, is a character you’ll love to hate. Throughout the story, the reader wonders if she can possibly get any more evil—and then she does. However, toward the end of the tale, Polivka masterfully turns the reader’s heart to actually feel sorry for her.

There is eventually a happy ending, though most of the way through the book it seems as if no good can come from all the horrible events. A great analogy of how God works things together for good to those who believe.

The one thing I personally found frustrating is the point of view. It’s omniscient, meaning that from paragraph to paragraph, you know what everyone is thinking. There were a few spots I had to re-read because at first I didn’t know which character was thinking what.

Overall, though, a hearty round of applause goes not only to George Bryan Polivka for some mighty fine action-packed writing, but to Harvest House as well for taking a chance on a fantasy.

I’m hoping sales of the Trophy Chase trilogy will sky-rocket, opening the door to more new authors in this genre.

Fantasy lovers put your money where your mouth is and get out to by The Legend of the Firefish.

Review by Michelle Griep