The First Betrayal by Patricia Bray is the first book in the Josan Chronicles. The second book called The Sea Change is scheduled to be released in July, 2007. I stumbled upon this gem while looking through Amazon recommendations, and I must say I am quite pleased I took the risk of getting this sight unseen.

There are some things that need to be discussed prior to the actual review. Yes, this is a fantasy book. However, it is not a traditional fantasy novel in the terms of what people expect to see in a fantasy book. Meaning, if you are looking for a book that has wizards hurling fireballs, a vast assortment of monsters rampaging the countryside, and large scale battles with gallant knights – this book may not for you. You will find none of that within these pages.

The plot of this book has a couple different layers to it, which are all written very well. The first plot like follows the monk Josan as he is the lighthouse keeper of a distant peninsula to keep ships from crashing against the sandbars. As the story unfolds we find the reason Josan is there, or shall I say the reason Josan believes he is there. A certain sequence of events takes place that turns Josan’s world on its head causing him to make some decisions that have larger consequences. The second plot is one of political intrigue and a group of people trying to give rise to a rebellion and coup of the current queen of Karystos. Throughout the book we learn that there was a similar rebellion attempt six year previous and the ramification of that failed rebellion still linger today. Both plot come to an unexpected conclusion.

The main character of this book is the monk Josan. There is also a myriad of other characters that all play important roles within this book. While the plot of this book is solid and well written, it is the characters that steal the show by far. If you enjoy books where character development is not only present, but one of the driving forces then you may enjoy this book. The character development of Josan is second to none. Ms. Bray does a fantastic job of building Josan from the ground up so that the reader not only understands him, but also begins to care about him as well. Another favorite character of mine is Lady Ysobel Flordelis and the role she plays in this novel. She also develops quite a bit as a character – but I won’t delve into spoilers so I can’t say much more. All of the characters in this book are well written and I felt I had a decent understanding of each and every one of them, which based on the number of pages in this book (342) says a great deal about the quality of Ms. Bray’s writing.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It was a fresh take on the fantasy genre. This book proves you don’t need fantastic battle, hoards of monsters, and wizard duels to be a good book. The political intrigue was written very well, the characters are some of the best I have ever read. This is an engaging book that will help the hours fly by. I have read a lot of fantasy book over the course of time, and I have no qualms saying that this will most likely be on my list of top five books I read in 2007. It’s that good. I can’t wait until the next one comes out.