100 Books - #1 "The Broken Rib"

Our review today is on the book named, "The Broken Rib" written by the façade author known only as Fetuad (fa-chu-ad) Murray.

Synopsis
Murray takes us on a journey of profound proportions, and manages to lose us somewhere in the middle. The story takes place in the middle ages where our hero, Grascious, works himself up the ranks to the place of general and then, singlehandedly, leads his troops into the greatest ambush that the known world had ever seen.

After the disastrous move and losing thousands of soldiers, he survives with minor wounds and is taken back to the army leaders where he is summarily beheaded.

His closest advisor and fellow officer, however, does not feel he is guilty of treason and therefore not deserving of death as his penalty. This man, Contravid, suffers the ambush with no more than a broken rib (so the title). But in the process of the battle he is separated from the rest of the soldiers. He is taken in by a lowly woman and her children while he recovers. Such a thing that seems to happen in every low-budget, middle ages film and documentary. And book, apparently.

In time, he returns to the city where his garrison was only to find that because of the ambush, the city is now overrun by the barbarians that defeated them and from which his rib was broken.

That is the end of the story. Apparently, a sequel was planned to resolve the hideous architecture of the finale.

Review
The story has merit and could become a significant piece of literature someday. But it would need someone else to write it.

The story breaks down at a point when more detail and better structure is most needed. It was also, it seems, written before any form of spell-check was available and editing was passé.

Originality is probably it's only saving grace. And that is because God loves the weary, inept! "The Broken Rib" is not in print at this time.

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