Overcaptain (The Saga Of The Recluce book 24) by L.E. Modesitt (book review)
‘Overcaptain’ is the 24th volume in the Saga of Recluce but fear not, reader. You don’t have to read twenty-three other books to find out what’s going on. The Saga is split into sections covering different periods over 2000 years of history and featuring various lead characters. The hero of this one is Alyiakal. His story began in ‘From The Forest’ so it would be useful to read that first. Although it’s the 23rd volume published, ‘From The Forest’ is actually the first in the series chronology, at least so far. It dates back to the first century after the founding of Cyador by people who came from the Rational Stars, our universe, and were somehow transported into a world where different physical laws apply. Some individuals, known as magi, can manipulate the forces of order and chaos, and, with this magic, the founders managed to restrain the Accursed Forest and build a nation. Chief among them was a magi known as the First, whose works, such as roads and a great canal, still dominate the landscape.
‘Overcaptain’ continues to follow the career of Alyiakal in the Mirror Lancers, the armed forces and part of the triumvirate which rules Cyador. The other two factions are the magi and the merchanters or businessmen. There is an emperor, but it’s hinted that an heir who displeases the real rulers might have an accident. In our history, a few kings have died in ‘accidents’, so this is realistic.
Like many Modesitt heroes, Alyiakal has magic powers which he keeps secret. Using control over the forces of order and chaos, he can become invisible, protect himself with an invisible force field and even extend it to protect those near him. He can also sense people and animals over a fair distance, which makes him hard to ambush. The main weapon of the Mirror Lancers is the firelance, basically a flamethrower powered by chaos energy, which gives them a great advantage over enemies armed only with swords and bows. Firelances have a limited energy supply and have to be recharged by special engineers but Alyiakal is able to gather chaos energy from sunshine and recharge his own, so he has more ‘ammo’ than other lancers. These useful talents, combined with his own bravery and skill, make him a successful military officer and he has impressed his superiors by fighting barbarian raiders at various border outposts of Cyador. His reward is to get posted to other dangerous border outposts and do more of the same. In between three-year-long postings, he gets a few weeks’ annual leave to court the lovely Saelora, a smart woman who is among the few female merchanters in Cyador. There’s a long, romantic lull in the middle of this book where they spend time together. It’s rather sweet.
‘Overcaptain’ starts with Aliyiakal still stationed at Oldroad post, where he is in command and acting as the Imperial Enumerator, charging tariffs on traders who enter Cyador. ‘Tariffs’, the most beautiful word in the world! More traders are passing his way lately and Alyiakal suspects it’s because he charges the correct rates while other corrupt Enumerators, usually from the merchanter class, charge extra. He can’t do much about this and is soon moved on anyway, first to evacuate a post at Luuval where a headland has collapsed into the sea and rising waters threaten to swamp the Mirror Lancer fort very soon. Then, he’s sent to another dangerous border post. A Lancer’s lot is not a happy one.
Some Cyadorans, even his girlfriend Saelora, are shocked by how cold-blooded Alyiakal is about killing people. Saelora sees him destroy a few bandits and is stunned. After a battle, a fellow officer refers to him as an ‘ice-blooded bastard’. Alyiakal overhears this because he often makes himself invisible to eavesdrop on people, which is a bit sneaky. I’ve mentioned before that Modesitt heroes seem somewhat remorseless but, like Alyiakal, they all justify it by the fact that the enemy was out to kill them. It’s a fair point but perhaps a nicer chap would still feel a bit queasy about dealing death so easily.
However, I enjoyed the book as usual. The narration in the first-person present tense is surprising for an epic fantasy, but it works. Modesitt is a thoughtful writer about matters of politics, class, sexual equality, economics and how a civilisation is run. His detailed diary approach to the story, almost telling it day by day, including meals, immerses you in another world. You get used to it. Comfort food for the mind in five-hundred-page doses.
The next dose after ‘Overcaptain’ is ‘Sub-Majer’s Challenge’, which I have to hand and will read forthwith. Apparently, the final book about Alyiakal is to be ‘The Last Of The First’ scheduled for a June 2026 release according to the author’s website.
Eamonn Murphy
October 2025
(pub: TOR, 2024. 487 page hardback. Price: $31.99 (US), $41.99 (CAN). ISBN: 978-1-250-90290-0)
check out websites: www.tor.com and www.lemodesittjr.com
