Black Gate Online, December 30, 2012

“The Tea-Maker’s Task” by Aaron Bradford Starr

Reviewed by Louis West

Aaron Bradford Starr’s “The Tea-Maker’s Task” is an entertaining, tongue-in-cheek fantasy about Gallery Hunters Gloren and his cat companion, Yr Neh. Their adventures take them from the rancid food of Burrow Deep Lane in the city of Ravanon to the workshop of a Tea-Making master then through the forests of Candelon, wherein lurks the Walker of the Woods, until they finally reach the ruined city of Vandelon. All the while, Gloren and the cat engage in constant, silent banter, much like two brothers or war buddies. I never found out how much of this banter was real or just imagined by Gloren, but that mystery is part of the draw of the tale. Regretfully, the story didn’t end, it just stopped like the first part in a series. I wanted more.