The Builders
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4.4 • 21 Ratings
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- $4.99
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
The Magnificent Seven meets The Wind in the Willows in this action-packed fantasy adventure from Daniel Polansky, The Builders.
A missing eye.
A broken wing.
A stolen country.
The last job didn't end well.
Years go by, and scars fade, but memories only fester. For the animals of the Captain's company, survival has meant keeping a low profile, building a new life, and trying to forget the war they lost. But now the Captain's whiskers are twitching at the idea of evening the score.
PRAISE FOR THE BUILDERS
"A living, breathing world of vivid, winsome characters hellbent on their blaze of glory and as unforgiving as a runaway train carrying all your friends over a cliff. I haven't cared about animals this much since Watership Down." — Delilah S. Dawson, author of Hit and Wicked as They Come
"Nobody does dark like Polansky. The Builders is Redwall meets Unforgiven, combining the endearing wit of Disney's Robin Hood with all the grit and violence of a spaghetti western." — Myke Cole, author of the Shadow Ops series
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The fur and feathers fly fast and furiously in this blood-soaked anthropomorphic fantasy inspired by spaghetti Westerns and thrillers. Once upon a time, a mission in the city called the Capital went horribly awry, thanks to turncoats and infighting. Now the mouse known only as the Captain is determined to finish the job. To that end, he reunites the surviving members of his group, including opossum sniper Boudica, stoat assassin Bonsoir, and sinister salamander Cinnabar. The Captain and his motley band go up against old enemies and former allies in their quest for justice and revenge, but what starts off as a cunning plan ultimately turns into a suicidal hailstorm of bullets, bombs, and bodies. Polansky (She Who Waits) employs a style that's knowing and sly, a little tongue-in-cheek but deadly serious; it's as though Brian Jacques and Quentin Tarantino went drinking one night. Short chapters and a nonlinear narrative turn this novella into a quick read, with some surprises and twists revealed so matter-of-factly that they're easily overlooked. The combination of animal traits and human motivations generates a violently compelling story that's strong enough to overcome any questions of logistics and worldbuilding.
Customer Reviews
Five stars is not enough
It started slowly, like The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, building a world with broad strokes of a unwashed brush on a dirty canvas. Meet our characters, here's enough backstory to leave you with 1000 questions, a neat little hook and . . .
BAM!! Gunfights! Explosions! Double crosses, triple crosses . . .
I haven't been this engrossed in a story in so long that it felt like a new experience. Polansky took an admittedly silly premise and made a masterpiece.
I'm already casting the voice actors for the inevitable movie adaptation.
FIVE STARS IS NOT ENOUGH!!