Book Review: The Indivisible and the Void
The Indivisible and the Void. D. M. Wozniak. Chicago, IL: D. M. Wozniak, February 15, 2019, Trade Paperback and E-book, 579 pages.
Reviewed by T. L. Needham.
“The fundamental notion which any voider’s power relies upon is this: Everything in our creation is built out of infinitesimal building blocks, called the indivisible. There is nothing else, besides the indivisible and the void.” Master Voider Democryos
Dem leads the college that trains voiders to manage, and use wisely, their power of voidstones. Lady Marine, his beautiful former student and wife, is hopelessly drawn to power and leaves him for mysterious voider. Outraged over his loss, Dem resolves to pursue and confront her and the traitor. Along the way, he meets an effulgent, Blythe, who leads worshipers of the “Unnamed.” Blythe insists on joining the quest to find Dem’s wife and kill the traitor who seduced her. There is no trust between Dem, who has faith in reason, and Blythe, who follows a guilty, blind faith.
Dem obsesses over his missing wife. Chimeline, a member of the King’s harem who is assigned by the King to please and comfort Dem, joins the quest. Colu, a super strong and loyal wounded warrior with a patch over one eye, also joins the troop on their quest.
They come upon a student voider who has gone mad and dies from a drug overdose. Dem buries him with help from his rival, the effulgent. Dem’s thoughts reveal the struggle within his heart: “I hope that this dirt covers our fears and prejudices, too. As if every shovel full marks a small step towards reconciliation, a common ground between faith and reason.”
The troop’s adventures within each chapter will amaze readers. The author has the gift and ability to pull the reader into the story with unexpected and unpredictable twists and turns. Logic prevails and the pages turn at a steady pace.
Dem, coached by Blythe, gradually learns a greater truth behind the power of The Void. He hears voices of souls trapped in void stones. Is he hearing voices or the delusional drivel of the effulgent? As Dem works in concert with Blythe, he learns the true power that the Master Voider holds. He learns “the empowered” can harness the power of axion—the material from which voidstones originated. The empowered, like voiders, are rare, with only a few born in each generation. Their power is based on the axiondrive, which powered a space ship larger than one can comprehend, a citadel flying among the stars.
Mander, a master voider, is empowered by axion, the most formidable force known. He is the traitor who seduced and enticed Lady Marine—who is drawn to this greatest power known at the time—to leave her husband, Dem.
The author effectively develops each character and tells a masterful story with revelations on many levels. While this is a love story wrapped within an enigma, the plot unravels an epic struggle between blind faith and reason, and shows how two individuals can unite to become a greater power. The contradiction between revenge and justice, and the resulting conflict, drives this compelling tale forward.
While each character has a unique story, all the characters struggle to define who they are, what they believe, and why they are on this quest. The characters are so well crafted that the reader feels empathy for each of them, perhaps even the villain. As the reader approaches the conclusion, the author reveals an amazing new reality and does a brilliant job of setting up the sequel, with just two words: “They’re coming.”