A fun, rousing quest tale with a compelling hero.
In this fantasy series opener, a student who seeks a scholarly life gets chosen for a dangerous mission.
Orion, 17, has studied at the Academy since he was a child and lost his parents. His best friend, Trey, is training to be a Kunsa, a guardian; his oldest pal, Arianna, is planning to be a priest; and Orion is preparing to be a “Chronicler,” someone who studies everything in the world. At the end of their time at the Academy, all of the students must try to pull a sword from an obelisk. A victorious student must leave on a quest for the False One. The False One tried to usurp the True God many centuries ago in an epic war and now it is up to the “Chosen One” to vanquish him. All of those selected have failed, and each time, the blade reappears in the stone, waiting for the next warrior. Everyone is surprised when Orion pulls the sword out and he is doubtful of the quest’s purpose as well as scared of dying. As he continues down the path the sword shows him, he enters a forest like the one his parents were killed in. While facing peril, he is rescued by a spirited young woman named Cassi. She’s lived in the forest her whole life but dreams of something more thrilling to fill her days. Now, she wants to join Orion, and he is happy to have the company, but his concerns about the False One make him worry for her safety. Sereda is a masterful storyteller who has crafted an exciting world with depth and complexity. The milieus of the Academy and the farms, forests, and cities beyond are captivating and create wonderful settings for Orion’s intriguing journey. Orion is a striking hero who is relatable in his self-doubt and fear of looming dangers (“He certainly did not feel honored to be chosen. He wondered if anyone else had felt like he did about being ‘the Chosen One.’ Had any of the previous Questers wished they could just put the sword back and pretend this never happened?”). This is a thoroughly enjoyable fantasy adventure with a gut-punch of an ending that will satisfy genre fans.
A fun, rousing quest tale with a compelling hero.Pub Date: June 8, 2023
ISBN: 9781039177895
Page Count: 282
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
Devoted series fans will appreciate the added pieces to this expansive narrative puzzle.
After 500 years, the Grief of Ages is a distant memory—until dragons hellbent on destruction begin to wake again.
In this relatively brief prequel to the epic The Priory of the Orange Tree (2019), the kingdoms of Virtudom have experienced centuries of relative peace. Marosa Vetalda, the Princess of Yscalin, spends her days behind castle walls under the gaze of her overprotective father, awaiting the date when she’ll be wed to Aubrecht of Mentendon, her ticket to freedom. While the book’s main focus is initially on the political threads weaving the Western kingdoms together, the frailty of best-laid plans is exposed when evidence of the reemergence of draconic beings reaches castle ears. These tales often come from the cullers who make their living slaying these creatures, and who are often blamed for intentionally waking them for profit. No one alive remembers the Grief of Ages, so no one’s prepared when Fýredel, the great High Western dragon, surfaces from the volcanic mountain that towers ominously over Yscalin’s capital city of Cárscaro. What follows is the backstory of how the devoted Yscali kingdom comes to shift allegiance to Fýredel and his master, the Nameless One, a main catalyst to events in The Priory. Overall, this book reads more like history lesson than fantasy adventure, but the sheer terror that befalls the Yscali people as they face Fýredel’s pure evil is both powerful and relevant. Marosa’s plight further solidifies her as a hero worth remembering; her strength and defiance shine through as hope for the future she’s dreamed of slowly flickers out.
Devoted series fans will appreciate the added pieces to this expansive narrative puzzle.Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025
ISBN: 9781639736010
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
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