Golden Vial - A Review

Published - Revell, March 2018
Series - Legends of the Realm
Author - Thomas Locke
Title - The Golden Vial
Format - ebook, paper
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About the book:
Lady Shona, the newly crowned queen of the realm, is a leader without a throne. Pursued relentlessly by a dark force, her small contingent of loyal followers must make a difficult choice--flee or fight. Determined to save her land from nefarious threats, Lady Shona decides that she must seek out the enemy and attack them head on--a strategy that leads back to the region of the Three Valleys where Hyam was born.

Alas, Hyam has been struck by a mysterious illness that is silently sweeping through the realm. Known as the wasting disease, the sickness has no cure. But there is one shred of hope for Lady Shona and the realm--and it comes in the most unlikely of forms. A young orphan, untested and untrained, could well mean the difference between victory and total defeat.

Thomas Locke concludes his epic trilogy with a gripping tale of courage that will inspire readers to persevere even when all seems lost

My Thoughts:
Maybe I'm a little bored with the fantasy genre. Maybe it was the overall pace of the book. I don't know. But for whatever reason, this book was really just OK. It was a good conclusion to the series. But I didn't enjoy it the same way that I did book 1 in the series. Daly was an interesting character though. There were times when I was reading it that I felt her character could have been made a bit more in depth. 

Overall, it was ok.

I received a copy from Revell for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating - 3 stars

Merchant of Alyss - A Review

Published - January 2016, Revell Books
Series - Legends of the Realm Book 2
Author - Thomas Locke
Title - Merchant of Alyss
Format - ebook, paper
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Hyam has settled into life as he knows it now. The citizens of Falmouth admire him for his rescue from an evil magician, and Hyam enjoys the peacefulness of having Joelle by his side. But he feels he is missing something big, and he is. The magical abilities he lost during the Battle of Emporis have shown no signs of returning and he often wishes that he never had known magic at all. When a wagon full of ancient artifacts arrives in Falmouth, Hyam soon discovers that the scrolls are Milantian, and that he can read them. Power surges through him as he handles what appears to be blank scrolls, but what he reads is very disturbing and talks of war. With Joelle and several others, Hyam sets out on a journey that will hopefully bring answers, not knowing the danger that the journey will have for all involved or that he will have to face his own troubled past.

This is the second book in the Legend of the Realms series, and I have to say that I really enjoyed it. Locke has created a world that is very magical and concrete. Hyam has grown on me from the first book. He's come to grips with his loss of abilities and is struggling to find himself. When he gets an opportunity to be useful again, he takes it.

I enjoyed seeing Hyam's and Joelle's relationship develop further. And when she is captured by an evil sorcerer, he will do anything to get her back. There are other characters that are memorable as well. Shona is one I'm not sure about right now. I think she'll be a  good leader, but I don't like her interest in Hyam. But that's just me.

Full of magic and adventure, this is a book that most fantasy lovers will certainly enjoy!

I received a copy of this book for free from Revell for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Narnia, Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, fantasy, Brandon Sanderson

Rating - 4 stars

Emissary - A Review

Published - January 2015, Revell Books, a Division of Baker Publishing Group
Series - Legends of the Realm Book 1
Author - Thomas Locke
Title - Emissary
Format - ebook, paper
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Hyam is an ordinary farmer. Or so he thinks. Until his mother dies right before his 21st birthday. Her final request sends him on a journey where he finds out that he isn't who he always believed he was. His search for answers brings him to a telepathic people who commission him to be their representative to the other nations. Yet while he is the emissary, his own powers are growing. Hyam seeks assistance from one of the wizards of Long Hall. There he discovers that long held secrets and myths are actually real. But an evil power is growing across the Realm and only Hyam ,with the assistance of the friends he meets along the way, may be able to stop it.

I enjoyed this fantasy novel far more than I thought I would. There were times that the writing was reminiscent of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings or Jordan's Wheel of Time. But despite being very descriptive, I did find myself engrossed in Hyam's story. His past is a mystery that I'd hoped would be uncovered in the book. Parts of it were while others weren't. And so I was intrigued. I kept reading, even through multiple descriptions.

I've learned over the years that Christian Fantasy is really more of a hit and miss genre. Perhaps it's because this author, Thomas Locke, is a pseudonym for established author Davis Bunn that helped make this one more of a hit for me than others. Still, it ended up being a pretty fast read for me. I wasn't overly bogged down in pointless descriptions and there was enough action to keep me entertained.

I enjoyed the magic in this book. And the factors that made this a true fantasy book. While I didn't see obvious Christian factors like there are in the Chronicles of Narnia, I did see the good vs evil. I think my favorite part was when Hyam met the Elves. To me, that reminded me a lot of Frodo and Rivendell.

I think that fans of fantasy would really enjoy this book. I received the book for free from Revell Books for the purpose of reviewing. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of fantasy, Tolkien, Robert Jordan, Davis Bunn

Rating - 4 stars