Frith Chronicles, Book 1
Synopsis:
Magic. Sailing. A murderer among heroes.
Gravedigger Volke Savan wants nothing more than to be like his hero, the legendary magical swashbuckler, Gregory Ruma. First he needs to become an arcanist, someone capable of wielding magic, which requires bonding with a mythical creature. And he’ll take anything—a pegasus, a griffin, a ravenous hydra—maybe even a leviathan, like Ruma.
So when Volke stumbles across a knightmare, a creature made of shadow and terror, he has no reservations. But the knightmare knows a terrible secret: Ruma is a murderer out to spread corrupted magic throughout their island nation. He’s already killed a population of phoenixes and he intends to kill even more.
In order to protect his home, his adopted sister, and the girl he admires from afar, Volke will need to confront his hero, the Master Arcanist Gregory Ruma.
A fast-paced fantasy with magical creatures for those who enjoy the Furies of Calderon (Codex Alera series) by Jim Butcher, Unsouled (Cradle Series) by Will Wight, and Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan.
Awards/Nominations:
- WINNER of the B.R.A.G. Medallion for Fantasy
- WINNER of the New Apple Literary Award for Fantasy
- Coffee Pot Book Club’s Pick for 2020 Reading
My Thoughts:
This is my first ever book tour, so be gentle with me, yeah?
I read the synopsis and thought ‘knightmares sound fun’ – I had visions of this guy:
In fact, I was so taken in by the possibility of some demonic knight creature that I totally blanked out on something kind of important:
I have never even heard of any of those books except Percy Jackson, and I’ve never read that one. I think they were trying to warn me that this wasn’t going to be quite as horror-leaning as I had imagined.
Once I figured out that this wasn’t what I had initially expected (because I’m notorious for running off half-cocked), I nevertheless found myself rather enjoying it. The first half went a bit slow for me, but once I passed into the second half, it picked up substantially. It went from a pretty standard-fare YA fantasy into something more interesting. There was adventure, intrigue, and plenty of magical-mad-monsters.
I wish that the Knightmare had been explored a little bit more – he seemed interesting, and could do some cool stuff, but it was kind of glossed over (I think because this was a short book, and part of a series). Honestly, that’s kind of a pet peeve for me – I understand wanting to make a series of something (and in this case, I think it’s warranted), but if a decent intro to important characters requires additional pages, let’s add those additional pages, you know.
There are 4 books in this series at this time.
About the Author:
Shami Stovall is a multi-award-winning author of fantasy and science fiction, with several best-selling novels under her belt. Before that, she taught history and criminal law at the college level, and loved every second. When she’s not reading fascinating articles and books about ancient China or the Byzantine Empire, Stovall can be found playing way too many video games, especially RPGs and tactics simulators.
If you want to contact her, you can do so at the following locations:
Rating:
The story was pretty entertaining, but ultimately I wish that there had been a little bit more space devoted to world- and character-building. I felt as though the villain’s identity was telegraphed pretty hard, but I do appreciate that I 100% did NOT see his motivation coming.
Knightmare Arcanist Frith Chronicles, #1 By Shami Stovall Capital Station Books ISBN: 0998045225 Hardcover, Paperback, E-book, Audiobook 360 Pages
