Monday 15 September 2014

FANTASY REVIEW: The Ballad of Sir Benfro 1: Dreamwalker - JD Oswald

Release Date: 14/08/14
Publisher:  Penguin UK

SYNOPSIS:

Dreamwalker is the first spellbinding novel in the new epic fantasy series from J. D. Oswald - The Ballad of Sir Benfro. In a small village, miles from the great cities of the Twin Kingdoms, a young boy called Errol tries to find his way in the world. He's an outsider - he looks different from other children and has never known his father. No one, not even himself, has any knowledge of his true lineage. Deep in the forest, Benfro, the young male dragon begins his training in the subtle arts. Like his mother, Morgwm the Green, he is destined to be a great Mage. No one could imagine that the future of all life in the Twin Kingdoms rests in the hands of these two unlikely heroes. But it is a destiny that will change the lives of boy and dragon forever...And so begins The Ballad of Sir Benfro - the unputdownable tale of the great dragons returning to the kingdom of men. Breathtakingly compulsive and beautifully written, The Ballad of Sir Benfro is for readers hooked to the world of George R R Martin's Game of Thrones and those longing for the next Tolkien film adaptation. Dreamwalker is followed by The Rose Cord and The Golden Cage. J. D. Oswald is the author of the epic fantasy series, The Ballad of Sir Benfro. Currently, Dreamwalker, The Rose Cord and The Golden Cage are all available as Penguin ebooks. He is also the author of the Detective Inspector McLean series of crime novels under the name James Oswald. In his spare time James runs a 350-acre livestock farm in North East Fife, where he raises pedigree Highland Cattle and New Zealand Romney Sheep.


REVIEW:

A weird and unusual story and one that whilst following some of the many used tropes in the fantasy genre, concentrates more on the characters than on the overall arc, allowing you to get to know them before the adventures really begin. Its definitely something quirky and whilst at times it feels like its poking its tongue at the genre, its one that not only keeps you glued due to caring about the characters but wondering how the tale would end up.

Overall its definitely something different and whilst I wasn’t that enamoured of the “human” characters the dragons filled my imagination enough to see what occurs next for them.



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