Book Bits~n~Bobs: Artesans of Albia Review

Cas lives in the lovely county of Hampshire, southern UK, where she was born. On leaving school she trained for two years before qualifying as horse-riding instructor. During this time she also learned to carriage-drive. She spent thirteen years in the British Civil Service before moving to Rome, Italy, where she and her husband, Dave, lived for three years. They enjoy returning whenever they can. Cas supports many animal charities and owns two rescue dogs. She has a large collection of cacti and loves gardening. She is also a folk singer/songwriter and is currently writing and recording nine folk-style songs to accompany each of her fantasy books. You can listen to and download all the songs from her website: www.caspeace.com

See the video of her performing live at the King’s Envoy book launch here:

http://www.caspeace.com/cas-peace/the-wheel-will-turn

Find out more at her website: www.caspeace.com

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Taran Elijah’s quest for knowledge uncovers a plot that threatens the world...

Desperate to learn how to control his innate Artesan powers, Taran embarks on a foolhardy plan to acquire the teaching he craves. The military backlash his action unleashes forces Albia’s High King to send Major Sullyan as an envoy to the Fifth Realm. But a dark and treacherous power is moving through the realms and all will feel its influence.

Captured and tortured by the power-hungry Lord Rykan, Sullyan is trapped in Andaryon. Aided by the unlikeliest sources, the major formulates a plan to defeat Rykan and end his quest for the throne. But Sullyan’s strength is fading fast and time is running out. The only thing that can save her is Rykan’s mysterious Staff, which lies buried in the ruins of Taran’s cellar.

Sullyan’s lover, Robin Tamsen, sets out to recover the artefact, but the enemy is two steps ahead of him. If Robin fails to secure the Staff, Sullyan’s life, the Artesan craft, and the very existence of their world is under threat.

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4 of 5 Stars

I read the first book in this series. The book starts off with the main character Taran making a colossal mistake, putting him and his 2 friends on a path that will either make them or completely destroy them.

I am accustom to having books where the story is focused on the main character. But this isn't how it works in this book. The main character isn't the best at what he does, he doesn't get the girl... I am assuming, he isn't the only person contributing to the storyline. This book is very careful of making the book more than just about Taran. You get insight in many different characters which could be distracting however it isn't. It allows you to immerse yourself more fully into the story being able to understand the different characters that make up this story. It was a different pace from what I am accustomed to read however I enjoyed it. The book pulls you in fairly quickly but there is the world building necessary to carry an entire series, luckily it is spread out throughout the book as to not bog you down.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a fantastic fantasy series in a complex and yet believable world. This is definitely an adult book, not necessarily because of content but because of writing style. There are not really any warnings per se...Things that could be sensitive to some readers are mentioned but never embellished on.