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The Bewildering Adventures of King Bewilliam #1
The Lost King
The king has lost his memory and his throne. To regain it all he must risk the unknown, and his life.
When all you have owned, everyone you have loved, and everything you have done are gone, who are you? King Bewilliam awakens one morning, not in his castle but in a cow pasture. Inexplicably transformed from a beloved and respected ruler, husband, father, and dragon slayer of renown he is a homeless and ragged vagabond.
What mysterious bewitching spell so cruelly reversed his fortune? Who had cast it and why? In his quest to uncover and break the curse and regain his kingdom, he battles his way back to his throne, and every dragon in between. His perilous journey is marked by intrigue, the struggle for survival, romance, yearning, and self-discovery.
The first book in The Bewildering Adventures of King Bewilliam epic fantasy series, The Lost King was awarded the Awarded All Authors Certificate of Excellence 2016.
When all you have owned, everyone you have loved, and everything you have done are gone, who are you? King Bewilliam awakens one morning, not in his castle but in a cow pasture. Inexplicably transformed from a beloved and respected ruler, husband, father, and dragon slayer of renown he is a homeless and ragged vagabond.
What mysterious bewitching spell so cruelly reversed his fortune? Who had cast it and why? In his quest to uncover and break the curse and regain his kingdom, he battles his way back to his throne, and every dragon in between. His perilous journey is marked by intrigue, the struggle for survival, romance, yearning, and self-discovery.
The first book in The Bewildering Adventures of King Bewilliam epic fantasy series, The Lost King was awarded the Awarded All Authors Certificate of Excellence 2016.
- GenresFantasy
229 pages, Paperback
First published December 14, 2011
About the author
Devorah Fox
40 books134 followers"What if?" Those two words all too easily send Devorah Fox spinning into flights of fancy. Best-selling author of award-winning books including The Bewildering Adventures of King Bewilliam literary historical fantasy series and several thrillers, she also penned Mystery Mini Short Reads and contributed short stories to popular fantasy anthologies. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she now lives on the Texas Gulf Coast with rescued tabby cats ... and a dragon named Inky. Visit the “Dee-Scoveries” blog at http://www.devorahfox.com.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 6, 2014
This is a thoroughly charming tale of a king that is both lost and has lost his kingdom. Although it is billed as a fantasy story the author Devorah Fox, has written it in a matter of fact way, with lots of historical detail and good descriptions. I really liked the odd beginning of a cow in a castle and thought the story would become weirdly fantastical, but it turns out to be a dream, dreamt by the king who is lost. After that interesting start the story unfolds in a more matter of fact narrative as it follows the king on his journey to find his kingdom.
He is without money, so he has to earn some by doing menial jobs to raise cash. He works for a barber and plays harmonica, then he discovers he is good at sharpening knives and is offered a job in an iron works where he excels. He calls himself Robin and seems to enjoy his life as a serf rather than a king. I was thrilled when Robin was befriended by a stray cat he names Meeyoo who becomes his friend and travelling companion.
There is a lot of attention to detail when Devorah describes the smelting process; it is almost a history lesson. Even though the author says she has taken liberties with historical fact, her descriptions were very convincing and I believed everything I read. I was surprised when a dragon appeared and thought the fantasy element might kick in, it didn't. I did enjoy the humour between Empress Alexander the feisty young dragon slayer and would have liked her to become one of his travel companions.
Somehow it was all a bit too nice for me. The Robin and Meeyoo characters are sweet and engaging, but nothing much happens in the way of conflict and drama. Despite that fact, I kept reading because the author's style is so simple and Devorah has clearly done a lot of research into medieval times and how people worked and lived.
I liked the descriptions and some of the colloquial dialogue. However, for me, there is little in the way of a compelling story. Many of the characters are two-dimensional and not a lot happens other than Robin discovers he has many skills that weren't realised when he was king. I suppose it is a moral tale in that King Bewilliam, discovers his true potential through his lowly jobs and will work his way back up to the status of king eventually and become a better ruler for his experiences.
Having said that, I did enjoy reading this book. The writing is great, full of medieval references that are fairly accurate and the author made me want to read on because of the richly descriptive narrative.
He is without money, so he has to earn some by doing menial jobs to raise cash. He works for a barber and plays harmonica, then he discovers he is good at sharpening knives and is offered a job in an iron works where he excels. He calls himself Robin and seems to enjoy his life as a serf rather than a king. I was thrilled when Robin was befriended by a stray cat he names Meeyoo who becomes his friend and travelling companion.
There is a lot of attention to detail when Devorah describes the smelting process; it is almost a history lesson. Even though the author says she has taken liberties with historical fact, her descriptions were very convincing and I believed everything I read. I was surprised when a dragon appeared and thought the fantasy element might kick in, it didn't. I did enjoy the humour between Empress Alexander the feisty young dragon slayer and would have liked her to become one of his travel companions.
Somehow it was all a bit too nice for me. The Robin and Meeyoo characters are sweet and engaging, but nothing much happens in the way of conflict and drama. Despite that fact, I kept reading because the author's style is so simple and Devorah has clearly done a lot of research into medieval times and how people worked and lived.
I liked the descriptions and some of the colloquial dialogue. However, for me, there is little in the way of a compelling story. Many of the characters are two-dimensional and not a lot happens other than Robin discovers he has many skills that weren't realised when he was king. I suppose it is a moral tale in that King Bewilliam, discovers his true potential through his lowly jobs and will work his way back up to the status of king eventually and become a better ruler for his experiences.
Having said that, I did enjoy reading this book. The writing is great, full of medieval references that are fairly accurate and the author made me want to read on because of the richly descriptive narrative.
January 6, 2014
My extended review can be found on The Review Board.
The cover of The Lost King doesn’t creatively do the richness of the story within its pages justice. At first glance one may perceive it as being about a farmer (due to seeing the cows) being king of his herd. Although I do understand the direction the author was going in, I would have liked to have seen something a little more in alignment with the beauty of the tale (an image of a helpful MeeYou the cat comes to mind).
But I am getting ahead of myself.
Although the read may be considered a bit lengthy to some, Devorah Fox has a way of conveying the story in such a smooth, simplistic way. Before you know it, you are at the end of the tale. I really like the pace of the narrative and how it was presented.
I was impressed at how realistic so many of the historical aspects were in this work. I really felt like I was there and forgot there were elements of fantasy in the work. I really feel the blurred lines between fantasy and reality were high points and a method of storytelling that the author should continue to adapt for the next installment of this series as well as other works.
The characters were also very engaging. I felt the pain and struggle of Robin as he tries to adjust to what has happened to him. However, the most favorite character in the tale isn’t even a human. It is a cat. The trusting, sweet, and faithful MeeYou the cat. He not only provided the “aww” moments for those animal lovers out there, but he also plays a great role as a hero. MeeYou could easily serve as a rendition of “Puss in Boots” (from Shrek): only without the boots and less talking.
The descriptiveness, the thoroughness of the story line, and endearing characters (especially MeeYou) warrants this a 4 out of 5 Stars.
The cover of The Lost King doesn’t creatively do the richness of the story within its pages justice. At first glance one may perceive it as being about a farmer (due to seeing the cows) being king of his herd. Although I do understand the direction the author was going in, I would have liked to have seen something a little more in alignment with the beauty of the tale (an image of a helpful MeeYou the cat comes to mind).
But I am getting ahead of myself.
Although the read may be considered a bit lengthy to some, Devorah Fox has a way of conveying the story in such a smooth, simplistic way. Before you know it, you are at the end of the tale. I really like the pace of the narrative and how it was presented.
I was impressed at how realistic so many of the historical aspects were in this work. I really felt like I was there and forgot there were elements of fantasy in the work. I really feel the blurred lines between fantasy and reality were high points and a method of storytelling that the author should continue to adapt for the next installment of this series as well as other works.
The characters were also very engaging. I felt the pain and struggle of Robin as he tries to adjust to what has happened to him. However, the most favorite character in the tale isn’t even a human. It is a cat. The trusting, sweet, and faithful MeeYou the cat. He not only provided the “aww” moments for those animal lovers out there, but he also plays a great role as a hero. MeeYou could easily serve as a rendition of “Puss in Boots” (from Shrek): only without the boots and less talking.
The descriptiveness, the thoroughness of the story line, and endearing characters (especially MeeYou) warrants this a 4 out of 5 Stars.
January 30, 2014
Lovers of history and tales with historical settings will get a pleasurable read with The Lost King.
As other reviewers have echoed, this story is an engrossing one with our hero, King Bewilliam, lying in an open pasture and wondering what happened to his kingdom, family, and entire life.
From there we join him on his journey as he attempts to rebuild an army to take back his kingdom, forge alliances and friendships, and even confront a dragon or two :)
My faves are Empress Alexandra (a heroine in her own right), David the barber (a confidant of Bewilliam, aka "Robin"), and the cat Meeyoo. Meeyooo!!!
Okay...back to my review...
I am SO there for book #2, because I want to find out what happens to some of the other characters, and what happens to Bewilliam (since the end of book #1 leaves him at a crucial moment where he has to make a decision for himself).
Bring it on! Great job, Devorah.
As other reviewers have echoed, this story is an engrossing one with our hero, King Bewilliam, lying in an open pasture and wondering what happened to his kingdom, family, and entire life.
From there we join him on his journey as he attempts to rebuild an army to take back his kingdom, forge alliances and friendships, and even confront a dragon or two :)
My faves are Empress Alexandra (a heroine in her own right), David the barber (a confidant of Bewilliam, aka "Robin"), and the cat Meeyoo. Meeyooo!!!
Okay...back to my review...
I am SO there for book #2, because I want to find out what happens to some of the other characters, and what happens to Bewilliam (since the end of book #1 leaves him at a crucial moment where he has to make a decision for himself).
Bring it on! Great job, Devorah.
June 13, 2013
I found this story completely absorbing and difficult to put down. The style resembles an old fairy tale and yet, I felt immersed in the character's thoughts and confusion as he tries to remember his past. Some of it remains vague although he knows his role of king and remembers his family. He can't act the part with nothing to back him up so he starts off to find his kingdom only to traipse further away from his goal. Each contact with other people draws out different aspects of his skill and he leaves the people behind with regret, but out of necessity, advancing from a lowly job until his status is finally recognized.
Then he has to return to discover where he came from—and the circumstances.
Then he has to return to discover where he came from—and the circumstances.
July 29, 2019
This is a deceptive piece of writing. By that I mean, in the beginning it seems like a simple and charming Middle Grade story, with a cute kitten, a nice donkey, and a lot of emphasis on medieval crafts. After all, the story opens with the king waking up in a field with a cow mooing in his face. Not exactly the start of a probe into the nature of government and the processes of the mind.
Then a small amount of sex began to intrude itself and I thought, well, not MG, maybe YA. But as it progressed, I realized there was a whole lot more to the story than met the eye. You can’t help liking Robin (King Bewilliam, who suffers from amnesia as it turns out) – he is enterprising and talented in many ways. But in spite of his basic decency and good intentions, there is a bit of the rogue or the trickster in him. I began to realize that he was really out for himself – that everything he does is calculated to make it possible to regain his lost kingdom. He has to learn the hard way that caring about his friends has to come before his own advancement. Things start to backfire on him as he discovers what really happened before the cow mooed in his face.
And there is no real resolution to his dilemmas – when the book ends, there is obviously more to come.
This book really did get more rewarding and complex as it progressed. I’ve put the second book, The King’s Ransom, on my TBR list.
Then a small amount of sex began to intrude itself and I thought, well, not MG, maybe YA. But as it progressed, I realized there was a whole lot more to the story than met the eye. You can’t help liking Robin (King Bewilliam, who suffers from amnesia as it turns out) – he is enterprising and talented in many ways. But in spite of his basic decency and good intentions, there is a bit of the rogue or the trickster in him. I began to realize that he was really out for himself – that everything he does is calculated to make it possible to regain his lost kingdom. He has to learn the hard way that caring about his friends has to come before his own advancement. Things start to backfire on him as he discovers what really happened before the cow mooed in his face.
And there is no real resolution to his dilemmas – when the book ends, there is obviously more to come.
This book really did get more rewarding and complex as it progressed. I’ve put the second book, The King’s Ransom, on my TBR list.
September 26, 2017
This book has received a Discovering Diamonds Review:
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
'He doesn't have a map and he knows little of the world beyond his own realm. This level of realism for anyone who lived before the advent of the railway and accurate cartography, is something of a revelation.'
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
'He doesn't have a map and he knows little of the world beyond his own realm. This level of realism for anyone who lived before the advent of the railway and accurate cartography, is something of a revelation.'
January 6, 2014
King Bewilliam, Ruler of the Chalklands opens his eyes to find himself laying in a cow pasture. How did he get there and why? Amnesia seems to have clouded all of his thoughts.
This is how The Lost King starts. A great opening to a story.
Soon after the king, knowing that in his current condition, no one would believe that he's a king, finds himself having to take on another identity. King Bewilliam becomes Robin.
This book is not so much an adventure as it is a chronicle. The author does a fantastic job of scribing, if you will, every occurrence that Robin faces on his day to day life in the process of trying to re-find himself.
During this long journey Robin meets his closest friends in the form of Meeyoo and Dunkin (whom aren't necessarily human), along with a handful of individuals whom impact his life for good and bad. Still all of it leads to one place. The Chalklands.
Though there isn't much action to be had during the story, you do find yourself submerged in the pages as Robin jumps to life, and is incredibly believable. I believe that in the entire story there are only two major action scenes, which isn't necessarily a bad thing if you're more into a historical story with substance rather than empty action.
I was amused to see that per the story line, Robin was the brains behind creating frames for glasses, and a serrated knife, among other things.
The Lost King is NOT a rags to riches story. It is a Riches to rags story, which progressively becomes darker.
My favorite characters are Alexandra and Meeyoo.
If you are a patient person, that is willing to take your time to read a story that progresses slowly and steadily, yet keeps you interested, than The Lost King is for you.
In the way of spelling and grammar, their really isn't anything that would take away from the enjoyability of the story. I spotted maybe one or two things but nothing that is terrible. As the matter of fact, it's almost unnoticeable unless your eye is trained to see it.
There were a few intervals where I had to re-read the sentence or paragraph a couple of times as I was thrown a little for a loop. For example in the closing of one chapter Robin is just making sense of what memories he'd just regained, then the next chapter opens up with him telling the story to someone. Which led me to believe that the entire story up until that point was a recollection, a memory being told from his perspective. It wasn't until a little later on in that chapter that I noticed that I was a little off.
Also, towards the end, at the closing of the story there is no mention of Meeyoo and Dunkin or any of Robin's other friends. That left me kind of questioning what happened to them. I would've liked to know what happened to them as they were such a big part of the story.
There is only one thing that I'd like to mention. As much as I enjoyed this story, I feel as though the cover doesn't do it enough justice. This is a story that historical readers would love, however it may be something that they'd bypass simply because of the cover. I think that a more attractive cover would be incredibly helpful as I'd hate that this story lose a potential audience simply because they've judged it by its cover.
I'd grant The Lost King a 4.5 out of 5 Stars if I could.
That being said, The Lost King is a book that you'd want to read.
This is how The Lost King starts. A great opening to a story.
Soon after the king, knowing that in his current condition, no one would believe that he's a king, finds himself having to take on another identity. King Bewilliam becomes Robin.
This book is not so much an adventure as it is a chronicle. The author does a fantastic job of scribing, if you will, every occurrence that Robin faces on his day to day life in the process of trying to re-find himself.
During this long journey Robin meets his closest friends in the form of Meeyoo and Dunkin (whom aren't necessarily human), along with a handful of individuals whom impact his life for good and bad. Still all of it leads to one place. The Chalklands.
Though there isn't much action to be had during the story, you do find yourself submerged in the pages as Robin jumps to life, and is incredibly believable. I believe that in the entire story there are only two major action scenes, which isn't necessarily a bad thing if you're more into a historical story with substance rather than empty action.
I was amused to see that per the story line, Robin was the brains behind creating frames for glasses, and a serrated knife, among other things.
The Lost King is NOT a rags to riches story. It is a Riches to rags story, which progressively becomes darker.
My favorite characters are Alexandra and Meeyoo.
If you are a patient person, that is willing to take your time to read a story that progresses slowly and steadily, yet keeps you interested, than The Lost King is for you.
In the way of spelling and grammar, their really isn't anything that would take away from the enjoyability of the story. I spotted maybe one or two things but nothing that is terrible. As the matter of fact, it's almost unnoticeable unless your eye is trained to see it.
There were a few intervals where I had to re-read the sentence or paragraph a couple of times as I was thrown a little for a loop. For example in the closing of one chapter Robin is just making sense of what memories he'd just regained, then the next chapter opens up with him telling the story to someone. Which led me to believe that the entire story up until that point was a recollection, a memory being told from his perspective. It wasn't until a little later on in that chapter that I noticed that I was a little off.
Also, towards the end, at the closing of the story there is no mention of Meeyoo and Dunkin or any of Robin's other friends. That left me kind of questioning what happened to them. I would've liked to know what happened to them as they were such a big part of the story.
There is only one thing that I'd like to mention. As much as I enjoyed this story, I feel as though the cover doesn't do it enough justice. This is a story that historical readers would love, however it may be something that they'd bypass simply because of the cover. I think that a more attractive cover would be incredibly helpful as I'd hate that this story lose a potential audience simply because they've judged it by its cover.
I'd grant The Lost King a 4.5 out of 5 Stars if I could.
That being said, The Lost King is a book that you'd want to read.
June 2, 2020
This was a delightful read as we are just as intrigued as King Bewilliam at what could have happened to find him in such a state. As we continue to journey with him and see how he handles the challenges before him, he seems convinced of his identity and bent on reclaiming what he lost. Yet there seems to be no trace of his former life. We are drawn into his search for answers and kept in the hunt page after page. As we continue with him, we enjoy his company more and more as well as some of those he meets along the way as he travels for answers. We also find that he shows us sometimes one of the greatest measure of courage is being able to face the answers, the truth one sought and remain standing, even pushing forward.
February 13, 2017
Medieval mystery
Overall enjoyable, this is a medieval mystery with well written characters, dialog and settings. There is a bit of fantasy laced between the lines in this very close third person tale of psychology, metal smithing, swords and dragons. Bewilliam, sounds like bewildered, (a point not missed by the author) has lost his kingdom, truly lost because he cannot even remember where it was.
Overall enjoyable, this is a medieval mystery with well written characters, dialog and settings. There is a bit of fantasy laced between the lines in this very close third person tale of psychology, metal smithing, swords and dragons. Bewilliam, sounds like bewildered, (a point not missed by the author) has lost his kingdom, truly lost because he cannot even remember where it was.
February 18, 2016
"The Lost King" embodies a whole new style of describing the serenity of our humanity. Devora Fox deserves acclaim for making this available to us and I hope to enjoy many more of her works.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews