Insurrection

by Gunner Long

For nearly three centuries, the land of Ralladin has been a battleground for a three-sided war. Three kingdoms, three visions, three chances for the world to be changed. Faldon, pinned between two rival kingdoms, is giving everything to stay in the conflict. In former days it was the only kingdom, the superpower of the world. Now it fights to regain that glory. But there are those who will do anything to stop it.A dark plot is afoot, a scheme to conquer Faldon and bring the hope that it stands for to an end. If they succeed, everything Faldon fought for will be in vain. Only one man knows about this plot. Only one man has the power to warn the king. Only one man can save his kingdom – if he’s not too late.Inspired by the works of J.R.R Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, The Legends of Ralladin is a series that retells the Bible through allegory. Filled with action, suspense and driving narrative, Insurrection honors the one true God with a story that won’t be forgotten.

337 pages, Paperback

Published February 12, 2024

About the author

Gunner Long always read the works of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, and was moved by the stories and messages they conveyed. Dedicated to the Lord, he was always searching for age-appropriate books that offered the same thrilling tales and adventures, but without the immorality that seemed to plague modern action books. So he decided to change that. He created the world of Ralladin and started his first book, Insurrection, when he was just thirteen, driven to create something that not only kids, but people of all ages could enjoy. He hopes that people read his books and leave with not only a story, but a message. He lives with his family near Brunswick, Georgia.

Reviews

[Kaila Lynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Quite possibly one of the worst books I've ever read.
"Inspired by tolkins books" practically coped by rearranging the plot points and renaming characters. The lack of depth is astonishing and the horrendous pacing was enough to make me want to pull my eyes out. I can see why I had to order it instead of picking it up at a bookstore.

[Gunner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really appreciate reviews for my book, so please consider helping me out!

[agustine archer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Currently still reading, will update with my review. However people think it’s nice to review bomb with 1 star reviews so this will be sitting here until I’m finished :) and btw it’s already an absolutely amazing book, remember kids, review bombing is NOT nice.

[Sandra Cravey · Rating 5 out of 5]

WoW. This surprised me. Because it isn't what I typically read. And because it was written by a teenager, pardon me ... Young Man is the correct description of Mr. Long. I'm now looking forward to reading "Endeavor". It's been ordered!!!

[Rg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful tale in a beautiful world (unfortunately so far we have only heard how beautiful it once was because currently it's in a state of civil war and upheaval, but I'm hoping the best for Ralladin!). As a homeschooled author myself, I was expecting when I received this book as a gift to find it filled with good ideas that the author just couldn't tell in the best way....WRONG! Insurrection is a well written book, and one can tell that Gunner Long has spent time and effort, as all authors do, crafting every sentence.

A mission to save a kingdom--That's where Trenson is going when we first meet him. Interestingly, A kingdom...not HIS kingdom. He has a past he won't talk about...

A youngest brother of three in a royal family watching their kingdom slip away--Jayfor, son of King Hailar is living a pretty normal life for a young prince when we are first introduced. Boring, filled with studying and sword practice and the dourness of his second oldest brother, Xavson, and the support of his oldest brother, Annor, Jayfor expects nothing much will change.

By betrayal, heartbreak, death, hopelessness, and most certainly the will of Va'ar, these two unlikely characters merge into a timeless tale where good once again battles evil, where evil has many plans and allies, and good sometimes looks defeated but never gives up. Filled with adventure, epic battles, impressive description, beautiful messages about faith, and three-dimensional characters, Insurrection is definitely worth reading if you love LOTR or The Green Ember.

So glad I finally picked it up off the shelf despite my withdrawals and read it! Thank you, Gunner, for creating a great book! I'm on to book 2 :)

[Stephanie]

I just downloaded a free sample of this to see if I would enjoy it.
It suffers from two things- too much exposition and head hopping. The prologue could be removed entirely and it wouldn't change the story, a map would suffice and the reader is more than capable of putting the pieces together themselves (or it being weaved in later). For the rest of the book, removing 10% of the words is a good trick to help with exposition. Head-hopping- this is when the narrative is in 3rd person and erratically jumps between the heads of two characters, which can be jarring for a reader. You hear character A thoughts and then suddenly character B thoughts. Readers tend to prefer 3rd person limited perspective, when you stay in one perspective for a chapter.
The writing has potential, there were some amazing descriptions and I loved the Prince falling off his chair bit. However, I didn’t enjoy this enough to wish to continue.

[Bingus Bogart · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book reads like someone who asked ChatGPT to summarize the LOTRs movies and then used that summary to have it spit out a story for him. Rome wasn't built in a day so maybe this was just a bad first book but Rome was also built by far smarter men.

[Braedon Blumfield · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s pretty much a copy of lord of the rings but without any of the character depth, storytelling, or creativity. I believe god granted everyone talent but this author is still searching for it.