Anhelos Lost

by V.C. Boldick

Five years ago, the Anhelos disappeared with the death of the king, leaving the Kingdom of Arctus in a state of regency. Infighting between the regents has left the kingdom fractured and torn.

As Prince Tarquinius’ coronation approaches, the Arcturian council sets into motion a decree that puts his birthright in jeopardy. Forced to find his Queen far sooner than he planned, Tarquinius travels to the allied kingdom of Luz, where he meets Embree Therinsford and Princess Leanna. As he courts these two women he learns a disturbing secret, namely that a pact is being made between Luz and Twili, Arctus’ greatest enemy.

Unbeknownst to Quinn, trouble brews in Arctus. Dissatisfaction grows, with rumours and fear abounding. In the darkness, an ancient enemy stirs. Using the fear and discord this enemy begins his plans for a new golden age.

The last piece he needs?

Tarquinius himself.

Genres: Fiction

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 20, 2024

About the author

I grew up in a little village in a quiet corner of Alberta and my first love was reading. I loved how a simple book could teleport me for hours at a time to magical places. I loved reading and devoured books. I remember when my parents would drive to the city I would beg to be allowed to buy more than one book.

They taught me about the importance of hard work, so I put my heart and soul in every novel I write, “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right,” is what my dad always said. I took those words to heart and I am always trying to perfect my writing.

I no longer live in a little village but my love of reading has only grown, my shelves are lined with books and I have notebooks filled with ideas for novels I hope to one day write.

Outside of writing, I enjoy cosplaying, drawing, painting and spending time with friends and family.

Reviews

[Tanisha FantasyBooksandBudgets · Rating 4 out of 5]

For readers who love political intruige, court drama, and a fight for the crown where everyone's motives are not always clear, this one's for you.

This story is full of mystery, ancient secrets, magic, and drama. This is not an easy, fast-paced read, as the world building and character driven story requires a lot of focus. Readers who love to truly understand a characters' thoughts, morals, and inner turmoil will enjoy the detailed information provided.

The end left a lot of questions unanswered, motives unclear, and lots of trouble brewing between two kingdoms. It will be very interesting to see how things play out in the next book for these characters.

[Eren Valentine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable and pleasant read and a nice reprieve from my (as of late) typical reads. Political intrigue, court drama, multiple PoVs it's one of the things that attracted me to it. It's also the type of book you have to focus on as there is a good amount of world building and a character driven story. If you're looking for smut, this isn't it. But the book itself is written with passion. It did have a slow start for me, but that's fine as I expect that with these types of books as it's building the world, the characters, the scenes and setting the drama. I enjoy a story that I can just read vs picking apart every aspect of it. I don't want to give to much information as I do want people to develop their own opinions and take-aways from the story itself vs thinking about the reviews they've read before diving into the book. If you're looking for a story that has world building, a character driven story, then take a chance and pick up the book. The story does have action through out it and start out with some in the prologue. We also get complex characters, and a cliff hanger at the end (I mean come on. We know this going into any series) and I'm always here for a cliff hanger. I don't need a big bang of one, just as long as it leaves me with wanting to read the next book which this one has.

[Saffron Asteria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok listen up, fellow book lovers.

I typically don't read fantasy books, but this story had me HOOKED. There is so much intrigue and Boldick has the rare ability to provide explanations for fantastical things without being patronising or assumptive.

I genuinely enjoyed the pacing throughout this book, which shares 3 points of view - allowing you to get to know each of the characters intimately. You hear about their past experiences, their connections and emotions, their inner monologues and trials and tribulations they experience through the span of this book.

Boldick's love of world building reflects beautifully in this work and every minute detail has been been considered, presented in a well written package which is easily digestible.

The ending is gentle in the sense that there is plenty of room for the reader to speculate what will happen in the next installment, however you're not left with a big fat cliffhanger. The prologue and epilogue are a nice touch, introducing us to a being that is shrouded in mystery that I'm excited to see develop across this series of books.

You smashed it V.C., thank you for writing such a fabulous fantasy book!

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for the eARC.

It didn’t take long for me to become thoroughly invested in each POV character. Their personalities, values and issues were distinct, impacting their storylines which were intertwined. I was never sad to switch from one point of view to another; they were all equally interesting and important to plot.

The magic system was quite different, with powers varying according to nationality, abuse required for some types of magic, and an increasing number of children born without it. The world, politics and old gods also held a lot of promise.

Now, I did eventually decide to DNF at about 50 %. The author clearly has a lot of imagination and great stories to tell, but the writing fell flat to me. It was a bit too simple and lacking flair. I also ran into a few issues that might be corrected in the published version, so take these with a grain of salt: the dialogue tags were confusing and I often had to go back and read a page once again to figure out who was talking; and there were some issues with missing actions in a sequence, leading to confusion about how characters got to be doing a certain thing (I.e going from A to C while skipping over B). These issues were taking me out of the story and making it hard to focus.

I would definitely be interested in checking out other works in the future, because their stories are worth telling.

[Kyla · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy a book with magic, secrets, court and political drama then this book is for you. The book had me very interested in what happens next just from reading the prologue. It has a bit of a slow start but you are getting information about the country they live in and the way magic works. I love how the author gave us 3 different pov helping us get to know the main characters that much more. I had every intention of slowly reading this but once I started it I couldn't put it down. The characters and world building had me HOOKED. Scion seems to act like a smaller child to me and I don't really like him very much. Quinn seems like he knows what he wants to do and how he wants to run his kingdom but is a bit lackluster after leaving his country. Embree is outspoken, witty, and fun. I rather enjoy her a lot. I can't wait to see what the author has in store for the rest of this series!

[Mandy Enchantedbookduo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 💎
0 🌶️

Quick Summary:
Although the book starts slowly as the world and characters take shape, it evolves into a richly layered tale of kingdoms, power, and court intrigue. Deep character development and political manoeuvring make it a great read for fans of complex alliances and marriage for power plots.

Reading Thoughts
📘It was a slow start to this book, trying to piece the world together and who was who
📘Quinn was one of the prince and had so much on his shoulders.
📘If you love court politics then this book is for you, they were intriguing.
📘This is great if you like a book that is full of different kingdoms fighting and the politics behind marriages for power.
📘The character development was very deep and this allowed us to really understand their motivations

Tropes
💍Political intrigue
💍Feminine Rage
💍Romantic Undertones
💍Mystical creatures

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

This story has potential, but I don't think this was for me, which is okay! Scion was lowkey annoying, and honestly, I thought he was like 12 at first with how he acts. Quinn, on the other hand, seems like two different people. He's a mature prince ready to become king in front of Scion and the queen but then in Luz, he seems to be a little more immature in the sense that he would rather abandon his duties if he could.

The timing seems a little off in the sense that Quinn is in Luz for months, which seems like a long time when he's being pressured to find a wife. It took me a little bit to get into the story, but I was hooked in the middle, only to lose my momentum again. Like I said, there's lots of potential for this story!

[The Book Ssirren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this story so excited to read it. Thank you V. C. Boldick for letting me in your ARC team.
I was so taken by the characters, each one was so well developed and I loved that their description allowed me to see them as I read. I also loved the unique magic system displayed in this story. Unfortunately, I only made it about halfway through before I had to put it down. I felt like it dragged, and it was confusing to me. I really wanted to like this but I just couldn’t get into it. I am planning on picking it up again at another date, hoping that maybe I just wasn’t in the right place to read this at that time. So please forgive me V. C. I think you’re a string writer with a great imagination.

[Eleanor Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this book at a local market, as I'm always keen to see what indie authors are cooking up, and can confirm, we have good soup with this one!
Expect deep worldbuilding, including political intrigue, magic systems, religion and history intermingling, and fascinating next-to-magical technology.
The story is character driven and character focused, with strong dynamics between the core cast, multiple limited third person POVs and a question filled cliff hanger.
Writing is strong and clear, action and conversation flowing with choreographed smoothness.
Will definitely be on the look out for book two!

[Alyssa Lauseng · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book.

It's been a long time since I've read a sword-and-sorcery-type of fantasy that I've enjoyed this much—the characters and worldbuilding are fantastic. I was hooked the whole way through. I would go to war for Quinn, Scion, and Embree. Probably especially Embree, though (sorry, boys!).

Something I always enjoy in fantasy books are the more political elements, and Anhelos Lost has loads of it. I love seeing how a world fits together, and how the characters confront those things.

I can't wait to see where this series goes next!

[Mirna Chandrakumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this debut. It's a sword and sorcery type fantasy with political intrigue and romance! I loved the court scene with Quinn and Embree. Embree is my fav character, she's tough, confident and has a softer side we see come out. I'm curious about the alliances that were formed and I'm eager to dive into the next book in the series to learn more about the worldbuilding magic and the underlying hint of danger that we know lies ahead. Who can Quinn truly trust?

[Rachel Neary · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
-Court intrigue
-Morally grey characters
-Mystical creatures
-Light romantic undertones
-Multi POV

I received an advance copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Really enjoyed reading this book! Was lightly confused with the side storyline about Quinn’s brother, Scion, but the epilogue pertains to some of the information that was shared during his POV. Can’t wait to read book 2 and see where it takes Quinn & Embree!

[Donna Fox]

Just wow… took a second to warm up, but then it got going!! So many plot twists and unexpected character arcs. There’s love triangles galore, friendships at stake and the future of more than one country.
There’s romance, action scenes, magic, legendary beasts, spirit animals, and of course humans to ruin everything! (You’ll understand it when you read it)
Definitely recommend this for high fantasy / adventure readers!

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this! Love having chapters from the POV of different characters. Anhelos Lost is filled with secrets, magic, political drama, and court intrigue. The prologue and epilogue from the POV of the mysterious being were great. Combined with the ending definitely makes me really excited for the next book. It's not a dramatic cliffhanger ending, but one where you're just like ooh, I wonder what's coming next.

[Angel · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a great story! Packed with high drama and political intrigue; this story delivers on complex characters and a complicated magical system with the cliffhanger you know is coming. The complexity of these relationships is enough to make my head spin, as everyone is balancing what’s right, what’s best, and the needs and wants of so many people. It all felt surprisingly real in the way normal relationships can sometimes because such a muddle.

I have to be honest, it took me a while to get completely invested, but once it picks up it’s a great character-driven tale. The tension in the second half of the book felt like riding downhill with no brakes! I was extremely frustrated with these young character and their inability to make the decisions I thought they should make, and the story ends with a cliffhanger and questions that will keep you in the lookout for book two.

[MidnightRose]

A fantasy featuring morally complex characters struggling with the downsides and dangers of being nobility.

My thoughts about this story have too much of my own feelings, and my own personal experience mixed into them for me to know how to keep this short, which is also the reason I feel I cannot rate this story.

I would like to somehow describe this story simply for itself, but I fear I cannot.

To start with what I enjoyed, I thought the dialogue was very well written, and brought out the personality in all the characters in a way that made all the characters, not just the MCs, feel like very real, complex, people.
There were things I liked, and things I didn't like about most of the characters. I somehow got this feel that even the characters who seemed horrible had a person worth existing somewhere hidden in them, a person who could have relateable desires, a person who could be pitied.
This starts in the prologue, which is from the point of view of a nameless creature who has lost all faith in good, in loyalty, yet there are hints, in this being's memories, of a tragedy which shaped it into the hopeless, power hungry, pityable monster it has become.

There is also violence in the prologue, and a fair bit of action early on, which is not my cup of tea, but I know it's the norm in fantasy. A lot of the violence in this story is there for a reason, even though I found how the characters respond to it to be too far from my responses to violence to be personally relatable to me.

The story is by no means packed with violence and action from cover to cover. I’ve never read political intrigue, but I looked it up recently and think there’s a fair bit of it mixed into this story, along with a handful of very genuine scenes I found deeply endearing.

I'm not sure how to keep this shortish, but I feel like the "story" is morally gray, if that makes any sense? The reader is left to judge for themselves, thrown into a world steeped in questionable traditions, in characters making questionable choices without even realizing what they're doing. There is no outside guidance. It's simply the reader, the world, and the characters.
I will not say I minded this per-say, but one thing reading this story taught me is that I crave at least one bright soul to lighten the darkness. I don't need a clear line between right and wrong, but I need a glimpse of compassion that will not turn the other way to any suffering.
It's not that Quinn was all bad, or that he didn't care, but he is a prince, raised to see the big picture. He has been in battle, seen death. He would have broken long ago if he were fragile, if he were vulnerable enough to the suffering around him to be truly relatable to me. He has been forced to cope in ways I never could. In some ways this story would be darker if the MC were like me, and that made it dark to me.

All this said, there are things I liked about Quinn. I like that he will stand up to the nobles, that he cares about his own sense of right and wrong, even if it isn't mine.

By the end though, I felt very sorry for all the characters, and was pretty mad at most of them, which is probably how the reader is supposed to feel. I found it very sad seeing characters making choices that I know I'd never recover from if I were in their place, choices that would haunt me with guilt wherever I went.