In the elven city of Evingrad, Lucius Nostra suffers from recurring nightmares of a black dragon killed long ago. The frightening dreams signal the ominous return of Kraegyn and the dragon tribes who wreaked havoc on the peoples of Azuleah. Confused and uncertain of his role in the gathering storm, Lucius joins his elf brother Siegfried on a perilous journey to reforge the Requiem Sword--the blade which once defeated Kraegyn.
Lucius’ quest will take him through the hostile realms of Azuleah, where both human and unhuman foes lurk. Though Lucius will gain allies on his mission and uncover secrets surrounding his past, can he survive long enough to stop Kraegyn’s ascension?
The Blade Heir is Daniel Adorno’s debut novel and the first book in the Azuleah Trilogy.
Daniel A Adorno is an author of novels based in the science fiction and fantasy genres. He began writing back in 4th grade when his teacher assigned everyone to craft a short book with construction paper. Daniel was up to the task and wrote a book on race cars worthy of a Pulitzer. Before he was a teenager, his father bought him a typewriter for his birthday and Daniel started writing a sequel to the original race car story, which he titled The Hot Rod. Unfortunately, the book was never published, but Daniel discovered a love for writing from that first story and he continued to write short stories throughout high school and into college. His first completed manuscript was a fantasy story that he finished during finals week of his sophomore year in college. For 8 years, the novel sat in limbo waiting to be edited and then Daniel placed in the top five of a local writing contest. Everything changed. He dusted off the novel and a year later his debut novel, The Blade Heir, was published on Amazon.
Daniel currently resides in Minnesota with his wife and two sons. Besides writing, Daniel enjoys reading speculative fiction, creating digital art, and teaching Sunday school students at his church.
4,75 stars - English Ebook - Epic fantasy - 🌷🌷🌷 Quote from the book : The Blue mist permeated the air once more and enveloppes Lucius in the darkness. The walls of the hallway bore arcane inscriptions and runes unknown to Lucius. He stopped Just outside of the room and peared inside. 🍀🍀🍀 Lucius is a human living with they elves. His elven brother is Siegfried. His father took Lucius in when he was found abandoned at the Gates of the elvencity. The father of Siegried thinks Lucius is an heir to a Noble house and he has to slash the Dragon Lord. The brothers leave on a quest quit unaware of all the dangers they will face. My favorite genre is fantasy. Mostly Epic fantasy. I see this book in front of me while reading. Realy enjoyed it. Like to read the second book in this series. Did not like the kliff hanger at the end of the book. Makes me curious. Hahaha 🍁🍁🍁
In the elven city of Evingrad, Lucius Nostra suffers from recurring nightmares of a black dragon killed long ago. The frightening dreams signal the ominous return of Kraegyn and the dragon tribes who wreaked havoc on the peoples of Azuleah. Confused and uncertain of his role in the gathering storm, Lucius joins his elf brother Siegfried on a perilous journey to reforge the Requiem Sword--the blade which once defeated Kraegyn.
Lucius’ quest will take him through the hostile realms of Azuleah, where both human and unhuman foes lurk. Though Lucius will gain allies on his mission and uncover secrets surrounding his past, can he survive long enough to stop Kraegyn’s ascension?
The Blade Heir is Daniel Adorno’s debut novel and the first book in the Azuleah Trilogy.
An epic adventure full of powerful magic, hidden royalty, and people who are more than what they seem. Written in much the same style as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, The Blade Heir brims with fantastical creatures and enchanting lands.
Characters
The characters are amazingly crafted. Every action, every move resonates splendidly with their personalities. They seemed so real, their trials and pain provoked deep emotions. I'm looking forward to getting to know them better as their story continues!
Plot
The plot was action-packed and enthralling. Every major plot point was unexpected, and it kept me on the edge of my seat. This was not merely action, however. The story was an excellent mix of sword fighting and exhilarating skirmishes, as well as being deep and meaningful.
Overall thoughts
This is beautiful. Everything about this book, the characters, the descriptions, the names (oh gosh, the names!), makes it an alluring tale, well worth the read. And it really lends a sense of reality to the story, a sense of hopeless desperation, when authors are not afraid to kill their characters. This, and books that end on a cliffhanger, really entice me. (That may or may not have been a small spoiler. *_- ).
Would I recommend it? Yes, I highly recommend this book to all fantasy lovers, especially fans of Lord of the Rings and The Wheel of Time Would I let my kids read it? Yes, most definitely!
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
I received a copy of this book from the author. All views expressed are my own honest opinion.
This amazing book I would give it more than 5 stars as I enjoyed every page an exquisite and well balanced story with lots of thrilles along the way. With that said a riveting story you don't want to end but it does. My appreciation to all the authors that can come up with amazing stories such as this. My thanks to the author Daniel Adorno for the extreme pleasure of reading his wonderful book & I do hope to read more of his books in the future a truly thrilling wild ride you will enjoy to go on. So with that all said this wonderful ebook was a gift from the wonderful author so to all happy reading from wee me. xx ☺♥
Overall I loved this book. The whole feel of it was great. The characters were unique, and the creatures were fascinating. I did find myself wanting to know more about them though. Since this is a trilogy, I'm hoping there will be more backstory and details in the next two books. One thing I would have to say negatively is on the pacing. Things did feel a little rushed in the beginning, and at other spots in the book. The storyline was great however, and the descriptions and scenarios stuck with you. I loved how the author depicted Satan, God, and Jesus. Of course they all had different names since this is a fantasy. The main characters struggle with trusting Yewa and Yesu felt very real. It also gives you a deeper perspective on what it's like to trust God during struggle, pain, and adversaries. I'm really looking forward to the next book. I would recommend The Blade Heir to anyone who enjoys Christian fantasy.
Lucius suffers each night from recurring nightmares of a black dragon called Kraegyn. The frightening dreams signal the return of the dragon tribes that wreaked havoc on the peoples of Azuleah centuries ago. Confused and uncertain of his role in the gathering storm, Lucius joins his elf brother Siegfried on a perilous journey to reforge the Requiem Sword--the blade which once defeated Kraegyn.
Lucius' quest will take him through the kingdom of elves, dwarves, and faeries. Though he will gain allies on his quest and uncover secrets surrounding his past, can Lucius survive long enough to stop Kraegyn's ascension?
The comments in the 5 star reviews are right on. This first book of Daniel Adorno’s trilogy does bring back fond memories from when I first read “The Hobbit” and “Lord of the Rings.” It has a similar feel and cast of species. And geography dictates much of both stories. I noticed a couple reviews knocking the similarity between Adorno’s world and Tolkien’s. I don’t see a problem. Tolkien invented a great fictional world and Adorno made a smart choice using Tolkien’s writing to influence his world. It works here.
But Adorno is not a Tolkien clone, and this is good because originality and creativity keep readers interested. I like how Yewa and Yewa’s son are intriloduced, Yesu, and the doubts in Lucuis’s mind about all the ancient history and prophecies in his world.
And I like how it's revealed pieces of his world history throughout the story. I hope in the series it continues introducing the writter's own elements into the story.
Lucius’s doubts about the outcome of his faith decisions in this fictional world mirror doubts I feel every day in our real world trying to slay my own dragons.
I can peek inside Lucuis’s world and see the big picture from my point of view. But just like Lucius in this fictional world, I can only see a portion of the real world from my own limited point of view.
So just like Lucius, I depend on faith for every decision because I’m not able to step outside the real world and peek inside like a reader.
This is true for everyone, for every decision. Especially the big ones, and Lucuis is faced with a whopper. His whole world hangs in the balance.
I enjoyed the book. There were times the pacing was a bit off, but it recovered. Early on, it took a while to get into, but that's okay. There have books I've read that took a while to build into the story. I approach it like life, everything isn't always wam-bam action all the time. That will get to be just as tiresome. Also there were a couple of chapters that flowed very much like Lord of the Rings (Return of the King). I overlooked it because I found myself engrossed nonetheless. The approach for the community life of the elves is quite interesting. The author was bold enough to toy with different attitudes, while keeping to the societal norms elves are known for.
There were sections that were a real page turner and had me hooked. Is it a perfect book? No. Was it worth the read. Definitely. I've worked to include more indie/self-published authors in my reading list and its been worth it.
The Blade Heir by Daniel Adorno is the first installment of the Azuleah Trilogy. Lucius Nostra finds out that there is more to him than meets the eye.
I simply loved this book. There is everything I love in a fantasy tale in this story. I loved the characters, well most of them. Of course there were characters that I didn't care for, which is expected in such a tale. There were graphic scenes throughout the book, so beware. It also had religious overtones, which doesn't bother me, but be informed. Overall, I'll be reading more of Daniel's work.
I received this book from BookFunnel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
The comments in the 5 star reviews are right on. This first book of Daniel Adorno’s trilogy does bring back fond memories from when I first read “The Hobbit” and “Lord of the Rings.” It has a similar feel and cast of species. And geography dictates much of both stories. I noticed a couple reviews knocking the similarity between Adorno’s world and Tolkien’s. I don’t see a problem. Tolkien invented a great fictional world and Adorno made a smart choice using Tolkien’s writing to influence his world. It works here.
But Adorno is not a Tolkien clone – and this is good because originality and creativity keep readers interested. I like how Adorno introduced Yewa and Yewa’s son, Yesu, and the doubts in Lucuis’s mind about all the ancient history and prophecies in his world. And I like how Adorno revealed pieces of his world history throughout the story. I hope Daniel continues introducing his own elements into later books in this story.
Lucius’s doubts about the outcome of his faith decisions in Adorno’s fictional world mirror doubts I feel every day in our real world trying to slay my own dragons. I can peek inside Lucuis’s world and see the big picture from my reader’s point of view. But just like Lucius in Adorno’s fictional world, I can only see a portion of the real world from my own limited point of view. So just like Lucius, I depend on faith for every decision because I’m not able to step outside the real world and peek inside like a reader. This is true for everyone, for every decision. Especially the big ones, and Lucuis is faced with a whopper. His whole world hangs in the balance.
I have a minor nit. Daniel mentions a few species in passing but doesn't do anything with them. Maybe trolls and orcs will serve a purpose in future installments. But they’re undefined here. If they don’t serve a purpose, just edit them out and stay focused on the story.
I like how Lucuis grows through the story, especially in one key scene near the end of the book when he’s tested. I won’t describe the scene here – buy the book and read it first-hand. You’ll be happy you did. Mr. Adorno, keep up the good work. I look forward to the next book.
Considering the fact that I only got this book because it was $0.99, I'm glad it turned into a 4 star book for me. I thought about giving it a lower rating because I feel that it lacks some originality, but I really like the values behind this book.
My first description of this book to anyone would be "Lord of the Rings meets the Bible". I'll be honest I haven't read the LotR series yet but the similarities are all there. Here is what I've come up with so far.
1. There is a long lost descendent of a former human king. 2. That descendent falls for an elvish princess. 3. In order to beat the bad guys the need to remake a sword for the royal descendent. 4. They get help from the son of the king who note controls the descendent kingdom. 5. They get help from a magician. 6. The army of bad guys are actually messed up bodies of old elves.
If you know LotR, you should see those parallels. As for the Bible bit, the God of the humans is based nearly word for word upon the Bible. I found that to be a sling point for me because it seems that less and less authors are doing that.
I love the struggle that Lucious goes through with his faith in God. It's definitely a relatable feeling for people of any religious belief, so I want to see how he progresses in the next book.
The Blade Heir is the first book in the Azuleah Trilogy. The Golden Millenium of Azuleah has long since passed and the terrible days of the Black Dragon, Kraegyn, are a distant memory. But in the elven city of Evingrad, a young man named Lucius suffers from a recurring nightmare of Kraegyn. The nightmare always ends with Lucius being burned to oblivion by the malicious creature’s blue fire. When his adoptive father reveals that these dreams signal the return of Kraegyn, Lucius learns to embrace his role as the prophesied protector of Azuleah. With his elf brother, Siegfried, at his side, Lucius embarks on a quest to forge the Requiem Sword, an enchanted blade which once defeated the Black Dragon nearly a millenium ago. The journey will take Lucius through the lands of elves, faeries, dwarves, and dragons. Can Lucius acquire the Requiem Sword in time to stop Kraegyn’s ascension or will blue flames scorch the world once more?
You will not go wrong in reading this novel, It holds you throughout and leaves you wondering what is going to happen next. I can't wait for the next novel. I am going to become a follower of this author, so I won't miss the next one. Great reading.
When I first started the book I found it a bit of a slower read but I found that the story did keep my attention as it moved along and what at first felt like a slow read turned into something much more action packed. I'd love more backstory in some of the history of this world and characters. Some was given but I'd love to read more. In all it was a enjoyable read.
This book introduces you to Lucius, and to his elven family Helmer and Siegfried. Lucius has nightmares about the dragon Kraegyn, otherwise he is not unhappy with the elven environment. And then - he and Siegried are sent to save Azuleah.
With The Blade Heir, Daniel Adorno has created a nicely woven fantasy story. It is a compelling read, drawing you into the world of Azuleah. Daniel Adorno paints a clear picture of Lucius' mind while the story evolves. Lucius is very likeable, he is of sufficient depth, this also applies to the other characters - depending on their relevance. Siegfried is a great guy as well, and I need to mention Syl; Syl is my favourite supporting character! The story comprises several plot lines, comprises interesting turns, and has a really good flow.
This is a book for you if you like fantasy and adventure, and if you like highly believable characters.
. This was an extremely long book, which I usually enjoy thoroughly. However, it was filled with lots of descriptions connected to the genre that tended to bog me down for some reason. So I put it on hold and read a few other cozy, light reads before completing this one.
The characters were intriguing and interesting and for the most part the writing was compelling. I saw a lot of similarities to the Bible.
This adventure was a huge build-up for what is surely to come. But I was disappointed that it could not stand on its own. In this genre, it is difficult to do that. However, I had hoped this one was different.
AMAZING! This book brought me into a fantasy world right out of the gate, and I couldn't put it down! Such a refreshing novel. I can't wait for the next one! My copy is making its rounds between all of my friends and family - it will be tattered and worn by the time I get it back, and I couldn't be happier about sharing this piece with everyone I know!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The writing was easy to follow, the characters were believable. The writing left me wanting more, I love when that happens. It took me 2 days to read the story, but that’s because I didn’t want it to end. Thank you so much Mr. Adorno for entertaining me in your wonderful world!!
I did enjoy this book and hope to learn more about the emotional connection between the characters in the next book. The descriptions of the characters is great and the story has meaning. It leaves you wanting more. Thanks Daniel.
I bought this book (for free, obvs, lol) a while ago but thought it sounded interesting by the title. Now I have my new kindle and can sort books into 'read' and 'unread' I'm now choosing new books to read based on alphabetical order of the author plus whether the title sounds like it'll be good.
Lucius is a human who lives with his adopted elf-family amongst the elves. He soon discovers that the fate of humankind rests with him, and he needs to go on a quest accompanied by his elf-brother. Along the way he meets various allies and enemies, and learns more and more about Yesu and the divisions between humans, elves, dwarves, faeries, as well as the Draknoir and their evil leader.
I really liked this book. It is easy to read and has much more going on than I was initially expecting, especially as this is Daniel's debut novel. Having read some of the other authors listed in the blurb, I can definitely see the influences they have had, and that makes me want to read the story more. In a fantasy world full of magic and mythical creatures, I am intrigued to see how the story develops, and how the various strands fit together. And, ultimately, whether what I expect/hope will happen (in regards to various scrolls and prophesies within the story) will actually happen.
Rather than just adding the sequel to my wishlist, I have actually bought it immediately so I can keep reading Lucius story.
The Blade Heir reminds me a lot of the Lord of the Rings series. Where there are quests everywhere that are headed to an obvious conclusion. The book is well written but it draws a forgone conclusion as to how the series will end. That in itself makes it a tedious storyline. The author tries too hard to place too much information in this book. His background information of his characters is brittle and stale, it felt forced. Some characters had too little background information about them and the purpose they served for being included. I have never before given such a negative review, I believe the book would have been better served to have left more to the imagination of the reader instead of trying to clue the reader into everything. Just too much in some areas and not enough in other areas. I am sorry if this is not the kind of review you are use to. I rated you a 5 star because I see great potential in you as an author and this is the first book of yours I have read. I will read you upcoming books in series to see if it ends as I suspect it will. *bows respectfully*
Overall I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't outstanding or anything. It has a cool concept, great theme and values, but poor execution, in my opinion. There were lots of grammar mistakes and incorrect verb usages. The dialogue was often on-the-nose. The voice had too much telling and not enough showing, making me feel detached from the characters. I guess Christian Fantasy is a hard genre to get right.
This was a somewhat entertaining fantasy but it was just too much Christian propaganda for me to really enjoy it. Especially when I want a good fantasy for a brief escape from reality. I got the other books in the series but after barely being able to stomachs this one I'm not going to bother with the others.
I am a long - time fan of this genre and I **like ** this story. I plan on reading the rest of the series A.S.A.P. and look forward to enjoying them as much as I did this one. The characters are well - drawn, the villains are thoroughly nasty and I am having a great deal of fun trying to figure out the method of resolving the story. Well done indeed sir !! Keep up the good work !! :-)
After a day of unusual and quirky reads, I was in the mood for a nice, old-fashioned epic fantasy, and the Blade Heir gave me exactly that! It's a classic hero's journey/quest tale, with some really nice, lush writing in passages. There wasn't a lot that felt innovative to me here, but it was well-written, clear, and almost comforting in its familiarity.
This was my first book of Daniel Adorno and I have enjoy it. The story in itself is not new but the it is told is very nice and the pace of it is very good. I'm eager to read the rest of the trilogy to know how the heroes will defeat the dragons.