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Helstrum: A Fantasy Adventure with, Heroics, Humour and Heart
300 pages, Paperback
Published November 28, 2025
About the author
Andrew Claydon
13 books25 followersAndrew Claydon has an imagination, one full of variety.
Sometimes it's funny, sometimes it's adventurous, sometimes it's shocking, and occasionally it's outright strange...but it's never boring!
Andrew is a UK author who grew up loving fantasy movies such as Conan, Krull, Beastmaster and Willow. The epic worlds and battles of swords and sorcery therein inspired him to create his own fantasy worlds, adding to them his own brand of irreverent humour; because sometimes it's good to chuckle in between sword fights!
He wants to inspire the imagination of others, just as he's been inspired; with dashing heroes, epic quests and vile villains.
So reader beware, you aren't just opening a book, but a doorway into Andrew's imagination. It'll be a strange journey, but an entertaining one!
Sometimes it's funny, sometimes it's adventurous, sometimes it's shocking, and occasionally it's outright strange...but it's never boring!
Andrew is a UK author who grew up loving fantasy movies such as Conan, Krull, Beastmaster and Willow. The epic worlds and battles of swords and sorcery therein inspired him to create his own fantasy worlds, adding to them his own brand of irreverent humour; because sometimes it's good to chuckle in between sword fights!
He wants to inspire the imagination of others, just as he's been inspired; with dashing heroes, epic quests and vile villains.
So reader beware, you aren't just opening a book, but a doorway into Andrew's imagination. It'll be a strange journey, but an entertaining one!
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 18, 2025
Nicolas has found what almost feels like home in the safe haven the group has found. They all have. But Winter is thawing which means their mission will have to start soon. The idea of leaving what comfort they have found is not something any of them want to talk about. However, when trouble finds them they are forced to leave before more finds the people who have sheltered them. Helstrum has been sowing hate and radical ideas to humans using the recent events to further fuel division. Nicolas knows tracking Helstrum and killing him will be for the greater good but he is having problems with the idea of killing someone who isn't actively fighting him. And the fact he is even comfortable killing people who do fight him is something he is still trying to wrap his head around but has accepted. As they make their way back to the Nine Kingdoms Nicolas’ luck of attracting trouble works its magic.
What a rollercoaster ride for Nicolas. Not only is the idea of taking out a growing power something he needs to grapple with but some revelations in this story shake ideas he has been holding on to. Watching him struggle and come to turns with these events is a pleasure because we actively see character growth. All of them have. And they have learned from mistakes, addressing them at points to help the group stay on track. That is one thing I greatly enjoy about this series, the characters evolve instead of staying static and overly predictable. We get a glimpse of the charismatic Helstrum and how he draws people in and the calculated way he handles his business. It's eerily uncomfortable how the author grasps the idea of this personality and how he can manipulate others to believe these extreme ideals. We are also given some bigger plot development in who is pulling the strings and why but still not enough to see the whole picture quite yet. But things are definitely moving on a much larger scale than the group realizes even though they know they are fighting for the soul of the Nine Kingdoms.
What a rollercoaster ride for Nicolas. Not only is the idea of taking out a growing power something he needs to grapple with but some revelations in this story shake ideas he has been holding on to. Watching him struggle and come to turns with these events is a pleasure because we actively see character growth. All of them have. And they have learned from mistakes, addressing them at points to help the group stay on track. That is one thing I greatly enjoy about this series, the characters evolve instead of staying static and overly predictable. We get a glimpse of the charismatic Helstrum and how he draws people in and the calculated way he handles his business. It's eerily uncomfortable how the author grasps the idea of this personality and how he can manipulate others to believe these extreme ideals. We are also given some bigger plot development in who is pulling the strings and why but still not enough to see the whole picture quite yet. But things are definitely moving on a much larger scale than the group realizes even though they know they are fighting for the soul of the Nine Kingdoms.
Displaying 1 of 1 review