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The Old Road
Sometimes you choose without realizing you did. Be careful – your choices might lead you onto the Old Road.
Pete is a kid from the hills, hungry, stubborn, and a little too sharp for his own good. When the world fades and the Old Road opens beneath his feet, he’s pulled into a vast subterranean realm of glowing caverns, ruined cities, and creatures out of myth.
Taken in by a Goblin scout with secrets of their own, Pete begins to learn what it takes to survive in this harsh underworld. Brutal training is only the beginning. He is introduced to an ancient force known simply as the Power – an answer to every problem, and a temptation he fears is too good to be true.
If he wants to live long enough to find a way home, Pete must learn fast and choose wisely, for peace is never long‑lasting in this sunless world. Goblins, Dwarves, and Elves dance to the tune of politics and death, and trust is a knife in the back. Pete will have to decide how far he’s willing to go… and what he’s willing to become.
The Old Road begins The Dara Sealladh Trilogy, a mythic, character‑driven portal fantasy told through an Appalachian lens – gritty, grounded, and unmistakably original.
Pete is a kid from the hills, hungry, stubborn, and a little too sharp for his own good. When the world fades and the Old Road opens beneath his feet, he’s pulled into a vast subterranean realm of glowing caverns, ruined cities, and creatures out of myth.
Taken in by a Goblin scout with secrets of their own, Pete begins to learn what it takes to survive in this harsh underworld. Brutal training is only the beginning. He is introduced to an ancient force known simply as the Power – an answer to every problem, and a temptation he fears is too good to be true.
If he wants to live long enough to find a way home, Pete must learn fast and choose wisely, for peace is never long‑lasting in this sunless world. Goblins, Dwarves, and Elves dance to the tune of politics and death, and trust is a knife in the back. Pete will have to decide how far he’s willing to go… and what he’s willing to become.
The Old Road begins The Dara Sealladh Trilogy, a mythic, character‑driven portal fantasy told through an Appalachian lens – gritty, grounded, and unmistakably original.
181 pages, Paperback
Published April 8, 2026
About the author
Jimmy D. Whitt
2 books2 followersJimmy is a welder‑fabricator turned engineer from Appalachia, a lifelong reader who enjoys chess, problem‑solving, and serving as a loyal butler to Mr. Fluff, who rules the household with an iron paw.
He writes atmospheric, character‑driven fantasy flavored with a bare‑knuckle spirit.
The Old Road, first book in The Dara Sealladh Trilogy, is his debut.
He writes atmospheric, character‑driven fantasy flavored with a bare‑knuckle spirit.
The Old Road, first book in The Dara Sealladh Trilogy, is his debut.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 7, 2026
My Rating: 4.5/5
"The Old Road (The Dara Sealladh Trilogy, #1)" by Jimmy D. Whitt is an impressive debut fantasy novel. I must admit that I really enjoyed the author's writing style; it slowly draws you in before accelerating toward a thrilling climax. The underworld is richly developed, and the protagonist, as well as the supporting characters, are very well-crafted. Although the main character is initially completely confused and struggles to fit into an unfamiliar world—which is entirely relatable for a teenager—he quickly realizes that he must mature fast. Due to a sudden turn of events, he learns that he has to start thinking like an adult if he wants any chance of survival.
A glimpse into the story:
Pete has no idea what to do with his life. Despite achieving excellent grades on his entrance exams, he is unsure about continuing his education. With no clear direction, he wanders around his neighborhood lost in thought, eventually stumbling upon a closed mine. While peering inside, a mysterious light blinds him, causing him to fall underground and lose consciousness. Upon waking, his first shock is realizing he has landed on a giant beetle the size of a human. The second shock comes immediately after, as two other beetles attack him. Fortunately, he is carrying a small knife from his walks and manages to defend himself.
After defeating the beetles, he spots a source of light and heads toward it. He enters a tavern, in the center of which stands a large oval stone bowl. A luminous liquid resembling water drips into it. Unsure of what it is, Pete dips the tip of his knife into the liquid. Even though his subconscious warns him against it, he licks the blade and passes out once more. When he wakes up, the bowl and the light are gone, leaving him to find a way out in the dark.
Soon, he encounters snake-like creatures. Fleeing frantically through the tunnels to save his life, he eventually emerges onto a small plateau overlooking a massive valley. Having lost his knife during the escape, he is certain death is near. However, he is saved by a goblin named Keres. Keres reveals that Pete is now in the underworld and must master "Power" to survive. Pete is thrust into a brutal fantasy world where he can trust no one.
If you enjoy immersive underworld settings and classic fantasy creatures, this book might surprise you. It offers a unique twist on the genre, pulling you into a dark world of subterranean landscapes, mysterious taverns, and spectacular cities illuminated by glowing mushrooms.
"The Old Road (The Dara Sealladh Trilogy, #1)" by Jimmy D. Whitt is an impressive debut fantasy novel. I must admit that I really enjoyed the author's writing style; it slowly draws you in before accelerating toward a thrilling climax. The underworld is richly developed, and the protagonist, as well as the supporting characters, are very well-crafted. Although the main character is initially completely confused and struggles to fit into an unfamiliar world—which is entirely relatable for a teenager—he quickly realizes that he must mature fast. Due to a sudden turn of events, he learns that he has to start thinking like an adult if he wants any chance of survival.
A glimpse into the story:
Pete has no idea what to do with his life. Despite achieving excellent grades on his entrance exams, he is unsure about continuing his education. With no clear direction, he wanders around his neighborhood lost in thought, eventually stumbling upon a closed mine. While peering inside, a mysterious light blinds him, causing him to fall underground and lose consciousness. Upon waking, his first shock is realizing he has landed on a giant beetle the size of a human. The second shock comes immediately after, as two other beetles attack him. Fortunately, he is carrying a small knife from his walks and manages to defend himself.
After defeating the beetles, he spots a source of light and heads toward it. He enters a tavern, in the center of which stands a large oval stone bowl. A luminous liquid resembling water drips into it. Unsure of what it is, Pete dips the tip of his knife into the liquid. Even though his subconscious warns him against it, he licks the blade and passes out once more. When he wakes up, the bowl and the light are gone, leaving him to find a way out in the dark.
Soon, he encounters snake-like creatures. Fleeing frantically through the tunnels to save his life, he eventually emerges onto a small plateau overlooking a massive valley. Having lost his knife during the escape, he is certain death is near. However, he is saved by a goblin named Keres. Keres reveals that Pete is now in the underworld and must master "Power" to survive. Pete is thrust into a brutal fantasy world where he can trust no one.
If you enjoy immersive underworld settings and classic fantasy creatures, this book might surprise you. It offers a unique twist on the genre, pulling you into a dark world of subterranean landscapes, mysterious taverns, and spectacular cities illuminated by glowing mushrooms.
September 7, 2026
The Old Road, by Jimmy D. Whitt, is a portal fantasy with its boots planted firmly in Appalachian soil. Pete begins as a young man from coal country who has already made a few bad choices and isn't sure what comes next. Then an ordinary walk past an abandoned mine drops him into the Below, a vast underground world of Goblins, Kobolds, Elves, Dwarves, ruined civilizations, strange creatures, and a force simply called the Power. Whitt gets the adventure moving quickly, but the real hook is Pete himself. He carries the hollers, his mother, his humor, his regrets, and his way of looking at people into every strange encounter. Even when the world around him becomes increasingly fantastic, Pete remains recognizably the same kid who started out wondering whether his life was going anywhere.
The Below is built through discovery, and that makes exploring it with Pete a lot of fun. Glowing moss, enormous caverns, ancient roads, bags of holding, glyph-powered tools, underground settlements, strange mounts, lost cities, and competing peoples arrive as things Pete has to understand if he wants to stay alive. The Power gives the story a satisfying progression-fantasy engine, rewarding experience, intent, will, and hard-earned Milestones, but Whitt connects that system directly to character. Pete becomes more capable because he's learning to pay attention, work, endure, and make better choices. His training under Keres turns those ideas into the backbone of the book. Their relationship grows from wary necessity into trust and affection, with Keres's relentless lessons in observation and survival becoming as important to Pete's development as any supernatural ability.
As the story opens up, The Old Road becomes more than a journey through an exotic underground world. Pete's arrival intersects with missing scouts, mysterious gateways, Elven activity, old abuses of the Power, institutional politics, and dangers that increasingly suggest his presence in the Below matters. Brannick and Lirissa broaden the cast without stealing the story away from Pete, while Pete's eventual entry into Scout training gives him something he has rarely had before: a place where effort, discipline, friendship, and ability might actually lead somewhere. Whitt also keeps Pete's sense of humor alive through all of it. His Earthbound comparisons, awkward reactions, running commentary, and occasional inability to leave well enough alone give the book an easy conversational energy even when assassins, political maneuvering, and ancient threats begin closing in.
What stays with me most is the way The Old Road treats transformation as a series of choices. Pete gains extraordinary abilities, but the more important change is that he begins taking responsibility for what kind of person he'll become. That gives the book's adventure real emotional weight and makes its cliffhanger ending feel like the opening part of a much larger story. Whitt has created a fantasy world with plenty to explore, but he's also given readers a protagonist worth following down every dark passage ahead. The Old Road turns an Appalachian kid's search for a future into a gripping journey through another world, and makes every hard-won step feel like it matters.
The Below is built through discovery, and that makes exploring it with Pete a lot of fun. Glowing moss, enormous caverns, ancient roads, bags of holding, glyph-powered tools, underground settlements, strange mounts, lost cities, and competing peoples arrive as things Pete has to understand if he wants to stay alive. The Power gives the story a satisfying progression-fantasy engine, rewarding experience, intent, will, and hard-earned Milestones, but Whitt connects that system directly to character. Pete becomes more capable because he's learning to pay attention, work, endure, and make better choices. His training under Keres turns those ideas into the backbone of the book. Their relationship grows from wary necessity into trust and affection, with Keres's relentless lessons in observation and survival becoming as important to Pete's development as any supernatural ability.
As the story opens up, The Old Road becomes more than a journey through an exotic underground world. Pete's arrival intersects with missing scouts, mysterious gateways, Elven activity, old abuses of the Power, institutional politics, and dangers that increasingly suggest his presence in the Below matters. Brannick and Lirissa broaden the cast without stealing the story away from Pete, while Pete's eventual entry into Scout training gives him something he has rarely had before: a place where effort, discipline, friendship, and ability might actually lead somewhere. Whitt also keeps Pete's sense of humor alive through all of it. His Earthbound comparisons, awkward reactions, running commentary, and occasional inability to leave well enough alone give the book an easy conversational energy even when assassins, political maneuvering, and ancient threats begin closing in.
What stays with me most is the way The Old Road treats transformation as a series of choices. Pete gains extraordinary abilities, but the more important change is that he begins taking responsibility for what kind of person he'll become. That gives the book's adventure real emotional weight and makes its cliffhanger ending feel like the opening part of a much larger story. Whitt has created a fantasy world with plenty to explore, but he's also given readers a protagonist worth following down every dark passage ahead. The Old Road turns an Appalachian kid's search for a future into a gripping journey through another world, and makes every hard-won step feel like it matters.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews