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The Berikatanyan Chronicles #1
Gatekeeper
He went to the stars to start over. His troubles have just begun.Earth, 2072. Jann Argent has no memory of committing the murder that landed him in prison. So when he’s offered a chance at freedom, he accepts the price of exile to humanity’s first colony planet. But when the ship crash lands on the new world’s surface, he’s shocked to discover an indigenous population and a strange sense of familiarity.
Stunned when he and several other shipmates develop mystical powers, Jann discovers previous colonists have all joined one of two rival native houses. And with a tyrant’s power play set to devastate the realm, he’s about to become the lynchpin in a magical war that could destroy him.
Can Jann uncover his destiny in time to stop a terrifying plot?
Gatekeeper is the first book in the genre-bending Berikatanyan Chronicles science fiction fantasy mashup. If you like gritty heroes, elemental magic, and journeys to other worlds, then you’ll love John Beresford’s towering tale.
Buy Gatekeeper to fulfill an interstellar fate today!
Stunned when he and several other shipmates develop mystical powers, Jann discovers previous colonists have all joined one of two rival native houses. And with a tyrant’s power play set to devastate the realm, he’s about to become the lynchpin in a magical war that could destroy him.
Can Jann uncover his destiny in time to stop a terrifying plot?
Gatekeeper is the first book in the genre-bending Berikatanyan Chronicles science fiction fantasy mashup. If you like gritty heroes, elemental magic, and journeys to other worlds, then you’ll love John Beresford’s towering tale.
Buy Gatekeeper to fulfill an interstellar fate today!
365 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2015
22 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 6, 2021
This is the first novel that I have read by John Beresford. I have to tell you that I was initially intrigued by the cover. I don’t know if cover art means a lot to other readers but I find that they draw me in. Sometimes I regret it but not this time. I have read a lot of fantasy but not a lot of Sci-fi so when I realized that this story was set in 2072 I was a little worried, But honestly I have to tell you the Mr. Beresford has really combined the two. His writing is beautiful and captivating. It is like he paints a landscape and invites you to step in. He combined his beautiful painting with a very intriguing story. So many times a fantasy or sci-fi falls along the same similar lines, but his story was an entirely new concept. He had already pulled me in with his beautiful landscapes and now I had found the protagonist to be one that I routed for and wondered if he would survive the new world and new wars to come. Mr Beresford delighted me with his well fleshed out protagonists, enticing and interactive concepts with engaging plot follow-through, and delightful arrays of inclusive side characters and visionary worldbuilding. What more could a reader ask for? I gave this honest, voluntary review after being given a free copy of the novel.
July 10, 2024
Gatekeeper
A fabulous amalgamation of Sci/Fi & Fantasy with a remarkable cast of characters and a complex story of plots, counter plots and plots within plots.
John Beresford has created a whole world in Berikatanyan complete with flora and fauna. A rich tapestry that serves as backdrop to a fascinating tale.
Gatekeeper is book 1 in a trilogy and I am very much looking forward to reading further in the Berikatanyan Chronicles.
Not since reading “Magician” have I enjoyed such an interesting and engaging book.
A fabulous amalgamation of Sci/Fi & Fantasy with a remarkable cast of characters and a complex story of plots, counter plots and plots within plots.
John Beresford has created a whole world in Berikatanyan complete with flora and fauna. A rich tapestry that serves as backdrop to a fascinating tale.
Gatekeeper is book 1 in a trilogy and I am very much looking forward to reading further in the Berikatanyan Chronicles.
Not since reading “Magician” have I enjoyed such an interesting and engaging book.
August 20, 2024
Sorry, did not work for me. Mr. Beresford tried to immerge us in the story by avoiding lengthy descriptions, but for me this failed. The characters remained too two-dimensional, the story was confusing with the hiding of identities in some spots and the plot rumbled along without any consistency, build-up or background… for me at least. The magic is very deus-ex-machina, without any explanation of underlying principles.
On the SF side, this must have been one of the most inane colonization attempts I have ever read.
Some people loved it, I did not. Taste differs, I guess.
On the SF side, this must have been one of the most inane colonization attempts I have ever read.
Some people loved it, I did not. Taste differs, I guess.
February 19, 2026
A really original blend of fantasy and science fiction. Beresford's unique world transports readers to the land of Berikatanya, where elemental powers, court intrigue and subterfuge await. A roaring introduction to a world and characters that the author maintains across two trilogies.
June 9, 2015
I loved Gatekeeper!
The story follows a group of people that meet while on a ship to a new colony on a planet 97 light years away from Earth. Some of them have one thing in common, a memory loss in their lives. They range in ages from teen to late middle age and have very little in common but they strike up a friendship. When they get to the new planet, after a crash landing during a violent storm, they find out, as the two ships that arrived before them found out, that there has been a thriving society on the planet. The members of this group of people find out more about themselves and their capabilities. There is magic and warring royal houses, subterfuge and triumph. It's a fantasy/sci fi story that kept me captivated.
I really liked the main characters, they all felt very believable while each being very different from the other. The narrative and the world the author has created is vivid and intriguing. He's done a lot of work figuring out bits and pieces of the native language and creating new flora and fauna. I have the distinct feeling there could be a sequel some day and I hope that's the intent. I want to know more about these characters and what happens to them as they make their place in the new world along with the other Terran colonists.
This is John Beresford's second book and while I enjoyed his first one, War of Nutrition, I loved this one even more!
The story follows a group of people that meet while on a ship to a new colony on a planet 97 light years away from Earth. Some of them have one thing in common, a memory loss in their lives. They range in ages from teen to late middle age and have very little in common but they strike up a friendship. When they get to the new planet, after a crash landing during a violent storm, they find out, as the two ships that arrived before them found out, that there has been a thriving society on the planet. The members of this group of people find out more about themselves and their capabilities. There is magic and warring royal houses, subterfuge and triumph. It's a fantasy/sci fi story that kept me captivated.
I really liked the main characters, they all felt very believable while each being very different from the other. The narrative and the world the author has created is vivid and intriguing. He's done a lot of work figuring out bits and pieces of the native language and creating new flora and fauna. I have the distinct feeling there could be a sequel some day and I hope that's the intent. I want to know more about these characters and what happens to them as they make their place in the new world along with the other Terran colonists.
This is John Beresford's second book and while I enjoyed his first one, War of Nutrition, I loved this one even more!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews