The Wells of Ythan Quartet

The Wells Of Ythan #1-4

by Marc Alexander

The Wells of Ythan quartet collects Marc Alexander’s beloved fantasy novels: Ancient Dreams, Magic Casements, Shadow Realm and Enchantment’s End.

The Kingdom of Ythan was once great and prosperous. But then Princess Livia, sole heir to the kingdom disappeared, and the land fell into the tyrannical hands of the Regent. The Golden Age crumbled; despair ensued.

As time passed many lost hope that their Lady would return, and with the years she faded into legend. But from the darkness of the realm, shines a glimmer of hope.

A new power will rise.

Genres: Fantasy

1000 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 19, 2017

Reviews

[Steve Pillinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found it hard to work out why my feelings about this series were so ambivalent. It's a typical 80's sex-dominated fantasy; but that wasn't the main reason. The plot was very good: intricate, with multiple storylines, and the central mystery kept you guessing right to the end. That was what kept me reading. But the characters were rather two-dimensional and unemotional. You sort-of liked some of them, others not so much, and the rest were unimportant ciphers. The author didn't seem particularly committed to his people, so why should I be?

Then there were the endless by-the-way adventures just thrown in to slow the story down. Always new monsters… Oh, I did get tired of monsters! And with the by-the-way adventures came new by-the-way characters introduced in great detail, 80's-fashion, as though they mattered—when in fact they didn't, not in the least.

Then, though the overall plot was gripping all the way through, the end was an anticlimax. Can't go into detail without creating a spoiler, but an expectation built up all the way through fails to materialise, and another two-dimensional character suddenly introduced at the last minute takes the limelight! Seriously disappointing.

[Mr A J Hay · Rating 2 out of 5]

A so-so story

I am in two minds over this book. The story format seems quite dated, going on a quest all the main characters surviving and everybody living happily ever after. All the main characters successfully survive crisis after crisis. The continued use of archaic words I found annoying when modern words would have adequately sufficed. The narrative style was reminiscent of books I used to read 20 years ago.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best fantasy quest series that I have read in some time. Some may find it a bit tiresome as it does seem like a predictable fantasy story where a group goes on a quest. The characters are well developed with twists and turns that kept me interested in what was coming next. There were some times when it seemed that this was the end and the quest was wrapping up when then something happened to keep it going, especially when heading into book #4 of the series.

[Terri L Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read.

Ended rather abruptly, but tied up loose ends & left open further story. Liked the characters, great imagery.
Gave just enough detail to allow me to visualize without pages of description.

[Bill Ramsell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad read.