What do you think?
Rate this book
Holtur #1
The Holtur Enigma
The monsters you fear are nothing compared to the ones you do not.
With the threat of a monstrous army arising, Vivian has set off towards the town of Holtur. His job is to conscript the toughest men he can find, in a location known for producing some of the best monster slayers around. However, Holtur has its own issues, and helping this stranger is far from a priority.
Will Vivian convince the people of Holtur to help his cause? Or will he fall victim to the beasts, wyverns, or horrors that surround the town? It doesn’t take long for him to discover that he was nowhere near prepared for this godforsaken land.
With the threat of a monstrous army arising, Vivian has set off towards the town of Holtur. His job is to conscript the toughest men he can find, in a location known for producing some of the best monster slayers around. However, Holtur has its own issues, and helping this stranger is far from a priority.
Will Vivian convince the people of Holtur to help his cause? Or will he fall victim to the beasts, wyverns, or horrors that surround the town? It doesn’t take long for him to discover that he was nowhere near prepared for this godforsaken land.
166 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 24, 2017
25 people are currently reading
83 people want to read
About the author
Cameron Wayne Smith
7 books17 followersHailing from the land where people wrestle crocodiles for sport and utilise kangaroos for transport, Cameron Wayne Smith is the author you've been searching for—possibly your entire life, or perhaps a few clicks before you found this page.
Cameron has spent his adult life travelling and learning about the world while working in a huge variety of jobs. Seriously, at just over 30, Cameron has worked in libraries and fighter jets, been a tour guide in Central Australia and North Queensland, and engaged in all sorts of miscellaneous employment.
Best known for his Holtur series, Cameron writes fast-paced action stories set in fantasy worlds. His stories are garnished with a hint of horror and a modest sprinkling of hilarity.
Cameron's hobbies include travel, skydiving, snorkelling, bush-walking, pet-sitting, and brewing his own beer. He also loves the geeky, fantasy, and science fiction stuff that you can find in books, games, and on screen.
You, and all your friends, should hook into Cameron's books so he can stop working real jobs and become a full-time author. Here, grab the first book free: http://www.cameronwaynesmith.com/book...
Connect with Cameron:
http://cameronwaynesmith.com/
http://www.facebook.com/cameronwaynes...
https://twitter.com/camocamocamocam
Cameron has spent his adult life travelling and learning about the world while working in a huge variety of jobs. Seriously, at just over 30, Cameron has worked in libraries and fighter jets, been a tour guide in Central Australia and North Queensland, and engaged in all sorts of miscellaneous employment.
Best known for his Holtur series, Cameron writes fast-paced action stories set in fantasy worlds. His stories are garnished with a hint of horror and a modest sprinkling of hilarity.
Cameron's hobbies include travel, skydiving, snorkelling, bush-walking, pet-sitting, and brewing his own beer. He also loves the geeky, fantasy, and science fiction stuff that you can find in books, games, and on screen.
You, and all your friends, should hook into Cameron's books so he can stop working real jobs and become a full-time author. Here, grab the first book free: http://www.cameronwaynesmith.com/book...
Connect with Cameron:
http://cameronwaynesmith.com/
http://www.facebook.com/cameronwaynes...
https://twitter.com/camocamocamocam
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 15, 2018
Fantasy, the one place we can let go of reality and “make believe” that anything is possible! THE HOLTUR ENIGMA by Cameron Wayne Smith is sometimes over-the-top action and adventure, the characters are flawed and sometimes they will surprise you and there are bouts of humorous moments throughout. There is also a realization that sometimes, your greatest fear is lack of knowledge and failure to stand up for yourself.
When Vivian is sent to find battle-ready soldiers to come to his town’s aid, his journey will lead him to Holtur, a place where people learned to stand for themselves, with their own battles to keep their land safe. Perhaps Vivian’s own land could learn a thing or two, he certainly does.
Beasts and monsters, battles of epic proportions, warriors, a land that knows the meaning of fighting to exist, and one man sent to into their midst, wholly unprepared for learning what true grit is. Cameron Wayne Smith has made the dialogue easy to follow and understand, his characters completely human in their interactions. I had fun with this read! I even laughed out loud when Vivian first came to the gates of Holtur.
Publication Date: April 24, 2017
Publisher: Cameron Wayne Smith
Genre: Fantasy
Print Length: 182 pages
Available from: Amazon
For Reviews & More: http://tometender.blogspot.com
When Vivian is sent to find battle-ready soldiers to come to his town’s aid, his journey will lead him to Holtur, a place where people learned to stand for themselves, with their own battles to keep their land safe. Perhaps Vivian’s own land could learn a thing or two, he certainly does.
Beasts and monsters, battles of epic proportions, warriors, a land that knows the meaning of fighting to exist, and one man sent to into their midst, wholly unprepared for learning what true grit is. Cameron Wayne Smith has made the dialogue easy to follow and understand, his characters completely human in their interactions. I had fun with this read! I even laughed out loud when Vivian first came to the gates of Holtur.
Publication Date: April 24, 2017
Publisher: Cameron Wayne Smith
Genre: Fantasy
Print Length: 182 pages
Available from: Amazon
For Reviews & More: http://tometender.blogspot.com
December 5, 2018
As a huge fan of Dungeons and Dragons, I really appreciated Cameron Smith’s The Holtur Enigma. The town of Holtur sort of reminded me of my time in Baldur’s Gate, but it has a life of its own. As vicious monsters begin plaguing the land, Vivian is tasked with finding people to slay them. What he finds instead is a town full of mystery and intrigue. This story is action packed and well-written, great for any Dragon Age fans out there!
April 2, 2019
Can we talk about the monster on that cover? DAYUM.
We open with a wagon under Wyvern attack. Unfortunately, the wagon is carrying Vivian and his assistant, on their way to recruit Slayers (monster hunters) in Holtur, to protect their town of from attacks just like this. Vivian escapes, while his assistant is carried off into the wilds. Quickly reaching Holtur on foot, he realizes he's entered a world quite different from his own, constantly under attack from monsters, but he won't give up hope that with their help they can recover his assistant and he can convince some of the Slayers to return with him to rescue his town.
The pacing here was fantastic, it's fast, but never felt forced or as if monsters were just being thrown at us to keep it going. The story is not really comedic or dark, yet is absolutely fun, violent and full of swearing. The violence isn't, for the most part, too over the top while they are continually under attack or fighting monsters - I legitimately started having flashbacks to Nightsong woods when I played WoW years ago, in an idyllic forest surrounded by baddies, and that was even before they started actually harvesting flame sacs from fire wyverns.
The world and character building didn't get very detailed, but the high level world building was pretty great - in Holtur we have 3 major elements: the trained slayers, a group of scholars who study and innovate from the monsters, and an outlying ascetic group who worship an ice god. Any of them I would definitely read a whole book expanding on their current state, their history or origins, though definitely the scholars were the most interesting and different from anything I've read that I immediately wanted more from.
Vivian's character arc is immensely satisfying at the conclusion. This also has a properly done epilogue, only about a page, hints you should have picked up on, and enough of a massive gut punch to widen your eyes and drag you into the next book. So, my main gripe at the close was really that it wasn't longer and didn't explore the groups in Holtur more, but there is a ton of potential to expand on in a series from here.
Probably a 3-3.5 star, as it didn't do anything too new or fresh, but I may wind up round up on some further reflection as it was such a really fun read with a whole bunch of seeds for something more exceptional. I picked this up as a free ebook, that appears to still be ongoing, so if you have any interest at all in monster hunter stories, you've got nothing to lose by picking this one up.
We open with a wagon under Wyvern attack. Unfortunately, the wagon is carrying Vivian and his assistant, on their way to recruit Slayers (monster hunters) in Holtur, to protect their town of from attacks just like this. Vivian escapes, while his assistant is carried off into the wilds. Quickly reaching Holtur on foot, he realizes he's entered a world quite different from his own, constantly under attack from monsters, but he won't give up hope that with their help they can recover his assistant and he can convince some of the Slayers to return with him to rescue his town.
The pacing here was fantastic, it's fast, but never felt forced or as if monsters were just being thrown at us to keep it going. The story is not really comedic or dark, yet is absolutely fun, violent and full of swearing. The violence isn't, for the most part, too over the top while they are continually under attack or fighting monsters - I legitimately started having flashbacks to Nightsong woods when I played WoW years ago, in an idyllic forest surrounded by baddies, and that was even before they started actually harvesting flame sacs from fire wyverns.
The world and character building didn't get very detailed, but the high level world building was pretty great - in Holtur we have 3 major elements: the trained slayers, a group of scholars who study and innovate from the monsters, and an outlying ascetic group who worship an ice god. Any of them I would definitely read a whole book expanding on their current state, their history or origins, though definitely the scholars were the most interesting and different from anything I've read that I immediately wanted more from.
Vivian's character arc is immensely satisfying at the conclusion. This also has a properly done epilogue, only about a page, hints you should have picked up on, and enough of a massive gut punch to widen your eyes and drag you into the next book. So, my main gripe at the close was really that it wasn't longer and didn't explore the groups in Holtur more, but there is a ton of potential to expand on in a series from here.
Probably a 3-3.5 star, as it didn't do anything too new or fresh, but I may wind up round up on some further reflection as it was such a really fun read with a whole bunch of seeds for something more exceptional. I picked this up as a free ebook, that appears to still be ongoing, so if you have any interest at all in monster hunter stories, you've got nothing to lose by picking this one up.
March 15, 2018
Awesome Story
I loved this story. Full of action and suspense. I can’t wait to get the next book in the series.
I loved this story. Full of action and suspense. I can’t wait to get the next book in the series.
May 30, 2017
Enjoyed
Loved this book, don't know why lol, but couldn't put it down. Hack and slash with some great humour. Will continue the seiries
Loved this book, don't know why lol, but couldn't put it down. Hack and slash with some great humour. Will continue the seiries
March 8, 2018
Very good story line, you never know how strong you are until you are tested. The monsters and creatures in this book were very original, funny and exciting. Looking forward to the next book. I recommend this book to anyone who like fantasy and sci-fi.
October 10, 2017
The Holtur Enigma is a monster-of-the-week sitcom set in an fantasy world perfectly tailored for an action/adventure video game. That is to say, wholly unbelievable. Overlooking the sometimes sketchy worldbuilding and penchant for characters to completely break from their established personalities, the story is rather campy and silly—even almost charming in its gruesome action at times. But fiction has one basic rule: show, don't tell. Unfortunately, The Holtur Enigma often does the opposite. That paired with the general need of a better editor and left me unsatisfied with the novel on the whole.
May 27, 2018
With the threat of mysterious serpents coming to attack his village, Vivian sets off to Holtur to recruit some of their famed monster slayers, only to find they have their own problems to deal with.
I enjoyed this one a fair bit. It was nice seeing Vivian grow and find his own strength along the way. The various monsters that attacked were quite creative and interesting. The pacing was fast and rarely let up, more or less going from attack to attack.
Some light editing issues throughout, but not enough to take me out of the story. The F word is used a fair amount, if that's something that might influence your decision to read it or not.
I enjoyed this one a fair bit. It was nice seeing Vivian grow and find his own strength along the way. The various monsters that attacked were quite creative and interesting. The pacing was fast and rarely let up, more or less going from attack to attack.
Some light editing issues throughout, but not enough to take me out of the story. The F word is used a fair amount, if that's something that might influence your decision to read it or not.
March 9, 2024
A very easy read. I’m not going to leave a super detailed review but a few things I loved
1. The action! Every chapter has something interesting going on. Never felt dull or slow
2. Fits the bill of a Baldurs Gate meets The Witcher….if Geralt was all heart and not much skill. Vivian is a great character who evolves rather quickly (you see why)
3. This books isn’t trying to be something it’s not. Hard to explain but if you read it I think you’ll understand.
Really liked it and can’t wait to get on to book #2 in the series!
1. The action! Every chapter has something interesting going on. Never felt dull or slow
2. Fits the bill of a Baldurs Gate meets The Witcher….if Geralt was all heart and not much skill. Vivian is a great character who evolves rather quickly (you see why)
3. This books isn’t trying to be something it’s not. Hard to explain but if you read it I think you’ll understand.
Really liked it and can’t wait to get on to book #2 in the series!
December 8, 2017
This is more like a 3.5 for me.
This is a very cute and action driven novella that inspires you to find the inner monster hunter in you. You can't help but empathize with Vivian on his adventures that keep putting him in the path of danger and the sequel promises much more! What impresses me most is the sheer amount of imaginary creatures Smith envisions.
Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for an honest review from the author.
This is a very cute and action driven novella that inspires you to find the inner monster hunter in you. You can't help but empathize with Vivian on his adventures that keep putting him in the path of danger and the sequel promises much more! What impresses me most is the sheer amount of imaginary creatures Smith envisions.
Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for an honest review from the author.
January 8, 2018
A fast-paced and engaging story. I read this over the course of one day and it easily held my attention with its great, bantery dialogue and fun characters. While it had some minor grammatical issues (some commas and tense issues), overall this was well written and quite enjoyable. For anyone looking for an adventure romp with very unique creatures, give this one a shot.
April 17, 2018
*** 2.5 stars ***
An interesting read, but I feel there is almost too much going on. Too many monsters, too much action. A lot of the monsters seem unique though, and it does not suffer from loads of grammatical errors as so many of these books do. Worth a read if you think the blurb sounds interesting.
An interesting read, but I feel there is almost too much going on. Too many monsters, too much action. A lot of the monsters seem unique though, and it does not suffer from loads of grammatical errors as so many of these books do. Worth a read if you think the blurb sounds interesting.
May 7, 2022
A good fast paced easy read.
If you like old style monsters like wyverns, or new types introduced by this author, then you’ve got a treat coming in this tale. Add Arnold Schwarzenegger / barbarian type Monster Slayers, action and gore into the mix and the treat gets even better.
If you like old style monsters like wyverns, or new types introduced by this author, then you’ve got a treat coming in this tale. Add Arnold Schwarzenegger / barbarian type Monster Slayers, action and gore into the mix and the treat gets even better.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews