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Forward the Hunt
For as long as he can remember, Haruki has wanted to be part of the Great Hunt, the annual coming of age ceremony where the youth of Salfea are let loose to kill a dragon and bring it home as proof of adulthood. The larger and higher-ranked the dragon, the greater the reward. Held back for years by family obligation, Haruki has only ever been able to watch from afar until the opportunity finally comes to him. Desperate to prove himself, he's certain he'll do whatever it takes to have a successful hunt.
But on the first night of his Hunt, Haruki finds an injured dragon so highly-ranked that killing him could rocket Haruki all the way to the throne... if he can resist the dragon and his ways.
But on the first night of his Hunt, Haruki finds an injured dragon so highly-ranked that killing him could rocket Haruki all the way to the throne... if he can resist the dragon and his ways.
204 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 26, 2018
3 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
About the author
Lotus Oakes
15 books4 followersThe secret writing identity of someone doing her best to play the role of a Responsible Dayjob Adult in the offline world. Everything she writes wants to be a fairytale when it grows up.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 11, 2018
Dragons! ‘Forward the Hunt’ is part of a whole collection by the name of ‘For the Hoard’, and each story so far has offered a different perspective on dragonlore. In this tale, set in the fictional island-nation of Salfea, dragons are hunted as part of a ritual that establishes someone as an adult. It’s pretty barbaric – especially once you realize that these people are well aware that dragons are shifters and as such, sentient beings. It’s an adventure story as well as a coming-of-age tale, and has great characters, a few surprising revelations, and some great worldbuilding.
Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
March 8, 2018
Hmmm ... the dragon doesn't really do a lot in dragon form, isn't he? And this is more about Haruki realizing about what he wants and what he could be -- and not because he has to fulfill some HORRIBLE culture of killing dragon to prove maturity. The romance is not very convincing for me though.
February 11, 2018
Look, I found this story really beautiful. It involves the child of immigrants trying to fit into the new land in which they live and, at the same time, being torn between that and his own family's traditions.
Haruki's parents have recently died, but he is still living in the same house where they all used to live together. His own parents had a coming of age for him and considered him a man before they died, but the village considers its children to come of age only after they have caught a dragon.
This year, despite being far older than many others, will be the first time that Haruki has taken part in the Hunt.
Richard is used to being Haruki's only real friend in the village, despite the fact that he is seen as an adult, and is of a far richer status than Haruki. This begins to change significantly as soon as the Hunt begins. On his first day, Haruki finds a young man in the forest who he does not recognise from the village. It becomes obvious very quickly that Star is more than what he seems.
Oh boy I loved Star and Haruki's interactions in this novella! Star is so wonderfully snarky and Haruki is so clueless. He's honestly been so torn between his parents and his village for his whole life that he's never challenged or come to his own thoughts and opinions regarding the way that people hunt dragons in order to come of age.
As well as this, there is some really great world building in the story. I love that we have a fairly standard fantasy island but that immigration is so much at the fore of the narrative. It really works to make it such a contemporarily relevant novel.
Star's presence in Haruki's life causes him to start questioning, and also causes him to start to see things about Richard, and about his life so far that he didn't think or know before.
Haruki's parents have recently died, but he is still living in the same house where they all used to live together. His own parents had a coming of age for him and considered him a man before they died, but the village considers its children to come of age only after they have caught a dragon.
This year, despite being far older than many others, will be the first time that Haruki has taken part in the Hunt.
Richard is used to being Haruki's only real friend in the village, despite the fact that he is seen as an adult, and is of a far richer status than Haruki. This begins to change significantly as soon as the Hunt begins. On his first day, Haruki finds a young man in the forest who he does not recognise from the village. It becomes obvious very quickly that Star is more than what he seems.
Oh boy I loved Star and Haruki's interactions in this novella! Star is so wonderfully snarky and Haruki is so clueless. He's honestly been so torn between his parents and his village for his whole life that he's never challenged or come to his own thoughts and opinions regarding the way that people hunt dragons in order to come of age.
As well as this, there is some really great world building in the story. I love that we have a fairly standard fantasy island but that immigration is so much at the fore of the narrative. It really works to make it such a contemporarily relevant novel.
Star's presence in Haruki's life causes him to start questioning, and also causes him to start to see things about Richard, and about his life so far that he didn't think or know before.
March 22, 2018
I loved this story, because it had a lot to say about some vert serious issues, without overwhelming the reader. It has a lot to say about immigration and how it affects the children in a very realistic way that I very appreciated as a child of an immigrant. It shows how abusive manipulation, even seemingly positive, affects people and their self-worth. And it’s all done with care.
Haruki was a wonderful main character- strong-willed but kind, torn between his family and the country he lives in. But when his loyalties are truly tested, he does what is right. Star the dragon was funny and charming, teasing and flirting with Haruki, but never crossing his boundaries. I enjoyed their romance a lot.
Haruki was a wonderful main character- strong-willed but kind, torn between his family and the country he lives in. But when his loyalties are truly tested, he does what is right. Star the dragon was funny and charming, teasing and flirting with Haruki, but never crossing his boundaries. I enjoyed their romance a lot.
July 8, 2018
From Magnolia Reviews: One Petal
I can't recommend this story at all. While there were hints of potential in the world building, the awkward and uncomfortable plot made me wish I hadn't picked up this story.
Read the full review on Maggie's website:http://magnoliareviews.weebly.com/rev...
I can't recommend this story at all. While there were hints of potential in the world building, the awkward and uncomfortable plot made me wish I hadn't picked up this story.
Read the full review on Maggie's website:http://magnoliareviews.weebly.com/rev...
December 28, 2018
Interesting story, but it feels like something is missing. I wanted to know more about the dragons because we just learned some mysterious things, but there was no final reveal of their society. In fact, I don't believe we even got to see Star in dragon form either :(
December 29, 2018
Slow to start but when it gets going, adorable. A romance between a man still classified as a child and a dragon in human form. I liked the pairings interaction and the character growth.
May 20, 2019
** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Copy received through Netgalley
~
Forward the Hunt, by Lotus Oakes
★★★★☆
131 Pages
POV: 3rd person, one character POV
Content Warning: mentions of violence, stoning, public shaming by status
When I started this story, I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about it. There was an undefinable something that didn't suck me in and keep me hooked into the story as much as I had hoped, after reading the blurb. But, once Star appeared, that changed.
I think the biggest problem was that I didn't like Richard, right from the start – he was condescending, arrogant, and treated Haruki like a servant who couldn't help but be stupid. One of those kindly condescending people who think their kindness to someone 'unworthy' is some kind of heroic deed. But, once it got into the Hunt, and Star made his appearance, I saw more of Haruki's real personality, compared to the slightly weak, younger, naive person he was when he was around Richard. He treated himself like a subservient lacky whenever Richard was around and I wasn't sure I was going to like him, if that continued. Luckily, he was much more feisty and independent once he began the Hunt and had the freedom to move away from Richard and spent more time with Star.
However, I do have to say that the romance is a bit lacking. There is a slow-build of companionship between Haruki and Star right from the first, but I never really felt it grow into love. I could see the chemistry between them and their bantering was great, but when it came to the end of the story, it felt like they hadn't really crested that tide of understanding their feelings for each other, yet. Like they were still in that uncertain stage of 'I like you' and 'I like you, too' but not really ready to commit to anything. Except, they do and it didn't feel quite right.
The world building was good. I would have liked a little more, to explain the why and how the Hunt had come about, what the constant stream of dragon scales were being used for after the Hunt, and why the dragons were ranked as chess pieces. That didn't really make sense to me. And I wasn't overly fond of the whole idea of the Hunt in the first place – I'm not a fan of fox-hunting either, and this felt very similar – but I really didn't feel comfortable with it once I found out that the entire kingdom is aware that dragons are sentient beings. The Queen even announces at the feast that they're just like humans, when it comes to their thinking. It felt more tainted after that, and I felt really uncomfortable with the idea of the Hunt from then on.
Overall, while I really liked the story, there were a few niggles that meant I couldn't give it the full 5* treatment. I liked Haruki and Star, especially when they were together; I liked their slow growing relationship. I would have liked more romance, more bonding on page and more of them moving beyond that companionship that started it all off. I didn't like Richard or the idea of the Hunt, but they were both well used and plotted throughout the story. I loved the writing style, though I wasn't initially fond of the use of modern speech in a clearly historical/fantasy setting. The love triangle was a good plot twist and helped move things into the right position. In the end, it was my overall enjoyment of the story and the relationship between Haruki and Star that made me give it 4*. I'd be interested to read more about this world, or a continuation of their story.
~
Favourite Quotes
“And now everything breaks.”
Copy received through Netgalley
~
Forward the Hunt, by Lotus Oakes
★★★★☆
131 Pages
POV: 3rd person, one character POV
Content Warning: mentions of violence, stoning, public shaming by status
When I started this story, I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about it. There was an undefinable something that didn't suck me in and keep me hooked into the story as much as I had hoped, after reading the blurb. But, once Star appeared, that changed.
I think the biggest problem was that I didn't like Richard, right from the start – he was condescending, arrogant, and treated Haruki like a servant who couldn't help but be stupid. One of those kindly condescending people who think their kindness to someone 'unworthy' is some kind of heroic deed. But, once it got into the Hunt, and Star made his appearance, I saw more of Haruki's real personality, compared to the slightly weak, younger, naive person he was when he was around Richard. He treated himself like a subservient lacky whenever Richard was around and I wasn't sure I was going to like him, if that continued. Luckily, he was much more feisty and independent once he began the Hunt and had the freedom to move away from Richard and spent more time with Star.
However, I do have to say that the romance is a bit lacking. There is a slow-build of companionship between Haruki and Star right from the first, but I never really felt it grow into love. I could see the chemistry between them and their bantering was great, but when it came to the end of the story, it felt like they hadn't really crested that tide of understanding their feelings for each other, yet. Like they were still in that uncertain stage of 'I like you' and 'I like you, too' but not really ready to commit to anything. Except, they do and it didn't feel quite right.
The world building was good. I would have liked a little more, to explain the why and how the Hunt had come about, what the constant stream of dragon scales were being used for after the Hunt, and why the dragons were ranked as chess pieces. That didn't really make sense to me. And I wasn't overly fond of the whole idea of the Hunt in the first place – I'm not a fan of fox-hunting either, and this felt very similar – but I really didn't feel comfortable with it once I found out that the entire kingdom is aware that dragons are sentient beings. The Queen even announces at the feast that they're just like humans, when it comes to their thinking. It felt more tainted after that, and I felt really uncomfortable with the idea of the Hunt from then on.
Overall, while I really liked the story, there were a few niggles that meant I couldn't give it the full 5* treatment. I liked Haruki and Star, especially when they were together; I liked their slow growing relationship. I would have liked more romance, more bonding on page and more of them moving beyond that companionship that started it all off. I didn't like Richard or the idea of the Hunt, but they were both well used and plotted throughout the story. I loved the writing style, though I wasn't initially fond of the use of modern speech in a clearly historical/fantasy setting. The love triangle was a good plot twist and helped move things into the right position. In the end, it was my overall enjoyment of the story and the relationship between Haruki and Star that made me give it 4*. I'd be interested to read more about this world, or a continuation of their story.
~
Favourite Quotes
“And now everything breaks.”
June 8, 2018
Fun
I enjoyed this story a lot, though there were a few drawbacks. The main character was a times a little TOO dense. But the love interest more than made up for it. I would have liked to see more of them together in their new life at the end- it seemed a bit clipped. But overall a good read with a bit of a different mythos.
I enjoyed this story a lot, though there were a few drawbacks. The main character was a times a little TOO dense. But the love interest more than made up for it. I would have liked to see more of them together in their new life at the end- it seemed a bit clipped. But overall a good read with a bit of a different mythos.
Want to Read
February 22, 2018I read Ravenhearth by this author and loved the style and feel of the book. Will certainly give this a try at some point.
Read
October 26, 2018You know, I wasn't sure about this one, a human falling for a dragon that his people hunt? How will our main character see the dragon as anything but an animal? But I was pleasantly surprised in how the author arranged both their introduction, the main character's background and family history, and the story of how the hunts began in the first place.
Overall quite fabulously done. My favorite thus far from this author.
Overall quite fabulously done. My favorite thus far from this author.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews