Prince of Dreams is the second novel in the magnificent fantasy series Seven Brothers , which draws upon the rich legends, cultures, and traditions of the East to create an epic tale of kingdoms lost, nobles enslaved, families reunited, and gods reborn.
It began when Llesho was seven, and the Harn invaded his family’s mountain kingdom of Thebin. His guards slaughtered before his eyes, he was carried off and sold into slavery on Pearl Island, as far as he knew, the sole survivor of his royal family.
At fifteen, visited by the specter of his newly dead mentor, he learned that his brothers were still alive and had also been sold into slavery. And so began his quest to earn his freedom by becoming a successful gladiator, and then to travel the lands finding and rescuing his brothers so that together they might raise an army and win back their kingdom from the cruel and barbaric Harn.
But each success led Llesho into still greater peril, and even with the aid of two of his brothers, the trickster god himself, a young witch and her even more powerful father, several of his fellow gladiators, and the Emperor Shou, Llesho was not certain he would be able to reach his goal. Not when both the Harn and the evil Master Markko were set on his death, and not when the very gates of Heaven seemed to be shut against him. Only if Llesho could learn the truth about his own mysterious heritage and the powers locked inside him did he stand any chance of saving his own people and reopening the pathway between mortals and gods….
Curt Benjamin is a pseudonym used by an author who normally writes contemporary fantasy. He has a degree in art from Antioch University. In his spare time, he is a designer and children's illustrator.
The story is good, but the writing is even clunkier than the last book. It might have been just my edition, but there were several glaring errors that even Microsoft Word would catch, spelling "Bixei" as "Bixie", commas instead of periods, and the rest of a line randomly starting a new paragraph. Aside from the mechanics, Benjamin has a love of repeating himself. Yes, I know that Master Den, the laundryman, is ChiChu, the trickster god, you told me that in the last book, you don't need to repeat it every time that character is mentioned. Benjamin's style is already rough enough that the additional copyediting errors almost made this book three stars, but I realized that it isn't the author's fault and the story is actually really good and I wouldn't want someone to pass over this book just because of the mechanical errors.
There are a lot of things that happen in this book and few of them feel important or consequential. There's a too short bit in a desert oasis that would have been very interesting and then a long bit in a Harnish camp that takes FOREVER. It's an okay story but probably could've been easier to deal with as an extension of the first and third books.
I think I'll wait a few books before I finish the third. This one was a bit of a slog.
The quest continues to regain the Gates of Heaven as Llesho makes his way into enemy territory. This is one exciting tale of mystery and magic. More dragons, more gods and more brothers. Great read and looking forward to book 3: The Gates of Heaven.
It might not be too profound, but I got hooked immediately. And apparently I'm not the only one. All in all, this was one of the most entertaining books that I've read.