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Alathea: Goddess & Empress
"She despised her father’s world. Why couldn’t sorcery be true? Would that world not be better?"
Alathea was raised to rule, but the benevolent and deranged forces that hope to prepare her for the throne may create a monster. She's torn between her father's reign of empty order through terror and violence, and a magical path that could be completely illusory. She can't live one exclusive of the other, so she lives both.
Her father is bent on protecting his daughter from the same fanatics who killed her mother, but far too often his desire for revenge takes him away from her. His yearning to raise a strong and steadfast heir compromises what little time they spend together.
Her tutor intends to help her be better than her father, more sensible and knowledgeable, in control of her own story and the narrative of the empire just as her mother had been. But he isn't raising her alone and can't predict how his teachings will be used.
Her nurse subtly coaxes her toward a path of faith and enlightenment according to the nurse's secret masters, believing that Alathea can be saved and in turn save the empire. But the Seers have grim plans that they would never reveal to their minion.
This tragic story touches on loss, the insatiable hunger for control, the way people live stories and narratives, the innocence and danger of dreams, the follies of love, the deep hatred and rage dwelling within people, and the dangers of using conquest to strive for peace.
Embattled by all the forces hoping to shape her to their whim, Alathea takes a piece of everything they give her and becomes something never before seen in the land. Goddess. Empress. Monster.
Alathea was raised to rule, but the benevolent and deranged forces that hope to prepare her for the throne may create a monster. She's torn between her father's reign of empty order through terror and violence, and a magical path that could be completely illusory. She can't live one exclusive of the other, so she lives both.
Her father is bent on protecting his daughter from the same fanatics who killed her mother, but far too often his desire for revenge takes him away from her. His yearning to raise a strong and steadfast heir compromises what little time they spend together.
Her tutor intends to help her be better than her father, more sensible and knowledgeable, in control of her own story and the narrative of the empire just as her mother had been. But he isn't raising her alone and can't predict how his teachings will be used.
Her nurse subtly coaxes her toward a path of faith and enlightenment according to the nurse's secret masters, believing that Alathea can be saved and in turn save the empire. But the Seers have grim plans that they would never reveal to their minion.
This tragic story touches on loss, the insatiable hunger for control, the way people live stories and narratives, the innocence and danger of dreams, the follies of love, the deep hatred and rage dwelling within people, and the dangers of using conquest to strive for peace.
Embattled by all the forces hoping to shape her to their whim, Alathea takes a piece of everything they give her and becomes something never before seen in the land. Goddess. Empress. Monster.
- GenresFantasy
288 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2020
2 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
About the author
Dylan Madeley
9 books72 followersDylan Madeley is a Torontonian currently working out of a headquarters in Vaughan, Ontario. He is the copy editor of and a frequent contributor to Auxiliary Magazine, an alternative fashion and music zine.
His first published novel, The Gift-Knight’s Quest, was released on May 28, 2015. The Crown Princess' Voyage, its sequel, was released on Amazon May 1, 2017, and on Kobo in July of that year. The trilogy was completed with the release of The Masked Queen's Lament in 2018.
His first published novel, The Gift-Knight’s Quest, was released on May 28, 2015. The Crown Princess' Voyage, its sequel, was released on Amazon May 1, 2017, and on Kobo in July of that year. The trilogy was completed with the release of The Masked Queen's Lament in 2018.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 7, 2020
I tend to give all my books an automatic 4. That's what you get in exchange for "Author's Own Review".
This book is inspired by a reviewer who received The Crown Princess' Voyage poorly and found Alathea to be a much more compelling character than Chandra, and admitted she had been cheering for Alathea. It threw me at the time, but I guess we don't tend to apply the same ethics to characters and reading material as we do for real life. This was also spurred on by the adage that "good antagonists are always the protagonists of their own stories". Finally, I had given Derek Wancyek and Chandra Kenderley a three-book arc and I felt that I had gone as far as I wanted to in telling their stories, yet Alathea kept fighting for attention and made the cover of the third book. And as that reviewer indicated, Alathea had practically taken over the second book in the series. I decided to explore what Alathea's full story would be, up to the second chapter of Crown Princess' Voyage where she really enters that series as an active character, which included revisiting a couple of scenes that had already been mentioned in flashback.
This book challenged me to tell the story of how someone who started out not entirely different from Chandra ended up being the "evil empress" who shakes the foundations of the world, without suggesting that she was actually the one you should have been supporting throughout the Gift-Knight trilogy--readers can decide for themselves but the author's feelings haven't budged. I wanted to show how, and to help understand. The two revisited scenes aren't retcons, for example, but provide further insights or details that might not have been rendered crisp in Alathea's memory later on.
Rheb is still very much the same person, but now you get to read how he ended up there, how a smart and caring person like that got himself trapped by people who don't appreciate him nearly as much as they first claimed to.
You get to meet Alathea's father and understand the hell churning within him, where he needs to be caring and gentle for his remaining family yet ruthless with the ones who threaten them, but pursuing both to a degree where he fails; he can't successfully be two different people.
Nothing about how warped things get in the halls of ultimate privilege should be any surprise to people who have extensively studied history; scholars of Rome in particular will probably find the Coast Empire proceedings tame by comparison, though the relationship between Rome and the peoples farther north of it served as inspiration to some of the imperial plotting here, and it's no coincidence some prominent empires from European history inspired most of the names that appear in the book.
Having spent three books championing a woman of letters who had no fighting style to speak of, but instead was the authority character constantly taxed with making heavy decisions and trying to match wits with regents and conspirators, and deliberating over who to trust, I felt like stepping back and writing a woman who kicks ass. Part of Alathea's character development is that she too would have been kept away from dangerous toys as a little one, but circumstances necessitate that she might be the last line of defense for herself. It was very gratifying to write that. It was also easier for me to wrap my mind around the idea that someone who learns not to hesitate when making sweeping decisions that will cost lives, would have diminished hesitation in striking or killing another person with a weapon. Therefore, the fun of writing a known villain character as a protagonist is that the author has also been set free; the character who has fewer inhibitions about causing harm could have an easier time acting directly and bluntly against people who more likely deserve it. The author already got to indulge this when writing some of Derek's fights in previous books, though Derek always had to be inhibited by something to make the better fights more challenging and uncertain. Alathea just gets to kick ass when it's time.
In my view, I didn't write a "big bad" antagonist for this story, partly because we know the story is about a "big bad". This has flavours of woman versus life, woman versus fate, woman versus world, which presents in such a grandiose manner because I'm once again writing a character from the halls of privilege. And it's a shaky empire she's holding together. The big justification for her surviving and holding that throne (beyond, in the early-goings, the protection of a young woman who hadn't to that point done anything wrong) is what else might take her place and what could immediately happen to many people instead. Revisiting my earlier statement, perhaps this story is woman-versus-chaos. To me, that doesn't change the moral standing of the character regarding the other books for two reasons:
1. She does it all to maintain order for her people, in her homeland, often at the expense of chaos elsewhere, and disrupting existing order elsewhere to bring those lands into her homeland order. So there's only one type of order that she's calling order and she still intends to make it everyone's order. Still a long-term problem for most of the world as these characters know it!
2. In contemporary times, the moment I see someone support order/control above all else and at all costs, that's a warning sign. I don't feel that it works much different in another world at a different level of knowledge/cultural wisdom. One of the best things I have any of my more noble characters do is learn to trust others, let go of direct-control, and understand that what some fear would be "chaos" is just the preservation/non-disruption of other orders which don't have to be harmful ones.
The gauntlet of obstacles for her to overcome leads to a "mirror" type character, something I seem to enjoy doing for the past four novels. Chandra and Alathea were once presented in parallel so you could see them almost as mirror images to a point, then note the differences. In this book, we have Selene. Alathea is not the only heiress in her empire, but her eventual rival has a different kind of throne to start with and a dramatically different outlook on what the imperial throne is, what power is for and what the empress is supposed to be doing. Alathea's outlook is a founding important aspect of her character. After all, Alathea spends three books of the Gift-Knight trilogy absolutely sure that her actions are going to make the world a better place. I want the reader to think about why she believes this, and why her actions are anything but helpful. I want the reader to see the emergent patterns in her behaviour in "Alathea" and understand the choices she later makes.
As for a particular curve ball thrown later in the narrative, I solemnly swear that I finished all aspects of this story before I knew how this year would go. Every edit that happened by February and March was grammar, dialogue, cosmetic; I was polishing a finished story ahead of its planned May 1, 2020 release date and added nothing. It creeps me out how things happened. I spent parts of March wondering if I should replace that small part of the story altogether. If so, what would I replace it with? Because this thing I'm not naming but talking around was a part of life in ancient civilizations, even more in prior centuries of European history than today. It was a small shard of realism moving forward something that needed to occur in order to shape who Alathea is by the time Derek and Chandra face her. I understand my decision to keep that included will ruin everything for some people, and some will choose not to believe me. I just want you to know my thoughts on that.
I once joked with a Star Wars fan that I had written a novel about a daughter of an emperor who steps into her power to become a Sith Lord, because in the first draft I hadn't settled on naming Alathea's father. I can safely say this book is something way different from that, since you may have got to watch a similar story on the big screen recently. However, Alathea certainly turns to those toxic motivators and solutions that help shape who she is and forever changes the fate of her world.
This book is inspired by a reviewer who received The Crown Princess' Voyage poorly and found Alathea to be a much more compelling character than Chandra, and admitted she had been cheering for Alathea. It threw me at the time, but I guess we don't tend to apply the same ethics to characters and reading material as we do for real life. This was also spurred on by the adage that "good antagonists are always the protagonists of their own stories". Finally, I had given Derek Wancyek and Chandra Kenderley a three-book arc and I felt that I had gone as far as I wanted to in telling their stories, yet Alathea kept fighting for attention and made the cover of the third book. And as that reviewer indicated, Alathea had practically taken over the second book in the series. I decided to explore what Alathea's full story would be, up to the second chapter of Crown Princess' Voyage where she really enters that series as an active character, which included revisiting a couple of scenes that had already been mentioned in flashback.
This book challenged me to tell the story of how someone who started out not entirely different from Chandra ended up being the "evil empress" who shakes the foundations of the world, without suggesting that she was actually the one you should have been supporting throughout the Gift-Knight trilogy--readers can decide for themselves but the author's feelings haven't budged. I wanted to show how, and to help understand. The two revisited scenes aren't retcons, for example, but provide further insights or details that might not have been rendered crisp in Alathea's memory later on.
Rheb is still very much the same person, but now you get to read how he ended up there, how a smart and caring person like that got himself trapped by people who don't appreciate him nearly as much as they first claimed to.
You get to meet Alathea's father and understand the hell churning within him, where he needs to be caring and gentle for his remaining family yet ruthless with the ones who threaten them, but pursuing both to a degree where he fails; he can't successfully be two different people.
Nothing about how warped things get in the halls of ultimate privilege should be any surprise to people who have extensively studied history; scholars of Rome in particular will probably find the Coast Empire proceedings tame by comparison, though the relationship between Rome and the peoples farther north of it served as inspiration to some of the imperial plotting here, and it's no coincidence some prominent empires from European history inspired most of the names that appear in the book.
Having spent three books championing a woman of letters who had no fighting style to speak of, but instead was the authority character constantly taxed with making heavy decisions and trying to match wits with regents and conspirators, and deliberating over who to trust, I felt like stepping back and writing a woman who kicks ass. Part of Alathea's character development is that she too would have been kept away from dangerous toys as a little one, but circumstances necessitate that she might be the last line of defense for herself. It was very gratifying to write that. It was also easier for me to wrap my mind around the idea that someone who learns not to hesitate when making sweeping decisions that will cost lives, would have diminished hesitation in striking or killing another person with a weapon. Therefore, the fun of writing a known villain character as a protagonist is that the author has also been set free; the character who has fewer inhibitions about causing harm could have an easier time acting directly and bluntly against people who more likely deserve it. The author already got to indulge this when writing some of Derek's fights in previous books, though Derek always had to be inhibited by something to make the better fights more challenging and uncertain. Alathea just gets to kick ass when it's time.
In my view, I didn't write a "big bad" antagonist for this story, partly because we know the story is about a "big bad". This has flavours of woman versus life, woman versus fate, woman versus world, which presents in such a grandiose manner because I'm once again writing a character from the halls of privilege. And it's a shaky empire she's holding together. The big justification for her surviving and holding that throne (beyond, in the early-goings, the protection of a young woman who hadn't to that point done anything wrong) is what else might take her place and what could immediately happen to many people instead. Revisiting my earlier statement, perhaps this story is woman-versus-chaos. To me, that doesn't change the moral standing of the character regarding the other books for two reasons:
1. She does it all to maintain order for her people, in her homeland, often at the expense of chaos elsewhere, and disrupting existing order elsewhere to bring those lands into her homeland order. So there's only one type of order that she's calling order and she still intends to make it everyone's order. Still a long-term problem for most of the world as these characters know it!
2. In contemporary times, the moment I see someone support order/control above all else and at all costs, that's a warning sign. I don't feel that it works much different in another world at a different level of knowledge/cultural wisdom. One of the best things I have any of my more noble characters do is learn to trust others, let go of direct-control, and understand that what some fear would be "chaos" is just the preservation/non-disruption of other orders which don't have to be harmful ones.
The gauntlet of obstacles for her to overcome leads to a "mirror" type character, something I seem to enjoy doing for the past four novels. Chandra and Alathea were once presented in parallel so you could see them almost as mirror images to a point, then note the differences. In this book, we have Selene. Alathea is not the only heiress in her empire, but her eventual rival has a different kind of throne to start with and a dramatically different outlook on what the imperial throne is, what power is for and what the empress is supposed to be doing. Alathea's outlook is a founding important aspect of her character. After all, Alathea spends three books of the Gift-Knight trilogy absolutely sure that her actions are going to make the world a better place. I want the reader to think about why she believes this, and why her actions are anything but helpful. I want the reader to see the emergent patterns in her behaviour in "Alathea" and understand the choices she later makes.
As for a particular curve ball thrown later in the narrative, I solemnly swear that I finished all aspects of this story before I knew how this year would go. Every edit that happened by February and March was grammar, dialogue, cosmetic; I was polishing a finished story ahead of its planned May 1, 2020 release date and added nothing. It creeps me out how things happened. I spent parts of March wondering if I should replace that small part of the story altogether. If so, what would I replace it with? Because this thing I'm not naming but talking around was a part of life in ancient civilizations, even more in prior centuries of European history than today. It was a small shard of realism moving forward something that needed to occur in order to shape who Alathea is by the time Derek and Chandra face her. I understand my decision to keep that included will ruin everything for some people, and some will choose not to believe me. I just want you to know my thoughts on that.
I once joked with a Star Wars fan that I had written a novel about a daughter of an emperor who steps into her power to become a Sith Lord, because in the first draft I hadn't settled on naming Alathea's father. I can safely say this book is something way different from that, since you may have got to watch a similar story on the big screen recently. However, Alathea certainly turns to those toxic motivators and solutions that help shape who she is and forever changes the fate of her world.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 3, 2020
I'm always interested in different takes on this kind of epic medieval story, so when I saw the book on Twitter I asked for a review copy.
This story is essentially a character study in a swords and sorcery style format. The sorcery is admittedly more in symbolism than in-text magic, but the feeling is there. The plot centers on Alathea, the only daughter of the emperor and heir to the throne. It's more focused on what kind of leader she'll turn out to be, based on the teachings of three different people. I was very intrigued by the idea in general.
I'll start with the struggles I had with it before moving on to what I liked. The writing style couldn't quite be called purple prose, but it's very academic and philosophical in tone. In some cases, it was so philosophical that it took some rereading to figure out what was symbolism and what were actual plot points. Every character spoke in this style, which meant that there was little differentiation between different cultures. The "barbaric" clansmen of the north spoke the same way the emperor and everyone in the palace did. The writing style also kept me from properly feeling all the depth of relationships between certain characters introduced later in the story.
The plot as a whole felt very condensed. It's impossible to tell exactly how many pages it is in Kindle, but I estimate it's only a couple hundred and most likely below 250 overall. The plot encompasses several major enemies that Alathea or her father must overcome. And as there are so many enemies in such a little time, none of them are able to properly feel like a big threat before the plot has moved on to the next.
As for what I liked, Alathea is genuinely a morally gray character. She falls into doing horrible things to get to her goals and strives to try and separate herself from them. She is both monster and not. I can't say that I truly liked her, but I found her an incredibly interesting study. Rheb, her advisor, was another intriguing character with his own struggles.
The plot itself, while being condensed, took a lot of turns I wasn't expecting farther down the line. The first twist or so might have been predictable, but as things went on they took a turn. Romantic interests that didn't go the way I anticipated, sudden left turns that changed the nature of the plot, and so on. It's not a story that wants to make you feel good or give you the "warm fuzzies" and that's to it's credit. Instead, it's a story about the nature of power and what people are willing to do to achieve their own ends... and how that hubris is rewarded.
This story is essentially a character study in a swords and sorcery style format. The sorcery is admittedly more in symbolism than in-text magic, but the feeling is there. The plot centers on Alathea, the only daughter of the emperor and heir to the throne. It's more focused on what kind of leader she'll turn out to be, based on the teachings of three different people. I was very intrigued by the idea in general.
I'll start with the struggles I had with it before moving on to what I liked. The writing style couldn't quite be called purple prose, but it's very academic and philosophical in tone. In some cases, it was so philosophical that it took some rereading to figure out what was symbolism and what were actual plot points. Every character spoke in this style, which meant that there was little differentiation between different cultures. The "barbaric" clansmen of the north spoke the same way the emperor and everyone in the palace did. The writing style also kept me from properly feeling all the depth of relationships between certain characters introduced later in the story.
The plot as a whole felt very condensed. It's impossible to tell exactly how many pages it is in Kindle, but I estimate it's only a couple hundred and most likely below 250 overall. The plot encompasses several major enemies that Alathea or her father must overcome. And as there are so many enemies in such a little time, none of them are able to properly feel like a big threat before the plot has moved on to the next.
As for what I liked, Alathea is genuinely a morally gray character. She falls into doing horrible things to get to her goals and strives to try and separate herself from them. She is both monster and not. I can't say that I truly liked her, but I found her an incredibly interesting study. Rheb, her advisor, was another intriguing character with his own struggles.
The plot itself, while being condensed, took a lot of turns I wasn't expecting farther down the line. The first twist or so might have been predictable, but as things went on they took a turn. Romantic interests that didn't go the way I anticipated, sudden left turns that changed the nature of the plot, and so on. It's not a story that wants to make you feel good or give you the "warm fuzzies" and that's to it's credit. Instead, it's a story about the nature of power and what people are willing to do to achieve their own ends... and how that hubris is rewarded.
July 27, 2022
I wanted to love this book - I really did, but I was unable to fall into Alathea’s world, making this one of the few books that I found myself unable to finish.
Alathea herself was an interesting character and I mostly enjoyed the scenes featuring her but the story constantly jumped between her POV, her teacher’s, her nurse, and occasionally her father. The transitions were jarring and I wasn’t able to truly connect with any one character because of the lack of a central voice.
The plot in itself seemed good as well, but the way it was written meandered back around on itself and often went on unnecessary tangents. There was royalty, and murder, and even hints of magic. It had all the elements of an interesting fantasy world that I thought I would love but this one fell flat.
This story just wasn’t for me but the author is talented. Maybe others who are more a fan of this sort of style of writing would enjoy this, but I had to put this down after barley making it a third of the way through over a week (and I’m usually a very fast reader).
Alathea herself was an interesting character and I mostly enjoyed the scenes featuring her but the story constantly jumped between her POV, her teacher’s, her nurse, and occasionally her father. The transitions were jarring and I wasn’t able to truly connect with any one character because of the lack of a central voice.
The plot in itself seemed good as well, but the way it was written meandered back around on itself and often went on unnecessary tangents. There was royalty, and murder, and even hints of magic. It had all the elements of an interesting fantasy world that I thought I would love but this one fell flat.
This story just wasn’t for me but the author is talented. Maybe others who are more a fan of this sort of style of writing would enjoy this, but I had to put this down after barley making it a third of the way through over a week (and I’m usually a very fast reader).
July 24, 2020
Genre: Fantasy, fiction
My rating: 4.5/5 stars
*NOTE: I am extremely grateful to Reads & Reels for sending me the review copy. However, this does not at all hinder my honest opinions regarding the book. This is a spoiler-free review. All opinions are solely mine. Check out my blog 'The Scribblings' (https://thescribblingssite.wordpress.com) for more reviews.
“The disloyal dolls needed to be sorted out.”
The novel’s blue-blood representation is beyond breathtaking. Definitely one of my favourites from this year.
Alathea, the daughter of emperor Maximian, is born to rule. Growing up, she has never been told the truth about how her mother died. Maximian has always been over-protective about his daughter, so much is his love for her that he would dare not show her his side that the rest of the world is familiar with. With his only daughter, he is a loving and polite father but with the rest of the world, he is his battlefield self. Maximian is too prudent to consider anybody as correct. The others can only be close to being right but never as right as himself. He is ruthless when it comes to anybody other than his daughter and his advisor.
Rheb, Maximian’s advisor and Alathea’s tutor, on the other hand is a man of intellect who prefers staying grounded yet all-knowing. Unlike Alathea’s caretaker Demma, he is witty, fast and incredibly far-sighted.
The emperor’s only aim is to kill the last of the Falcon’s Eye. His fight is aimed at his only enemy responsible for the death of Alathea’s mother whom he loved beyond measure. But, there exist other enemies that Maximian hasn’t taken notice of.
Alathea soon gets to know the shocking side of her father and despises the world that he chooses to live in- a world where there is ruthlessness and insensitivity. Throughout Alathea’s journey to becoming a strong-minded woman, Rheb hopes that Alathea would never show signs of the monstrous characteristics that her father possesses.
This book is about Alathea and how she grows to become an empress and a Goddess. But, even after disliking some of Maximian’s ways, does she really contradict his nature while displaying her own? Read the book to know!
I loved reading the journey of Alathea and watching her grow to become incredibly strong. However, my love for this character kept oscillating. I cannot deny the honour and beauty with which she acts but I am not sure if I would call her my favorite. I admire Rheb’s character a lot and the intricacy with which the author has shaped his simple character is wonderful.
I appreciate the pace that the book runs at but I found myself expecting more twists and maybe some more surprises. I just wish the book had more turns because I would love to see more of Alathea using her wit to traverse barriers. I think she is so fervent and strong that I would love to read more of her (definitely wanting a sequel!).
Fantasy is my favourite genre and this novel definitely proved to be one of the best I’ve read. I recommend this book to anybody who’s looking for a fresh-read!
My rating: 4.5/5 stars
*NOTE: I am extremely grateful to Reads & Reels for sending me the review copy. However, this does not at all hinder my honest opinions regarding the book. This is a spoiler-free review. All opinions are solely mine. Check out my blog 'The Scribblings' (https://thescribblingssite.wordpress.com) for more reviews.
“The disloyal dolls needed to be sorted out.”
The novel’s blue-blood representation is beyond breathtaking. Definitely one of my favourites from this year.
Alathea, the daughter of emperor Maximian, is born to rule. Growing up, she has never been told the truth about how her mother died. Maximian has always been over-protective about his daughter, so much is his love for her that he would dare not show her his side that the rest of the world is familiar with. With his only daughter, he is a loving and polite father but with the rest of the world, he is his battlefield self. Maximian is too prudent to consider anybody as correct. The others can only be close to being right but never as right as himself. He is ruthless when it comes to anybody other than his daughter and his advisor.
Rheb, Maximian’s advisor and Alathea’s tutor, on the other hand is a man of intellect who prefers staying grounded yet all-knowing. Unlike Alathea’s caretaker Demma, he is witty, fast and incredibly far-sighted.
The emperor’s only aim is to kill the last of the Falcon’s Eye. His fight is aimed at his only enemy responsible for the death of Alathea’s mother whom he loved beyond measure. But, there exist other enemies that Maximian hasn’t taken notice of.
Alathea soon gets to know the shocking side of her father and despises the world that he chooses to live in- a world where there is ruthlessness and insensitivity. Throughout Alathea’s journey to becoming a strong-minded woman, Rheb hopes that Alathea would never show signs of the monstrous characteristics that her father possesses.
This book is about Alathea and how she grows to become an empress and a Goddess. But, even after disliking some of Maximian’s ways, does she really contradict his nature while displaying her own? Read the book to know!
I loved reading the journey of Alathea and watching her grow to become incredibly strong. However, my love for this character kept oscillating. I cannot deny the honour and beauty with which she acts but I am not sure if I would call her my favorite. I admire Rheb’s character a lot and the intricacy with which the author has shaped his simple character is wonderful.
I appreciate the pace that the book runs at but I found myself expecting more twists and maybe some more surprises. I just wish the book had more turns because I would love to see more of Alathea using her wit to traverse barriers. I think she is so fervent and strong that I would love to read more of her (definitely wanting a sequel!).
Fantasy is my favourite genre and this novel definitely proved to be one of the best I’ve read. I recommend this book to anybody who’s looking for a fresh-read!
July 22, 2020
Alathea begins with the young Alathea asking her father, the Emperor Maximian, to tell the story of her father again - which Alathea later confesses is her way of making her father stay with her for longer. Her mother died when Alathea was very young, murdered by an assassain from the Falcon's Eye. Maximian has almost entirely rooted out all members of this order to have his revenge and ensure that his daughter will be safe. He has word that the remaining members are in a village in the north and goes to finish them, along with his adviser and Alathea's tutor, Rheb. From there, we have a whirlwind of events - conspiracies, betrayal, a romance, plague and more.
This book is only 288 pages and yet so much happens in a very short space of time. I felt like there is just not enough time to learn more about this before it moved onto to something else. I would have loved to have more time focusing on Alathea, Rheb and her father, as well as Alathea's prospective love interest, Einar.
Alathea herself is an interesting character. She is prepared to do anything to get what she wants, which we see hints of at the very start. She proclaims herself a goddess, in a transformation that reminded me very much of Queen Elizabeth I. She also learns to fight, and I liked that this wasn't an overnight ability - she works hard to train and learn. She's definitely a morally ambiguous character!
There is a lot of lore and history in this book. Dylan has created a fascinating new epic fantasy world that is enriched with different cultures. At the start, we learn that Rheb is a very distant relative of the Emporer's. He was raised on an island that is isolated from the rest of the world. "Rheb's people had the power to make grandiose lies into lifelong truths, considered sacred across generations. This was the closest thing to sorcery that Maximian ever found, and he felt proud that this sorcery found its way into the blood of a distant relation." I would love to have learned more about this and what this entails, as it didn't seem to be talked about again.
Overall this was a good story but I think it should have been longer, and perhaps with some events toward the end of the book in a sequel. This would have left more space for the action, as a lot of the combat takes place 'off-screen', as it were. It also would have allowed the characters such as Rheb and Einar to develop further. But I liked that things didn't turn out quite how I expected - it subverts the usual fantasy narrative which made it an interesting read!
This book is only 288 pages and yet so much happens in a very short space of time. I felt like there is just not enough time to learn more about this before it moved onto to something else. I would have loved to have more time focusing on Alathea, Rheb and her father, as well as Alathea's prospective love interest, Einar.
Alathea herself is an interesting character. She is prepared to do anything to get what she wants, which we see hints of at the very start. She proclaims herself a goddess, in a transformation that reminded me very much of Queen Elizabeth I. She also learns to fight, and I liked that this wasn't an overnight ability - she works hard to train and learn. She's definitely a morally ambiguous character!
There is a lot of lore and history in this book. Dylan has created a fascinating new epic fantasy world that is enriched with different cultures. At the start, we learn that Rheb is a very distant relative of the Emporer's. He was raised on an island that is isolated from the rest of the world. "Rheb's people had the power to make grandiose lies into lifelong truths, considered sacred across generations. This was the closest thing to sorcery that Maximian ever found, and he felt proud that this sorcery found its way into the blood of a distant relation." I would love to have learned more about this and what this entails, as it didn't seem to be talked about again.
Overall this was a good story but I think it should have been longer, and perhaps with some events toward the end of the book in a sequel. This would have left more space for the action, as a lot of the combat takes place 'off-screen', as it were. It also would have allowed the characters such as Rheb and Einar to develop further. But I liked that things didn't turn out quite how I expected - it subverts the usual fantasy narrative which made it an interesting read!
July 31, 2020
Alathea has lived a sheltered life. Her father, Maximian, distraught over his wife's death, shelters Alathea from the world and the truth of her mother's death. However, Alathea cannot be kept in the dark forever and soon learns of the ruthlessness of her father and his view of the world. As Alathea grows into her throne, will she carve her own path or take the path of her father?
Alathea is a story with a lot of depth for a book under 300 pages. However, the short length ensures that the book is fast-paced. I enjoyed Alathea's character development and seeing her grow into a strong woman. Alathea isn't always a likeable character, but I think that is purposeful and fits well within the story. The author has a nice writing style, although I wouldn't call this an "easy" read as he words carry at lot of symbolism and depth. My one complaint is that I think the story could have been longer and some characters more developed. However, sometimes it's nice to have a shorter read such as this!
Overall, I think this book is fantastic for those who love medieval/epic fantasies. A great read with plenty of twists and turns. You definitely wont be bored with this one!
Alathea is a story with a lot of depth for a book under 300 pages. However, the short length ensures that the book is fast-paced. I enjoyed Alathea's character development and seeing her grow into a strong woman. Alathea isn't always a likeable character, but I think that is purposeful and fits well within the story. The author has a nice writing style, although I wouldn't call this an "easy" read as he words carry at lot of symbolism and depth. My one complaint is that I think the story could have been longer and some characters more developed. However, sometimes it's nice to have a shorter read such as this!
Overall, I think this book is fantastic for those who love medieval/epic fantasies. A great read with plenty of twists and turns. You definitely wont be bored with this one!
May 5, 2021
Fascinating and interesting tale
This story followa Alathea and her father as they navigate running their kingdom. Her father is set on destroying the falcons eye, the group that killed his wife. After his death, Alathea has to stake her claim on the throne and make people follow her. Rheb has to fight on her behalf. And Einar trains her to fight for herself, which leads to her battle against the crime lord selene. A very gripping book.
This story followa Alathea and her father as they navigate running their kingdom. Her father is set on destroying the falcons eye, the group that killed his wife. After his death, Alathea has to stake her claim on the throne and make people follow her. Rheb has to fight on her behalf. And Einar trains her to fight for herself, which leads to her battle against the crime lord selene. A very gripping book.
January 14, 2021
Goddess?
Alathea believes herself to be empress and goddess. I believe she is quite mad. But in Dylan Made let's tale this mad woman holds the ultimate power. This epic series is so unusually unique in that you understand a mad woman is in control but as you read you get so fascinated by what she is doing you forget.
Alathea believes herself to be empress and goddess. I believe she is quite mad. But in Dylan Made let's tale this mad woman holds the ultimate power. This epic series is so unusually unique in that you understand a mad woman is in control but as you read you get so fascinated by what she is doing you forget.
May 28, 2022
At first you may question what exactly this story may be about, but once it gets started you really enjoy it. Just overall great fantasy.
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