Farseeker: The Rod and Staff Epic Fantasy

by Joanna Starr

SILVER WINNER - THE WISHING SHELF AWARDS 2020
SEMI-FINALIST - KINDLE BOOK REVIEW AWARDS 2020 Enlightened. Enslaved. Erased.
Earth, 50,000 years ago before the magic vanished. Invaded by aliens posing as gods, advanced civilisations crumbled. Now, these powerful off-worlders war for control of the planet, and the people who remain no longer remember what they once were. Seduced then enslaved, humanity has fallen. Beneath the destroyed remains of an ancient temple, Thaya discovers a relic and a scroll written by the last of an advanced civilisation. The scroll contains a message and a vision of a forgotten world. The relic unlocks a memory about her own past that she should not have forgotten. The truth sets her free but it comes at a great cost, and now she must flee. In the ashes of her ancestors, Thaya fights to stay alive, but hers is not the only race beleaguered, and her survival is inextricably tied to the fate of an other-worldly being. In a journey that takes her to different times, alien worlds and across dimensions, Thaya must lose everything to find her own salvation. Stargate meets The Hobbit in this multi-award-winning epic fantasy sci-fi adventure.

Lost civilisations. Alien invasions. Humanity enslaved. Spaceships. Time travel, Gryphons. Unicorns. Mages. Magic...FARSEEKER is a refreshing mix of ancient history, fantasy and sci-fi. These feel-good books are for people with a human soul and an adventurous spirit.

You can read them in any order, but most people prefer to read them in the order of
1. Farseeker
2. Gatewalker
3. Flamerunner
4. Sunbreaker Click or tap BUY NOW to embark upon this adventure today.

490 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 25, 2020

Reviews

[Noxwitchbooklife · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't often read sci-fi books but this mix with fantasy was very nicely done.

I've read other books by this author under other pen names that I enjoyed so I decided to give it a shot and was pleasantly surprised.

It is a slow start that turns into a headlong hurtle through different worlds with different beings.

If you want a good long story of travel and adventure i would thoroughly recommend.

2023- I've re-read this twice now it's been just as enjoyable each time.

[Ed R White · Rating 4 out of 5]

My rating: 3.75 (rounded up to 4) stars.

Farseeker is an intriguing science fantasy with a host of fascinating concepts. The prose could have been edited and condensed better, and the plot smoother. Still, the messages woven into the chapters—for those aware—are inspiring. Overall, I enjoyed the read and look forward to more.

[Sabine Bennett · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't like this book at all. I could not get into the writing style that switches between time lines and narratives without proper context. It frustrated me so much that I abandoned the book after only two chapters.

[Billy Buttons · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:
Title: Farseeker
Author: Joanna Starr

Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 25
Stats
Editing: 10/10
Writing Style: 10/10
Content: 10/10
Cover: 9/10
Of the 25 readers:
25 would read another book by this author.
23 thought the cover was good or excellent.
24 felt it was easy to follow.
25 would recommend this book to another reader to try.
Of all the readers, 12 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘plotting a story’.
Of all the readers, 7 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘developing the characters’.
Of all the readers, 6 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘writing style’.
21 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
25 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.

Readers’ Comments
“What a fabulous novel. I congratulate the author on putting together an interesting fantasy plot and filling it with so many fully-formed characters. There's plenty here for fantasy lovers to enjoy.” Male reader, age 47
“Although the pacing was little up and down, all in all this is still a gripping read with a strong female protagonist and a cleverly thought-out mystical world - even if it is Earth. This is a talented writer who knows how to balance descriptive prose with sparky dialogue. Thoroughly recommended!” Female reader, age 22
“This is a rather long, well-plotted fantasy adventure with elements of myths and legends. This is the sort of book a reader can really get into as there are so many characters worth getting to know. I would happy recommend this book to others and I'll be reading more by this author.” Male reader, aged 36
“I enjoyed this book so very much I thought the central premise was very clever, and the protagonist, Thaya, was complex and fun to follow. I think this could be the start of a fantastic set of books.” Female reader, age 56

To Sum It Up:
‘A superbly crafted fantasy adventure populated with charismatic characters. A silver medal winner and highly recommended!’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards

[Chad Barrus · Rating 5 out of 5]

An exciting tale of adventure and intrigue as a young woman wanting more than what she sees around her discovers she is tied to another by a bond and tries to find that person only to be hunted by shadow beings and two alien races bent on capturing her. Along the way she is helped by another alien, a good one this time, finds a woman who tells her of a past she doesn’t remember and has adventures with her alien friend both on her planet in its future as well as other planets and places in her own time through the magic of time portals. It’s a journey of discovery and
enlightenment that will have you turning the pages faster and faster to find out what happens next in the many circumstances our heroine Thaya finds herself in in trying to find her bonded soul mate!

This is a very imaginative and descriptive tale which will make you glad you’re reading it though a part of you will long for experiencing some of her adventures yourself! And the best thing of that is that through reading this book you will!

I enjoyed this epic adventure and highly recommend it to all who enjoy sci-fi stories! It will definitely keep your interest and if you’re like me you’ll also want to continue the series and find out what new adventures await Thaya! I will that’s for sure so join me as we find out what adventures await her in the next books together!

[Donna · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. What a mess. It’s like the author tried to fit 5 books into 1. I tried to get through it but gave up. I gave it 1 star because the basic story would have been good and the book itself could have been great. But with so many different things happening it was too crazy and with the main character unable to make any real connections. It was like nearly each chapter in itself could have been written into a novel.

[GLEN B BUTLER · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Starr is born

I found Ms. Starr combination of fantasy and sci fi most satisfying. Two genres that I love but have always read separately, but the two together work well with Starr. I like her writing and her humanness of her title character. I look forward to reading more of her works!

[Craig Strawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pageturner

I love the story and the action. The way UFOs and the demonic host is tied together is excellent. Also the use of magic is not over done. Unicorns. Who would've thought.

[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was swept away by this first book in a new series by Joanna Starr, a book which is both sci-fi and mythological fantasy and which introduces us to our heroine Thaya Brightwater, an inquisitive young woman who was always in search of knowledge. This search leads her far and wide on a massive adventure of discovery, through star-portals which take her through time and space, to far flung places among the stars. Thaya gets to meet the people of darkness, the Vormea and their scary evil shades and the Nuakki who enslaved the people of Urtha and tortured them. However not everything was darkness, she also encountered the Agaroths, defenders of the people of light and the Saphira-Elaysa better known as unicorns. Through this meeting by the water when Thaya was just a child she had bonded with the little Saphira-Elaysa and this bond was for life and though it took many years to find each other again Thaya knew she would not rest before she found her twin and saved Khy and his family from their enslavement by the Vormea. I loved the characters in this book especially that of Amaggenna Evergreen and her beautiful spirit wolves, Arendor the Agaroth and Vassa the gryphon and all the world building that went into the making of this magnificent novel on such a grandiose scale. The story is captivating and exciting even if scary at times, it is also a battle of good against evil through use of both sword and sorcery as well as a fight for freedom from enslavement by the alien pretenders. I cannot wait to read the next book in this enthralling series.

[Mary T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thaya falls into what the people call The Old Temple. There were two skeletons in the hole she fell into. One skeleton looked human and the other one was like a lion. The human looking one was clutching a metal tube which she took. A roll of parchment in it is a prophecy about her world. There's a seal at the bottom. She touches it and a scene appeared showing what had happened to the temple and the people.

Thaya is chased from her village by Shades after finding this scroll from the ancient people.
She travels to the city of Havendale Harbor where she boards a ship to work as the clean-up girl in the kitchen and mess so she can travel to Lonohassa, her home. Unfortunately the ship is sunk by silver discs from the sky firing red rays and the city is mostly destroyed. The attackers are call the Vormae. Thaya, the captain, Arto, and six sailors from the ship survive and go to a tavern where they get food and shelter. At dawn she sees two spirit wolves who lead her away and to the start of an epic adventure filled with mythical beings, space travel to far away stars, alien beings and capture.

[David Ketelsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this novel from the author.

Farseeker is the first novel in a new fantasy series by Joanna Starr, who also publishes novels under the name Araya Evermore. This book covers a lot of territory. The protagonist, Thaya Brightwater, is forced to flee her home and loved ones and embark on an epic journey. While the start seems like a typical fantasy with a medieval setting, that changes quickly. Farseeker involves moving through portals to other planets and time periods with battles, enslavement, revenge and a good serving of mayhem involved along the way. A little bit of romance too.

Thaya's a young girl who has to grow up fast as she escapes capture or death at the hands of evil aliens. Her special abilities threaten the balance of power and she is constantly working to save herself via some seriously entertaining plot twists. It's a rousing adventure but not for the very young or faint of heart. Thaya does experience some serious challenges. This is an excellent book.

[Nele · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is not or me.
I received this book as an ARC copy and this is the first book I have read from Joanna Starr.
I like fantasy and sci-fi, in fact fantasy is my main genre. Farseeker has a relatively decent plot – the protagonist travels through portals to different places and times and ultimately aims to free her unicorn soulmate that has been trapped, with many of his species, by an evil alien race that uses them for a source of survival. I feel that none of the places/worlds that the main character visited were explored enough, and it felt hurried. I also felt that the characters lacked dimension and attitude, the whole thing was very polite, mellow and self-sacrificing. It bothered me that the characters were constantly in awe and two seconds away from tears resulting from immense emotion. There was a surplus of words like “deep”, “pure”, “light”, “dark” and the like – it’s very black and white and simple. All in all, I found the book to be extremely naïve and if it wasn’t for the rape scene and occasional blood and gore, I would say it was a children’s book, age 12.

[Andrea Stoeckel · Rating 5 out of 5]

"People prefer not to question , for the truth is as hard to find as it is to take."

In the village of Brightwater on Urtha, Thayannon Farseeker grew up as the ward of Fi and Yanna. Always curious, she went places most wouldn't; places long abandoned. One day, an artifact she finds changes her life. She is tasked to find Maggy, the woman who saved her and brought her to Brightwater to hide her because she is a key to the future ... and starts an amazing journey that will change the known world.

When I first started this book, it felt a bit like Jean Auel meets ET. Now that I have finished it, it feels a bit more like The Odyssey with all sorts of other "soundbites" coming into a very wonderfully written fast moving high fantasy including love, maturity, ethics, magic, believing in yourself, determination and adversity. Joanna Starr is to be commended for taking on a book I highly recommended 5/5

[disclaimer: I received this book from the author and voluntarily chose to read and review it.]

[Jim Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent sci-fi fantasy with an original storyline and great interesting characters. Very well written with non-stop action an plenty of twists and turns. An epic tale of the battle between good and evil that was hard to put down. This was an exciting start to a new series that I highly recommend.

[Tammie Burke · Rating 5 out of 5]

original story line. Good story. Loved it.

[Mitch Faden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting story, many twists and turns. Good character development!

[Nix C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this journey. Some great twists and characters. An exciting start to the series.