A Loch of Grace and Greed

Levanthria #0.5

by A.P. Beswick

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Short Stories, Novella, Retellings

21 pages, ebook

Reviews

[Deepu Singh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its a short story and a preclude to a bigger story, stage has been set and I’m already in the race to read this.
Story - 4 as it leaves so many questions only
Characters - 4 didn’t get much of the characters but they sound strong and legit.
I love the cover lol

[Laura.has.too.many.books · Rating 4 out of 5]

* You do not need to read the other books in the Levanthria series for this.

This is the origin story of Leandra Frostworn and how she became the Beast of Bragoa. A war with the legion of the king cost Leandra and her clan of people everything, and Leandra asks the gods for revenge when she falls.

Very short novella, which goes takes a female warrior and throws her in a massive fight with the legions of the king. The change is fun, but this book is so small there isn't a lot to review to be honest. It is fun, but also around 20 pages there you have that. Loads of action though, for something this small.

[Sky · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 stars. It was ok. Not really long enough to make any solid judgements on though and only half of it seemed relevant where as the 2nd half introduces characters I have no clue about much less their situation but we shall see~

EDIT: having now read the first full book in the series im very glad I started with this one as the context it provided made the first books story more intriguing and is the foundation of what I want to know about this series. I'm bumping it up to 4 stars because I don't think I would've liked the first book without it but its still not a 5 for the fact that its so short and we really should've just had it in book 1 as a prologue in the first place.

[Gillian Rosser · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is a very short story, with some rather annoying typos and grammar/spacing mistakes. It wasn't my favourite book, but it was good.

[Tiger · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s giving Caleana in assassins blade energy and I’m here for that shit.

[DinoSher · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐

An interesting prequel to a series of books. I can't really give this a fair rating since its too short. Would definitely consider reading more on the series!

[Bridget Barger · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this short story wish it would have been just a bit longer to see what she could have after the ending.

[Richard Radgoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5. Not a bad little story as prelude to a Forest of Vanity and Valour

[Priscilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good well written short story. A greta set up for the series. I look forward to seeing if this creature comes about at the end of the series, given that I have not had the chance encounter yet.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note this review has spoilers. The story is only 21 pages so it is difficult to comment without giving things away.
The author has a very good idea and I'd be interested to see how the story unfolds.
I often struggle with short stories as there is little time to get to know a character and see them changed. I don't feel like the main character here had enough time for us to understand why she was so angry and why she felt owed revenge; so it would be good to see her development in the full story and possibly start as the spiteful water creature she became and then grow and learn as a person.
This work would have really shined with a little of editing down on words. The length and detail in each sentence stayed the same throughout and it would have been good to see the temp change to shorter sentences in the battle, and then much shorter (possibly just grunts) tempo of her injured.
Still this is a quick read and takes you through a fast paced battle and is enjoyable. I do love the idea of breathing new life to folklore and will give the authors full book a chance for that.

[Brittany Lea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know from the first couple of pages that I would be willing to follow Leandra into battle! Shes a warrior, with a piss me off and I will cut you vibe! (My kinda girl)!!

I came across this author on Instagram and was really intrigued by his use of folklore from the UK in his stories and decided I'd have a little nosey.
During my little gig around, I found that this novels was being offered, free! And being a Yorkshire lass, I never turn down a freebie!

I should probably say that this isn't my normal sort of read. Ok, that's a bit of a fib. I do love a good fantasy novel, but I tend to read fairy porn, and this seems to be anything but.

This is a short story that gives us our first taste of the Levanthrian world. It is gripping, and interesting and despite suspecting what the associated folk lore was, I was not expecting it to end the way it did.

One sitting read, that I couldn't put down, and I'm now off to grab the second one, because 19 PAGES and I'm invested!

[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of the warriors of the South trying to keep their clan safe as they wait for the king's men to arrive to take those fit enough to fight in the war they did not believe in for the king they called the false king. Amongst these warriors was Leandra Frostworn and her uncle Eacharn, both fierce warriors but both struck down in the end, leaving their women and children to the atrocities no doubt imposed on them by the soldiers. Leandra was filled with hate as she lay dying on the blood-soaked ground and she prayed to the gods for a chance for revenge, and she got it. This short story is amazing in that the form of help she got was so surprising, one just has to read the book. Pity it is such a short story as I am sure Leandra's tale has much more to tell us! Even though this is just a prequel to the series it already is brutal and brings sorcery to the fore even though this was supposed to have been wiped out in Levanthria!

[Lorenza Iannoli · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a prequel, short story, full of action.
We see everything through the eyes of the protagonist: the waiting, the battle, the deaths. We also see something that’s quite contemporary, or maybe it’s better to say it’s a topic without time: the gender inequality. The protagonist is from a clan of warriors, but it’s a woman, and she’s berated because she defended herself, quite violently, against harassing comments about her feminine body. It’s nice to see a female character written by a male author who struggles like a real woman and it’s not sexualized
Through her eyes, we see a glimpse of a new, vast world that I can’t wait to read more about.

[Joshua Butler · Rating 2 out of 5]

Clearly only an opening to a much wider world, the book serves as a prologue to the Levanthria series as a whole. Only time will tell as to whether I find that to be a useful prologue or not but as far as writing goes this story is ok. Very short and quite poorly edited to be honest. There were multiple mistakes I found through by albeit brief read of this book but for 15 minutes of attention this wasn’t the worst book I’ve ever read. Leandra is somewhat interesting and my assumption is that she will be a much more important player in the world at large as the series goes on.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inspired by the Loch Ness Monster (and Lady of the Lake?), this introduction to the dark fantasy (grimdark, maybe?) and oh, what an interesting introduction to this world. I will be looking into the first novel of the series, A Forest Of Vanity And Valour, with interest...

[Kelly Funk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leandra Frostworn is a warrior prepared to protect her people from the atrocities of the crown.  Struck down on the battlefield, her thirst for revenge couldn't be quenched even in death.  But her second chance at life might just be more than she bargained for.  A fantastic short story in it's own right; however, having finished the Levanthria series I was a bit disappointed we never ran into Leandra again.  She is fierce, brutal and unpredictable, and I want more.

[Luka Onee-san · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can get this story for FREE at the author's website.

Well, this was a short story. I am not familiar with British folklore, so I read this origin story as if author was building his own world with creatures of his own imagination.
I don't like first person perspectives (personal preference). The writing is good. I love how clean author's language is. Without cursing. Unless that one counted as a curse.
All in all, a very interesting story leaving you wanting more.

[Peter Tomsett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice and simple short story. However, a few grammatical errors let it down slightly, luckily I have children and it made it easier to read through the little mistakes, especially spacing issues. I am unsure if these are just mistakes or the format of it being a digital only copy and the book app making these instead of the author.

Al in all though, a nice short story and I am hoping to revisit the main character and location later within the series

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice and quick read, I think that its a nice way to get you in the mood for the other books in the series as well! Although i have to say that now that i read it, i really want more of our heroine as well, I would love to read more about her!

[César Alonso Godínez · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the story has the folklore and the mysticism of the anglo-saxon culture, the narrative is powerful and make you feel the perspective of the protagonist, the details are kind of blurry but your imagination can go wild about the landscape and the scenes.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received from author as a taster for his series.
This is a short story, but packs a punch .
Kendra is such a brilliantly written character, I wish it was longer, but all in all a great little read, and cannot wait to delve further.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read full of developed, strong characters. Beswick puts solid action and enough world building to have this 20-ish page story feel bigger than it is. Enough questions left unanswered as I start the stories within the series.

[Pietro Vettraino · Rating 3 out of 5]

This I liked to be honest. The story was good, I enjoyed how it ended it’s a shame it’s only a short novella.
I would be happy to read more on Leandra to be honest.
Far better than ‘A Forest of Vanity and Valour’

[Richie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this first is a good idea as it acts as prequal to the main series. You can get it for free on Beswicks website. It isn't a long read sadly, but it gives you an idea of what is to come and the darkness that surrounds Levanthria. Lots of action. Give it a go!

[Danielzinho · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a page-turner full of action and I enjoyed every minute of it. Looking forward to reading the first book in the series!

[Angelica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this short story! Fantastic start to this new series.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little slow to start but definitely interesting. Can’t wait to see what’s next.

[Judith Blaauw-Klaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tasted good. I am going to read more of A.P. Beswicks books.

[Leandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun short read.
Just a teaser for what’s to come.

[Heather (Heathjeanreads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very quick premise to the other books. Not really a novella more like a chapter BUT does set the story up and am very intrigued to see where the next book goes!