Customer Reviews

Defenders of the Realm I: The World Mystic Arts Tournament

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I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm a huge fan of graphic novels and fantasy fiction. I can't explain it; there's just something completely enthralling about being taken on a journey to a mystical land, being hunted by a demon presence, or even saved by a handsome prince. But, I must admit, for the most part, the fantasy stories as of late have become exceedingly droll. Not because sword fights and damsels in distress have become less interesting. No, rather it's because everyone seems to have come up with the same ideas about how to save the world... at the same time. Let me explain.

Everyone knows that Lord of the Rings has made its complete dominance over the fantasy genre absolutely clear. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say that fiction was never the same after Tolkein created a world with its own dialects, landscapes, and ethnicities. The man was a master of anthropological imagination and, for lack of a less dramatic word, a veritable genius. Then, about 50 years later, a young mother who wanted to explore the true psyche of the child through the eyes of a wizard popped onto the scene with her own brand of fantasy, the all encompassing Harry Potter. From that point on, and no doubt until the end of time, fantasy novels have been lurking in corners waiting for the right moment to crawl their way through the fantasy fray.

Needless to say, I've become a bit nonplussed with it all.

Then suddenly an author came along--a school of engineering graduate, no less--and said to himself, "What is this genre missing?" It's certainly got its surplus of witches, warlocks, orcs and the like. So, what is it that could permanently shift the look of fantasy forever? What about heroes of colour? Hear me out. I know that most people are going to roll their eyes and say, "It's not about race. Race doesn't matter. How are you going to pull this off with an African-American hero?" But, of course the real testament of the story is the fact that the hero is neither African nor American. He is from a land known as the Gaea. His name: Aleron.

Defenders of the Realm follows the life of an orphaned young Prince, set adrift to an enchanted forest after his father, Gavreel, the hero of the brotherhood known as the Kindred, was slain by the minions of the dark lord Sovereign, and his mother, the High Priestess, wishes her son safe from all who would be out for his blood. He is brought up not fully knowing his lineage, but oddly, and impressively, having all the skill and raw talent befitting a magician of his father's calibre. As Aleron matures, he becomes immersed in a world where war is ominous at every shift in the breeze and the land that he has known all of his developing life is in danger of being thrown into deep siege as the Dark Lord takes up his stakes once more with the Dark Witch.

The story culminates with a tournament between students of University of magic. Aleron faces off with his father's dispatcher, the evil Saefer, in his disguised form as the temperamental and dark willed Adamorte.

What ends up happening? Well, you'll have to pick up the book to figure that one out.

See, the most enchanting thing about this story is not the fight sequences, which are abundant and as intense as they are otherworldly. Not even the culmination of the story has any affect on me in a sense that leaves me stricken with its originality. What sets this story apart from the multitude of fantasy fictions that are out there is its ability to make the audience connect strongly with each and every character. Perhaps it's the fact that it's about time that we see a hero of colour (besides the dark saviour Blade and the Green Lantern) in the world of graphic novels.

I want to introduce the world at large to this story. It's most certainly something to behold. I feel a civic duty, almost, to try and influence the world at large to try something new, something, perhaps, unexpected. I want to welcome anyone who reads this article to the world of Gaea.

The book begins a bit slow however after getting past the set up, Rowe does pull you into the world of the Realm and I did enjoy the journey. The characters are likable and have great motivation. For a youthful audience I believe this can be a fun and enjoyable read. From an adult perspective the story is simple and mainly consists of action, lacking character depth. I do believe you can still achieve depth without being too complex for your audience. If Rowe achieves this in the next installation I think it will add a whole new level of interest to the series.

I do recommend this book to young fantasy readers.

Hello,

My name is Leonard Cameo Rowe Jr., and I am the author of Defenders of the Realm I: The World Mystic Arts Tournament. Defenders of the Realm I is an epic fantasy novel with an efficient prose style. It addresses issues of politics and culture, all the while providing readers with an exciting plot and characters with interesting backgrounds.

As the first in a series of books, Defenders of the Realm I opens up with a bang. The evil Lord Sovereign is imprisoned, sparking his followers to coalesce around his second in command, the mysterious Dark Witch.

She plots against the forces of good, a band of mystics known as the Kindred and led by the High Priestess of magic. The witch manages to strike a stunning blow to the Kindred, and leads an attack that sends tremors through the entire world.

Years later, a new generation of Kindred emerges. A group of Kindred protectors, known as Guardians, are ending their training in the mystic arts. The talented mystic Aleron comes of age in the primitive village of Auron. As events transpire in the book, Aleron and the Guardians must face off against one of Sovereign's most dangerous agents in the upcoming World Mystic Arts Tournament.

The novel has everything you could ask for: action, adventure, romance, and drama. It provides a creative breath of fresh air to the fantasy genre, and is a fun novel for all fantasy fans to enjoy.

Cameo

When I began this book my initial impression was that the story was somewhat superficial. It seemed to me that I was reading a video game. As the story progressed, it gathered depth as well as breadth. I found that I enjoyed the story in spite of the somewhat predictable ending.

The Kindred govern Gaea. In some ways, they are more like police or a militia because they are protectors of Gaea. Gaea could be a paradise, but there is always someone more interested in power than goodness and kindness, and there is a snake in paradise. The snake is Saefer, the former Kindred Sovereign. Saefer's goal is to overthrow the Kindred and to establish a new rule in Gaea, his rule. However, to do that Saefer needs to eliminate the Kindred and overthrow the High Priestess. To accomplish these tasks will require significant strategy because Saefer's forces are weak and relatively few.

Aleron is the son of Gavreel and the High Priestess. When the Occult attacks Gavreel, young Aleron is injured and floats down a river to the backward village of Auron. For many years Aleron was safe from the forces of Saefer, but progresses dictates a road be built through the forest where Auron is located. Aleron, now a teenager, uses his significant powers to defend the village, which reveals his presence to the occult.

Aleron's return to the White Realm is fraught with danger, conspiracy and even jealousy. There is a tournament to help select new members of the Kindred, the World Mystic Arts Tournament, and both good and evil will use the tournament to further their own cause. Indeed, the Occult has an entrant in the tournament; an entrant the Occult believes will win the tournament, catapulting the Occult to power. What Saefer, the head of the Occult, does not know or understand is that their entrant, young Adamorte, formerly middle-aged Dagon, might be less of a match for the other entrants in the tournament, especially Aleron.

Though the beginning of this book seemed a bit light, as author Rowe got the story rolling he gave the story depth. I started to get into the story and found myself interested in what Aleron was doing. By the time I got to the last 40 or 50 pages, I pushed through to the end because I just had to see author Rowe was going to finish the story, even though I had a reasonably good idea where the story was going to end.

Did I guess all the details of the end? No, but it seemed fairly obvious who was going to win the tournament. Too obvious. Rowe could have done a better job of building the suspense and making the outcome appear to be in doubt. Regardless, the ending was satisfying and I am looking forward to reading the second volume in the series, if there is one.

This fantasy novel is hardly as complex as many other fantasy novels, or even most other fantasy novels. Yet, it was interesting to read and I think Cameo Rowe shows promise as a fantasy author. His stories need more polish and less "golly gee whiz," but that will come with maturity and more writing and I will be looking forward to that.

Enjoy!

My thanks to the author for providing me with a review copy.

Hello,

My name is Leonard Cameo Rowe Jr., and I am the author of Defenders of the Realm I: The World Mystic Arts Tournament. Defenders of the Realm I is an epic fantasy novel with an efficient prose style. It addresses issues of politics and culture, all the while providing readers with an exciting plot and characters with interesting backgrounds.

As the first in a series of books, Defenders of the Realm I opens up with a bang. The evil Lord Sovereign is imprisoned, sparking his followers to coalesce around his second in command, the mysterious Dark Witch.

She plots against the forces of good, a band of mystics known as the Kindred and led by the High Priestess of magic. The witch manages to strike a stunning blow to the Kindred, and leads an attack that sends tremors through the entire world.

Years later, a new generation of Kindred emerges. A group of Kindred protectors, known as Guardians, are ending their training in the mystic arts. The talented mystic Aleron comes of age in the primitive village of Auron. As events transpire in the book, Aleron and the Guardians must face off against one of Sovereign's most dangerous agents in the upcoming World Mystic Arts Tournament.

The novel has everything you could ask for: action, adventure, romance, and drama. It provides a creative breath of fresh air to the fantasy genre, and is a fun novel for all fantasy fans to enjoy.

Cameo