Frozen Prospects (The Guadel Chronicles Volume 1) [Kindle Edition]

Dean Murray (Author)

Book Description

The invitation to join the secretive Guadel should have been the fulfillment of dreams Va'del didn't even realize he had. When his sponsors are killed in an ambush a short time later, he instead finds his probationary status revoked, and becomes a pawn between various factions inside the Guadel ruling body.

Jain's never known any life but that of a Guadel in training. She'd thought herself reconciled to the idea of a loveless marriage for the good of her people, but meeting Va'del changes everything. Their growing attraction flies against hundreds of years of precedent, but as wide-spread attacks threaten their world, the Guadel have no choice but to use even Jain and Va'del in their fight for survival.

Frozen Prospects is a 65,000 word epic fantasy novel.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dean started reading seriously in the second grade due to a competition and has spent most of the subsequent three decades lost in other people's worlds. After reading several local libraries more or less dry of sci-fi and fantasy, he started spending more time wandering around worlds of his own creation to avoid the boredom of the 'real' world. Things worsened, or improved depending on your point of view, when he first started experimenting with writing while finishing up his accounting degree. These days Dean has a wonderful wife and two lovely daughters to keep him rather more grounded, but the idea of bringing others along with him as he meets interesting new people in universes nobody else has ever seen tends to drag him back to his computer on a fairly regular basis.

Product Details

• File Size: 466 KB
• Print Length: 316 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Fir'shan Publishing (January 6, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B004I8WPTY
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,413 Free in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Free in Kindle Store)
  • #55 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy > Historical
  • #60 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Children's eBooks > Action & Adventure

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A bit on the dark side, but a good read March 28, 2011

By Scott

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Frozen Prospects follows Va'del in his quest to find acceptance. It is set high in the mountains where all the communities are based in large cave systems and it is death to wander outside unprepared. Born from a lowlander mother and orphaned at a young age is enough to make him an outcast and a target for the bullies in his community. Constantly beaten by the headman's son Jas'per he once again awakens to find himself in the healing area being taken care of by Sara. While in recovery he learns that some of the mysterious Guadel have arrived to test the youngsters of his community to see if they will be taken away to the Capital. When Va'del is tested he is given the choice to stay where he is and continue his miserable existence of getting beaten up and not having anyone willing to take him as an apprentice, or he can accompany the Guadel for training and possibly become one of them.

Getting into anymore of the story would start to give spoilers so I'll just say that when he arrives at the Capital under less than ideal circumstances his life becomes just as miserable as it was and he is constantly thinking about suicide to end it all. There were times that I really was not a big fan of Va'del as a character, but he really grows as the story develops and at the end I was left wanting to see more books about him. I really enjoyed a lot of the support characters, especially I'rone.

I look forward to the next book in the series, but in the meantime I will check out the other work by Dean Murray.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Great Potential February 11, 2013

By Karolinde Young

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a difficult book for me to rate. On one hand, the basic story and plot is intriguing. Jain lives in a world that is frozen and becoming more and more treacherous. He is mixed-race and bullied and mistreated for that. He is given the chance to join an elite group that help protect the land. I didn't mind how vulnerable the main character was, it seemed real to me.

The downside is that it reads a lot like a first draft. I would have loved more character and setting development. There were also some distracting editing issues that took away from the plot. More than anything, the ending bugged me. It almost felt hurried and unimportant, but it shouldn't have been. It reveals a lot about Jian's character and potential and deserved more build up and resolution.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Team Va'del? January 17, 2012

By Dr. Deb

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I love this authors characters! I've become just as attached to Va'del and Jain as I ever was (and still am) to Peta and Katniss from the Hunger Games. Dean Murray has that magical ability to make you sympathize with his characters and even really loathe the bad guys! I am a huge fan of Twilight and the Hunger Games and I have so far loved the Gaudel Chronicals and can hardly wait for the next installment!

More About the Author

Dean started reading seriously in the second grade due to a competition and has spent most of the subsequent three decades lost in other people's worlds. After reading several local libraries more or less dry of sci-fi and fantasy, he started spending more time wandering around worlds of his own creation to avoid the boredom of the 'real' world.


Things worsened, or improved depending on your point of view, when he first started experimenting with writing while finishing up his accounting degree. These days Dean has a wonderful wife and two lovely daughters to keep him rather more grounded, but the idea of bringing others along with him as he meets interesting new people in universes nobody else has ever seen tends to drag him back to his computer on a fairly regular basis.