Title: THE LEGACY AND THE LION
Series: THE YUSAN CHRONICLES – BOOK ONE
Author: ELAINE JEMMETT
Genre: FICTION, FANTASY FICTION, CANADIAN AUTHORS, SCIENCE FICTION, POST-APOCALYPTIC FICTION
Length: 390 PAGES
Publisher: TITONIK BOOKS
Received From: THE AUTHOR
Release Date: MARCH 29, 2017
ISBN: 9780995327221
Rating: 5 OUT OF 5 STARS ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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DESCRIPTION:
The future is a primitive place. Three hundred year from now, the kingdom of Yusay stands solidly amid the broken bones of our broken world. Horses ply the roads, the best weapons are broadswords and bows, and the Ancients are feared and despised.
Patrick Bell hails from a secret colony that remembers the Ancients. After the violent death of his wife and children, Patrick needs a new home. He follows the trail of his ancestor to the kingdom of Yusay, only to find that ancestor is not merely remembered, he is worshipped. Patrick wins the powerful post of Master of Guards, but his mysterious past and his claim to be the descendant of the Yusan prophet make him the target of enough suspicion and envy to put his life on the line.
Gar of the First Line was once a young scholar. Forced to become a warrior when a murderous uprising slaughtered most of the ruling family, Gar reconquered Yusay. Now an ageing king with a long lifetime of impressive reforms, Gar needs a man as talented as Patrick to protect his family, and his legacy. He risks trusting him, but only to a point. Gar’s trust is increasingly tested when it becomes obvious that Patrick is a prime suspect in a plot to murder the king . . .
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MY REVIEW:
This book is the beginning of a truly epic saga.
It is exceedingly rare that I find a new author who writes so well that I believe her book can easily be rated up there with famous and bestselling authors. The only reason people have not yet heard of this book is a lack of marketing.
THE LEGACY AND THE LION could, and I believe would, hit the best-seller lists if more people spread the word as to how truly exceptional this story is. In fact, when I was speaking to my husband about this book, he asked me which writer I thought this book matches up to. My answer was George R.R. Martin, who is the author of many books including the Game of Thrones series.
For me to compare Elaine Jemmett to George R.R. Martin is a huge compliment.
The reason I am so passionate about this book is that Elaine Jemmett has created an entire post-apocalyptic civilization, yet the events in the book occur three hundred years after the fall of civilization and, neither what led to the apocalypse, nor what took place during or immediately after, are not mentioned at all. This in itself makes this book unique.
The hero of the tale is a man named Patrick Bell. Patrick arrives at the palace of Yusay from a colony far enough away that no one in Yusay is even aware of its existence.
Despite his outsider status, Patrick wins the position of Master of the Guards and quickly becomes indispensable to King Gar.
As Patrick works hard on reforming what he sees as a lack of organization within the ranks of the guards. This, plus the fact that he is not from Yusay, is enough to put his life in danger on more than one occasion.
King Gar learns of a plot to end his life, and despite his growing affection for his new Master of Guards, he has a list of suspects and Patrick is high on that list.
This book contains many different important characters, all of whom are responsible for various aspects of the palace and/or life within the kingdom of Yusay. With so many characters it would have been easy to become lost in the minutiae of their lives and responsibilities, but, author Elaine Jemmett weaves the details seamlessly into the story. This impressed me greatly and brought to mind the many different houses and kingdoms in the “Game of Thrones” books.
This story contains multiple layers as well as a variety of intricate plotlines that drew me in and literally held my attention right to the last page.
If you love books full of intrigue and deception as well as books with fantasy type plotlines, then you must read this book. This tale can be seen as good versus evil, but that is only part of the story. There is an undercurrent of an additional plotline which has yet to be explained and has only been hinted at thus far.
Character development in this story is phenomenal. I felt like I knew each of the important characters intimately by the end of this first book in the series and I am extremely excited to get my hands on a copy of BLACK KING; Book Two of the Yusan Chronicles.
I rate THE LEGACY AND THE LION as 5 OUT OF 5 STARS ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
** Thank you to the author for providing me with a free copy of this book.**
*** The fact that I received this book for free has nothing to do with how I rated it. Before I accept a book to read and review, I make sure that the author is aware that I will review it honestly, whether good or bad.***
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Elaine Jemmett was born in 1958 in Toronto, Canada, the youngest child of three.
When Elaine was ten the family moved to the country. Her nearest friends were far away, and Elaine spent a lot of her free time rambling in the woods with the family dog, feeding a deep love of nature and developing an already over-active imagination.
Born at the beginning of the space age, Elaine Jemmett grew up watching endless reruns of Star Trek and dreaming about adventure. In university she majored in English and her reading interests expanded to include literature, science, history, and politics.
She studied English Literature at Toronto’s York University and has worked as a legal editor and author’s representative.
When not writing, she can usually be found attempting to quench a dire addiction to iced tea.
The National Geographic has landed in the family mailbox for some 50 years and remains a steady source of inspirational tinder.
Elaine is married, and lives with her husband and overgrown offspring in Ontario, Canada.
To learn more about this author, visit the following links:
BOOKBUB
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KOBO
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ITUNES
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AMAZON
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CHAPTERS
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KOBO
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Here are Links to the FREE short story VALUE by Elaine Jemmett:
ABOUT THE BLACK KING:
The Black King is a much longer, far more complex book than I thought I was going to write. It’s shorter than Legacy and the Lion, but still a fairly long book. There’s a lot more action in this book (yes, heads will roll) and the psychological drama is far more intense. I’m hoping people will find it an excellent read.
Anyone interested in contacting the author can do so by sending an email to ElaineJemmettAuthor@gmail.com
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ABOUT THE PUBLISHER:
Founded in 2016, Titonik Books is a privately-owned company based in Ontario, Canada. At present we publish the literary works of only one author. We do not accept manuscripts for consideration.
For more information about this publisher click on the following link:
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