Official Review: Norman Septimus by Second Era
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Official Review: Norman Septimus by Second Era
Norman Septimus merely wants to help the people of his village who are suffering terribly during this latest famine. Normally a Robin Hood-like thief in his village, he is sent off to see King Xerxes. To capture the King of Zephoria's attention, and hopefully his help for the village, Norman brings him a rare magical relic to trade. Things don't go as easily as he planned, however, and an uncontrollable rage threatens to explode from within him.
In this classical epic fantasy novel, we follow Norman Septimus as he travels throughout Zephoria on a cascade of quests that look less and less like what he set out to achieve. The reader watches Norman as he fights alongside a princess and an orc, battles a forest witch, wrestles with ancient magic building up inside him, and chases down the members of the illustrious Assassins Circle. All the while, trouble is brewing throughout Zephoria and the neighbouring nations. Peace between the four races is crumbling, distrust is brewing within the City of Xerxes, and a power struggle is imminent. Pick up your copy of Norman Septimus by Second Era to find out how Norman's quest fits into the greater woes of the kingdom.
The great thing about fantasy books is they often have a variety of elements that keep the reader engaged throughout. This novel is no exception to that rule! From the very beginning, the reader is treated to assassinations, secret magic, quests, battles and dangerous situations. The book's quick pace kept me engaged and intrigued with every page turned. What I liked the best about this book was that its characters were both fantastic (in the genre sense of the word) and flawed. They both battled their way out of impossible situations (as you would expect in the fantasy genre) and showed genuine fears, compassion, and self-doubt. This ultimately allowed the reader to both enjoy the story at hand and relate to the book's characters.
There were a couple of things that I disliked about the book, unfortunately. Regular readers of fantasy may find the plot a bit familiar or cliché. Although the story was fun to read and kept me amused the entire time, there wasn't much originality beyond the excellent delivery. There were the traditional races usually found in fantasy, a small town hero that bites off more than he can chew, and magical battles of intense power. What I disliked the most, however, was the editing in the book. It definitely needs a few more rounds of professional editing as I found quite a few spelling mistakes, redundant phrasing, and even homophone errors.
Since I genuinely enjoyed this fantasy tale and since it kept me engaged throughout, I can definitely give this book 3 out of 4 stars. I'm forced to take off one star from this rating for editorial errors and the lack of originality. I do believe that lovers of the genre would enjoy this one and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Norman Septimus to anyone looking for a new epic fantasy series. If you don't like fantasy, however, this will not be for you at all. I'll definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for the upcoming book in this series!
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Norman Septimus
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Fantasy novels give me chills and I just wouldn't mind giving this a fair trial
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