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[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Sun God's Heir: Return" by Elliott Baker.]

The Sun God's Heir: Return by Elliott Baker is the beginning of the “Sun God's Heir” trilogy.

René Gilbert is a young French man who has been trained by a master swordsman since he was five years old. After his first kill, he realizes he has no desire to harm another man. He vows to never kill again. In an age where dueling is the means of settling disputes, it is no easy task for René to keep his vow. Some would even call him a coward. That matters little to René. However, it is not long before he is called upon to protect those he loves.

With an ancient Egyptian foe seeking to destroy him, René is thrust into a series of adventures on the high seas. He must be strategic to return to his family and the woman he loves. Along the way he discovers new friends, glimpses things beyond the physical realm, and gains a new understanding of life.

This is a delightful tale that engaged my interest throughout the entire book. Full of exciting adventures, bloodthirsty pirates, epic swordfights, and witty dialogue there is never a dull moment.The characters are what immediately drew me into the story. I love René’s character, although I will admit he is definitely the too-good-to-be-true protagonist. He is honorable, talented, rarely makes a mistake and is loved by everyone (excluding the villains, of course). Some people may be bothered by this, but I think it fits this book well. The story is not limited to daring young men, though. There are two really strong female characters as well. One is sassy and the other is fierce. I love them both!

With excellent descriptions and an occasional use of French or Spanish words in the dialogue, the author does a brilliant job of connecting you to the time and place of the novel. The author has a good understanding of various cultures which makes this book shine. I was able to picture everything vividly, submerge myself in that era, and even learn a few tidbits along the way.

This book reminds me of The Count of Monte Cristo and The Legend of Zorro, but with a mystical/paranormal flare. I am not sure that meshing together ancient Egypt and seventeenth century France is the best idea, but I am pleased with the way the author handles it. Although the two time periods and cultures seem jarring to me, they do not compete with each other in this book. Ancient Egypt is there, but it plays a background part to the rest of the story.

There's a lot to love about this story which is why I am giving it 4 out of 4 stars. It is excellently written. The only typo I came across was a missing period once or twice. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a great swashbuckling adventure. This book is also fairly clean and may be suitable for young adults. There is one scene where sex is implied and the violence is not graphic in nature.

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The Sun God's Heir: Return
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Like Rachaelamb1's review? Post a comment saying so!

Thank you, Rachael. That was a wonderful review. Now I have to go through it and look for those missing periods. Much appreciated.
Elliott

Sounds like an epic and wonderful adventure! The combination of Egypt and France sounds fascinating. A great review.

arhymer wrote:Thank you, Rachael. That was a wonderful review. Now I have to go through it and look for those missing periods. Much appreciated.
Elliott

Thank you! Your book was a joy to read! I hope you find those sneaky periods without too much difficulty.

-- 17 Jan 2017, 20:41 --

Guppy wrote:Sounds like an epic and wonderful adventure! The combination of Egypt and France sounds fascinating. A great review.

Epic is definitely the way I would describe this one!

A very interesting sounding novel. A story that can have multiple cultures in action at once is always nice to see. Unless it tries to amalgamate them together as one single thing, then that can become harder to convey in an entertaining, natural, and moreover appropriate way.

How exactly does the author comprise multiple cultures together? Would you say it is something of a blend that combines them in a union? Or is it written more like individual cultures as themselves that interact with other distinct cultures? Either way, assuming it is written properly, both options can be entertaining. Still, there is always a risk when someone poorly writes about something as rich as people's culture. I hope that the author does well to keep this in mind.

Great review by the way. It definitely made me interested in reading this book.

Sounds like a great read. I love both The Count of Monte Cristo and The Legend of Zorro and I think I'm going to enjoy this book. I love it when characters are good and honorable. Great job on the review. Congratulations to Elliott Baker on such an obviously well written book.

The Ellipsis Writer wrote:A very interesting sounding novel. A story that can have multiple cultures in action at once is always nice to see. Unless it tries to amalgamate them together as one single thing, then that can become harder to convey in an entertaining, natural, and moreover appropriate way.

How exactly does the author comprise multiple cultures together? Would you say it is something of a blend that combines them in a union? Or is it written more like individual cultures as themselves that interact with other distinct cultures? Either way, assuming it is written properly, both options can be entertaining. Still, there is always a risk when someone poorly writes about something as rich as people's culture. I hope that the author does well to keep this in mind.

Great review by the way. It definitely made me interested in reading this book.

Thank you for your thoughtful comments There are multiple people from different cultures (French, English, Arab, Jewish, Spanish) that interact with each other. It is very well written, realistic, and, yes, entertaining! I learned a few things about several of the different cultures that I never knew. I hope you check out this book, I loved it!

-- 22 Jan 2017, 05:23 --

kimmyschemy06 wrote:Sounds like a great read. I love both The Count of Monte Cristo and The Legend of Zorro and I think I'm going to enjoy this book. I love it when characters are good and honorable. Great job on the review. Congratulations to Elliott Baker on such an obviously well written book.

I love honorable characters as well. You should give this one a try!

What a unique book! Seems like a great review to match.

mewsmash wrote:What a unique book! Seems like a great review to match.

Thank you for the kind comments!

Great review! This sounds like a very unique story. Thanks for the thorough review!

You're welcome!

Ok.. Your review sold me. A long time ago I was most intrigued by the stories of ancient Egypt. Noise I will make another foray into that world