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sllingky's review against another edition
4.0
This book hit a lot of sweet spots for me -- It was YA, so an easy read, but it was by no means "dumbed down". It contained classic fantasy elements (think Tolkien and C.S. Lewis), Anglo-Saxon mythology (sleeping knights) and some significant references to history (King Alfred of Wessex). The plot was well constructed and complex to keep me turning pages to see what would happen next. I love Ross Lawhead's father's books (author Stephen Lawhead), but son and father have very different writing styles, and I look forward to the next two books in this series as well as whatever else Ross Lawhead comes up with in the future.
adamdavidcollings's review against another edition
4.0
As the son of legendary author Stephen R Lawhead, Ross Lawhead had a lot to live up to. Writing in the same genre as his father, comparisons would seem almost inevitable. Well, as this book shows, Ross has certainly inherited talent from his father. It is tempting to approach this book expecting it to be exactly like his father's work, and there is a lot that Lawhead fans will find pleasingly familiar here, and yet Ross has his own voice, and brings a more youthful perspective.
The Realms Thereunder introduces a fascinating world. The book brings us two connected stories - both about the same two characters. It is interesting to red of their exploits as teens, while at the same time seeing the consequences in their adult life at the same time. The adult story brings with it a sense of mystery, while the teen story brings a sense of adventure.
We get to see character arcs developed in a non-linear fashion, which is quite fascinating.
This is an original fantasy which tells an exciting story, and sets us up well to anticipate the next two books.
The Realms Thereunder introduces a fascinating world. The book brings us two connected stories - both about the same two characters. It is interesting to red of their exploits as teens, while at the same time seeing the consequences in their adult life at the same time. The adult story brings with it a sense of mystery, while the teen story brings a sense of adventure.
We get to see character arcs developed in a non-linear fashion, which is quite fascinating.
This is an original fantasy which tells an exciting story, and sets us up well to anticipate the next two books.
easolinas's review against another edition
4.0
Ross Lawhead seems to be taking after his father, weaving together fantasy, history and Anglo/Celtic mythology like a medieval tapestry.
And his solo debut novel "The Realms Thereunder" is a great way to kick off a writing career. While the time-flipping narrative gets a little annoying at times, Lawhead crafts a genuinely suspenseful tale with gentle humor, strong writing and a rich mythic core focusing on the knights who slumber under England.
Eight years ago, Daniel Tully and Freya Reynolds went mysteriously missing. What nobody except them knows is that they wandered into an underground chamber where a pair of ancient knights slept. Those knights took them into the underground kingdom of Niðergeard, an ancient magical land ruled by an immortal king, and surrounded by an army of the gruesome yfelgópes.
And in that place, Daniel and Freya learned of Gád, a malevolent creature intent on destroying the city and its magic -- as well as the legendary warriors who slumber in the earth. The only ones who could stop him were the mortal children.
In the present day, Freya is a student at Oxford and Daniel is homeless. But after he encounters a yfelgópe, both of them are slowly pulled back into the old conflict -- Freya becomes drawn into a strange dream-life, while Daniel is yanked into Elfland. And their only hope lies in Niðergeard...
"The Realms Thereunder" is a hard book to pin down -- it has a rare mythic richness mingled with whimsy, which echoes classic authors like J.R.R. Tolkien. It's both high fantasy and urban fantasy, modern yet timeless, overflowing with Anglo-Celtic lore but easily accessible.
That doesn't mean it doesn't have some rough edges. The constant bouncing between past and present is a bit distracting, and occasionally Lawhead's plot seems to float away from him.
But his writing style is strong and lush, filled with poetry and haunting turns of phrase. His descriptions of Elfland and Niðergeard are spellbinding, but he drops in some dryly humorous moments ("... the Society of Concerned Individuals. It's a deliberately vague and eccentric title") that remind me of classic British literature.
And he peppers his story with dragons, knights, gnomes, ancient weavers, the needle-toothed yfelgópes and noble Elves. Daniel and Freya are compelling central heroes -- in the past we see them as bright-eyed, plucky child heroes in a strange fantastical world, and in the present as older, more reluctant figures who struggle in their daily lives because of what they've seen. I don't think I've seen another author who handled that idea.
"The Realms Thereunder" is a promising debut for Ross Lawhead -- a rich melting pot of fantasy, myth and imagination. Now if only we had the next book.
And his solo debut novel "The Realms Thereunder" is a great way to kick off a writing career. While the time-flipping narrative gets a little annoying at times, Lawhead crafts a genuinely suspenseful tale with gentle humor, strong writing and a rich mythic core focusing on the knights who slumber under England.
Eight years ago, Daniel Tully and Freya Reynolds went mysteriously missing. What nobody except them knows is that they wandered into an underground chamber where a pair of ancient knights slept. Those knights took them into the underground kingdom of Niðergeard, an ancient magical land ruled by an immortal king, and surrounded by an army of the gruesome yfelgópes.
And in that place, Daniel and Freya learned of Gád, a malevolent creature intent on destroying the city and its magic -- as well as the legendary warriors who slumber in the earth. The only ones who could stop him were the mortal children.
In the present day, Freya is a student at Oxford and Daniel is homeless. But after he encounters a yfelgópe, both of them are slowly pulled back into the old conflict -- Freya becomes drawn into a strange dream-life, while Daniel is yanked into Elfland. And their only hope lies in Niðergeard...
"The Realms Thereunder" is a hard book to pin down -- it has a rare mythic richness mingled with whimsy, which echoes classic authors like J.R.R. Tolkien. It's both high fantasy and urban fantasy, modern yet timeless, overflowing with Anglo-Celtic lore but easily accessible.
That doesn't mean it doesn't have some rough edges. The constant bouncing between past and present is a bit distracting, and occasionally Lawhead's plot seems to float away from him.
But his writing style is strong and lush, filled with poetry and haunting turns of phrase. His descriptions of Elfland and Niðergeard are spellbinding, but he drops in some dryly humorous moments ("... the Society of Concerned Individuals. It's a deliberately vague and eccentric title") that remind me of classic British literature.
And he peppers his story with dragons, knights, gnomes, ancient weavers, the needle-toothed yfelgópes and noble Elves. Daniel and Freya are compelling central heroes -- in the past we see them as bright-eyed, plucky child heroes in a strange fantastical world, and in the present as older, more reluctant figures who struggle in their daily lives because of what they've seen. I don't think I've seen another author who handled that idea.
"The Realms Thereunder" is a promising debut for Ross Lawhead -- a rich melting pot of fantasy, myth and imagination. Now if only we had the next book.
rosenectur's review against another edition
4.0
I tried this book by Ross Lawhead because I am such a huge fan of his father Stephen R. Lawhead. This book took time to grow on me. But still it had problems, and at times I just didn’t understand what in the world was going on. Part of the problem is that he drops in and out of world building, so you can’t get a real picture of the rules of the world. Still for a debut novel it was ambitious.
“Freya Reynolds is a university student with a touch of OCD and an obsession with myth and folklore. Daniel Tully is living rough on the streets of Oxford, waging a secret war against an enemy only he can identify. Years ago, they found themselves in a world few know is real. They have since gone their separate ways and tried to put that adventure behind them.”
adamdavidcollings's review
4.0
As the son of legendary author Stephen R Lawhead, Ross Lawhead had a lot to live up to. Writing in the same genre as his father, comparisons would seem almost inevitable. Well, as this book shows, Ross has certainly inherited talent from his father. It is tempting to approach this book expecting it to be exactly like his father's work, and there is a lot that Lawhead fans will find pleasingly familiar here, and yet Ross has his own voice, and brings a more youthful perspective.
The Realms Thereunder introduces a fascinating world. The book brings us two connected stories - both about the same two characters. It is interesting to red of their exploits as teens, while at the same time seeing the consequences in their adult life at the same time. The adult story brings with it a sense of mystery, while the teen story brings a sense of adventure.
We get to see character arcs developed in a non-linear fashion, which is quite fascinating.
This is an original fantasy which tells an exciting story, and sets us up well to anticipate the next two books.
The Realms Thereunder introduces a fascinating world. The book brings us two connected stories - both about the same two characters. It is interesting to red of their exploits as teens, while at the same time seeing the consequences in their adult life at the same time. The adult story brings with it a sense of mystery, while the teen story brings a sense of adventure.
We get to see character arcs developed in a non-linear fashion, which is quite fascinating.
This is an original fantasy which tells an exciting story, and sets us up well to anticipate the next two books.
reanne's review
3.0
Reading this book reminded me quite a bit of reading some of Stephen R. Lawhead's books. It moves a bit slower than some other authors' books, it has a lot of historic detail (or historic fantasy detail), but it keeps me interested enough to keep reading, and I feel like it was worth it by the end. Books like this might not be as page-turning as some other books, but I think they reward you for sticking with them.
That said, this book is a bit odd. It's got multiple stories going on, and for a long time it's hard to see how they connect or where they're going. Not to mention the stories themselves are kind of weird, with long periods of seemingly random activity described, but then part of the point turns out to be the meaninglessness of the activity. It's strange, but as I said, it kept me interested. Maybe not I-have-to-stay-up-all-night-because-I-can't-put-this-down interested, but interested enough to keep going with it.
There's two main characters. Well, three, I think, but one of them doesn't get a whole lot of page time, though I have the feeling he'll get more in later books. I love that one of them is a hobo. In this age of super-wealthy heroes, it's a nice change. The female lead is also fairly interesting, with the OCD and all, but I feel like we don't see quite as much of her in the present time as I'd like to really get a feel for who she is. The cop I like, too, and I'd like to see more of him.
The story really feels like the very beginning of a story, which makes some sense, as it's a trilogy. It does kind of feel like just the set-up of the story, though. I'll probably keep an eye out for the sequels.
Disclosure: I won a free copy of this from the publisher through Goodreads First Reads.
That said, this book is a bit odd. It's got multiple stories going on, and for a long time it's hard to see how they connect or where they're going. Not to mention the stories themselves are kind of weird, with long periods of seemingly random activity described, but then part of the point turns out to be the meaninglessness of the activity. It's strange, but as I said, it kept me interested. Maybe not I-have-to-stay-up-all-night-because-I-can't-put-this-down interested, but interested enough to keep going with it.
There's two main characters. Well, three, I think, but one of them doesn't get a whole lot of page time, though I have the feeling he'll get more in later books. I love that one of them is a hobo. In this age of super-wealthy heroes, it's a nice change. The female lead is also fairly interesting, with the OCD and all, but I feel like we don't see quite as much of her in the present time as I'd like to really get a feel for who she is. The cop I like, too, and I'd like to see more of him.
The story really feels like the very beginning of a story, which makes some sense, as it's a trilogy. It does kind of feel like just the set-up of the story, though. I'll probably keep an eye out for the sequels.
Disclosure: I won a free copy of this from the publisher through Goodreads First Reads.
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