A Drowned Kingdom

by P L Stuart

Overview

Once Second Prince of the mightiest kingdom in the known world, Othrun now leads the last survivors of his exiled people into an uncertain future far across the Shimmering Sea from their ancestral home, now lost beneath the waves. With his Single God binding his knights to chivalric oaths, intent on wiping out idolatry and pagan worship, they will have to carve out a new kingdom on this mysterious continent―a continent that has for centuries been ravaged by warlords competing for supremacy and mages channeling the mystic powers of the elements―and unite the continent under godly rule.

With a troubled past, a cursed sword, and a mysterious spirit guiding him, Othrun means to be that ruler, and conquer all. But with kingdoms fated on the edge of spears, alliances and pagan magic, betrayal, doubt, and dangers await him at every turn. Othrun will be forced to confront the truths of all he believes in on his journey to become a king, and a legend.

When one kingdom drowns, a new one must rise in its place. So begins the saga of that kingdom, and the man who would rule it all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781525589317
Publisher:	FriesenPress
Publication date:	02/02/2021
Series:	The Drowned Kingdom Saga
Pages:	438
Sales rank:	970,171
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.97(d)

About the Author

P.L. Stuart lives in Chatham, Ontario, with his wife, Debbie. A Drowned Kingdom is the first novel in The Drowned Kingdom Saga.

Editorial Reviews

2021-01-22
A prince leads the remnants of his destroyed realm across the seas to start anew in this debut fantasy.

The island Kingdom of Atalantyx is the greatest in all the world. Wealthy, prestigious, and powerful, Atalantyx gobbles up smaller kingdoms, always endeavoring to expand its empire and spread monotheism among the heathens. Prince Erthal makes an unfortunate marriage with a pagan princess and then ascends to the throne, causing immense unrest. His 19-year-old younger brother, Prince Othrun, the novel’s narrator, leads a rebellion that fails, and the renegade and his followers are exiled. Guided by an angel’s message promising that he’s the chosen one, Othrun urges the exiles’ 18 ships to quickly sail west to the continent of Acremia—and they are just in time to avoid destruction by a tidal wave that utterly engulfs Atalantyx, leaving the rebels the only survivors. On landing in Southern Acremia, Othrun immediately discovers a world of trouble, compelling him to defend himself, gamble on whom to trust, forge alliances, and find refuge in a new homeland. Though the angel’s counsel heartens him, other forces—such as a beautiful pagan enchantress—unsettle him, and there will be many challenges to overcome. In his novel, Stuart presents a complex, fully realized world that intelligently draws on the Atlantis legend. Othrun is ambitious and skilled but bound by limited ideas, providing believable conflict. Extensive, imaginative worldbuilding and stirring battle scenes bear resemblance to George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series, but Stuart’s lone first-person narrator doesn’t offer that saga’s rich variety of viewpoints and settings. Though well-written, the book is frequently long-winded to no purpose (including an extensive, unnecessary description of Atalantyx’s capital city, chief buildings and districts, environs, and climate) and delivers a frustrating ending.

An inventive and often deeply involving fantasy that sometimes supplies extraneous details. (maps, appendices)

Kirkus Reviews