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Formats
Ebook Details
  • 07/2018
  • B07F28XPY5
  • 513 pages
  • $5.99
Paperback Details
  • 978-1775331100
  • 511 pages
  • $18.99
Azaria Durant
Author, Editor (anthology)
Broken Arrow

Ealdred is the son of no one. A half-breed slave. Born to serve.

And yet magic lives within him. 

When a freak accident reveals his powers not only to himself, but to the world, Ealdred is forced to flee for his life, only to fall into the hands of the dark sorcerer, Zeldek. Suddenly, he is thrown into a world he never knew existed. The legends are real, the Vaelhyreans of old exist, and Ealdred must choose between death and service to Zeldek. 

But when he meets Bellator, beautiful and treacherous servant of Zeldek, a new choice is presented to him: to escape from Zeldek’s stronghold and embark on a quest to find the cursed arrow of his ancestors and free the Vaelhyreans from the spell that holds their powers captive. 

Yet how can he survive in a world where magic is illegal, half-breeds are despised, and the four kingdoms are on the brink of war? 

Reviews
Amazon

Awesome book

This is an awesome book. I can't wait till the next one. I read this book as unlimited and ended up following the author and actually buyi n the book. Please try it out.

Amazon

Women in Fantasy

I was excited to see so many women in positions of power—in the councils, in their legends/stories, as sidekicks, as a protagonist. Bellator, who reminded me of Black Widow in a lot of ways, was the most obvious strong woman. But every woman who featured showed a different kind of strength—loyalty, love, patience. Mental, emotional, and physical strength were all displayed through these female characters, which was a welcome departure from clichés of “her personality is knocking people out + wearing spandex.”

Plot

There were multiple times that I thought I had the plot figured out, based on assumptions/clichés of the high fantasy genre. I was always wrong. If I assumed that no one else was going to be added to the cast of characters, someone who turned out to be one of my favorites joined the crew. If I thought that chapters of the novel would be taken up with a Journey-Through-The-Fantasy-World narrative, swordfights/higher stakes/so many people with their own motivations and goals that fought against Ealdred’s were introduced.

There were also quite a few plot twists that were well foreshadowed and caught me by surprise.
My only con is that during the climax, Ealdred didn’t seem to be an active participant. While Bellator was, of course, also a protagonist, Ealdred didn’t contribute much to resolving his side of the plotline during the main back-and-forth.

Worldbuilding/Setting

One of the best worldbuilding bits was the ‘origin myths/stories’ of how different civilizations and conflicts came to be. These stories flowed very naturally and felt similar to creation/origin stories told by real tribes and peoples today.

I think the setting/descriptions were largely carried by the choice to use present tense. It made the prose clip along, instead of drag during the descriptive parts. This world really felt rich and fully imagined, and the descriptions used so many strong sensory details.

Overall

My favorite bit of dialogue was:

“That’s settled,” she replies in her usual officious manner. “Now, let’s go kill some raiders, shall we?”

“Right behind you!” Uri cries with new enthusiasm, gripping his trident with both hands.

“Don’t let me spoil the fun,” I say miserably.

I'm excited for the next book to come out + see where my favorite characters end up as they keep chasing their goals.

Amazon

Upon reading the description of this book most fantasy readers can pretty well guess the direction of the story. So I already had my preset expectations when I got this from Kindle unlimited. I admit I almost bypassed this book because of this bias. This book soon proved me very wrong. All I can say is upon completion I purchased this book and I hope a sequel comes soon.

Goodreads

No Spoiler Review. Imaginative. Rolling out with a good pace, in a well constructed world, Broken Arrow managed to subvert my expectation! It answered important questions set from the beginning, while raising more questions in the end...questions that need answering, begging for further adventure. Well done!

Goodreads

Broken Arrow is among the best books I've ever read. Ealdred is an amazing main character, and the journey he has to undertake is equally awesome. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy.

 

Goodreads

After almost a year of not reading anything except school books, Azaria sent me an advance copy and I devoured this book in a day in a half. The characters are fascinating and complex, the story is amazingly developed, and the world feels completely real. While most fantasy books tend to explain their world and magic in long, dull passages, Broken Arrow explores these aspects of the story in engaging, fascinating ways. I'm excited to reread a published copy soon.

Goodreads

I absolutely loved the characterization. The self-reflective male protagonist (Ealdred) was a nice change from the many headstrong or confident male characters out there, but my favorite character by far was Bellator, for the complexities and subtly-hinted-at backstory. Truly a character well woven.
There were times when I was a bit confused as to the current step in the overall plot, but the action, relationships, and plot twists kept the story moving swiftly enough that I never felt lost in what was going on. Definitely looking forward to the next book!

Goodreads

I was drawn into Broken Arrow immediately, from the first page. The writing is really intriguing, and I just wanted to know what was happening. I read this book in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down. I’m really impressed with Azaria M. J. Durant’s ability to create captivating characters and beautiful descriptions.

There are twists and turns at every corner. It was fast paced, and even with some more complex character names, each character felt real. I never found myself lost or trying to figure out who was who.

I’m a huge fantasy fan when it is done correctly, and Broken Arrow was done correctly. I highly recommend checking this one out!

* I recieved a copy of this book as part of a blog tour. All opinions are my own.*

Goodreads

Received from Xpresso Book Tours

Broken Arrow describes such a rich fantasy world. I especially love the mix of political and magical system, it's very vast and interesting. I love reading a fantasy book with thought out setting.

Ealdred is just a boy living a very hard life. Sold as a slave from a very young age and is constantly beaten and yelled at. No matter the amount of abuse, he stayed good on the inside. After particularly hard punishment, something magical happens and he has to run. This is a world where magic has become a myth. On the run gets captured and thrown in the middle of an ancient power struggle. And he just might be the most important part.

The world building is amazing, I felt like I was really there, in the middle of the action. The writing is good, but the pace is a bit off at times.

Goodreads

“The Broken Arrow” by Azaria M.J. Durant is a high-speed adventure with twists at every turn; this book was a superb read. I could hardly put the book down! When Ealdred is captured by the vile Zeldrek, he meets an unexpected ally and they set off to find the Broken Arrow, an alleged weapon that will be able to vanquish Zeldrek once and for all. I recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy and adventure. I can hardly wait till I forget the plot so I may read it again! I look forward to a sequel.

Romantic Typewriter Gardens

Review Excerpt:

Incredibly developed story. It had a rich world, mythology. Bountiful, beautifully written characters. A carefully built plot. Excellent play on cliches that made them feel new. 

This story drew me in right away. It had a great voice. It had beautiful description. It had well-written and consistent characters. 

It's often difficult to keep me interested or invested in a story. I get bored having read very widely in fantasy. But I had neither of those problems with this book. It kept my attention from beginning to end. It was well worth the few hours it took to read. 

I look forward to seeing more from this author in the future. 

Formats
Ebook Details
  • 07/2018
  • B07F28XPY5
  • 513 pages
  • $5.99
Paperback Details
  • 978-1775331100
  • 511 pages
  • $18.99
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