Review: Thalondor: Kingdom of Legends by Shane Lege

A hero from a strange land arrives to fulfill an ancient prophecy and save a magical realm from annihilation in Thalondor: Kingdom of Legends by Shane Lege, a classic clash of good and ultimate evil.

Awakening in a bewildered state, with only scraps of his memory intact, Valaric is mysteriously dropped into an unknown realm, where shadowy danger and confusion haunt his every step. However, after finding a treasure chest of supplies, weapons, and gold, this destiny-bound hero plunges eagerly into the throes of any adventure that may come.

Gathering companions in the forest along the way, such as Whisperwind the furry friend and a dauntless princess of the realm, Valaric’s place in the larger story of the Kingdom of Vindoria becomes clear; a foul force has been creeping back into the land, threatening the peace and safety of all who call it home. Festering in imprisonment for a millennium, a sinister power has broken free, and prophecies tell of a warrior who will arrive to meet this reborn destroyer.

Soon finding himself fighting against the emboldened minions of evil beside Princess Arabella and her majestic wolf, Valaric is driven to uncover the secrets of the artifacts in his possession. Fumbling through the steps of a spiritual and magical awakening, Valaric is helped along by a fellowship of eclectic friends, spiraling them ever closer to a deadly battle with darkness.

In terms of originality, an ancient evil breaking free to face a chosen champion of good is a well-worn trope, and the story can be in danger of seeming derivative, even if it works on its own merits as a sword-and-sorcery escape. In this case, there are additional layers and twists to the tale, aside from the binary of dark vs. light, including platonic loyalty, sacrifice for the good of all, self-awareness, cultural sensitivity, and embracing unexpected potential.

The first-person perspective gives readers a visceral glimpse into Valaric’s many trials and tribulations, though the narration can sometimes feel overworked, laden with too many metaphors and descriptive redundancies for an internal monologue. The protagonist is also introduced as having washed up on a beach without any memory save his name and the fact that he had been on an adventure, but there are immediate inconsistencies in his memory loss, which comes off as conveniently cutting corners in the storytelling, and seems to fade as an idea entirely by the third chapter, with little explanation. That being said, the formality of the overall language is impressively maintained, demonstrating the author’s sprawling vocabulary and dexterity of phrasing, and the story is crafted well.

On a technical level, the manuscript deserves a final editing pass, both for simple proofreading errors (“were” vs “we’re”) that spellcheck might not catch, dialogic formatting mistakes, as well as general tightening of circuitous narrative passages or descriptive tangents. More specifically, the dialogue is one of the weaker elements of the writing, with conversations often feeling forced and poorly representative of the characters’ personalities.

Despite these critiques, the heart of this inspiring story beats powerfully, and dedicated high fantasy fans will not be disappointed, as Lege has crafted a classic hero’s journey that is at once familiar and original.