Kayla Reviews FATE OF THE FALLEN

• Genre: Fantasy
• Buy: Fate of the Fallen (The Shroud of Prophecy Book 1)

Summary:

The Shroud of Prophecy tests fate to discover what happens when the path of good and right, the triumph of light over darkness, the only path to salvation… fails.

Everyone loves Mathias. So naturally, when he discovers it’s his destiny to save the world, he dives in head first, pulling his best friend Aaslo along for the ride.

Mathias is thrilled for the adventure! There’s nothing better than a road beneath his feet and adventure in the air. Aaslo, on the other hand, has never cared for the world beyond the borders of his sleepy village and would be much happier alone and in the woods. But, someone has to keep the Chosen One’s head on his shoulders and his feet on the ground.

It turns out saving the world isn’t as easy, or exciting, as it sounds in the stories. Mathias is more than willing to place his life on the line, but Aaslo would love nothing more than to forget about all the talk of arcane bloodlines and magical fae creatures. When the going gets rough, folks start to believe their only chance for survival is to surrender to the forces of evil, which isn’t how the stories go. At all. To make matters worse Aaslo is beginning to fear that he may have lost his mind…

My Take:

I started reading this book on my own, but after just a few pages, I realized my husband would love this book. So, when we took our 10 year anniversary trip, we plugged the audiobook into our car stereo and listened together. We enjoyed the book so much, in fact, that we found ourselves listening every time we had a free moment–even listening while relaxing in our cabin. We finished this read in two days, and we still haven’t stopped talking about it.

This is hands-down the funniest bit of epic fantasy I’ve ever read. It takes all the tropes and cliches of traditional epic fantasy and turns them on their heads while still maintaining a high-stakes storyline that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

I believe the entire premise of this book can be wrapped up like this: what if the socially awkward sidekick of a fantasy story had to suddenly become the hero. Imagine if Gimli suddenly became the guy to what to unite all of Middle Earth instead of Aragorn, and you’ll understand what I mean.

That sidekick turned hero is Aaslo and he is probably my favorite fantasy protagonist of all time (other than Geralt, obviously). He’s grumpy, anti-social, and loyal to the severed head he carries in a bag at his waist. He also has the most amazing horse in the world; he calls him Dolt.