Nicholas lives a simple life until the day his world will be changed forever. He is tasked with making a simple delivery to a knight of the Kingdom on a well known bridge. Seems easy enough, but that knight never shows up while Nicholas is ambused and winds up nearly drowning. Now stranded in the middle of nowhere, Nicholas is left to pick up the pieces of his mission and try to find his way home. Nicholas adventures have only just begun.
I actually supported the release of this book on kickstarter and I’m pleased to say this was such a joy to read. The humor and banter in this novel is what kept me returning to it everyday. Nicholas is an unwilling hero to say the least but he will always be there to help those in need. The first creature he meets on his journey is an orc named Garaz. Not your angry and violent orc from The Lord of the Rings, but a friendly one who can use magic and make healing potions. Garaz is always full of surpirses and a loyal friend. Next we encounter the non-binary shape changer named Shift. Very deadly with their skills and Shift takes on the role of the brute in the company but will fight to any enemy to complete the task. Finally we have the fallen warrior Auron, who has returned to the mortal realm as a spirit. Auron takes on the mentor role for Nicholas but the problem is only he and Garaz can see him. His combat training will be essential if the company wishes to foil the plans of several vampire families from creating havoc.
This is a classical sword and sorcery novel written with a few modern twists. Pacing is quick throughout the novel and it felt like each chapter ended in a spot where I never wanted to stop reading. This type of story has been written many times before but the witty lines that Andrew Claydon wrote down had me giggling multiple times each night. Simply Delivery is not a game changer type of novel but an adventure you will want to see to the very end. I believe this is the authors debut novel in a seven book series so there will be plenty more to come from our heros.
This is a story I am pleased to have picked up and share with the community. The second book in the series was actually just funded on kickstarter and should be released early next year. That is a novel already on my TBR and a series I intend to see through to the end.
Cheers!
Under The Radar SFF Books 