Ben Galley, the author of The Forever King, contacted me a while back, and offered me a free copy of his book in return for an honest review. I’m sorry to say it took me WAY too long to get to reading it!
This book is a CHONK, at almost 600 pages, and is worth every single word. I enjoyed it immensely, and look forward to purchasing the next book in the series.
Mithrid grew up in a town named Troughwake, right on the ocean. She and her friends have contests when ships wash up on the beach, in which they find “treasure” and then, in order of age, choose which of the items they want to keep. Mithrid is “second,” so when it’s her turn, she chooses a book that one of the other kids have found.
Mithrid is one of the few kids who can read, so when the others ask her to read to them, she doesn’t think twice about it. Little did she know, that the book actually contains spells, and when she reads it out loud, she starts a chain of events that will challenge everything she knows about the world.
Farden has been the leader of the resistance for years, and has been dubbed “The Forever King.” His followers will follow him anywhere, even to the ice kingdom of Frostsoar. When he hears about a new subject in his kingdom who has a different kind of magic, he is intrigued.
Mithrid didn’t know she had any magic, but when she’s offered a chance to get revenge on the man who killed everyone in her entire village, it’s all she can think about. When Farden takes an interest in her, she learns that there’s more at stake for freedom than just revenge.
Mithrid is such a fun character. This book is definitely Epic Fantasy, even though it is set in one small area of the world. The story has a grand feel to it, because everyone who is fighting against each other, does so for the fate of the world. Both sides think they’re in the right, so everyone fights to the death.
I really enjoyed the fact that I didn’t know who to sympathize with. Mithrid deserves a small bit of patience, because she lost her family, but she reacts badly to it, not really caring who she hurts in her quest for vengeance. Even after she meets Farden, her attitude never really changes. She is determined to avenge her friends and family, at whatever cost she has to pay.
Magic in The Forever King
I loved Mithrid’s “magic.” It would spoil the whole story to tell you what kind of magic she possesses, but needless to say it’s pretty cool. Ben has a knack for writing relatable characters, and creating a brand new world that we can’t wait to get lost in.
Anyone who knows me, knows I love self-published books. I love indie books, and I stay away from mainstream for the most part. This book was so well-written, I honestly thought it was a mainstream, or at the very least indie published. Imagine my surprise when I found out it was self-published. These are the books that all self-pub books aim to be.
I am definitely looking forward to getting the next book in this series and following more of Mithrid’s journey. I hope you’ll get this book and join me. I promise, if you love fantasy books in any sub-genre, you’ll love this world that Ben Galley has created. He has become a “must buy” in my library, and I can’t wait to read all the books he’s written!
The Forever King is Popular, Y’all
I was curious, so I looked on Amazon to see how many other people have read and reviewed this particular book. Not counting all the other books that Ben has written, The Forever King has 139 reviews on Amazon!
For a self-published book, this is amazing!
This book even has an average rating of 4.7 stars out of 5. Now, I don’t usually listen to star ratings, but I definitely agree with all these people that this high rating is well-deserved. So even if my one opinion doesn’t mean much, 139 other people can’t be all wrong, right?
Have you read any Ben Galley books? Let me know below which ones, and what you thought of them! Leave me a comment below with your favorite Ben Galley Book, and if you’ve never read one, leave a recommendation for a fantastic fantasy book!
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Until Next Time, Friends!
