Review - Xannu: The Prophecy by Paul Dorset

ISBN #: 978-1413413502

Page Count: 380

Copyright: 2003

Book Summary:

(Taken from Amazon)

Would you wake up in a hot sweat if you lived your night’s dreams as a soldier battling un-earthly creatures, witnessing powerful magic and fighting to save your own life on a daily basis?

English schoolboy Terry West does. Frequently. After digging up some rune coins near a roman road, he has been living in another world inhabited by warlocks, seductresses, priests and prophecy. There Terry is a soldier, Teern Truthbringer, who has been tasked with finding the Xannu - 'he who will lead the people into deliverance.'

If only it wasn’t real; but it is. Very real. When it all began it was even enjoyable, but now Terry’s life is getting very complicated. Somehow he involved his best friend Joe and although it had seemed a good idea at the time, the consequences had been dire. Then there is Susan, the leggy sister of klutzy school-friend Brian. Why does she keep sending him messages?

Terry is struggling to balance the two lives he leads and every day he is losing his grip on reality just a little bit more. He’s been forced to kill enemies; his companion, the magical woman Maria, is scaring him half to death with her abilities; and his parents are on his back about his school work.

How will he balance the two lives he leads, solve two sets of problems, and understand the lessons he receives from both? Only time will tell. But time is something Terry doesn't have too much of, as everything is unfolding in ways he could never have imagined!

C.J.'s Review:

If you like books that keep you on the edge, wondering what the next step will be in the authors' diabolical mind, pulling for the hero, hating the villain, it ain't here. If you like epic fight scenes loaded with blood and death, beautifully written hand to hand combat scenes, a battle tested hero fueled by an injustice from his childhood, it ain't here. If you're a sucker for a fantasy laced with romance and punched in the gut by a lover's wrong doing, don't come a callin' here. For the love of God, if you just want a break from the endless work days, to just be able to get lost in a story for an hour or two, DON'T COME LOOKING FOR THE REFUGE OF XANNU: THE PROPHECY!

In Xannu: The Prophecy, we have our hero, Teern Truthbringer. We also have our Mother of Perception, Maria something. It doesn't really matter. What does matter is that I read this entire book, albeit over the course of a month or two, and still can't remember more names than the two I've given above. We have other characters as well throughout the book that join in on this fantastical journey! (note: any sarcasm derived from this passage is duly deserved)

Let me give you a real short description of the book. 500 year old main character is searching for the "the one" that has been prophesied about. Along the way 500 year old main character enlists the help of others to find said "prophesied about". 500 year old main character finds "prophesied about" but does not know who he is. He travels with him till the last few chapters of the book and finally does his due diligence and proclaims that "prophesied about" is the Xannu.

Now, did everyone follow that? You can thank me later for saving several hours of your time now. Don't get me wrong, there were some parts of the book where I actually stopped reading and gave a round of applause to the author for originality. One thing I can say about this book, there were several original moments I have not seen before. Any respect I built up for this author was shredded after I read the last page and flipped back to the front of the book to see the words "Book One of The Southern Lands Series" on the front cover. Yep, all respect gone. Book One should be Book Done.

With all due respect, I have never written a book, and I know that I'm pretty harsh at times (see: Precious Norman Honor review) but it is justified. Any author that takes their precious time to write stories for other people to read and criticize do deserve some credit for being ballsy, but there has to be a time where you have to evaluate the style in which you write. I commend Mr. Dorset for putting himself out there to be reviewed, but I feel like there definitely has to be a special group of people for this kind of book. I'm just not one of them.