jbronderbookreviews

Visions of Zarua by Suzanne  Rogerson

Two wizards, 350 years apart. Can they save the realm of Paltria from Zarua’s dark past?

An ancient darkness haunts the realm of Paltria.
Apprentice wizard Paddren is plagued by visions of a city on the brink of annihilation. When his master dies in mysterious circumstances, the Royal Order of Wizards refuses to investigate.
Helped by his childhood friend, the skilled tracker Varnia, and her lover Leyoch, Paddren vows to find the killer.
The investigation leads Paddren down a sinister path of assassins, secret sects and creatures conjured by blood magic. But he is guided by a connection with a wizard from centuries ago – a wizard whose history holds the key to the horror at the heart of the abandoned city of Zarua. Can Paddren decipher his visions in time to save the Paltrian people from the dark menace of Zarua’s past?

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Visions of Zarua is only $.99 for a limited time on Amazon to celebrate the book birthday.

About the Author

Suzanne lives in Middlesex, England with her hugely encouraging husband and two children.

She wrote her first novel at the age of twelve. She discovered the fantasy genre in her late teens and has never looked back. Giving up work to raise a family gave her the impetus to take her attempts at novel writing beyond the first draft, and she is lucky enough to have a husband who supports her dream – even if he does occasionally hint that she might think about getting a proper job one day.

Suzanne loves gardening and has a Hebe (shrub) fetish. She enjoys cooking with ingredients from the garden, and regularly feeds unsuspecting guests vegetable-based cakes.

She collects books, loves going for walks and picnics with the children and sharing with them her love of nature and photography.

Suzanne is interested in history and enjoys wandering around castles. But most of all she likes to escape with a great film, or soak in a hot bubble bath with an ice cream and a book.

Social Media Links

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My Review

5 Stars

Paddron is the apprentice to the wizard Kalesh. When Kalesh dies Paddron wants the Royal Order of Wizards in investigate but they ignore him. Paddron and his friends then take it upon themselves to find out what happened. During this time Paddron is suffering from visons that are disturbing until he realizes they are events from the wizard Jago. Jago lived 350 year in the past and it looks like he has the key to the city of Zarua and can help stop the coming evil.

I loved this story. It has the feel of high fantasy with the king, royals, and wizards. Yet you have a great mystery as to what Jago went through. I loved how the narration bounces back and forth between the present time and Jago’s time. This really helped the story to glide along and keep me interested.

All of the characters had their own perks and quirks but they all worked together to figure out what was going on and to stop the evil. I really liked Varnia. She’s an orphan but trained to become this skilled hunter. I love when women are giving tough, strong roles. But at the same time you have Paddron and with his behavior you can see how young and inexperienced he is at times.

This is an amazing read and one that I strongly recommend checking out. Fantasy might not be your thing but definitely try this book. I think it will become a fast favorite.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

Win 3 x Paperback Copies of Visions of Zarua (Open Internationally)

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*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

I would like to thank Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and share this book.