Sometimes life just sucks; sometimes – just sometimes – one bad thing starts an avalanche you never even knew you were destined to ride, and then… How far would you go in the name of duty, love, and friendship? Two young women are about to find out… soon learn that their once-infallible power and immortal authority as the Protectors of the Veils may no longer be enough to successfully combat the mad Gods and their magic-hungering creations.
It leaves one slightly-jaded Guardian no choice but to travel back into the Human Realm of Ostravah where the once-rich flows of magic now lie stunted and polluted. Without his usual weapon to hand, and with the Guardian Legacy long forgotten, can he circumvent ignorance and threats to pick up the much-needed link to the Twins: the two very people of this age fated to recover and wield the ancient Astrolabe that brings peace?
As Agents of Chaos emerge from the shadows and beyond, there may be no choice for him but to secure a dangerous weapon of pure magic to level the scales back in his favour, but this act would mean breaking sacred laws: something that is sure to bring detrimental consequences.
Meanwhile, two noble ladies have little concept of the deadly circumstances that will soon pull them from the comfort of their station into a world of ancient turmoil. Solancei, handmaiden and life-shield, of the Ostravahn Heiress Iambre, has known the Princess since childhood: they are close as sisters, and yet…
Duties and hard differences have begun to mar their young adult lives; day by day, their affections crumble, leaving their former friendship in dire peril – however, as Solancei unexpectedly finds herself in trouble when an illegal duel takes a fey turn, Iambre is left petrified for her friend’s safety.
Fearing the worst, the Heiress knows she must act to help her Shield, but stranded on foreign soil, it seems her hands are tied by diplomacy…
From this promising debut fantasy author comes a unique epic adventure of grim intrigues and darkness, sleek romance and magic.
With a story that will draw the reader into a new original world of thrilling discovery and perilous possibilities, The Missing Shield consists of eleven episodes, which together form the first volume in The Veil Keepers Quest: a series wherein the hunt for the shards of an ancient astrolabe must be completed and the artefact assembled before the new millennium dawns to curse the future.
In this race, the very nature of life itself stands in jeopardy, yet across worlds where enemies old and new rise up and close in; across worlds where not all is what it seems; across worlds where a friendly face and the title of ‘ally’ may not necessarily equal trust nor respect, is this perhaps already a doomed venture?
As the price of success grows steep, who will stand and who will falter?
Join the Quest and find out.
Quotes:
LB: “Your Word-Smithery is just fantastic… This is an exceedingly detailed world and your attention to the poetry of it is admirable.”
RBL: “You layer detail in thin layer after layer until there really is such a depth gathered up. I’m truly piqued now.”
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A little too overcomplicated for me. I had to keep re-reading a lot which puts me off a book. Good storyline though and interesting characters.
I soooooooo enjoyed this book! Yes!
A Change of Rules – episode 1 is a fast read, but perhaps not as light as I’d expect it to be for Fantasy. With different timelines, alternating between Solancei’s memories and present time, it requires quite a bit of attention, so you won’t get lost in this new universe.
There are basically two plot lines (maybe 2.5) within this book. They are related but come at the story from different angles. The High Circle storyline didn’t captivate me though I could tell it was important. Precisely how it interwove with the Solancei story was unclear. I enjoyed this young woman’s tale (Solancei) and it was the reason I kept turning pages. An interesting beginning.
I have to be truthful and state that I found A Change of Rules: The Missing Shield, Episode 1 a bit overly descriptive for my taste and slow to start, which worried me as to whether I would be able to get into the book enough to comprehend the various fluctuations of time and character stories. I hung in there and within a very short period of time I was aligned with the author’s writing style and thoroughly enjoying her vivid imagination and story telling. This book has several subplots that eventually weave together to bring the story to a nice close and prepare you for the next installment; which I’m eager to dive into. If you are more accustomed to lighter, HEA, fast reads, do yourself a favor and give this author a try anyway. I’m sure that, like me, you’re quickly become one of her reader fans. Highly recommended.
A Change of Rules opens up a new fantasy universe, with ancient guardians watching over it and keeping a terrifying threat at bay. This novel weaves two stories, one political at the highest level, where the guardians debate on what to do in light of recent, disturbing events. The second is a story of noble girl who exists both as a fighter and lady of the court. Her worlds collide when she takes on a stranger in a practise fight.
It’s always great to read new and unusual fantasy worlds. This novel has a great blend of action and palace intrigue. While it is a little slow to start, there’s plenty of sparks of interest and it’s clear that it’s building a complex, interesting story with characters rarely seen in fantasy fiction.
When the reader is introduced into the story, we see a Change of Rules unfolding which leaves all the characters in the opening scene uneasy. As the story advances, we are thrusted between the discussions of the Guardians and the memoirs of one of the characters named Solancei. Occasionally, we also see Solancei in real time. The constantly shifting viewpoint keeps the story sharp and interesting with every page. All the characters have their own unique backgrounds and while it seemed as if there was more to the history of this world that went unexplained, I have a feeling we’ll learn more as the series continues. The author did a wonderful job of creating an air of mystery while at the same time building a world that’s both interesting and still holds secrets for the readers to discover later on.
A Change of Rules is a story within a story that goes back and forth between Solancei’s memoirs, the realtime adventures of Solancei, and a discussion between a group of rulers or gods called the Guardians. I loved the realtime scenes where Solancei is fighting – first to sharpen her skills and then, to save her life. My least favorite scenes were the meetings with the Guardians, where I felt lost and totally clueless much of the time. Thomsen’s writing style is very lyrical and prosaic, with a lot of adjectives and descriptive segments, which may endear itself or alienate the modern reader depending on your perspective. I do not normally read in this genre, so perhaps I am not a good judge. The books ends with an unresolved situation regarding Solancei, a character I really care about, so I would read the next installment to find out what happens to her as well as to solve the book’s other mysteries.
A Change of Rules: the Missing Shield builds a world of strong women and mysterious guardians who are on a collision course of destinies. The depth of detail in each character’s inner dialogue sets the stage for the strife to come. The fight scene alone was thrilling and well-drawn and had me wanting to read more about Solancei. This a full-immersion experience for fantasy lovers.
Beautifully written high fantasy.
The author has a wonderful way of writing, detailing everything in a poetical way.
For people who love ‘meaty’ high-fantasy this is a winner.
It’s not a light read and needs your concentration.
Hat’s off to the author – very talented person.
A Change of Rules: The Missing Shield, Episode 1 is basically a multi-point of view story-line from different characters from different realms.
In a world beyond the Veils that protect the Realms of Dallancea against the return of Mad Gods, the Maker’s chosen Avatars – all-powerful Guardians, have awoken to face the lingering repercussions of a betrayal. Guardian and Spell-weaver of the highest tier, Malandar is not prepared to surrender the Realms to the old Enemy of Life without a fight, he must start his new journey a quest to protect the Realms as a mere mortal.
At the same time a royal protector-come-handmaiden Solancei – learns her craft to protect her friend and cousin, the Princess Iambre. Only to find herself in trouble when a training session goes wrong.
Princess Iambre is beyond angry when her hand maiden Solancei fails to return to their rooms, only for the Head of security – Eso informs the Princess – Solancei has gone missing and they don’t know where she is.
Friendships are strained and pushed to their limits in this first book in the series. The author has done a great job in creating the interesting storyline and characters, captures the imagination. I prefer the character Solancei.
A Change of Rules drops the reader into an already moving story following several storylines simultaneously. The first is the demi-gods who have been given charge of the world’s magic and the impossible position they have found themselves in as one of their members have died and they have lost their Sight of future events. Even as they work toward figuring out how to mend the tear in their fabric, the dissention in their numbers keeps them from solving any real issues beyond their personal grudges. Second, Solancei shares the most tragic part of her past, the death of her parents. She views this moment in time as a turning point in her life because it has allowed her to find the State of Veranto which instills powers of presence of mind as well as strength and speed. Yet something has changed for her, she can no longer access this state which causes much consternation as her life might depend on it. And finally, the third character is Iambre who is both friend and cousin to Solancei. She has issues of her own, yet she struggles to find her way without the constant guidance of her cousin.
There is so much back story which is hinted at, yet left unexplained, it’s clear this author has spent a considerable amount of time creating intricate stories for each character and where they will ultimately end up in their place in history.
This story is not for the faint hearted, it is a weighty read that is meticulously and poetically written. Readers who love high fantasy and stories where the world has been intricately drawn will appreciate this book. It is not a quick read and, as this it just the first episode of eleven, it promises to become a vast epic that hardened fantasy readers can totally submerge themselves in.