Manaborn

The Morrow Legacy, Book 1

By: A.S. Frederiks

Narrated by: Samuel Papendick

Length: 16 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

In vibrant pools hidden away by time and jealousy, in bright azure veins upon cavern walls, in the very air itself, emanates the power of Mana, granting powers unique and destructive to those strong enough to wield them.

Manaborn is the story of three such people, unaware of their magical powers. Thrust into perilous adventures, their world unravels as the fate of a kingdom is thrown into flux due to events involving King Aradel himself and his mysterious Magus.

Valory, a hard-nosed teen on the run with her father, searches for her true identity; Sir, a spirited noblewoman, leaves behind a life of nobility and abuse to become a knight; and finally, the carefree Lord Cassian Morrow and his Shieldguard Robert receive a sudden visit from the king.

Bonds between friends and family are tested as their lives intertwine in the shadow of the crown. Danger looms and secrets are brought to light, but one question stands above the rest: What is honor?

©2023 Alex Jørgensen (P)2023 Alex Jørgensen

a unique mix of classic and modern fantasy

Like I said above, the story itself dances between classic and modern fantasy in some really enjoyable and somewhat clunky ways. The enjoyable ways fall primarily in the classic fantasy style and are expressed in how the relationships are described and experienced; there is a whimsical nature to the friendships and bonds and they feel very warm and easy whilst believable. I really enjoyed the bonds established and developed and this is also one of the strongest aspects to making me keep reading. That being said, the modern side would come around in ways that would be interesting but jarring. Instead of one main villain, we have many smaller antagonists (which is a great concept), but they often come across as wholly villainous and irredeemably bad. There is very little charisma or nuance to most of the villains and while this isn't a problem wholly, it did make them a little bland. (I will say, one primary antagonist does get a pretty sizable layering of character that I appreciated after I finished.)

My other gripes:
-There is not much in terms of an established plot going on for a majority of the book. I would describe the first half as pretty character-driven (the best kind 😁), but it's not an internal struggle feel as much as the fact that they just decide what to do next. This flip-flopped between keeping me invested and not knowing what was going on that served the narrative.
-I don't think the magic system is utilized as much as it was advertised or could have been. It is alluded to pretty often, but never really reaches a fully satisfying focus until the end. This was really disappointing to me as I loved how the magic system was explained, developed, and described. If it had been included more, I think some of the mundanity of the middle parts of the book would've improved my reading experience.
-The dialogue straddles the line very closely of being too straightforward and rough (part of the classic fantasy influences). Characters experience things VERY strongly and too easily? This is just a feeling thing because there would often be chapters where it was very good. It went back and forth between great and okay.
-The length is a little more bloated than I think the story deserved. Frederiks has an easy-writing style that is accessible and not burdensome, but it also doesn't feel like it lends itself to the length that this story deserves. Between the 20–80% mark, it feels like 50–100 pages could've been cut that may have helped progression and keep tension a little more. I really like the ending, but I think it could've been tighter to make it more satisfying in the middle as well.

Manaborn is a very whimsical yet bleak narrative. It wears its influences on its sleeves from authors like Brandon Sanderson and Joe Abercrombie while also pulling from classic fantasy such as the Dragonlance or The Belgaraiad series. While I appreciated the book enough for most of the length, it wasn't until the end that it felt truly enjoyable as a complete experience. The conclusion increased my rating an entire star by itself. The amount of intentionality put into bringing each story full circle was effective, satisfying, and did the narrative justice fully. (Also, having a first entry be able to wrap up fully without required sequels is very admirable. I expect additional entries, but this one definitely stands on its own.) All in all, I'm glad I found this self-published title and the story told was one that left a smile on my face after wrapping up. I definitely think this author has potential that could go to some fantastic places in future books!