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The World Has Already Ended for Humanity
M. Anderson Author Interview
The Lord of Long Shadows: Knights of the Fallen Realm follows an orphan whos life is changed when a chance encounter transports her into the adventure of a lifetime. What was the inspiration for the setup to this thrilling story?
From the earliest concepts for the story, I had always envisioned Alex being transported into another world. I thought it would be really interesting to take a character out of our environment, and put her in a world like Aquillon, where she is constantly learning on the fly and having to adapt on the run.
Alex Winters is an interesting and uniquely developed character. What were some ideas that guided her character development?
I’ve always had a love of strong, confident female characters from books to television to movies. Growing up I was always inspired by characters like Kara Thrace on Battlestar Galactica, or Anabeth Chase of the Percy Jackson series, so I guess she takes a lot of notes from characters like that. Combine that with the fact that I’m married to a confident woman from Boston, and that should give you some idea of Alex’s origins.
I enjoyed the background of the story and the hierarchical system of the world. What were some themes you wanted to explore while creating this world?
I’ve always loved fantasy, but in a lot of fantasy worlds, humanity is either on top or vying for power. I’ve always thought it would be sort of interesting to flip that and have humanity on the bottom of the food chain. I guess it’s sort of my take on post-apocalyptic fantasy. In Aquillon, the world has already ended for humanity, so it’s up to Alex and her friends to figure out what to do about it.
This is book one in your Knights of the Fallen Realm series. Where will book two pickup and when will it be available?
The second book picks up right where this one leaves off, and that’s all I’ll say so as to avoid spoilers. I’m currently hard at work on the manuscript for the second book, and I anticipate it coming out sometimes in 2020, but that’s about as specific of a timeline as I have right now.
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In The Lord of Long Shadows (Knights of the Fallen Realm, Book 1) Twenty-year-old orphan Alex Winters’ quiet life is shattered when a chance encounter transports her to a world beyond her imagination and into the adventure of a lifetime.After saving an old man on her way home from work, Alex Winters finds herself abruptly teleported to the world of Aquillon, where humanity suffers at the hands of the Court of Hours, a group of malevolent demons who have ruled for a thousand years. Given only a single clue to find her way home, Alex sets out on a journey to discover her place in a world she barely understands. Over the course of her adventure, Alex befriends brave allies and evades cunning and sinister enemies, all the while discovering more and more about a destiny she feels unprepared for, while facing challenges and dangers that will push her courage to the limit. Filled with action, adventure, and humor, The Lord of Long Shadows is a thrilling young-adult fantasy adventure perfect for middle and high school fans of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson novels, as well as fans of fast-paced adventure and fantasy of all ages. The Lord of Long Shadows is a page-turner that will leave readers laughing and excited to see what happens next as the adventure of Knights of the Fallen Realm unfolds.
The Lord of Long Shadows
![The Lord of Long Shadows: Knights of the Fallen Realm: Book 1 by [Anderson, M.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41GCedQDJtL.jpg)
The Lord of Long Shadows – Knights of the Fallen Realm is an exciting read from a author M. Anderson that will please a wide variety of adventure seekers. The story is crafted with care with a surprising amount of depth making it easy to continue along with the characters while they search for answers and a better existence for the fallen human civilization. Each new chapter brings with it a fresh batch of interesting characters, new challenges, and settings to match. If you’re a fan of epic fantasy books that inspired and, in fact, formed this genre (Lord of the Rings comes to mind), you will likely enjoy The Lord of Long Shadows.
The story follows a young adult, Alex, who was orphaned at the tail end of her teenage years. With both parents gone, Alex was working hard to create a life for herself on her own. Alex was doing okay until she chanced upon a situation that catapulted her into another world: a world where the humans who once ruled the land are now merely sheep in a hierarchical system governed by a rich variety of demonic beings. Alex, having been blessed with powers unknown, now carries the unique responsibility to save the humans she has met. The driving question behind the story is whether she will be successful in her quest, with some events seeming utterly hopeless. Anderson does a solid job balancing out the action with the suspenseful elements of the storytelling, making it hard to tell how each new challenge will pan out.
There are certainly a lot of positives with The Lord of Long Shadows – Knights of the Fallen Realm. Unfortunately, there were some typos throughout the book, which are not serious enough to hamper the story’s meaning, but they do pull you out of the world the author expertly pulls you into.
Things to look forward to while reading are a creative world full of interesting characters and situations. For a book of this length, the action and quick pace keep things moving at an engaging pace. If you don’t mind typos, there are a lot of reasons to like this story. With a bit of editing this would easily be a stand out novel. In any case, it’s highly recommended to any fantasy genre fan.
Pages: 274 | ASIN: B07WH4M3ZW
LITERARY TITAN 