The Chronicles of Wetherid: The Legacy of the Elves

Thank you to both NetGalley for the advance review copy as well as the author, Christian Dölder for the opportunity to review his captivating novel


Christian Dölder's "The Chronicles of Wetherid: The Legacy of the Elves" is an immersive and captivating fantasy debut. This enchanting novel introduces readers to Wetherid, a richly detailed world of magic, ancient lore, and forgotten civilizations.


Plot

In Wetherid, where elves and humans coexist, tensions simmer. Protagonist Lyra, an skilled elven warrior, navigates treacherous politics, forbidden love, and self-discovery. As ancient secrets resurface, Lyra must confront her destiny and the fate of Wetherid.


Writing Style

Dölder's prose is characterized by:


1. Vivid world-building and atmospheric descriptions
2. Intricate plotting and unexpected twists
3. Well-developed, complex characters
4. Engaging dialogue


Themes

1. Identity and self-discovery
2. Forbidden love and societal expectations
3. Power struggles and political intrigue
4. Ancient magic and forgotten lore


Strengths

1. Immersive world-building
2. Strong female protagonist
3. Moral complexity and nuanced characters
4. Engaging pacing


Weaknesses

1. Some supporting characters lack depth
2. Pacing issues in mid-section
3. Prose needs to advance to add depth to the characters. Make us feel like we are in the room!


Recommendation

"The Legacy of the Elves" is perfect for fans of:


1. Epic fantasy (e.g., J.R.R. Tolkien, George R.R. Martin)
2. Fantasy romance (e.g., Sarah J. Maas, Robin LaFevers)
3. Immersive world-building (e.g., Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson)


Lord of The Rings and First Law sit alone on my shelf. Nothing compares nor equals. Christian Dölder and the Chronicles of Wetherid has potential to join but not quite there. Places us into the story make us feel the story is no longer suspension of reality, rather, convince us that it is real.

Unfortunately not the book for me.

I didn't enjoy the history lesson the book starts with, and everything felt....flat.

It's tough writing books, and even tougher making sure the right audience gets them.

The Chronicles of Wetherid focuses on keeping the balance of good and evil. A "Book" holds the power of that balance or the power to upend that balance. As a reader, the novel gives that "Lord of the Rings" feel. Therefore, I was drawn to this book which is out of my normal type of reading. The character development is good. However, as one who likes action, the writer provides a tease but not enough for me. This book is a good option for various fantasy readers. The mix of humans, elves, and more is good for a story based on a challenging journey.

I received an e-ARC for free from NetGalley and these are my own thoughts about The Chronicles of Wetherid - Legacy of the Elves.

Christian Dölder imagined a great adventure for us readers! It’s a story of courage and honour, a tale of friendship and loyalty but also of betrayal and deceit that takes us to a voyage through the eternal struggle of Good against Evil. At the end of the story Master Drobal explains: “The true power I spoke of is not that which can be found in books or achieved through magic wands. It is the power of unity, the unchanging strength of friendship and the ability to withstand the temptations of evil.”, and that pretty much sums it up.

Vrenli, Werlis, Gorathdin, Borlix, Aarl, Wahmubu, Gerold, Army Commander Arkondir, Princess Lythinda and Princess Manamii take us deep into Wetherid, this whole new world created by the author. We meet lots of different creatures and beings who parade in front of our eyes as the narrative develops, humans, undead, different types of elves, several kinds of dwarves, ogres, orcs, mages, some who follow the light, others who prefer the in lots of different scenarios, magnificent palaces and luxurious forests. And there is magic, lots and lots of magic.

My only criticism goes to the language. I cannot say it is terrible but I cannot say it is awesome either. Sometimes it sounds a bit naive or like it was meant to be told to children. Sometimes characters say things that don’t need to be said. We can get it. Not everything needs to be said. Give us readers a little more credit and let us make our own assumptions and interpretations. Also, there is a little bit of editing needed. Nothing very serious, though. And these are the reasons why I cannot rate it with more than 3.4 stars. I am sure the next installment will be a whole lot better as far as these topics are concerned. If it were for the story only it would certainly be a four-star rating. I hope my view is not considered mean or belittling in any way. I really liked the story.

But this was just the start. Writers can improve their skills and their writing and hopefully listen to their readers’ humble advice. I am ready for the next journey!

Absolutely obsessed! It's rare to find such a well thought out and expansive world like this. Definitely recommend to LOTR and D&D fans!
The plot was gripping and exciting and the characters were well thought out, with great development. The worldbuilding immersed me so well and truly made for such a great fantasy experience.

Thank you to NetGalley and Christian Dölder for the opportunity to read and review The Chronicles of Wetherid.

Thanks to NetGalley and Christian Dolder for the opportunity to read this ARC.
Although I'm not a fan of the authors writing style, I will say that you can tell he put his heart and soul into this book. That being said I found the quotation marks around a person's thoughts to be distracting and unusual. It took me out the story. All together I didn't think this story flowed very well and found it lacking in several areas.
I feel like the story was all over the place; a lot of telling instead of showing if that makes sense. I did find the characters interesting and all of the different races were fun to read about. Just wish the book was a tad bit less confusing. The writing didn't flow in a consistent flow to me.

This one was fairly long but most of the characters were well written and likable. I found myself skimming some parts in a few chapters but for the most part I enjoyed it. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes reading about elves, dwarves, halflings and all the other races we find in fantasy books! This reminded me quite a bit of LOTR!

I want to start by thanking NetGallery & Christian Dölder for the ARC to read.

The premise of the book I thought was very interesting, unfortunately, I just didn't find the story living up to the hype. A lot of the book felt like it was long...just to be long. It felt like stuff was added just to hit a page count. Maybe I'm just not a fan of his writing style, a perfect example is when two people are talking and you use their full name after each sentence. Will also agree with others, reading someone's thoughts with "around them" as if spoken is distracting.

Overall the story isn't bad and might be interested in checking out the 2nd book in the series but it's not the best book I've read this year.

This is the first publication by Christian Dölder. The Chronicles of Wetherid: The Legacy of the Elves was published late last May. It is the 51st book I completed reading in 2024.

Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R.

The story begins in the village of Abketh. The Abkether look like humans but are much smaller in stature. A local man, Vrenli, is asked to accompany the elf and Guardian Gorathdin to deliver a message. He is headed to the capital Astinhod with the ingredients needed to help the enchanted princess Lythinda. This will be an adventure for young Vrenli, as he has never traveled far from home. His best friend, Werlis, offers to accompany them.

On their journey, the three encounter Aarl, a human woodsman. Having lived alone in the forest for many years, he makes the decision to join the troop on their journey to Astinhod. Vrenli has a vision where he is told to return home after his adventure and teach his people their history.

Traveling through the mountains, the four must fight their way past goblins. They meet the dwarf Borlix, who also decides to join them. Together, they struggle through attacks by ogres, orcs, the undead, gray dwarves, mist elves, and humans. All of these have been drawn into an alliance with Erwight of Entorbis. He wants to bring all of the peoples of Wetherid together under his control. Most importantly, he wants his minions to find the Book of the Glorious Elves. With the magic it contains and his faithful Shadow Mages, Entorbis will rule supreme over the land.

Vrenli is separated from the others and finds himself in the desert of DeShadin. He is taken as a slave by the snake people. He meets new friends there, who become his allies. Eventually, he is reunited with his original troop. Both new and old friends ally themselves with Lythinda, who has become Queen of Astinhod.

The adventure leads to Ib’Agier, the dwarf stronghold. It is at Ib’Agier that the forces in league with Entorbis and those allied with Astinhod will collide. Succumbing to the army of Entorbis will mean losing everything.

I enjoyed the 15+ hours I spent reading this 704-page fantasy. This novel is an adventure saga much like Tolkien’s ring trilogy. The story contains many characters, but the primary ones are those with whom Vrenli first set out. The group runs into one obstacle after another, almost always in peril for their lives. The description of their adventure during the first two-thirds of the novel seems more detailed than the last part. I do like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 3.7 (rounded to 4) out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

The book is well-written and detailed, And as the description states, it heavily relies on Tolkien for its source material.
It should be labeled as a retelling as the word-building is too similar to any book written by J.R.R Tolkien, not just inspired by him.
With that said, I enjoyed it.

I always appreciate the chance to read a new authors work for an honest review. So thanks to Netgalley & Christian Dolder that's exactly what I will do.

The book is well written, detailed, and quite lengthy. And as the description states, it is heavily relies on Lord of the rings for its source material. This book is not bad, but if your expecting something new, this book isn't for you.

I took the book for what it was worth.

The Chronicles of Wetherid - The Legacy of the Elves(Book 1 of The Chronicles of Wetherid)
Author: Christian Dölder
First Published: May 26th, 2024
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5(3.5/5)
Review:
I love the cover of this book, which is why I decided to read it. The map for this book is so detailed & well done. It was a little hard to read some of the city names on my kindle, but it was easy to figure out while reading. I got confused when thoughts were put in quotes. The worldbuilding is slightly confusing. The writing is decent. The pacing is slow, in my opinion. Just needs some polishing up. It felt alot like Lord of The Rings.

Thank you to NetGalley & the author for this free ebook in exchange for my honest review.
#wetherid #NetGalley #ChristianDölder

I love to read books with a unique magic and world system! And this book surely got this! I rate it 5 stars and it totally deserves this rating! 👏👏👏

I did not finish the novel as the dog dies and there was no trigger warning. From what I did read, the novel is a copy and paste of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, which would be fine if there had felt any connection to the world or characters. The characters felt one dimensional, and I had a hard time grasping the plot. I think the author meant for the plot to unfold as the gang continues on their journey, but not enough world building and character development was happening to keep me intrigued in where they were headed. It fell flat for me unfortunately. I also disliked that the main character's thoughts were all in quotations and the elves were referred to as the "glorious elves". The author did not provide enough background on the elves for them to be referred to as glorious.