Robert Reid's Blog
November 10, 2025
Audun and Morveria #2
I keep hoping that Audun will be more forthcoming in telling me about his adventures in Morveria.
Unfortunately he continues to drip feed me a word at a time.
Unfortunately he continues to drip feed me a word at a time.
October 17, 2025
"The Emperor, the Son and the Thief"
"The Emperor, the Son and the Thief" is a fantasy book series by Robert Reid, consisting of at least four books: The Emperor (Book 1), The Son (Book 2), The Thief (Book 3), and The Empress (Book 4). The trilogy follows the intertwined fates of three central characters: Alberon, the ambitious Emperor of the North; Audun, his illegitimate son with a hidden royal birth right; and Raimund, an orphan forced into thievery to survive. The story features magic, including a mysterious red stone and a Staff of Power, and a looming conflict between the North and the rich southern lands of Amina.
The series comprises the following books:
1. 1. The Emperor
(Book 1): Introduces the world and characters, including the tyrannical Emperor Alberon and the discovery of Audun's royal heritage.
2. 2. The Son
(Book 2): Continues the journey of Audun as he seeks to claim his inheritance using the power of the red stone.
3. 3. The Thief
(Book 3): Concludes the story of Audun and also follows Raimund, the young thief, on his own dangerous quest.
4. 4. The Empress
(Book 4): Tells the story of Empress Sylva, Audun's stepmother, as she fights for her sons' rights.
Key Elements
• Characters:
The narrative focuses on Emperor Alberon, his son Audun, and the orphan-turned-thief Raimund.
• Plot:
The story involves a conflict between the northern and southern lands, the discovery of Audun's royal parentage, and a magical artifact, the red stone.
• Magic:
A significant element is the mysterious red stone, which contains the essence of an ancient alchemist, and the magical Staff of Power that Audun must learn to harness.
• Themes:
The series explores themes of royal succession, ambition, and the struggle for power.
The series comprises the following books:
1. 1. The Emperor
(Book 1): Introduces the world and characters, including the tyrannical Emperor Alberon and the discovery of Audun's royal heritage.
2. 2. The Son
(Book 2): Continues the journey of Audun as he seeks to claim his inheritance using the power of the red stone.
3. 3. The Thief
(Book 3): Concludes the story of Audun and also follows Raimund, the young thief, on his own dangerous quest.
4. 4. The Empress
(Book 4): Tells the story of Empress Sylva, Audun's stepmother, as she fights for her sons' rights.
Key Elements
• Characters:
The narrative focuses on Emperor Alberon, his son Audun, and the orphan-turned-thief Raimund.
• Plot:
The story involves a conflict between the northern and southern lands, the discovery of Audun's royal parentage, and a magical artifact, the red stone.
• Magic:
A significant element is the mysterious red stone, which contains the essence of an ancient alchemist, and the magical Staff of Power that Audun must learn to harness.
• Themes:
The series explores themes of royal succession, ambition, and the struggle for power.
October 9, 2025
A numbers conundrum
On Goodreads The Emperor (Book 1) has 4500 four and five star ratings but The Son (Book 2) and The Thief (Book 3) have a combined total of 500 four and five star ratings. Why would someone enjoy the first book in a series and not want to know how the story unfolded. The Son has 230 ratings and The Thief 300. I could understand if you enjoyed The Emperor you might decide to skip the middle but surely you would want to know what happened in the end. Maybe the fact that most of the ratings will have been driven by free issue e-books from a PR company explains it. Prepared to read a freebie but less willing to spend?
September 29, 2025
Q – What part of all your books have you found hardest to write?
A – The last four or five chapters of The Empress. I must have rewritten these chapters two dozen times over a period of about six months. Initially I sought to solve the question of the rights of thrones through some great final battle – like Lord of the Rings. I tried this several times. (I think I am fairly good at creating battle narrative.) However I was never happy with the result. The world currently has too many bloody wars and I didn’t feel comfortable creating another fictional one. After many attempts I solved the problem by resolving the rights of thrones in a history lesson explained to two children on holiday in 2014. No great final battles – history recorded compromise, inclusivity and peaceful resolution. A shame the real world can’t take six months to consider its actions.
September 6, 2025
My favourite book
Q – You have written 5 books – Which is your personal favourite?
A – I think The Empress because it has a broader sweep than the others, as it should have at over 800 pages. More importantly it allowed me to explore wider lands and create new characters – in fact new peoples. I particularly enjoyed writing the last few chapters of The Empress when I found that telling the story from looking back from the present day gave me many different options in how to close the narrative.
If you have read my books I would love to hear which was your favourite.
A – I think The Empress because it has a broader sweep than the others, as it should have at over 800 pages. More importantly it allowed me to explore wider lands and create new characters – in fact new peoples. I particularly enjoyed writing the last few chapters of The Empress when I found that telling the story from looking back from the present day gave me many different options in how to close the narrative.
If you have read my books I would love to hear which was your favourite.
August 31, 2025
Goodreads "To Read" Shelf
I am increasingly coming to the conclusion that the “To Read” shelves on the Goodreads platform are only there to enable PR companies to deliver the shelf numbers they promise for the fees they take from authors. A sophisticated con? How have I come to this conclusion? Well I apparently have my novels on 38,000 “to read” shelves. I have probably sold less than 400 copies. Of course the same is in someway true of ratings. Author pays PR company for promised number of ratings. PR company issues free PDFs to its reader lists. Ratings and reviews delivered – sales impact zero. And it is all perfectly legal. I am clearly growing cynical in my old age.
August 22, 2025
Surprise Review
A business contact, who I only know from business calls, phoned me today. I had given her a gift of the three books in the series The Emperor, The Son and The Thief. She called me to say how much she enjoyed the stories and how they filled her train trip to and from work. The surprise came at the end when she said “I would never have chosen to read this type of genre but maybe I will now try more.” A copy of The Empress will make its way to her next. Thanks Margaret
August 13, 2025
Are your books 1 Series?
Q – You have published 5 books – are they a single series?
A – Yes and No is the answer. The journey starts in White Light Red Fire in the 1300s. The action is situated mostly on the island of Andore. The action in the trilogy – The Emperor, The Son and The Thief moves on 200 years to the 1500s and is mostly situated in the southern lands of Kermin and Amina although I was surprised when the thief’s story ended up back in the north of Andore. The Empress continues the story in Kermin and Amina but ranges out into the previously unexplored lands of the Sofanomin. In fact The Empress brings the story up to current times – 2014. I hope the stories stand-alone but they all have common elements – the red fire of othium, the same lands over 700 years, some of the same characters – in particular the old alchemist, Oien.
A – Yes and No is the answer. The journey starts in White Light Red Fire in the 1300s. The action is situated mostly on the island of Andore. The action in the trilogy – The Emperor, The Son and The Thief moves on 200 years to the 1500s and is mostly situated in the southern lands of Kermin and Amina although I was surprised when the thief’s story ended up back in the north of Andore. The Empress continues the story in Kermin and Amina but ranges out into the previously unexplored lands of the Sofanomin. In fact The Empress brings the story up to current times – 2014. I hope the stories stand-alone but they all have common elements – the red fire of othium, the same lands over 700 years, some of the same characters – in particular the old alchemist, Oien.
July 31, 2025
Where do you plan to holiday this summer?
Q – Where are you going on holiday this year?
A – Some ideas – The Hidden Lands (White Light Red Fire) or The City of Mora ( The Emperor) - Maybe Iskala in Doran (The Son) or The Town of Aldene (The Thief). A must try is Aralmer and the forest trails (The Empress).
Make it a book holiday. You could walk with heroes, discover a magical red stone, fight Aramin warriors and visit the lands of the Sofanomin. Wherever your imagination takes you.
A – Some ideas – The Hidden Lands (White Light Red Fire) or The City of Mora ( The Emperor) - Maybe Iskala in Doran (The Son) or The Town of Aldene (The Thief). A must try is Aralmer and the forest trails (The Empress).
Make it a book holiday. You could walk with heroes, discover a magical red stone, fight Aramin warriors and visit the lands of the Sofanomin. Wherever your imagination takes you.
July 22, 2025
What defines success?
Q – Do you consider yourself to be a successful author?
A – The answer to that question requires successful to be defined. I have succeeded in writing 5 novels. - over 2000 pages – and those who have read the stories seem to enjoy them – 6500 4* and 5* ratings on Goodreads and 45 reviews. Sadly all this positivity has been generated through free copies. I have to admit to being a complete failure when it comes to marketing and selling my books. Maybe if I was a famous name I would sell more books. I get the feeling that readers won’t risk their money on an independent self-published author. So successful or not? My stories on my bookshelves. No best sellers – Yet.
A – The answer to that question requires successful to be defined. I have succeeded in writing 5 novels. - over 2000 pages – and those who have read the stories seem to enjoy them – 6500 4* and 5* ratings on Goodreads and 45 reviews. Sadly all this positivity has been generated through free copies. I have to admit to being a complete failure when it comes to marketing and selling my books. Maybe if I was a famous name I would sell more books. I get the feeling that readers won’t risk their money on an independent self-published author. So successful or not? My stories on my bookshelves. No best sellers – Yet.
