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Koru: The Trainer I Used to Know
How far would you go to re-earn someone’s trust?
Gabriel Skueler wants to do everything he can to regain Koru’s trust and love her again.
Koru Kayori, the lead trainer of the Owl Griffins in the king’s stables of Eadburgh, knows fully well what broken trust is. She’s had it broken too many times to let men close again.
The only problem Gabriel is one of the men that broke her trust in the first place.
Four years after his mistake, Gabriel goes back to Eadburgh to apologize for what he’s done.
But it’s going to take more than an apology to get Koru to trust him again. It’s going to take much more work than Gabriel had anticipated.
Told from the perspective of a reminiscing Grampa, as he recollects the memories of The Trainer He Used to Know, how far he went to rebuild what was broken and the trials it took along the way.
Gabriel Skueler wants to do everything he can to regain Koru’s trust and love her again.
Koru Kayori, the lead trainer of the Owl Griffins in the king’s stables of Eadburgh, knows fully well what broken trust is. She’s had it broken too many times to let men close again.
The only problem Gabriel is one of the men that broke her trust in the first place.
Four years after his mistake, Gabriel goes back to Eadburgh to apologize for what he’s done.
But it’s going to take more than an apology to get Koru to trust him again. It’s going to take much more work than Gabriel had anticipated.
Told from the perspective of a reminiscing Grampa, as he recollects the memories of The Trainer He Used to Know, how far he went to rebuild what was broken and the trials it took along the way.
192 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 25, 2023
2 people are currently reading
About the author
Katelynn Balcom
1 book1 followerI am a teen author who was born and raised in PNW Washington, but now sprouting roots in north-eastern Tennessee.
You will usually find me writing, reading a book, listening to music, writing, watching Star Wars, Pixar, or other classic movies, or writing (yep, a lot of writing )
I mainly write romances, but I have drafted and dabbled in other genres as well, including Christian-Fiction, Fantasy, Sci-Fi and Mystery.
You can find out more about me at my website: https://katelynnbalcom.com
You will usually find me writing, reading a book, listening to music, writing, watching Star Wars, Pixar, or other classic movies, or writing (yep, a lot of writing )
I mainly write romances, but I have drafted and dabbled in other genres as well, including Christian-Fiction, Fantasy, Sci-Fi and Mystery.
You can find out more about me at my website: https://katelynnbalcom.com
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
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April 14, 2023A quick read set in a classic fantasy realm of owl griffin riders and dragon soldiers.
May 22, 2023
When I first started reading, I thought the book reminded me a little of The Princess Bride. The similarities are in the book structure and roughly in the beginning plot. Koru: The Trainer I Used to Know is structured as a story within a story—the main character is telling the story to an in-story audience.
The plot is a universal one of boy meets girl, boy does something stupid, and then boy spends the rest of the story trying to win back the heart of the girl. Overall, it is well executed. I feel that it could have had more depth in spots. Also, the subplots could have used a bit more meat as well.
The characters shine in the story. Gabriel, our POV character, narrates the story well. We understand his motivation—as a whole. This happens to be a place where I believe the story needs a bit more. I would have liked to have seen more scenes of him actually falling in love with Koru. That mostly happened off the page. More sweet scenes between them would have made me feel his heartbreak when she rejected him in the beginning.
Koru, the love interest, has her own agency. We understand her initial rejection. She only falters at the end—another place that needs fleshing. Koru forgives Gabriel for all his misguided attempts too easily. Especially after what happened with her own father, her quick forgiving of Gabriel feels out of character.
The potential war subplot gets resolved swiftly. There was a lot of good build-up to it. Then, it just disappears after one battle. There should have been another couple of chapters where the war subplot, the Captain Koru subplot, and the main plot could have merged. That would have given satisfying resolutions to all.
I liked the stable setting with the Griffins. The story felt fresh and yet lived-in. The caring for these fantasy creatures added depth to the characters—main and side.
While I found Koru a fun read, I also found a smattering of grammatical and punctuation errors. I have notified the author via email about them. Since the book is not yet released, she may have time to make corrections. Those combined with the above forced me to take off stars from the rating. All in all, it is fun fantasy that I would recommend reading.
The plot is a universal one of boy meets girl, boy does something stupid, and then boy spends the rest of the story trying to win back the heart of the girl. Overall, it is well executed. I feel that it could have had more depth in spots. Also, the subplots could have used a bit more meat as well.
The characters shine in the story. Gabriel, our POV character, narrates the story well. We understand his motivation—as a whole. This happens to be a place where I believe the story needs a bit more. I would have liked to have seen more scenes of him actually falling in love with Koru. That mostly happened off the page. More sweet scenes between them would have made me feel his heartbreak when she rejected him in the beginning.
Koru, the love interest, has her own agency. We understand her initial rejection. She only falters at the end—another place that needs fleshing. Koru forgives Gabriel for all his misguided attempts too easily. Especially after what happened with her own father, her quick forgiving of Gabriel feels out of character.
The potential war subplot gets resolved swiftly. There was a lot of good build-up to it. Then, it just disappears after one battle. There should have been another couple of chapters where the war subplot, the Captain Koru subplot, and the main plot could have merged. That would have given satisfying resolutions to all.
I liked the stable setting with the Griffins. The story felt fresh and yet lived-in. The caring for these fantasy creatures added depth to the characters—main and side.
While I found Koru a fun read, I also found a smattering of grammatical and punctuation errors. I have notified the author via email about them. Since the book is not yet released, she may have time to make corrections. Those combined with the above forced me to take off stars from the rating. All in all, it is fun fantasy that I would recommend reading.
April 23, 2023
I knew immediately that I would purchase the paperback copy of the book when I began reading it in the digital format.
Told from the unique standpoint of a grandfather relaying a story of his life to his grandchildren, Koru the Trainer I Used to Know is an interesting book with several surprises hidden along the way. Lovers of medieval fantasy will enjoy both the action scenes and the love story recounted within its pages. It held my attention so that I managed to finish it within two days, so I’m certain many others will enjoy it.
Told from the unique standpoint of a grandfather relaying a story of his life to his grandchildren, Koru the Trainer I Used to Know is an interesting book with several surprises hidden along the way. Lovers of medieval fantasy will enjoy both the action scenes and the love story recounted within its pages. It held my attention so that I managed to finish it within two days, so I’m certain many others will enjoy it.
April 25, 2023
Adventure, Friendship, Courage and Trancendent Love.
I really love the author's creativity and writing style from beginning to end. Adventure is throughout the book with road journies, interesting acquaintances and mysterious characters. Good friends are made during seasons of adversity. Courage built from facing fears. Transcendent love so evident that it carries on from generation to generation.
This story has unexpected twists and turns that will keep the reader at the edge of their seat!
I really love the author's creativity and writing style from beginning to end. Adventure is throughout the book with road journies, interesting acquaintances and mysterious characters. Good friends are made during seasons of adversity. Courage built from facing fears. Transcendent love so evident that it carries on from generation to generation.
This story has unexpected twists and turns that will keep the reader at the edge of their seat!
April 17, 2023
This is a debut novel. Wow! Katelynn Balcom, your future is so bright. This is an entertaining read filled with amazing characters, clean romance, and wonderful adventure. I loved this story and how the author interwove such wisdom in the decision making of all the characters. The deep rooted life lessons and importance of strong character was so refreshing to read about. Keep writing. I cannot wait for a sequel.
November 11, 2024
The setting of the Owl Griffin stables was really interesting! The world building seemed very on point, and I’m curious if the writer will ever expand on it. The story is set up in the same way “The Princess Bride” is, where there’s a Grandpa telling his Grandkids a story. A critique I have in this area, was that it was hard to remember every child’s name, and I’m not sure why there was so many. Of course, this is purely from a reader’s point of view.
April 14, 2023
Full of imagination and intrigue, Koru is a thrilling debut novel by a budding author. Mistakes, brokenness, secrecy, and inner strength surround the characters as they come to life. This story in a story will leave you full of hope and excitement.
April 30, 2023
Owl griffins, dragons, an evil usurper with her eye on the throne, and a loyal young man who is desperately in love with a woman who has lost her trust in him. These things all come together beautifully in Koru: The Trainer I Used to Know. This is a fantastic debut novel by an author I'm looking forward to hearing more from in the future!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews