What do you think?
49: Volume 01
Three unique tales. One fantasy world. A secret to uncover.
Aveline, the princess, wants freedom from her gilded birdcage.
Chrysanthemum, the hero, trusts too many vile villains and beasts.
Lucah, the pirate, will follow his blood-drinking captain until the end.
How will their love destroy them?
49 is a series of high fantasy novellas, and Volume 01 is a collection of the first three tales, with many more to come...
Aveline, the princess, wants freedom from her gilded birdcage.
Chrysanthemum, the hero, trusts too many vile villains and beasts.
Lucah, the pirate, will follow his blood-drinking captain until the end.
How will their love destroy them?
49 is a series of high fantasy novellas, and Volume 01 is a collection of the first three tales, with many more to come...
293 pages, Paperback
Published May 7, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 24, 2024
All right, first a disclaimer with the review : I'm friends with the author.
With this out of the way, I have a few thoughts.
These are three different novellas in one book. I was a bit surprised by the font size, it's fairly large, but the entire thing does make for a generally fun and quick read if that's what you're looking for.
A Feather in the Breeze is the first of the three and in my opinion, the weakest. It's not a really strong opening, and while Aveline does have a moment or two where she shines, it's just... Kind of there. It's not *bad*, but it's not amazing either. Intellectually I understand why Aveline behaves the way she does and why she appears to make herself as small as possible. Emotionally it doesn't feel incredibly compelling. I think if I didn't know some special spoilers I'd find the end of that one pretty unfulfilling ? But eh. I'm giving it a 3/5.
A Claw through the Heart surprised me ! When chatting with the author I wouldn't have imagined Chrysanthemum to become my favorite character. She's entertaining, I liked following her trains of thought, rolling my eyes when she takes objectively bad decisions but with such a heart it's hard to be mad at her. I do think it's the best of the bunch, and I wouldn't be able to talk about it too long without spoiling all of it, so here goes. 5/5.
A Fang at the Throat was also nice. Not as strong as the second novella, but a nice one to finish this on. Lucah is very entertaining in how pathetic and horny he is, but I'll be honest I'm glad I went into this knowing that 90% of what goes on in his brain is thinking about sex. I probably would've found him annoying otherwise, lol. But I do like how it fits with the story right before it. 4/5.
I decided to give this an overall grade of 4/5 because novellas 2 and 3 make this thing hold up pretty well, despite the first one kind of awkwardly standing out. I think I'll read the next one when it comes out :)
With this out of the way, I have a few thoughts.
These are three different novellas in one book. I was a bit surprised by the font size, it's fairly large, but the entire thing does make for a generally fun and quick read if that's what you're looking for.
A Feather in the Breeze is the first of the three and in my opinion, the weakest. It's not a really strong opening, and while Aveline does have a moment or two where she shines, it's just... Kind of there. It's not *bad*, but it's not amazing either. Intellectually I understand why Aveline behaves the way she does and why she appears to make herself as small as possible. Emotionally it doesn't feel incredibly compelling. I think if I didn't know some special spoilers I'd find the end of that one pretty unfulfilling ? But eh. I'm giving it a 3/5.
A Claw through the Heart surprised me ! When chatting with the author I wouldn't have imagined Chrysanthemum to become my favorite character. She's entertaining, I liked following her trains of thought, rolling my eyes when she takes objectively bad decisions but with such a heart it's hard to be mad at her. I do think it's the best of the bunch, and I wouldn't be able to talk about it too long without spoiling all of it, so here goes. 5/5.
A Fang at the Throat was also nice. Not as strong as the second novella, but a nice one to finish this on. Lucah is very entertaining in how pathetic and horny he is, but I'll be honest I'm glad I went into this knowing that 90% of what goes on in his brain is thinking about sex. I probably would've found him annoying otherwise, lol. But I do like how it fits with the story right before it. 4/5.
I decided to give this an overall grade of 4/5 because novellas 2 and 3 make this thing hold up pretty well, despite the first one kind of awkwardly standing out. I think I'll read the next one when it comes out :)
April 9, 2025
This one is for the lovers of tragedy and fantasy.
It's an lush world described by an atmospheric writing style and none of these stories end with the clichee happy ending. Most actually end in tragedy or devastation of some sort. The endings are sort of open in the way that we never get more information than the character itself would have which, on one hand, helps to get into their head but in the other sometimes left me wishing there were a few more hints about what else was going on.
The deaths devastated me although I think they're probably deserved. I'd just liked them to be extended to the others who also would have deserved them. Alas, life is not fair and that's especially the lesson of the first story so that was also bittersweet and good, in a way.
I had fun with this!
It's an lush world described by an atmospheric writing style and none of these stories end with the clichee happy ending. Most actually end in tragedy or devastation of some sort. The endings are sort of open in the way that we never get more information than the character itself would have which, on one hand, helps to get into their head but in the other sometimes left me wishing there were a few more hints about what else was going on.
The deaths devastated me although I think they're probably deserved. I'd just liked them to be extended to the others who also would have deserved them. Alas, life is not fair and that's especially the lesson of the first story so that was also bittersweet and good, in a way.
I had fun with this!
June 11, 2024
I sat down with the book and finished a claw through the heart and a fang at the throat in one sitting (I read the first story yesterday) I really like the pacing and I can't wait to read the next book when it comes out. Although I'm a little sad about Lucah dying alone but that's just because I was rooting for him to leave his captain behind.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2025
Great beginnings on all three. The first story had a confusing and a little disappointing ending. The second had a good resolution and open ending. The third makes you think but is also a little confusing. Deserved, though.
August 11, 2026
The book was excellent. Really well paced and I couldn't put it down. I keep wanting to read more and I had to put my kindle down a few times because I got legitimately mad at a few cliffhangers. Fantastic experience, definitely will reread in the future
September 5, 2024
Oh my goddd i loved these stories. I loved them all. But the last one dug into me like. Wow. I cant wait for more!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews