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Gryphon's Heir
Six years after the end of the Great War, schoolmaster Rhissan Griffith believes himself just another young man struggling to find success at a private school in rural England. An idle wish for a little magic in the midst of his frustrating, unfulfilling life catapults Rhiss into a situation that winds up being far more than he ever imagined possible... or desirable.After school one dismal and rainy afternoon, an extraordinary door to perilous adventure unexpectedly opens in his life. It promises to thrust Rhiss into unimaginable realms of wonder and terror, encounters with beings fantastical and mythological, and answers to questions regarding a past — and a future — he has never before even contemplated. Leaving his old life behind, Rhiss accepts the challenge and walks unsuspectingly into a desperate and deadly conflict that shakes his faith and everything he ever knew or believed about himself. But how could an ordinary man help to shape the course of a world locked in battle against an ancient evil?
358 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 3, 2015
1 person is currently reading
16 people want to read
About the author
D.R. Ranshaw
1 book3 followersD.R. Ranshaw has loved reading and writing since childhood, when the printed word’s ability to unlock both historical and fabulous worlds became an immediate, lifelong passion. Introduced to fantasy and science fiction at a young age, he began voraciously reading both genres, and it was not long before he was also writing them.
A public school teacher who has enjoyed a long and fulfilling career – unlike the protagonist of Gryphon’s Heir – D.R. Ranshaw has spent more than three decades in the classroom, transmitting his deep love of literature and writing to his students.
Gryphon’s Heir has its origins in the real-life frustrations all teachers occasionally experience. After one particularly aggravating day, the image of a strange doorway from his classroom into a faraway land lodged in the author’s imagination and refused to leave. The only recourse was exploring where that door led to and what would happen to anyone daring to cross its threshold. The resulting story rapidly gained depth and complexity and developed a life of its own.
A public school teacher who has enjoyed a long and fulfilling career – unlike the protagonist of Gryphon’s Heir – D.R. Ranshaw has spent more than three decades in the classroom, transmitting his deep love of literature and writing to his students.
Gryphon’s Heir has its origins in the real-life frustrations all teachers occasionally experience. After one particularly aggravating day, the image of a strange doorway from his classroom into a faraway land lodged in the author’s imagination and refused to leave. The only recourse was exploring where that door led to and what would happen to anyone daring to cross its threshold. The resulting story rapidly gained depth and complexity and developed a life of its own.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 15, 2018
Gryphon's Heir is a huge read. i'm told the genre is "epic fantasy." i became mildly acquainted with the author, David Ranshaw, by reading his tweets on Twitter, and found that we had much in common, both educators, and both lovers of words. i was convinced from his tweets that he has an abundance of skill in writing and is a most thoughtful human being.
i ordered his book from Amazon and a week or so later, jumped headlong into a world i rarely visit. The Hobbit has been my favorite novel for over thirty years and the special yardstick i use to measure other stories. it is quite difficult to measure my reading against J.R.R. Tolkien's masterpiece because most of what i choose to read is more likely in the young adult or literary or crime or spy genre than the epic fantasy one. however, Ranshaw's novel is closer to the world of The Hobbit than any novel i've read in the intervening years. it is that good!
My journey through Book 1 of The Annals Of Arrinor, Gryphon's Heir, took me six months, keeping in mind that i always read three books during the same time periods. i keep one next my bed for bedtime reading, a different one in my writing office for nap-time reading, and a third in the car to read while my wife is shopping.
Gryphon's Heir is not a quick visit to the mall or the park. it will occupy your body and imagination for many hours, days, weeks, and perhaps, even months. the world is magical, the writing magnificent. i hope you'll give it a go. . . j
i ordered his book from Amazon and a week or so later, jumped headlong into a world i rarely visit. The Hobbit has been my favorite novel for over thirty years and the special yardstick i use to measure other stories. it is quite difficult to measure my reading against J.R.R. Tolkien's masterpiece because most of what i choose to read is more likely in the young adult or literary or crime or spy genre than the epic fantasy one. however, Ranshaw's novel is closer to the world of The Hobbit than any novel i've read in the intervening years. it is that good!
My journey through Book 1 of The Annals Of Arrinor, Gryphon's Heir, took me six months, keeping in mind that i always read three books during the same time periods. i keep one next my bed for bedtime reading, a different one in my writing office for nap-time reading, and a third in the car to read while my wife is shopping.
Gryphon's Heir is not a quick visit to the mall or the park. it will occupy your body and imagination for many hours, days, weeks, and perhaps, even months. the world is magical, the writing magnificent. i hope you'll give it a go. . . j
May 2, 2016
"Novel" comes from the word "new." It is difficult to do things that are new in literature, in my mind particularly in the world of fantasy. Since Tolkien, we can see the development of certain new tropes and ideas, ideas of what Fantasy Should Be. D.R. Ranshaw's Gryphon's Heir takes much from its predecessors, but don't be fooled - this is a book with plenty of originality, and is its own universe, fully imagined and formed, with its own claims to attention and appreciation. This is exactly what a book should be - well-written, entertaining, and deeply inspiring.
Gryphon's Heir is the stuff of high fantasy, a truly immersive world. The language is simply beautiful - rich imagery written with great clarity that places us right in the scene, but significantly, we see through the eyes of Rhiss, understanding this world through his understandings and the clarification of his misunderstandings. The dialogue is high and elegant, placing you within the medieval world of kings without being stuffy or tiring, making the characters impeccably real.
Before I even touch on darling Rhiss, our wonderful hero, I have to say - STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS. As much as I love Tolkien's work, Neil Gaiman correctly once said "You could fire a machine gun randomly through the pages of Lord of the Rings and never hit any women.” Ideally, our world would be in a place where the number of nuanced, interesting, strong characters seen throughout Gryphon's Heir isn't surprising, and is commonplace - but unfortunately it isn't, so it is commendable that the book offers such an impressive range, with female characters quiet, stubborn, playful, talented, wise, and in leadership roles. Each is their own person, with agency, and the use of a female mentor is incredibly refreshing. Just as refreshing is the challenge to traditional gender roles that we see Rhiss experience, leading him to beg the question as to why females have to be boxed into certain roles. I wonder that too, Rhiss.
Rhiss is a wonderful hero, and though we do not doubt that he will be our hero, we see that he is delightfully human. He struggles, unsure of himself, in spite of all manner of fantastic abilities. Sometimes we get annoyed with him, but this only emphasizes his humanity and the frightening circumstances he is in. We see him weak, we see him stubborn, we see him clever, and we see him surprise himself - as well as us. His personal struggles are as involving and interesting as the fantastic struggles he must deal with.
The rich world building throughout the book is impressive. From the names of characters and places alone, we feel sure that we are part of an entirely new world. Cultural practices, religion, different organizations and orders, as well as history and legend further our exciting discovery of Arrinor through the eyes of Rhiss. Fantasy has produced many different beasts and monsters, but Ranshaw makes things known to us like gryphons something entirely his own. New beasts, like the Malmoridai become chilling and fascinating, and despite the familiarity we may feel with fantasy worlds, Ranshaw does something unique.
One thing that continually impresses me with the work of Neil Gaiman is how unusual the elements of fantasy are in his work - they are completely unexpected. There may seem to be no rhyme or reason to why things happen the way that they do, but there is an element of trust in the logic of it all. In The Ocean at the End of the Lane, I was surprised by some of the magic, but it worked. Just like in Gaiman's work, we trust in Ranshaw's universe of Gryphon's Heir. The book is is fully fleshed out, well-revised and carefully crafted, which allows its universe and magic to be uniform. When magic is used, it is always intriguing, but there are never any questions of "Why should this be this way?" These instances are never ostentatious, are always fitting for the moment, and beautiful. The best part of this trust in the magical universe of the book is that because of an established source of magical ability, because of the fundamental battle between Good and Evil, is that deus ex machina never comes into play as a cop-out. Everything happens for a reason, and we never find ourselves doubting why something is the way that it is. For a first book especially, this kind of trust in its logic is nothing short of incredible.
The trust in the magic of the book is matched in the trust of its structure. The pacing is neat and well-honed, with equal parts emotional drama and fantastical, and battles of both physical and spiritual warfare. Its premise is promising and enticing, and though it has familiar elements of fantasy, it is original and exciting, and I cannot wait to read the next instalment.
Novels are supposed to be something new, and Gryphon's Heir certainly is.
Gryphon's Heir is the stuff of high fantasy, a truly immersive world. The language is simply beautiful - rich imagery written with great clarity that places us right in the scene, but significantly, we see through the eyes of Rhiss, understanding this world through his understandings and the clarification of his misunderstandings. The dialogue is high and elegant, placing you within the medieval world of kings without being stuffy or tiring, making the characters impeccably real.
Before I even touch on darling Rhiss, our wonderful hero, I have to say - STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS. As much as I love Tolkien's work, Neil Gaiman correctly once said "You could fire a machine gun randomly through the pages of Lord of the Rings and never hit any women.” Ideally, our world would be in a place where the number of nuanced, interesting, strong characters seen throughout Gryphon's Heir isn't surprising, and is commonplace - but unfortunately it isn't, so it is commendable that the book offers such an impressive range, with female characters quiet, stubborn, playful, talented, wise, and in leadership roles. Each is their own person, with agency, and the use of a female mentor is incredibly refreshing. Just as refreshing is the challenge to traditional gender roles that we see Rhiss experience, leading him to beg the question as to why females have to be boxed into certain roles. I wonder that too, Rhiss.
Rhiss is a wonderful hero, and though we do not doubt that he will be our hero, we see that he is delightfully human. He struggles, unsure of himself, in spite of all manner of fantastic abilities. Sometimes we get annoyed with him, but this only emphasizes his humanity and the frightening circumstances he is in. We see him weak, we see him stubborn, we see him clever, and we see him surprise himself - as well as us. His personal struggles are as involving and interesting as the fantastic struggles he must deal with.
The rich world building throughout the book is impressive. From the names of characters and places alone, we feel sure that we are part of an entirely new world. Cultural practices, religion, different organizations and orders, as well as history and legend further our exciting discovery of Arrinor through the eyes of Rhiss. Fantasy has produced many different beasts and monsters, but Ranshaw makes things known to us like gryphons something entirely his own. New beasts, like the Malmoridai become chilling and fascinating, and despite the familiarity we may feel with fantasy worlds, Ranshaw does something unique.
One thing that continually impresses me with the work of Neil Gaiman is how unusual the elements of fantasy are in his work - they are completely unexpected. There may seem to be no rhyme or reason to why things happen the way that they do, but there is an element of trust in the logic of it all. In The Ocean at the End of the Lane, I was surprised by some of the magic, but it worked. Just like in Gaiman's work, we trust in Ranshaw's universe of Gryphon's Heir. The book is is fully fleshed out, well-revised and carefully crafted, which allows its universe and magic to be uniform. When magic is used, it is always intriguing, but there are never any questions of "Why should this be this way?" These instances are never ostentatious, are always fitting for the moment, and beautiful. The best part of this trust in the magical universe of the book is that because of an established source of magical ability, because of the fundamental battle between Good and Evil, is that deus ex machina never comes into play as a cop-out. Everything happens for a reason, and we never find ourselves doubting why something is the way that it is. For a first book especially, this kind of trust in its logic is nothing short of incredible.
The trust in the magic of the book is matched in the trust of its structure. The pacing is neat and well-honed, with equal parts emotional drama and fantastical, and battles of both physical and spiritual warfare. Its premise is promising and enticing, and though it has familiar elements of fantasy, it is original and exciting, and I cannot wait to read the next instalment.
Novels are supposed to be something new, and Gryphon's Heir certainly is.
October 26, 2015
I feel like I have so much to say about this… experience. I need to preface how I feel about the book with how I started reading it. You see I received the book from D.R. Ranshaw himself. Mr. Ranshaw was my grade 8 and 9 English teacher. He was the person that inspired me to become a teacher myself. I thought about him often throughout my journey to become a teacher that it was only fitting that during my first year teaching, Mr. Ranshaw became my mentor and leader at the school I was hired on to. He carried me through that year and taught me so much about what it means to be a great teacher. When Mr. Ranshaw (I still have a hard time using his first name)had told me he had written a book, I knew I had to read it. He brought Gryphon's Heir to me (the school I teach in now is in his neighbourhood) in June. He had told me it was a fantasy novel so I did not know what to expect, but; I knew I wanted to read it. How could I not buy this book? This man was the reason I was teaching.I took it home that night and read about 10-15 pages. I was intrigued, to say the least, I put it on my bedside table to continue reading the next night. However, life took over. I got so busy with work and then taking a summer job and trying to spend time with my little family that reading just wasn’t what I felt like doing. No book interested me enough to pick up and start. I freely admit that I am a huge Harry Potter fan and I said I needed a book that would bring me in and let me experience it like those books had. I just wasn’t interested in reading something that would not allow me to escape. I even explained to a few friends of mine recently, that I was slacking in the reading area (I LOVE to read, always have), but I was hooked on Netflix during the beginning of the summer and I was doing more of that than any type of reading. August hit and I knew I had to snap out of the mindless television routine I had established and I needed to get reading. Obviously I picked up D.R. Ranshaw’s book and started again. I told myself I had to read slow (I tend to skim if I am not interested) and I needed to give it a real chance. I did. And I am SO HAPPY I did! I finally found the book I was waiting for! A book that would take me away, captivate me with every page I read, and allow me to experience a different world! The characters were unique and loveable. The writing flowed seamlessly and the plot is exhilarating. I adore this book! And I am not speaking from any sort of bias. I hate to say it Mr. Ranshaw, but I was sceptical. Thank the One that I was wrong. I will be putting this book in my classroom library and recommending it to everyone I know! Thank you for this experience Mr. Ranshaw! I only have one question… When will the next one be out?
December 31, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed this old-fashioned style epic fantasy adventure. You know what you’re getting into here: the classic dark vs light. Rhiss is bored of his life as a teacher in the English countryside, wishes for a new adventure to take him away from it all… and then a magical door appears in his classroom!
Overall, I felt the worldbuilding was really good, with enough descriptiveness to paint a picture, but not so much I felt bogged down by it. The characters were well written and I enjoyed the blossoming relationships throughout, highlights being Rhiss and Arian, Rhiss and Lowri, and of course Rhiss and Aquilea (who doesn’t want a Gryphon as a companion?).
Rhiss himself is a likeable character. He is unsure of himself and the new world he finds himself in. He is learning a lot and coming to terms with great changes. I felt his character was believable, especially in how he reacted to situations as they unfolded.
This book is a lot of set up for the conflict to come, and ended on a cliffhanger. I look forward to reading the next to see where Rhiss’s journey takes him.
Overall, I felt the worldbuilding was really good, with enough descriptiveness to paint a picture, but not so much I felt bogged down by it. The characters were well written and I enjoyed the blossoming relationships throughout, highlights being Rhiss and Arian, Rhiss and Lowri, and of course Rhiss and Aquilea (who doesn’t want a Gryphon as a companion?).
Rhiss himself is a likeable character. He is unsure of himself and the new world he finds himself in. He is learning a lot and coming to terms with great changes. I felt his character was believable, especially in how he reacted to situations as they unfolded.
This book is a lot of set up for the conflict to come, and ended on a cliffhanger. I look forward to reading the next to see where Rhiss’s journey takes him.
December 31, 2015
I thoroughly enjoyed this book from the first page to the last! It has been a while since a story grabbed my imagination and held it with its intricate plots, strong characters and a new, believable "world". I love the main character Rhiss and his decision to leave his world for something new and interesting. It reminds me of the early Terry Brooks novels which were filled with wonderfully written characters who went on great adventures. I would recommend this book, and have recommended this book, to anyone who loves Sci-Fantasy. I am looking forward to Book 2!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews