Beyond the End

by Matthew Mitchell

Ambitious young Mage Samara hits a dead end in her research to unlock the secrets of a recently unearthed arcane manuscript. Out of options, she commissions Darian, a warrior of the Manu tribe, to lead her to one of his people's renowned seers. The secret they discover, however, leaves them hunted at every turn as they become entangled in a plot to tear open a portal to Hell, releasing a legion of bloodthirsty demons upon the world. Thrown into a struggle neither fully understand, and complicated by a mutual attraction that neither will acknowledge, the pair must race hundreds of miles before the sun rises on the equinox to head off a cataclysm that only Samara can stop. That's assuming Darian can keep them both alive long enough to reach their goal. But between assassins, demons, fae, and the very land itself trying to kill them, the odds are not in their favor.

Genres: Fantasy

406 pages, Paperback

First published September 4, 2015

Reviews

[Leticia]

I was helping to beta-read this book and I must say I found nothing I would have done better, which is saying a lot since I do try to pinpoint every possible flaw when I beta-read. It's an entertaining, and page-turning adventure in an interesting world with great characters.

[Riley]

I had been very tired of fantasy for awhile. I had seen the tropes done to death.

This book was a very refreshing change. It opens similarly, but moves briskly into territory that isn't just about spell-slinging wizards, sword-swinging heroes, and arrow-launching archers. It's reasonable with tragedy and the challenges the characters face that other novels might simply gloss over which are interesting. I've rarely read an accurate assessment of the challenges of riding a horse for days or weeks. Where other authors treat horses as modern modes of transportation, the reality of the times is more apparent here.

Soon enough in the book, the chase is on. It pays attention to its own pace and twists the path enough to keep ahead of at least an average reader.

I was eager to see how the story turned out for the protagonists, and that was something I'd personally been missing for awhile. I had stopped caring about fantasy protagonists. Finally, here I found humans.

[Rebecca Thomason]

Very disappointed. The editing was atrocious. There are random spacing and indentations, misspelled words, and weird grammar throughout. Within the first 50 pages of the book, even a character's name was misspelled! It was very difficult to get beyond that then struggle onward. There is a plot in there somewhere, and I think it could be a very good one. I nearly detest the heroine, which I don't think was the author's goal, since he spent so very much time in her head. I wish the author had spent more time with Darian and less with his annoying and entitled Samara. The action would have moved forward at a much more enjoyable pace.