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Hyperborea - Severed Legacy:
A stunning illustrated book for readers of fantasy adventures—featuring black-and-white illustrations in every chapter.
You will never find your way. You are lost.
Such are the hauntings of Eos Bellator, trapped in the North American Sector desert by a never-ending sandstorm. The government forces the orphan siblings, Eos and Maxima, to harvest their Soul Energy, providing power for the Sector.
Beyond the sands lies a tattered world being vied for by many forces. Yet, the biggest threat to Eos is not having control over his emotion-driven abilities. When fear overwhelms him, disaster strikes, and the siblings are separated. They learn that they are not alone. The Mitad, an off-world organization of similarly super-powered members, is attempting to capture them. The government has them cornered. A crazed prisoner seems to hold the answers.
So begins a journey of high-powered, dangerous adventure. Eos and Maxima's search for freedom and the truth about their past leads them to pursue a mysterious world they never knew existed—Hyperborea.
You will never find your way. You are lost.
Such are the hauntings of Eos Bellator, trapped in the North American Sector desert by a never-ending sandstorm. The government forces the orphan siblings, Eos and Maxima, to harvest their Soul Energy, providing power for the Sector.
Beyond the sands lies a tattered world being vied for by many forces. Yet, the biggest threat to Eos is not having control over his emotion-driven abilities. When fear overwhelms him, disaster strikes, and the siblings are separated. They learn that they are not alone. The Mitad, an off-world organization of similarly super-powered members, is attempting to capture them. The government has them cornered. A crazed prisoner seems to hold the answers.
So begins a journey of high-powered, dangerous adventure. Eos and Maxima's search for freedom and the truth about their past leads them to pursue a mysterious world they never knew existed—Hyperborea.
- GenresFantasy
452 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 8, 2019
11 people are currently reading
103 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 26, 2024
Love the characters and storyline
July 28, 2024
I really enjoyed this book. I actually picked it up at a Comic Con when I heard the synopsis. I read a lot of books, especially YA, and Hyperborea is certainly one of the good ones. The author takes the time to focus on the characters and their relationships but never pushes for any romantic tension. I certainly see where pairing may arise, but that is never a side plot or issue. A good thing considering how much content is already packed into 400+ pages. I especially came to love many of the characters (especially certain side characters *coughs* Glenn *coughs*) and the banter is very fun!
Although, the book does suffer from a lot of typos and grammatical errors (missing quotation marks, missing commas, misspelled words, incorrect possessives, etc.). It’s not too terrible where you don’t know what’s going on, but it did bring me to a halt every time I noticed an error. More annoying than hindering.
I find that this book’s greatest flaw is its lack of a set perspective. With each chapter or page break, it is generally expected that we will follow someone’s perspective until the end of that segment. We would see the world from their eyes, have their understanding, and know their feelings. In Hyperborea, the perspective shifts constantly and often it is without any indicators. I’ll be following Eos’s viewpoint as he observes a new surrounding, reacting and plotting as he does, when suddenly I’m with a completely different character being fed information that Eos would not have, experiencing emotions Eos couldn’t know about. It is especially jarring when it seems the author is setting up some sort of mystery, making the reader wonder what’s going on, only to have either the narrator or another character speak outright what it is but our original character doesn’t know. I never really felt I got to learn with Eos and Maxima because the information was more or less handed to me, the reader, instead of the characters. This style could work if the narrator was a character breaking the fourth wall to talk to the reader (I think of John Watson), but such isn’t the case. It only creates a very confusing formula.
I remember there’s a scene where General Braxton meets Ares (the first time) and we’re viewing the scene partly from Braxton’s POV, partly from Ares’s, and partly from Eos’s. From Braxton’s POV, he describes a girl (Bellia) whom we had already met from a previous chapter. This description could work if it was just Braxton’s view for the remainder of the segment (in which case, we switch following a new chapter or page break), but instead the POV abruptly shifts to a different character who (the prose) names Bellia. If the book we’re being told from a third person spectator position, then the character being described as “the girl with blonde hair” is strange because it implies a new character being introduced. If instead it were third person fixed (where you follow one character’s perspective), then the description makes sense but the addition of her name becomes strange. It would imply that either Eos or Braxton know the girl, in which case that just negates the “girl with the blonde hair” narration.
This constant back and forthing of the perspective was at its worse during the last chapter, when the characters comes together for the big fight. There are multiple people fighting and we are constantly, and I mean constantly, shifting from one person to another with no page breaks or ties to other characters to signify that change. It will be two paragraphs of one fight, then the next two paragraphs are someone else’s fight, then again, then again, until we circle back to that first fight. I feel that the setup of the prose would work great for an animated scene or even comic panels, but prose doesn’t really allow for such abrupt changes. By having two paragraphs of a fight, only to then jump to another fight, it cuts off the tension that was building in that first fight. I’m thrown out of the moment and having to scramble to join the new one, and it’s not fun. Please, please, use your page breaks. If you’re changing your perspective or fight, a page break can do wonders. If you are going to tell from the perspective of someone from across the room, use a page break if nothing more.
My last gripe is the common use of “telling, not showing,” which a lot of writers will tell you is a no-go. Often, the reader is not shown the importance of objects, for example Eos’s coin, but told their importance. We are not shown why the generator is important, we are told why it’s important. These decisions end up hurting the narrative, because when Eos loses his coin, I don’t feel anything because all I’ve been given were, essentially, instructions. I should feel bad because that coin meant a lot to Eos. I should feel dread because the generator broke. We need to see characters putting in the effort to build their skills and research. I want to see Eos pour his hours into research because he wants to find the origin of that coin. I want to see Eos black out and Maxima realize she can heal. I want to see what the generator does so when it breaks I know the weight (another thing, I don’t see the repercussions of the generator ever, which makes me incredibly unsympathetic toward it. It’s meant to provide electricity…show it providing electricity, or even failing to do that because it’s broken. Give some urgency!). In the end, I think if the book did more showing instead of telling, it would improve greatly.
That all said, I did enjoy the book. I never came to a point where I was bored and didn’t want to pick it back up. I was actually quite happy when I saw that Eos and Maxima were not handed all their wins. Eos had to fight for his, and he’s still not perfect. I love how the author has distinguished their strengths and faults, setting the siblings apart without making one “lesser.” And while I had some other problems, they’re more nitpicks than anything ruining. If you want a fun read, and can stand a few spelling errors and confusing scenes, I recommend picking it up! It’s a fun time.
Although, the book does suffer from a lot of typos and grammatical errors (missing quotation marks, missing commas, misspelled words, incorrect possessives, etc.). It’s not too terrible where you don’t know what’s going on, but it did bring me to a halt every time I noticed an error. More annoying than hindering.
I find that this book’s greatest flaw is its lack of a set perspective. With each chapter or page break, it is generally expected that we will follow someone’s perspective until the end of that segment. We would see the world from their eyes, have their understanding, and know their feelings. In Hyperborea, the perspective shifts constantly and often it is without any indicators. I’ll be following Eos’s viewpoint as he observes a new surrounding, reacting and plotting as he does, when suddenly I’m with a completely different character being fed information that Eos would not have, experiencing emotions Eos couldn’t know about. It is especially jarring when it seems the author is setting up some sort of mystery, making the reader wonder what’s going on, only to have either the narrator or another character speak outright what it is but our original character doesn’t know. I never really felt I got to learn with Eos and Maxima because the information was more or less handed to me, the reader, instead of the characters. This style could work if the narrator was a character breaking the fourth wall to talk to the reader (I think of John Watson), but such isn’t the case. It only creates a very confusing formula.
I remember there’s a scene where General Braxton meets Ares (the first time) and we’re viewing the scene partly from Braxton’s POV, partly from Ares’s, and partly from Eos’s. From Braxton’s POV, he describes a girl (Bellia) whom we had already met from a previous chapter. This description could work if it was just Braxton’s view for the remainder of the segment (in which case, we switch following a new chapter or page break), but instead the POV abruptly shifts to a different character who (the prose) names Bellia. If the book we’re being told from a third person spectator position, then the character being described as “the girl with blonde hair” is strange because it implies a new character being introduced. If instead it were third person fixed (where you follow one character’s perspective), then the description makes sense but the addition of her name becomes strange. It would imply that either Eos or Braxton know the girl, in which case that just negates the “girl with the blonde hair” narration.
This constant back and forthing of the perspective was at its worse during the last chapter, when the characters comes together for the big fight. There are multiple people fighting and we are constantly, and I mean constantly, shifting from one person to another with no page breaks or ties to other characters to signify that change. It will be two paragraphs of one fight, then the next two paragraphs are someone else’s fight, then again, then again, until we circle back to that first fight. I feel that the setup of the prose would work great for an animated scene or even comic panels, but prose doesn’t really allow for such abrupt changes. By having two paragraphs of a fight, only to then jump to another fight, it cuts off the tension that was building in that first fight. I’m thrown out of the moment and having to scramble to join the new one, and it’s not fun. Please, please, use your page breaks. If you’re changing your perspective or fight, a page break can do wonders. If you are going to tell from the perspective of someone from across the room, use a page break if nothing more.
My last gripe is the common use of “telling, not showing,” which a lot of writers will tell you is a no-go. Often, the reader is not shown the importance of objects, for example Eos’s coin, but told their importance. We are not shown why the generator is important, we are told why it’s important. These decisions end up hurting the narrative, because when Eos loses his coin, I don’t feel anything because all I’ve been given were, essentially, instructions. I should feel bad because that coin meant a lot to Eos. I should feel dread because the generator broke. We need to see characters putting in the effort to build their skills and research. I want to see Eos pour his hours into research because he wants to find the origin of that coin. I want to see Eos black out and Maxima realize she can heal. I want to see what the generator does so when it breaks I know the weight (another thing, I don’t see the repercussions of the generator ever, which makes me incredibly unsympathetic toward it. It’s meant to provide electricity…show it providing electricity, or even failing to do that because it’s broken. Give some urgency!). In the end, I think if the book did more showing instead of telling, it would improve greatly.
That all said, I did enjoy the book. I never came to a point where I was bored and didn’t want to pick it back up. I was actually quite happy when I saw that Eos and Maxima were not handed all their wins. Eos had to fight for his, and he’s still not perfect. I love how the author has distinguished their strengths and faults, setting the siblings apart without making one “lesser.” And while I had some other problems, they’re more nitpicks than anything ruining. If you want a fun read, and can stand a few spelling errors and confusing scenes, I recommend picking it up! It’s a fun time.
October 28, 2023
Overall a great book! Great character development and scene settings throughout. The story carries on easy enough to follow throughout and keeps your attention. Excited to start book two now!
P.s. sadly there are some errors with some of the writing such as typos or incorrectly used words. Hopefully this can be brought to the writers/editors attention for correction on any future releases.
P.s. sadly there are some errors with some of the writing such as typos or incorrectly used words. Hopefully this can be brought to the writers/editors attention for correction on any future releases.
May 31, 2023
This book blew me away! The characters are so lovable and the plot is amazing. You can tell a lot of thought went into the world. This book will hold your attention constantly and it is enjoyable the whole way through.
May 1, 2023
This is a great sci-fi novel for young adults. It contains themes of esoteric knowledge, hermeticism, and kundalini awakening. This is a profound book in the sense that it makes those more ethereal subjects I previously listed palatable to a younger reader. I highly recommend reading as an enjoyable escape from daily life that will also deliver some gnosis. I can’t wait to read the next one. Every page just gets better and better.
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July 14, 2024RTC!
April 1, 2025
What a talented writer!! Beautiful, unique story, great charecter creation, VERY engaging, and exciting from page 1! Highly recommend to anyone who likes dystopian adventure!
November 5, 2025
I really liked it, I wish it hadn’t taken me so long to read
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews