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The Chronicles of Avantia #1
Fågelryttaren (Legenden om Avantien, #1).
Tiden före Beast Quest rasar ett krig mellan gott och ont.
Landet Avantien är nära katastrof. En skoningslös krigsherre står med sin arme vid gränsen. Ödet vill att 15-åriga Tanner besegrar de mörka krafter som hotar befolkningen. Tillsammans med sin eldfågel Zepos ger han sig in i de grymma striderna. Han har inget att förlora...
Landet Avantien är nära katastrof. En skoningslös krigsherre står med sin arme vid gränsen. Ödet vill att 15-åriga Tanner besegrar de mörka krafter som hotar befolkningen. Tillsammans med sin eldfågel Zepos ger han sig in i de grymma striderna. Han har inget att förlora...
178 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
23 people are currently reading
397 people want to read
About the author
Adam Blade
861 books213 followersAdam Blade is the house name for the Working Partners Ltd. ghostwriters who write the Beast Quest and Sea Quest series.
Adam Blade is in his late twenties, and was born in Kent, England. His parents were both history teachers and amateur artists, and Adam grew up surrounded by his father’s paintings of historic English battles – which left a lifelong mark on his imagination. He was also fascinated by the ancient sword and shield that hung in his father’s office. Adam’s father said they were a Blade family heirloom.
As a boy, Adam would spend days imagining who could have first owned the sword and shield. Eventually, he created a character – Tom, the bravest boy warrior of them all. The idea for Beast Quest was born.
When Adam grew up and decided that he wanted to be a writer, he was stuck for ideas – until he remembered the old sword and shield, and the imaginary boy he had created when he was young. Adam decided to bring Tom fully to life so that readers could go on the kind of adventures that he always wanted to when he was that age… And still does, even though he’s grown up!
When he’s not writing Beast Quest books, Adam enjoys visiting museums and ancient battle sites. His main hobbies are fencing and football. He also spends a lot of time at home running around after his two exotic pets – a tarantula named Ziggy, and a capuchin monkey named Omar. These little rascals were the inspiration for two of the Beasts that Tom faces on his Quest – Arachnid and Claw.
Sadly, Adam does not have his own Fire-Dragon or Horse-Man. But he really wishes he did!
Adam Blade is in his late twenties, and was born in Kent, England. His parents were both history teachers and amateur artists, and Adam grew up surrounded by his father’s paintings of historic English battles – which left a lifelong mark on his imagination. He was also fascinated by the ancient sword and shield that hung in his father’s office. Adam’s father said they were a Blade family heirloom.
As a boy, Adam would spend days imagining who could have first owned the sword and shield. Eventually, he created a character – Tom, the bravest boy warrior of them all. The idea for Beast Quest was born.
When Adam grew up and decided that he wanted to be a writer, he was stuck for ideas – until he remembered the old sword and shield, and the imaginary boy he had created when he was young. Adam decided to bring Tom fully to life so that readers could go on the kind of adventures that he always wanted to when he was that age… And still does, even though he’s grown up!
When he’s not writing Beast Quest books, Adam enjoys visiting museums and ancient battle sites. His main hobbies are fencing and football. He also spends a lot of time at home running around after his two exotic pets – a tarantula named Ziggy, and a capuchin monkey named Omar. These little rascals were the inspiration for two of the Beasts that Tom faces on his Quest – Arachnid and Claw.
Sadly, Adam does not have his own Fire-Dragon or Horse-Man. But he really wishes he did!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
June 25, 2013
Gory and bloody. I don't know why people are saying this is a good book for kids. Too many people get violently killed in it. It gave my 9 year old son nightmares and he is not the squeamish type.
January 15, 2021
Pulp, it's a book for children from 9 years. But in the first chapter a whole village is slaughtered in a bloody way. Even for me it was much too bloody. There was a kind of story in it, but the fighting part was much more emphasized. And the translation in dutch was quite bad. So 1 star and that is too much.
April 22, 2012
This book simply has horrible writing. I know that it is aimed at 3rd grade readers (and I'd say probably more like lower 4th & 5th grade readers), but even taking that into account, I found this to be an unfortunate book. The story and the idea is original, but I couldn't get past the writing to enjoy this book at all. For some reason, I also found this book a bit on violent side (a little too detailed).
July 10, 2017
I picked this up looking for something for my kids to read. (spoiler, not giving this to them)
I read all four books of this series together, so this review is for the whole series. the books start out OK (I'd have given this book 3 stars), but get progressively worse, ruining the whole story for me.
didnt like the pacing of this story, everything feels rushed.
what character development there was felt very forced. kids start out fairly normal, then spontaneously become amazing warriors and leaders...
One of my biggest peeves is when a story is not internally logical or consistent. couple examples:
The prologue to the story is that the bad guy who can control all the "beasts" kills a boys father, then the boy's beast kills him (or at least attempt to) No explanation of how he couldn't control this beast..
In the later books this basically happens: "we've formed an army to help you fight the bad guy" moments later "our army isn't here to fight the bad guy, we just got together for safety in numbers while we forage for food." a few more paragraphs later the army is formed up facing the bad guys ready to storm the castle and we get a generic "rousing " speech to get everyone psyched up that ends with "who's with me?" to which no one speaks up, until we get the delayed volunteering led by one person, then another until the whole army cheers and attacks....
the beasts are big enough to ride, carry multiple people,and fling around house sized monsters no problem, but 12yr Olds can sword fight foot soldiers while riding... so how big are these things exacly?
anothe issue is that so much of the plot seemed forced, e.g. Main hero is repeatedly about to stop or kill a major bad guy, only to stop at the last second to go do something else. or two of the main characters repeatedly blowing up and brawling with each other?
some things were just plain silly or dumb, e.g. a village has been recently attached and all the men and older boys hauled off, except for one (12/13yr old i think?)who is challenging 8yr olds to sword fights and half the village is cheering and applauding him and jeering the 8yr old...
or the main character is given a potion to drink by someone who praises the bad guy, then gets possessed and tries to kill the hero, and then the hero decides to trust them and drink the potion.
or repeatedly trying to race their beasts while they are trying to sneak up on an army
also like many have said the violence level isnt appropriate for the target audience. e.g. one kid is tortured, smashed to death in a rock slide, brought back to life as a living rotting corpse to be tortured some more, commits suicide.
sorry, this review would not have been so negative if I had reviewed after reading just the first book, but the fourth was so bad it tainted the whole series.
I read all four books of this series together, so this review is for the whole series. the books start out OK (I'd have given this book 3 stars), but get progressively worse, ruining the whole story for me.
didnt like the pacing of this story, everything feels rushed.
what character development there was felt very forced. kids start out fairly normal, then spontaneously become amazing warriors and leaders...
One of my biggest peeves is when a story is not internally logical or consistent. couple examples:
The prologue to the story is that the bad guy who can control all the "beasts" kills a boys father, then the boy's beast kills him (or at least attempt to) No explanation of how he couldn't control this beast..
In the later books this basically happens: "we've formed an army to help you fight the bad guy" moments later "our army isn't here to fight the bad guy, we just got together for safety in numbers while we forage for food." a few more paragraphs later the army is formed up facing the bad guys ready to storm the castle and we get a generic "rousing " speech to get everyone psyched up that ends with "who's with me?" to which no one speaks up, until we get the delayed volunteering led by one person, then another until the whole army cheers and attacks....
the beasts are big enough to ride, carry multiple people,and fling around house sized monsters no problem, but 12yr Olds can sword fight foot soldiers while riding... so how big are these things exacly?
anothe issue is that so much of the plot seemed forced, e.g. Main hero is repeatedly about to stop or kill a major bad guy, only to stop at the last second to go do something else. or two of the main characters repeatedly blowing up and brawling with each other?
some things were just plain silly or dumb, e.g. a village has been recently attached and all the men and older boys hauled off, except for one (12/13yr old i think?)who is challenging 8yr olds to sword fights and half the village is cheering and applauding him and jeering the 8yr old...
or the main character is given a potion to drink by someone who praises the bad guy, then gets possessed and tries to kill the hero, and then the hero decides to trust them and drink the potion.
or repeatedly trying to race their beasts while they are trying to sneak up on an army
also like many have said the violence level isnt appropriate for the target audience. e.g. one kid is tortured, smashed to death in a rock slide, brought back to life as a living rotting corpse to be tortured some more, commits suicide.
sorry, this review would not have been so negative if I had reviewed after reading just the first book, but the fourth was so bad it tainted the whole series.
August 2, 2022
4,5 sterren - Nederlandse hardcover
Recrncie volgt later.
Recrncie volgt later.
July 21, 2021
Reading this felt more like finding something that was put on the internet by a teenager. Trust me, I've both created and read a lot of amateur teen writing. This had the exact same feel to it, the inexperience is palpable. It's not that I don't think Adam Blade is capable of being a great author (with more experience), nor do I think this couldn't have been a great story (with a lot more revision and polish), but neither the author nor this story was ready for publication, and I think everyone who decided otherwise did them a disservice.
November 21, 2015
Warning! The best character in Adam Blade's First Hero is not even in the novel.
I read this book to my nine year old, who loved the fantasy and friendship of the original Beast Quest series. Chronicles of Avantia rejects all that imagination and roots around in a juvenaliac mire of graphic violence, guilt and gloom. Whenever there came a description of villagers being slaughtered or people boiled alive, I would make up a bit about Sheepie, Tanner's pet superhero sheep. Now that beast had some fun and adventures!
Instead of old ladies being impaled, the First Hero I read had a heroic sheep who head-butted the stock bad guy Gor right outta town. Some inventive dialogue turned the attacking army from bland targets into comical dolts. It got a few laughs. Tanner's wary love interest had a belt full of throwing pastries instead of axes. Ridiculous, yes, but no less stupid than the original text. And don't underestimate the deadliness of a week-old donut. Rock hard, baby!
Sheepie won't be making a return. I was lucky to coax my son to the conclusion of his book- he requested reading something else rather than finish the rest of the series. If you have inadvertently picked up this pile of turgid slurry yourself, I only hope that a certain free-roaming brave and cheery sheep charges into your copy and brings along a bit of life. It's easy! All he ever says is "baaa!" It is more interesting and challenging than what "Adam Blade" filled fifteen chapters with.
I read this book to my nine year old, who loved the fantasy and friendship of the original Beast Quest series. Chronicles of Avantia rejects all that imagination and roots around in a juvenaliac mire of graphic violence, guilt and gloom. Whenever there came a description of villagers being slaughtered or people boiled alive, I would make up a bit about Sheepie, Tanner's pet superhero sheep. Now that beast had some fun and adventures!
Instead of old ladies being impaled, the First Hero I read had a heroic sheep who head-butted the stock bad guy Gor right outta town. Some inventive dialogue turned the attacking army from bland targets into comical dolts. It got a few laughs. Tanner's wary love interest had a belt full of throwing pastries instead of axes. Ridiculous, yes, but no less stupid than the original text. And don't underestimate the deadliness of a week-old donut. Rock hard, baby!
Sheepie won't be making a return. I was lucky to coax my son to the conclusion of his book- he requested reading something else rather than finish the rest of the series. If you have inadvertently picked up this pile of turgid slurry yourself, I only hope that a certain free-roaming brave and cheery sheep charges into your copy and brings along a bit of life. It's easy! All he ever says is "baaa!" It is more interesting and challenging than what "Adam Blade" filled fifteen chapters with.
June 1, 2015
This book was just awful... Of course, it had a good idea, but it plunged way to quickly into the action as a way to "hook" the reader. not only that but the writing is awful as well. The idea for Avantia and The four beasts (technically 5) is good, but it should have been put into the hands of a better writer. I, being 14, could do a better job than Adam. (Sorry Adam but it is entirely true). I had so many more and better ideas that could have been put into this book instead of what did get put into it. If i had a chance to make this book my own i would in a heartbeat.
So my final words will be this:
Good idea, bad output
So my final words will be this:
Good idea, bad output
September 8, 2015
I read this at my son's request because he loved this series. It's well written and interesting for a 3rd/4th grader without being overly complicated. I felt like it was a touch violent in the first few chapters - a little too gory for my taste - but overall I liked it.
May 16, 2013
This book was grim and not much else. Too grim for me.
June 22, 2019
In this, the first book in the series, the world of Avantia is at war and only the reemergence of the BEASTS can hope to save everyone. Firepos finds Tanner and the battle for humanity begins.
Adam Blade's first book in his quadrology of the Chronicles of Avantia. This is a fairly quick read coming in at 155 pages and slightly larger than normal font and spacing. Still Blade manages to kick the series off well.
While this is a young reader book, there are a few instances of extreme violence and death.
The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars was that, while the story itself is enjoyable, it didn't have enough of a strong grab for me.
Adam Blade's first book in his quadrology of the Chronicles of Avantia. This is a fairly quick read coming in at 155 pages and slightly larger than normal font and spacing. Still Blade manages to kick the series off well.
While this is a young reader book, there are a few instances of extreme violence and death.
The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars was that, while the story itself is enjoyable, it didn't have enough of a strong grab for me.
October 18, 2017
I first read this book series when I was like, 12, and now going back and reading them again several years later, I'm not too disappointed. The writing and world building is decent, although we get very little background before jumping right into the action. The only reason I wasn't confused is because I've read the book before.
However, even though this was written for elementary/middle schoolers, I wouldn't reccomend it for anyone younger than 11 or 12. The descriptions of battle scenes are surprisingly graphic.
However, even though this was written for elementary/middle schoolers, I wouldn't reccomend it for anyone younger than 11 or 12. The descriptions of battle scenes are surprisingly graphic.
January 27, 2023
The story gave a good narrative through the main characters and the narrator's' point of view as well.
The main character has a good backstory and story along with it and the side characters are also good characters. The story also has antagonists which make you really dislike them.
I would continue this review, but I wouldn't like to because of spoilers.
-Refik
The main character has a good backstory and story along with it and the side characters are also good characters. The story also has antagonists which make you really dislike them.
I would continue this review, but I wouldn't like to because of spoilers.
-Refik
August 30, 2018
The entire book has a good feel for the world of Avantia. The story cuts a little short but it makes you want to read the next! I entirely enjoyed this book to its full extent. The story has a good flow and works well with transitions. So far one of my favorite books :).
January 9, 2019
This book was awesome. The gore stuff wasn't even that bad and I think this is a book for children because it is basically about this kid getting through the deaths of his family and he's fighting for what he believes in.
January 19, 2022
DNF 60%. Most reviewers are right, this doesn't have the charm of Beast Quests, the attempt to sound grimdark as Warhammer are not working as the plot remains simplistic and the gore feels like the author trying to be edgy.
June 18, 2018
The first in another series by Team Blade - this one is a prequel series to the Best Quest one apparently. but it is really all part of the same idea and is OK for what it is.
July 18, 2018
It was an easy to follow story lone. Nothing great.
December 13, 2019
Four stars because of the lack of grammatical errors I usually find in books like this. Also, a good story.
September 29, 2020
Its a very cool book and i am only 13 but i know cool when i see it applause to adam blade
November 7, 2021
Reasonably good book but why did Geffen have the mask of death at the end shouldn't general Gordon have it?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 20, 2023
Ale gówno
September 5, 2023
I didn’t like that his grandma died, but I did enjoy the fight scenes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2023
Hörbuch nicht so gut kindisch
Read
February 28, 2025Decent story. Seemed kinda detailed, esp with gore? Who knows if I’m wrong. But the storyline made you want to read the next in the series. A boy has to stop evil from getting the death mask.
November 1, 2025
Good book. I look forward to reading more about Tanner and Gwen.
March 27, 2018
I think this book was very good (as I expected). The story has 4 beasts and their chosen riders. They all have to battle a evil person (that has a weird name) to save Avantia.
December 28, 2021
read this because i had really enjoyed the second book of this series when i was in primary so i decided to read the whole series but have not read any past this book, will i ever finish the series??? i do want to just so i can finish it but obviously i propbably won't enjoy it as much as i dang dang diggidy dang when i was like 9 oml wait i just read another review and it just reminded me of what happened in the book, i do remebr thinking oml so much people die in a way i didn't expect from a kids book but i don't remember what happens in the swiss book which is the one i read back in primary and how low key makes me want to pick it up, i might read the second book after the book i'm currently reading. just a nice quick read and a road trip down memory lane
April 28, 2020
En väldig rakt på saken ungdoms fantasy bok. Boken börjar med att introducera fyra fantastiska bestar, större och starkare än deras vanliga motsatser. En orm, varg, puma och en eldfågel. Det är dags för dem att leta reda på sina ryttare och de går sina egna vägar, varav vi snart möter vår huvudperson Tanner när hans eldfågel Zepos hittar och räddar honom från en ond krigsherre och hans magiska artefakt som splittras.
Dock så kan inget gott vara, intet förvånande så kommer efter några år en ny arme för att leta efter denna artefakt och bokens handling sätter igång, Tanner måste stoppa dem eller riskera att ondskan vinner. I sin handling är denna bok väldigt rak på saken i detta, goda människor gör goda handlingar och onda gör onda handlingar där Tanner mestadels reagerar mot vad de onda gör.
Så i korthet en ungdomsbok bok där handlingen snabbt går framåt med ett tydligt mål om vad som behöver göras. Inget speciellt men samtidigt en lätt och trygg läsning som vet vad den är ute efter.
Dock så kan inget gott vara, intet förvånande så kommer efter några år en ny arme för att leta efter denna artefakt och bokens handling sätter igång, Tanner måste stoppa dem eller riskera att ondskan vinner. I sin handling är denna bok väldigt rak på saken i detta, goda människor gör goda handlingar och onda gör onda handlingar där Tanner mestadels reagerar mot vad de onda gör.
Så i korthet en ungdomsbok bok där handlingen snabbt går framåt med ett tydligt mål om vad som behöver göras. Inget speciellt men samtidigt en lätt och trygg läsning som vet vad den är ute efter.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews