The Altar of My Fate

The Rosteval Saga #1

by Michael R. Schultheiss

A warrior questing for glory…
A slave-girl with a secret…
Can they claim the ancient altar?

Trained to the warrior’s path, Rosteval yearns for glory and craves adventure in unknown lands.

Leading the war-band he created, he sets off on a quest to brave a formidable desert and the swords and arrows of a growing number of enemy tribes.

He expected the mounting dangers… but he didn’t expect Ghaitta, the beautiful slave-girl with a secret… and the power and peril of an ancient altar, an artifact of the vanished Shaper race.

As his enemies multiply, Rosteval is forced to confront an immortal adversary and the looming specter of defeat. Can Rosteval and Ghaitta avert disaster, and claim the fateful power of the ancient Shaper altar?

Brimming with fierce tribes, deadly perils, ancient powers, and sexy slave-girls, The Altar of My Fate is the epic fantasy adventure you’ve been craving. Get it now.

Genres: Fantasy

490 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 25, 2021

Reviews

[Joshua Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although there are more modern fantasy storytelling elements within The Altar of My Fate, this book feels like a throwback to old school sword and sorcery a la Robert E. Howard. Despite perhaps an abundance of too many proper names in the world-building - many often without context - the world that Schultheiss has crafted here feels wholly unique and rich. Most of the story is an adventure tale of the titular hero seeking adventure, glory and the spoils of war. I enjoyed the ride and will continue the series at some point in the future. 3.5/5

[G.R. Matthews]

SPFBO 2023

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those looking for a Fantasy story not set in the typical environs, this is a wonderful starting place. The first chapter starts off as a slow burn, even though it features a chase scene and some action, but then it hits a stride that it’s difficult to pull away from.

Our hero, Rosteval, is the prince of the Ketaryat tribe. His grandfather is King Hamarvan, and he has given away Rosteval’s rites of succession. Rosteval is driven by visions of a land to the south where he hopes to make his own destiny. He convinces his cousins and uncle to go with him and have their own kingdoms separate from their tribe until they can return and claim their honor that’s been denied them. I’m loathe to make GRRM comparisons, because they’re too widely used in works of Fantasy, but the character of Cat-Eye Pon, their guide in the southern lands of Sebaiya is quite fond of saying “just so,” not unlike a certain water dancing instructor.

There’s plenty of references of slaves in this book, and my “Spartacus” watching self was constantly prepared for an uprising or some killing during the acts of sexual congress in this book. Aside from the first chapter featuring a female slave killing her master, it doesn’t happen like I kept fearing. I’m fact, Rosteval and his cousin Daryubal must be quite fun in the bedroom, because their respective slave girls become quite enamored with them after one night in their arms.

I’ve seen many other reviews that suggest this book has a Middle Eastern feel, and I certainly understand that, but it comes off as more Mongolian to me. The characters live a tribal life, are fond of bows and horseback combat, and have a sense of honor that cannot be diminished by perceived sleights. Rosteval seems very much Temujin on his way to becoming the Khan of Khans.

The book is a rollercoaster ride of conquest, trying to prove that our hero is worthy, and finding his place in a world that is far bigger than his imagining. It took me a while to get used to the naming conventions (Rosteval, son of…, of the tribe of…), but once I embraced the whole Old Testament of it all, it was an enjoyable adventure. Highly recommend this to anyone looking for a break from the norm.

[Chris Allcorn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was, in all rights, an epic. Adventure, battles, quests for glory; all were thrown into the pot, mixed, and produced Altar of My Fate.
The story is about Rosteval, who desires above all else glory. He goes on an epic adventure to find said glory, and in doing so discovers allies, enemies, and himself as a leader. I noted early on in my readings that there was a heavy middle eastern influence throughout the story, and that influence helped create such a fluid plot line, rich with history, culture, and magic
Altar of My Fate has heavy influence from the epic fantasy genre of storytelling. As I read, I couldn't help but associate different aspects of the story to works from Tolkien, Martin, Bakker, and many others from this genre.
I enjoyed Altar of My Fate, and the only thing that gave me pause while reading was the prolific abundance of slavery in the story. Almost every aspect of the adventures Rosteval went on revolved around slaves: taking slave-girls as battle prizes, the selling and trading of slaves, and the everyday use of slaves, often as a sex object. It gave me pause and an opportunity to reflect on culture and history. Despite my own reservations, this was a good story. It was engaging and kept me interested as Rosteval gained and lost as he went on his quest. I would recommend Altar of My Fate to those who enjoy fantasy and magic. It has an engaging protagonist, intrigue, a plot heavy with adventure and battle, and the magical elements within the story reminded me of a story I read when I was younger that involved something like the Rishva.

[INFAMOUS REVIEWER GIO · Rating 5 out of 5]

An instant epic classic!

Sometimes a book is good, sometimes it's average, a few other times it's very poor. But every once in a while you find one that is plainly and utterly GREAT!
Introduce The Rosteval Saga book 1, and what can I say, this book's got it all: excellent prose, characters, plot. The author was able to really capture the spirit of the ancient warrior with a dash of fantasy lore. The result is a true epic, a classic in my opinion. Too many times we've seen modern writers not being able to detached themselves from the world we live in and produce an epic that feels authentic. Schultheiss here was able to create not only an ancient world that feels tangible but an entire language that is truly disconnected from modern urban English.
The pace is fast when it needs to be but also slower when characters or locations need to be further explored.
Now this story might not be for the squirmish due to some violence, and other subjects considered taboo in modern society. But if you yearn for true 'escapism' and want to visit ancient exotic lands and witness men become demigods, this is a MUST READ!

[Book Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

In The Altar of My Fate, by Michael R. Schultheiss, we follow a warrior named Rosteval and a slave-girl named Ghaitta. Through a fascinating series of events, the two find themselves connected via the altar of an ancient Shaper race. The pair grows both in character and in their relationship with destiny while Cat-Eye Pon proves to be instrumental in their journey. Their destiny is to defeat an ancient god named Haldua. Author, Michael R. Schultheiss, has given readers a novel that is an epic narrative describing an incredibly vast world and steeped in exceptional character development.

While the novel contains many positives that every fantasy reader will enjoy, if you are not used to the typical stages of a fantasy, the structure of Schultheiss’s novel can take some getting used to. The plot can, at times, appear to be a sort of fetch quest–moving the characters from one location to another to retrieve a single bit of knowledge or an item. While this is a standard plot device for works of fantasy, the novel can drag slightly because of this technique.

Schultheiss attempts to break up some of the longer stretches of narrative with detailed backstories and interesting dialogue, but the novel seems more heavily focused on the fetch quest aspects of the plot. As I read, I noted that the plot slows at times and then picks up speed. I was, however, able to gain a better understanding of this hyper-detailed world. Schultheiss has managed to create various styles of characters–all fascinating in their own ways. Readers will enjoy the journey as the plot builds toward meeting the antagonist. This journey is one well-earned–not cliched as some works in the fantasy genre tend to be.

Overall, Schultheiss’s novel is an excellent addition to the fantasy genre. The characters are well-written, trope-subverting, and the stakes in the story are believable. It is quite a long read but enjoyable the entire way through–only seeming to slow in a few spots. I recommend Schultheiss’s work to any fan of the epic fantasy genre who are looking to explore a new author who is adept at character development and intensely focused on a detailed plot from start to finish.

[Kendall Rubel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had a lot of action, fantasy, meeting different characters, and being able to show some beautiful scenery just by the description that was in the book. This book is very good to read and gives you so much information that if you a history buff this is like that a lot. There is a variety of different genres in this book which is good since it easily grabs anyone's attention. I am glad to have given this book a chance.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kat M · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Game of Thrones meets Conan the Barbarian" was what hooked me in and I'm glad I did. This was a really well done story with interesting characters.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Paul Cobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Difficult to put down!

I love swords and sorcery. And I love when an author comes up with an interesting new way to do swords and sorcery. This book accomplished that and made for a very enjoyable read.

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Many words to say nothing" has never been so aptly applied to a book.

Seriously, this tome is more than 450 pages long and questions I had from the first chapter were left unanswered. What is the magic system here? Where does it come from? And why should I care about the main character and the adventure he goes on?

The author credits the classic adventure stories of old for this tale, and I always set that against the great Conan series. But this feels more like the bloated checking of boxes rather than an actual story, even by Conan standards. Political intrigue? Violence and battles? Sex, sex and more sex? This has it all, but without the connective tissue of engaging characters, a pressing plot, or a cunning villain to actually make it interesting. I'm sure important things happen in this book, but I can't remember any of them despite having read the entire thing in four days. The pacing jumps around, the characters are as one-note as possible, and while the setting is certainly novel, giving a feeling of Indian or Arabic background rather than the usual Western European settings, none of the cool ideas are explained and expanded on. Nothing feels grounded, which means I couldn't sink my teeth into it.

The repetition absolutely did not help here, either. Battles and sex for their own sake are bad enough and bland enough to make my eyes glaze over, but they were positively boring here for how often they happened. Add in how many times Rosteval uses the same battle cry to his men, both in a language you won't understand and then in a translation you will, how much time is spent on sex and how it's used because... well, just because, and you'll have read chapters while feeling like you got nowhere. Even how the descriptions of the Rishva (whatever those are, it's never pinned down and explained) and people all use the exact same phrasing (so many people here have sepia skin that when there was one case where it was different, I stopped mid-sentence) are to the detriment of this book, because the same wording drags the attention into the muck and robs what should be a fantastical world of its charm and intrigue. It's a problem that starts in the first chapter and does not let up.

Where does that leave us? Well the plot is all about Rosteval going away to gain glory and resources to come back and challenge his grandfather. Because Grandpappy, whom we meet precisely once, snubs his progeny and decides to put his chips on a different horse, which when you get to the end of the story, actually makes sense. But that's it. Main character wants to make a name for himself so he races off to clear the side quests before coming back for the last big fight. And it takes 400 pages for him to accomplish this one thing. Riveting stuff.

And it needed to be. This book is all in first person and never changes points of view, so the reader's window into the world needed to be complex and multivaried to get the full picture of what we were seeing. But the story does the setting no favors, the unique ideas are never explained, the cast are archetypes rather that actual people (with one exception), and the entire point seems focused on a young man's establishment of his own worth. The title, 'The Alter of My Fate,' says it perfectly: it's all about ME. This is an entire book about a guy reaching for what he believes to be his destiny, across a world that's never explained or grounded for the reader's sake, and a focus so myopic that if you read Rosteval's lines in the beginning, middle and end of the book, it wouldn't sound any different. Conan this is definitely not, and nor is it any of the other influences the author cites, because whatever you might say about Conan, dear reader, at least those stories get somewhere, and they get there fast.

2/5, only because the cover is nice.

[Tom Mock]

This is not a full review. I read through the beginning of all 300 SPFBO9 contest entries. This was a book I wanted to read more of.

A party of horsemen and their ogre-hounds chance down a concubine who murdered one of their kinsmen in this uniquely detailed fantasy.

The specificity of detail in this, along with the immediacy of our MC’s goal, drew me irresistibly into the story. The setting comes to life in all of the accoutrements the characters where, and the magic they use.

The killing of their kinsman also raises an intriguing question - did the concubine really kill him, and, more importantly, why? She isn’t fleeing alone, after all.

The world details may begin to feel a little crowded through the dialogue section of this opening. I can only take on so much information at once, and the political orientation of the different characters remains confusing for me.

That said, the prose here is strong, the world feels grounded and very well thought out, and I want to know what will happen as our hunters catch up to their prize.

I also want to know more about these very interesting magical artifacts our hunters are using - these wrist bands with disks of colored glass. I’m in.

I recommend this to all every author, just to see how well Schultheiss tells the reader things to orient the reader in the story. Simple and wonderfully effective.

[Kate]

This was one of those books that just wasn't for me.
Plus: Schultheiss has created an extensive world here with vivid characters.

Why this one didn't work for me:
On the writing level, there were far too many characters for me to keep track of. I couldn't tell who was doing what. And then we had a big 3 year jump that had no warning for or anything. One of the characters was like yes 3 years ago - and referred to something at the beginning of the book. I expected with this 3 year jump that some things might have progressed or were different but it wasn't.
I did give it a fair try - made it to about 30% (more than 100 pages), and none of the characters had any development nor the plot.
The biggest turn off for me though was definitely the way that ALL the male characters handled the women. Most of the women were slaves, and either fully naked or half naked and there only to please the men and give them babies. I understand this was a culture at once, and I can usually handle a few characters like this, but when it's all the characters and none of them have developed or changed by 30%. I can't do it.

[E.L. Montague · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the opening salvo to an epic fantasy with a Middle Eastern/North African flair. I listened on Audible. The book was let down a little by the AI narrator, but it was easy enough to get into. Interestingly, it wasn’t pronunciation that got it, but timing.

All in all it was an interesting story with plenty of action and a compelling plot. I did find myself wanting the sensuality to be more or less. Sex is an undercurrent of the story and a part of the plot. If there had been less, it might have been more tantalizing. If it had been more, it might have been a guilty pleasure. As it was, it locked something essential.

The magic system was inventive and interesting. The politics were core to the story. The world was part of the joy in the story. I can recommend this book. Though be ready for a less progressive view of gender roles.

[Di · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic and very engaging story, ending up devouring the story in a matter of hours over the weekend. This is the first book I am reading by this author and I enjoyed her writing style and how beautifully the story flows .

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[C. Borden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweeping epic. Fantastic fight scenes. But the overwhelming mistreatment of women as sexual objects is a big “nope” for me. Had there been more depth to these slave-lust-to-love aspects, I’d have been more engaged, and invested in the MC.

[Chip Page · Rating 1 out of 5]

Repetitive

[Simon Blackwell · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horribly misogynistic with a nonsensical plot.