About ‘Ensoulment’ by Nick Askew::
Genre: LGBT+; Fantasy; Romance; Horror
Every being is infused with a soul upon their creation, but what would happen if a soul was split?
Running from his troubled past, Andrew arrives in LA, greeted by his loving boyfriend and headed for a night of celebration. When Jack gets down on one knee, the last thing either of them expects is Andrew’s sudden death, a tragedy that sets in motion a chain of events that will alter the fabric of reality itself.
As death thrusts him into a strange world full of outlandish and dangerous inhabitants, Andrew embarks upon a mission to reunite a princess with her long-lost prince. As familiar as it feels, he soon learns shadowy forces are working against him, and nothing in this land is as it appears. Andrew’s in a different kind of fairy tale, and he must seek out the other half of his soul if he ever hopes to find his way home again.
As simple a sentiment as it is, it’s really all I could say for quite a bit while I figured out what I wanted to say about this book: wow. This story is such a trip! Ensoulment begins in the contemporary world with a marriage proposal that ends in abrupt tragedy. Suddenly the reader is transported to a historical setting of kings and castles where our poor protagonist (Andrew) laments his confusion to being thrust from his fiance and thrown into a dungeon, the prime suspect in the princess’ disappearance.
We are treated to a secondary point of view from a character who seems in yet a different world. In perfect timing, the two perspectives merge, revealing the first twist that had me instantly hooked. In the grand scheme of things, it is only a slight spoiler so I will share it. The secondary protagonist (Mendak) is a mouse. The species is enslaved by cats, forced to do their bidding from guarding, to hunting, to playing in Colosseum type games for feline entertainment.
The pair go on to escape their prisons on a mission to rescue the princess…whose point of view has also begun to be revealed to the reader, albeit scarcely. Her POV is more to give some further history important to the story without sacrificing the actiony, fast paced thrill of what is currently happening. However, each protagonist also has an ulterior motive for their chivalry.
The shifting question as to who the real villain of the story is kept me flipping pages. Fingers are being pointed in every direction. Everyone including the “heroes” refuse to take any sort of blame for anything, it seems. On one hand, we have the King claiming a mysterious, horrifying being known as The Grinning Man is terrorizing his wife in unseen ways. Doubt comes in the form of the princess’ sense whilst being willfully tortured that this disfigured creature is not evil. The King himself is obviously guilty of many crimes and suspiciously seems to have taken on a horrid personality change.
Another possibility is Aitaina, an outwardly kind and helpful yet strangely powerful man, and yet another is the odd Ottolite with her own mysterious abilities. It is never clear what is truth as all of them come off dodgy and manipulative. The protagonists are pulled in far too many directions, causing tension between themselves and keeping the reader anxious as to if they will figure it out before it is to late.
There is just so much mystery and intrigue. I literally could not put it down! The author’s voice is awesome, his language beautiful. The worlds and characters are all fantastically developed. The pacing is perfect, the action is intense, and it had just the right balance of horror and romance mixed in. I was fully immersed in the story. It would be an incredible movie; I truly have no notes about things I disliked or that could be worked on. All I can say is I hope the author does finish the trilogy, as it currently appears they have vanished from the internet.
The author can be found on:
Amazon
Goodreads
Review submitted to Amazon and Goodreads))
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~Sahreth ‘Baphy’ Bowden
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