Sara's Review: The World Below (Chronicles of the Goblin King #1) by Mike Phillips
Author Provided Copy
Publisher: Damnation Books LLC
Released: March 1, 2013
Genre: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Length: 206 pages
Format: ebook , paperback
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Synopsis
In ancient times, magical creatures inhabited the earth. They lived on mountaintops, in trees, at the bottom of lakes and rivers. But that was long ago, before the human race declared war on the creatures they feared and hated. Now the enchanted peoples are all but gone. Those few that remain fear being stretched out on an examination table in some secret, governmental facility. The only place they can hide from the ever increasing number of satellites and smart phones is in the World Below. Mitch Hardy is going through a hard time in his life. In his early twenties, he was working his way through college when he suffered an accident that left him flat broke and physically deformed. When Mitch decides to make a fresh start in a new town, things start looking up. He finds a place to live, a decent job, good friends. He even meets a nice girl. Unknown to Mitch, his new girlfriend is one of the Elder Race, what some call the Faerie Folk. Mitch doesn’t know that Elizabeth is looking for a father she never knew. The key to finding him is somehow tied up with the mysterious Blade of Caro. Desperate, she steals the Blade from its protector, the despotic ruler of the World Below, the Dragon of Worms, Baron Finkbeiner. When Elizabeth is kidnapped by the Baron, Mitch is pulled into a world or magic and monsters he never imagined.
Three Boundless Stars
I was provided a copy of The World Below in exchange for an honest review.
The story starts off with Baron Finkeiner, the ruler of the world below, convincing the sorcerer, Hume, to locate the Blade Caro; which was stolen by the Lady Elisabeth. Lady Elisabeth is one of the faerie folk, and extremely powerful. The blade of caro is the only thing that can kill the baron.
The baron is a tyrant; and he treats his people as such. His people are trolls, goblins, and all types of monsters; but they still don’t deserve to be indiscriminately tortured, punished and killed. He is just awful.
So I was thinking; “Cool, Hume is our hero”. I was SO wrong! Enter Mitch, just a plan regular joe, that stumbles upon Elizabeth at a party. There is an immediate attraction, and she gifts him with a charm bracelet. This bracelet is magical; it allows him see things from the world below. It starts off with him bringing home a stray cat; which turns out to be a goblin.
Mitch is an all-around good guy; protecting the innocent, and standing up for what is right. He makes some of the strangest friends in his quest, and pretty much goes with the flow. He is the ultimate Hero; all good, not a bad bone in his body.
I was truly enjoying the story, until we got to the goblin tickle fight. At that point, it turned into a bunch of slap stick. The story did get back on track after a bit; but I had a hard time reengaging after that point. I didn’t care for the silliness of the goblins. Some of the banter was amusing, but it through off the pace of the story for me.
Overall, I liked the story. I really liked our hero Mitch, and I look forward to reading more about his adventures in the next book, Hazard of Shadows.