Child of Oak

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Within an ancient, unending forest the village of Falderfell lives in silence, surrounded by trees that stretch beyond sight and dark secrets hidden in deep forest. The Rangers guard the village from the horrors that lurk in the shadows: spirits of wrath and fury, wights that haunt strange circles of stone, creatures of decay and death. Life carries on for the villagers until one day, a boy wanders into the town, carrying a strange sword and no memories of his past. Old things are beginning to wake in the deepwood, things ancient and terrifying, and Rangers may be not be enough to protect the people trapped within the maze of trees. The forest is vast. And it is waking.

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2024
Author: Swimberly

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.9/ 5.0
Followers: 3
Views: 2,641

Chapters(12 total)

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(3)

Celt ComstockRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Three chapters have been released, and we are seeing a mysterious world being revealed to us piece by piece, in descriptive and skilled writing.
So far we see the people of the village of Falderfell, who have welcomed a mysterious lost boy into the town. They are decent folks, and try to take care of him, placing him with a family to try to restart his life.
The village is guarded by the Rangers, who have both a camp and a keep near the town. Their purpose becomes evident through the glimpses of the many creatures that lurk near the town, from the harmless mushroom people, to the flirty wind nymphs, to the more dangerous oak shades and rot walkers. It all builds a sense of danger, which the reader feels along with the characters anytime they step into the woods. Humans seem to be able to exist here, but at the price of constant vigilance. We see what happens if people are not vigilant, and come to understand the danger is growing.
The author skillfully reveals not just the world, but the characters’ personalities, which emerge in the realistic but still fast-moving dialogue. Each has their own voice, and we are starting to understand their motivations.
Overall it is a very strong beginning, and I look forward to more.
ElectrikBlueRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I was immediately drawn in by the mystery and atmosphere of this story, and the foundations are there for something great.
*I will update the score as the story progresses if need be.*
Style: Simple yet efficient. Nothing over the top but effectively conveys the ideas and builds an intriguing atmosphere.
Grammar: Nothing to note.
Story: The kind that can really get me addicted. The premise is filled with mystery, and I adore the setting. It's also not as unoriginal as I anticipated based on the fact that it is set in a magical forest. But the interpretation of classic fantasy tropes is refreshing and clever.
I don't really know yet where the story is going, but some hints can help me deduce, and I can only hope it's going to be as good as its start.
Characters: So far so good. I only had a glimpse of them, but I can already tell I will love the Rangers. The captain was especially interesting. In a short time, the author managed to give us a nice overview of their personality and challenges.
Overall, I would recommend keeping an eye on this story and jumping once there are more chapters.
Suggestions for improvement:
- I would suggest using RR's line breaks instead of "---------" because it doesn't work well on mobile, and it looks better with the native line break.
CIGAPRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
A very interesting start to an interesting world. There are only 2 chapters out but there's a compelling world being built. The imagery and descriptions do the scenes justice, with a good blend of exposition, dialogue and description. It's not a hard task to visualize the scenes the characters are in.
Speaking of the characters, they're immediately brought to life, and the author does a good job of making them feel very human. They all have flaws and quirks that make them feel like more than just ideas on a page. As of right now, it's hard to tell where the story is going or who the main character is, given the fact that we've been introduced to so many characters so quickly, but this could also be seen as a good thing.
The formatting is a little funky, with paragraphs being quite sizeable, making it a little hard to read. There's also a few grammar and spelling errors here and there, but they're rare enough that it doesn't take away from the tension and intrigue the first few chapters bring.
We're immediately thrown into action, given just enough information to understand what's going on but enough is withheld that there is an undeniable aura of mystery and interest.
Overall a compelling first 2 chapters. Looking forward to seeing where this goes!