Guard of the Threshold

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Devlin Brígh,after serving nearly two years during the U.S. involvement in World War II, was medically discharged after an explosion partially deafened and he lost some vision in his left eye. After returning home, he was able to find work as a police officer.

10 years of hard work and dedication later,Detective Devlin Bríghgoes through the motions in the Kansas City Missouri Police Department. He thought he had seen it all during his time in the Army but a new case with no leads and a strange cryptic journal leaves more questions than answers.Det. Bríghspends weeks trying to decipher the text in the journal when he is contacted byJulianne Nestorclaiming she has proximity to the crime and the victim.

Det. BríghandMs. Nestorbecome entangled in an ancient ritual that chills the bones:Magic is real.With newfound taboo knowledge they must face new andancientantagonists in a battle of wits and brutality for survival.

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2023
Author: AericcOnline

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.6/ 5.0
Followers: 6
Views: 5,377

What readers say about Guard of the Threshold

“Style: The author does a great job of describing everything in just the right amount of detail, especially the appearances of the non-human entities, both good and bad. The story flows fairly easily from one beat to the next. I especially like the descripti…”
UgarrsvenothRoyal Road5.0 / 5
“Overall, its premise and plot line holds a lot of potential, but it’s held back a lot by the style and other technical issues. Style (4/5) The prose is generally a bit stiff and there’s something about it that, while not necessarily bad, doesn’t quite flow…”
MoonlightGardensRoyal Road4.0 / 5

Reviews

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Community Reviews(2)

UgarrsvenothRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Style: The author does a great job of describing everything in just the right amount of detail, especially the appearances of the non-human entities, both good and bad. The story flows fairly easily from one beat to the next. I especially like the descriptions for the consequences of using their magic, with all of the damage being done to their own bodies.
Story: I'm in love with the story. I will always appreciate a good cosmic horror story, especially when a twist gets thrown in like with this story here. I like the world that's being built up, and all the mysteries of the universe that are being unveiled to the main character.
Grammar: There were a few problems here and there, but nothing that took away from the story being told. The author seems to be fairly responsive to comments regarding edits, so that's good.
Character: The characters are all unique with their own wants and motivations. Devlin has been thrown into a very absurd and ridiculous situation, and has sort of forced himself to accept it and go along for the ride, which is the right thing to do since he doesn't want to die. I also appreciate the attention to detail for the side characters like Jim and the captain, as the interactions help to add a bit of realism to the story.
MoonlightGardensRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
Overall, its premise and plot line holds a lot of potential, but it’s held back a lot by the style and other technical issues.
Style (4/5)
The prose is generally a bit stiff and there’s something about it that, while not necessarily bad, doesn’t quite flow properly. There’s some issues with exposition every now and again as well. Descriptions are on the lighter side, which also takes some points off of immersion due to the lack of an ability to really picture what’s happening; it seems to skip past moments or start an action, show some of the main character’s inner monologue, then reveal several other steps were complete, and it doesn’t feel intentional by part of the author. Especially within the interrogation scene within Chapter 3, it took some time to realize who was talking or to really get into the flow of the quick questions-and-answers section. The former presents a somewhat noticeable issue at several other points in the story as well.
Story (4.5/5)
The story follows a seasoned detective on a “weird” case that ends up taking a turn to the supernatural. It’s hard to tell, though, if the mystery and suspense isn’t quite done well, or if it takes its biggest hits from the issues in Style. It also ends up getting a bit confusing once the supernatural elements get thrown in, though that’s also mostly due to the issues in Style. Overall, though, the story itself isn’t bad in concept or plot… the way it’s written just makes it rather hard to follow.
Grammar (4/5)
There are a few noticeable quirks in the grammar, mostly when it comes to the proper usage of apostrophes or commas (mostly incorrect usage in regards to possession). There’s not a huge variation in punctuation, which in turn might cause some of the stiffness I mentioned in Style. A couple other errors become more obvious in later chapters—odd capitalization and other minor issues—but it’s hard to tell if I just noticed them more, if those parts weren’t as thoroughly edited, or whatever the case might be.