Symphonic Odyssey

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

In the mountains of Dellorim, a country renown for its arcane Conductors, orphaned Cypher finds himself struggling against the powerful Nobles of the house he serves. All his life the Galvan family has treated him like an outcast, with the worst of it usually coming from the oldest heir, a spoiled boy named Eiden. The young heir loves to torment Cypher at every opportunity, and with the Galvans reluctant to tell him anything about his origins, he has no choice but to endure it without end or understanding.

However, a fortunate twist of fate finds soon finds Cypher training beside the young heir, who is set to enter an illustrious academy for Magick in just a few years time. Through this opportunity, Cypher discovers the means to escape his torment and forge a path all his own.

As he seeks to break free of his shackles, he'll face off against spiteful Nobles, ruthless bandits, fearsome Zightbeasts, and fate itself. With so many obstacles standing between him and his goal, will he be able to find a path to freedom? Or will he be doomed to a life of servitude? Join Cypher at the origins of his great Odyssey and uncover the mysteries of this strange and Magickal world.

Volume Two Complete!:https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/50538/symphonic-odyssey/chapter/1100355/volume-two-synopsis

Volume Three Complete!https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/50538/symphonic-odyssey-progression-fantasy/chapter/1135920/volume-three-synopsis

Volume Four Complete!https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/50538/symphonic-odyssey/chapter/1159577/volume-4-synopsis

[Winner of the April-May 2023 Royal Road Writathon challenge]

Updates Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with additional early-release chapters available on my patreon for those who can't wait.

What can you expect from the entire run of this series?

A story that takes its time getting where it needs to be without wasting too much time on super minor details.

An MC who grows in strength from the realm of mortals to that of the highest spellcasters and beyond.

A unique magic System inspired by Music.

A story that is driven by the characters and their decisions.

Difficult challenges for characters to overcome, both mental and physical.

Eventual romance.

Lore and worldbuilding are carefully sprinkled throughout the narrative.

Various Magical creatures.

And much more!

Do keep in mind that this novel is a slow burn and there are many more volumes planned. Volume one is primarily a slower part of the overall story.

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2022
Author: M.D. Wells

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.3/ 5.0
Followers: 618
Views: 653,584

Chapters(256 total)

Reviews

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

Community Reviews(10)

Astra PrinceRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I've only read the first chapter so far, but I find you have done an exceptional job setting up opposing characters with credible conflicts. The action moves well, alongside the description of the world, and the characters are driven and motivated to overcome their obstacles. In terms of opening chapter suggestions, I suppose some more context, in terms of place and "world building" politics could be introduced a little earlier. However, I am somewhat divided on this suggestion because I sincerely appreciated the pacing of the first chapter. I look forward to reading the entire work as I continue to learn how to use this platform expertly.
M.G DriverRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Nothing less than five stars across the board for me, if i could I'll give one more start for both story and character.
It hooked me so well that I read eighteen chapters straight in a row. Stop reading the reviews, just give it a shot. An amazing coming of age story with gripping emotions.
Style:
I love the verbosity of the novel. Other reviews might think it can be more concise, but I believe it adds a certain flow and allows the reader to dwell on things much more. Not everything needs to be short and to the point - especially if you want to let emotions and tensions simmer.
This writing style makes seemingly minor events extremely impactful to the main character. We probably laugh at kids nowadays doing stupid stuff on Youtube and whatnot, but the time and effort taken to write in clear detail really drives home the perspective of how IMPORTANT it is to the MC, both physically and emotionally.
I will say that as a personal opinion, I prefer shorter paragraphs due to reading on mobile. This has a good mix, but some fairly long paragraphs too. It is not something I would deduct points for though.
Story:
This is how a fantasy story should be done from the start. Instead of introducing loads of characters, make only a few and focus on them. The author achieves this perfectly, enabling the reader to really relate to the MC and understand his relationships or perspective of those around him and the world he lives in.
Pacing is great, enabling us to see more and more of the MC's character without detracting into side stories. The focus is always on the MC and it makes the reading experience extra smooth.
Further down the story, side characters also get their time in the sun, which helps to flesh his environment a lot more as well. It is a fantasy story, but it is definitely a very believable world that I would like to see myself.
Not many stories can get me to say "okay now that's a world I wouldn't mind living in AND can imagine myself living in.", and the author defi
Lara Zanatti ReisRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The story begins with a tone that promises intense battles with magic and tension of drama expected in this type of novel, introducing Cipher.
The prologue that knows how to make you want to know more jumps to chapter one, which starts with Cipher's childhood, the protagonist and Aidan - for some reason, I sympathize a lot with this character - and in a calm and unhurried way, the author unravels the novel of what will be an "epic journey" with the results of the prologue.
The narrative and the way of telling the story are without haste. MD Wells applies classic formulas that almost take us to the books we read as kids. The misery of the Cipher's childhood was that good news. At least it brought me because we will all look forward to the moment the story turns around.
Grammar, I didn't see anything at all, but to tell you the truth, I didn't even pay attention as I was immersed in the story.
Character: Both our hero and our villain (? - I hope there is redemption for Aidan) are in the first chapters described with the classic script. It doesn't bring anything new at the moment, but let's acknowledge that it works really well. As I said above, it gets that nostalgia when this formula was used in our favourite animated series, comics or childish book.
My advice if you want a novel that will take you back home with no hurry to get to the end, Symphonic Odyssey, is definitely the best choice within the genre there is on the site.
Enjoy your reading.
grovekeeperRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
The story is classic sword and sorcery and it delivers it quite well. We have the young protagonist who is poor but talented with the rival being the opppsite. Before the positives, let me go into the main negatives.
1. Characters need to be explored more. Almost all of the charavters inteoduced, apart from the protagonist are caricatures with no real depth. Motivations of the charavters need to be included in prose subtly. The way it was done with the Noble's son was good but I would like to see more depth than that. His teacher and combat instructor could use more work, but I am willing to forgive the latter as there hasn't been much interaction.
2. The word building. Granted we see the world through the eyes of the protagonist, even after he came to the academy, we don't know much about the wider world. In a sense it is good immersion since its normal for the inhabitants, but for readers who want to experience the world, there is nothing inside.
3. Dropping the music part of magic. Other than the Duo, Trio, Solo, there doesn't seem to be much of a musical connection to magic and imo it would be bettter to not focus on it and just show it as casting adjustments.
Style: The book flows quite well, its very easy and refreshing to read. There is an overall warmth to it and it helps the readers get into the world.
Grammar: No issues.
Story and Characters : Already said.
Arthur InverseRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Reaching though Symphonic Odyssey, the author drops us right into the action. Two people have just been though a gruesome battle and stand off for information on something, or someone. A classic good vs evil dynamic to start the story.
We are then brought into the unfortunate situation of young Cypher who has had the misfortune of being in the emply of the Galavans. Being the frequent end of jokes and pranks by the young lord of the family that keeps him Cypher is a child you wish you could scoop up and tell it's going to be alright.
Style- The story is put in a coherent stick of prose that doesn't put the reader out of the moment with any of the lines.
Grammar - There are a few things here and there but who doesnt have these problems and the author is quick to fix so I don't think its really a detriment.
Story - The world building is fierce in this story, after being ploped right into a fight in the first chapter, we get a good glimps of what is to come in the way of how magic works and where, who we will follow for the remainder of the story.
Character - The characters are well thought out and all serve their purpose, whether that is the little shit kid who is pompus and condicending, or the loving and caring mother figure in Molly. Also little Cypher makes you want to dote on the kid for being so stoic at such a young age.
Great story, and had amazing reception on webnovel so I expect it will have the same here, and will be a story to watch for.
WhiteRose-BlueSpaceRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I’m very glad I was a bit bored this afternoon as it gave me all the reason to read this rather nice sword and sorcery fantasy novel! Exactly the sort of thing I wanna read more of. So far it has had me happily flipping the pages to read more and is from what I can tell already, an excellent binge read candidate. But onto the categories!
Style:
The prose flows nicely and cleanly, drawing you into the story nicely. The writing also keeps a nice tempo to scenes with dialogue decently entertaining. I am struggling for words here, but that’s because that this is the sort of writing that just feels right and stops existing in your head after a while as your imagination takes over. Nice work.
Grammar:
Didn’t see anything that really stood out other than a few fantasy™ slightly re-written words that I can forgive.
Story:
It doesn’t stand out too much as it is a fairly simple sort of plot that’s quite typical to sword and sorcery stories. However, it is executed quite well I’d say so it’s nice and entertaining. However I do also give the story props for taking it’s time with itself to set itself with a nice slow burning start which I do enjoy.
Characters:
Again, not too special and somewhat tropey but done well. So, it doesn’t really stand out to me, but it works well with the plot and helps to add a nice classic cosy fantasy feel.
Overall, I’d say that you should give it a go if you like older style fantasy stuff!
Arlen K.Royal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Preface: Story has been reviewed on 06/02/23 and therefore may not be true after this date.
Story:
Let's start with the Chapter 0 - What a damn prologue. Really throws you into the deep and gives a hint of the payoff. Action scene is very well done.
Also, chapter name- verses. Title - Symphony. Magick users - Conductors.
I like. Very well done and can looks like quite some thought went into it.
Then the first couple of chapters, we focus on our MC, Cypher. Orphan boy raised as a servant in a noble house. Clearly has some potential, at this point, I can only speculate and say its inherited. Regardless, we know he's going to be pretty badass.
Plot progression and worldbuilding is excellent. We're given the information gradually instead of a heavy info dump.
Style:
Generally, fairly happy with it.
Dialogue is generally fine. The professor clealry has his own voice, and the nobles do sound like nobles.
Really minor things about description is some scenes are told redundantly. Spoiler : Things like he dashed away from the door, and then the next line is he dashed as his mind went wild. Nothing a quick once over wont solve.
Would also ask the author to consider more powerful words. Dashed is an excellant exmaple and is superior to walked quickly.
Might be me, but i've noticed a tendecy for author to use the word 'as' a lot. "He spoke as he walked, as he raised his hand"
Generally, that's fine, but it becomes noticble when its used often.
Grammar:
Grammer is generally OK. I'd advise the author to watch out for those pesky commas. Might be worth using Grammerly or Prowritingaid (I use both) to help you out and remind you to use them.
Also just a note, when characters continue speaking for multiple paragraphs, you dont need to repeat the quotations. Use the final quoation at the very end of their speech (unless its broken up of couse)
"Par A
"Par B
"Par C"
Character score:
I have no major complaints. We're generally following Cypher, and without headhopping, its hard to s
Eric VanderlipRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Symphonic Odyssey is the compelling story of a boy named Cypher on a journey to discover his destiny.
Style: A consistent perspective and smooth writing. The sole issue here is how verbose the text can be. At times, way too much tangential detail is spelled out and information is occationally repeated with different wording. There is also this tendency to overuse some words at certain points ("always" and "smiled" come to mind). (Hopefully this review is out of date and a round of editing has streamlined the story to its full potential.)
Story: Conversation and events flow flow naturally. The pace is sometimes languid, but this is entirely down to the wordiness used to describe events. The underlying plot progression and worldbuilding is extremely solid. Both Cypher's struggles growing up and the overarching threat set up by the prologue work well.
Grammar: Overall decent except for the issue of seperating independent clauses with commas. This doesn't affect readability though.
Character: Great care has gone into the cast of characters, especially Cypher and Molly. Out of what I have read so far, only Eiden could benefit from more development.
Despite the pacing, I recommend picking up Symphonic Odyssey because everything else is there. Strong and satisfying world-building. A plot which confidently knows where it's heading. Characters which are fleshed out and endearing (excepting a few who are bastards). It's a fun read.
J.DrudeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
Symphonic Odyssey is a tale right out of a Light Novel or an episodic anime that grabs you with the potential and tenacity of its protagonist and keeps you turning the page to see him grow. After a brief prologue that introduces the reader to the magic system and teases some of the stakes, the reader is introduced to Cypher, an ill-treated bastard child of a noble house.
What stood out for me right away was that the story takes its time and allows the reader to breathe as the author slowly introduces characters and concepts that become more and more relavent over time.
The perspective starts very small, following Cypher as a six-year-old in the setting of a noble's manner, and his main antagonist is the house's favored son. If you're thinking to yourself that this is a generic setting and a predictable conflict, you would be right, but it appears to be a purposeful choice by the author as an avenue to start the story's scale small and understandable then expand things as Cypher grows and matures. Soon enough, Cypher is out there sword fighting with bandits and dealing with magical threats. You will not be given exposition through a firehose in Symphonic Odyssy. Instead, you learn things right alongside our boy, Cypher. Good stuff.
As far as pacing goes, I found the unhurried style quite refreshing, and I couldn't help but read on to see how things would unfold. The author keeps time flowing and always keeps the right amount of pressure on Cypher, so the story never feels like it's getting off track.
The story's weakest area at the time of this review (Verse 26) are the antagonists. Though the author has done some work humanizing the harsh lord of the manner, the other antagonists appear to be a little too one-dimensional. That is not to say they don't perform their functions well... hoo boy do I hate the spoiled, young noble kid. I have no doubt the author will address this sometime later in the story, however, because the rest of his craft is top notch for his genr
S.nufflesRoyal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
A Symphonic Odyssey is a story that caught my attention from the first paragraph.
Style: God damn do I like the writing style. Perhaps it's personal preference and similar to mine, however the short to mid-length sentences from a clear and consistent perspective really build the world around Cypher. The exposition that is given is brief and very clearly knowledge you'd expect the main character to know. Anything else that is either irrelevant for the moment is kept a mystery with secretive dialogue leaving you reasons to read more and more!
Grammar: Nothing much of not to say since I feel like you can only really write negatively on grammar unless there's nothing bad to talk about, which there really isn't.
Story score: The story I would say would fail to really catch someone's attention like it's style does. The setting and the stakes feel a tad samey and Harry Potter-esque, but for those who don't mind that is by far not a bad thing. There is big potential for the progression throughout and definitely something I want to invest time into.
Character: I think the strongest aspect of this fiction so far apart from its style. The strong perspective really keeps you in the boots of the character and by the third chapter you do feel a genuine connection with him, allowing you to be willing to see what comes next for him. When a story gets distracted by world-building they often forget this, but Symphonic Odyssey doesn't and it's all the better for it.
Overall: Taking off half the point for the story's lack of a significant twist to corner a specific market (apart from the creative music themed magic system) doesn't really do much to hamper my enjoyment of the story. It is more an objective point rather than a personal one. I genuinely do like this story and I plan to continue reading!