Goldenguard by Michael A. Blaylock

This one caught my eye this morning as I scrolled through my gallery.

Indigo; the colour of integrity and intuition. It’s a colour I’m drawn to in general, but the golden tree has me curious. It’s a magical scene, and together with the title, it gives the impression that this is a fantasy novel.

The blurb paints a vivid and enticing preview of the story. I also read a few sample pages, and the writing is impressive, which is just as important as an eye-catching cover and an intriguing blurb.

The Blurb

He left them for dead. Now he’s their only hope.

Big Walter doesn’t want to be a hero anymore. He spent his youth prowling through the dark, and punching back whatever crawled out of it. Of course, he had friends then—a one-eared do-gooder, a serpent-tongued fire mage, the town belle, and a scab-kneed night elf—all guarding their Midwestern town of New Haven. Before they all fell apart. Before Walter had enough of being the big, dumb brute. Before he left, and finally found peace.

But now, something is calling him home. The darkness has grown stronger, New Haven is undefended, and worst of all, Walter can hear his friends screaming in his mind. But going back means more than trudging through the icy winter and the slithering night. He must return to his youth, relive the joys of friendship and community, and suffer old heartaches anew. Only then can he answer the hard questions: what really happened to those blissful years? What’s waiting for him out in the darkness?

And is there enough time to set it right?

Goldenguard has received some excellent reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.

HorsesDogsAndBooks on Goodreads ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I REALLY like Big Walter. Like, REALLY.

This book is like literary fiction accidentally stumbled into a magic shop. The way the author casually weaves magic into the mundane as if it’s part of a grocery list is expertly done, and I have more “oooh that was good!” lines written down than I can count.

This isn’t a typical action-packed fantasy novel, so make sure you’re in a cozy mood when you sit down to read this book, but I promise you it’s worth your time.

Cole on Amazon ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ What a delight!

This book was a delight. A great story about deep and meaningful friendship with amazing characters that would appeal to anyone, but especially if you are from somewhere small, this book will speak to you on a deeper level too. As someone who moved away from my small town and moved back, I have felt so many of Walter’s emotions, but I hope like Walter maybe I have finally learned what it really means to be big.

I very much enjoyed my time with this book, and was surprised to take away some self reflection as well, definitely highly recommend!

AJ Nadolsky on Goodreads ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I LOVED this book. A sure sign I’ll be re-reading something is when the well of emotion and action at the climax makes me tear up – and without and spoilers, I sure will be re-reading this.

First off, I am a sucker for the 20s/30s setting – this book not only nails the time period but also perfectly encapsulates the feeling of small-town America at the same time.

The magic in this story is rich, exciting, and full of adventure – just the right blend for me along the spectrum of soft and hard with plenty of mystery but plenty we get to learn and see along the way.

Speaking of mystery, the plot delivers that wonderfully – I was hooked as everything unfolded, the first chapter was a perfect hook and I found myself flipping back multiple times as story developments recontextualized what we had seen so far.

Finally, all of the characters are delightful. I love Walter, Di, Quill, Mary, and John each for different reasons and could go on for ages. The biggest thing I will say is how genuine everybody feels. I found myself feeling and understanding every decision (good and bad) that folks made because it just felt RIGHT. This was particularly the case for Walter due to him being the point of view but this very much goes for everybody.

Outstanding book and I’ll absolutely be looking out for future Blaylock stories!

JD Hornbacher on Goodreads ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Easily one of my new favorites. What if you took a coming of age story and set it in a small town in the 1920s with memorable human characters and oh yeah throw in a half-giant protagonist who learns friendship and heartache while fighting demon Darkmist that come out in the night? You get one incredible read. Olden-days vibe mixed with fantasy and a strong redemptive undertone. I’ve never read anything like this.
Oh and from a writing standpoint, this has some of the most beautiful imagery/metaphors and impacting dialogue I’ve ever read. I legit underlined some of my favorite sentences after I soaked them in 10 times in a row. How can he say so much in such few words?

I’m not surprised this reviewer commented on the quality of writing. As previously noted, it stood out to me immediately from the first page of the sample. I don’t often read fantasy, but I’m very tempted to give this a go.

Have a look through the sample pages and see if it grabs your attention. It might just be your next favourite read.

Thank you for reading. See you soon with more from Judge a Book by its Cover!

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