I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

A young woman finds her world turned upside down as the family story she dismissed as a fantasy becomes her new reality in author C.C. Humphreys’ “The Hunt of the Unicorn”. 

The Synopsis

Elayne thinks the old family story that one of her ancestors stepped through a tapestry into a world of mythical beasts makes a great fireside tale. But she lives in the real world. In New York City. And she’s outgrown that kind of fantasy.

Until she finds herself in front of a unicorn tapestry at the Cloisters museum and sees her initials woven into the fabric. And hears a unicorn calling to her. And slips and falls—into that other world.

Suddenly the line between fantasy and reality isn’t so clear. But the danger is real enough. Almost before she can think, Elayne is attacked by a ferocious beast, rescued by a unicorn, and taken prisoner by a tyrant king. Each of them seems to have an idea about her—that she’s a hero, a villain, dinner!

But Elayne has a few ideas of her own. She wants to overthrow the king; she wants to tame the unicorn. She wants to go home! And she’s willing to become both hero and villain to do it.

The Review

A rich and storied mythology comes to life in author C.C. Humphreys’s latest novel. The author does a great job of creating a healthy blend of new fantasy-driven mythology with a rich cast of characters and mythical beasts that give both a magical and human element of danger and adventure to the narrative. 

The author does an amazing job of crafting not only a wholly original story, but does a wonderful job of creating memorable characters. Protagonist Alice is a fantastic character to follow, as her story is complex and intricately tied into this magical world known as Goloth. Her journey takes her down roads that could either save a world, destroy it, or possibly both. 

The emotional core of her father’s illness with cancer and her reading the story of their family legacy to him to start the story was an inspired way of bringing this mythology into the story early on, and the concept of parallel worlds bringing our reality into the world of Goloth was a great way of pairing that emotional storyline to the adventure she experiences later on.

The Verdict

An action-packed, wildly creative and evenly-paced read, author C.C. Humphreys’s “The Hunt of the Unicorn” was a fantastic start to a new fantasy-driven series. The protagonist was someone readers could identify with and rally behind, while the large mythos the author built was engaging and entertaining to dive into. A must-read for fantasy fans out there, be sure to grab your copy of this awesome novel today!

Rating: 10/10

About the Author

Chris (C.C.) Humphreys was born in Toronto, lived till he was seven in Los Angeles, then grew up in the UK. All four grandparents were actors, and since his father was an actor as well, it was inevitable he would follow the bloodline.

Chris (C.C.) Humphreys has played Hamlet in Calgary, a gladiator in Tunisia, waltzed in London’s West End, conned the landlord of the Rovers Return in Coronation Street, commanded a starfleet in Andromeda, voiced Salem the cat in the original Sabrina, and is a dead immortal in Highlander. He has written eleven adult novels including The French Executioner, runner-up for the CWA Steel Dagger for Thrillers; Chasing the Wind; The Jack Absolute Trilogy; Vlad – The Last Confession; A Place Called Armageddon and Shakespeare’s Rebel – which he adapted into a play and which premiered at Bard on the Beach, Vancouver, in 2015. Plague won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel in Canada in 2015. He has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia. He is now writing epic fantasy with the Immortals’ Blood Trilogy, for Gollancz. The first book, Smoke in the Glass was published in 2019 and The Coming of the Dark is, well, coming, Summer 2020. He is also publishing his other new fantasy series, The Tapestry Trilogy, beginning in August 2020 with ‘The Hunt of the Unicorn’.

Several of his novels are available as Audiobooks – read by himself! Find him here:

https://www.authorchrishumphreys.com/…

He is translated into thirteen languages. In 2015 he earned his Masters in Fine Arts (Creative Writing) from the University of British Columbia.

Chris now lives on Salt Spring Island, BC, Canada, with Dickon the cat (who keeps making it into his books!)

Check out his website: http://authorchrishumphreys.com

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