I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
A ragtag group of adventurers must navigate their lives in the wake of a major loss in a world where fantasy meets political satire in author Sean Myers’s “Flight of Fools”.
The Synopsis
A political satire about escapism for a hyperpolarized America where politics determine facts. A fantasy about reality.
Brensin is back.
His eyes on the throne, he is joined by Masothelio, the wizard, Jin, the thief, Gullin, the bard, and Rainn. Together, they climb the mountain, evade the dragon, find the magical amulet, and come back just in time for Brensin’s assassination on page 9.
The others scramble.
Betrayed, Masothelio submerges himself in a new role, swimming against the current of the political tides.
Branded, Gullin struggles to make a life for himself once again.
Disadvantaged for so long, Jin helps her family out of poverty, only to learn that she cannot escape her reality.
Isolated, Rainn escapes into a make-believe world made just for him, where he can be happy and powerless.
Flight of Fools blurs the lines between what is fantasy and what is real. It pokes holes in the page until there is nothing left to keep the real world from seeping in, and nothing left to stop the ending from reaching out through the page to clutch your chest and squeeze.
The Review
The author did a remarkable job of infusing just enough satire and politics into the novel to counterbalance the equally outstanding world-building and fantasy elements of the story. The attention to detail the author paid to each scene really helped bring the setting to life, as each chapter felt very cinematic due to the gripping imagery used in writing.
The perfect infusion of powerful themes and rich character development made this story shine brightly. The challenges the characters face throughout the novel begin immediately after the “epic quest” they start their journey ends in a shocking manner, and each character must navigate the world on their own terms and deal with the fallout of these events differently than the other. These paths they find themselves on lead to powerful themes of racism, political rhetoric, and the line between those in poverty and those with enough greed to amass wealth and power, all of which mirror our own world and the events that have led us to these moments in our own history.
The Verdict
Action-packed, thought-provoking, and engaging, author Sean Myers’s “Flight of Fools” is the perfect balance of fantasy and satire, as it not only delves into the fantasy genre perfectly but uses irony to show how mind-blowing and ridiculous our own world’s events have been in recent years to make us feel like we are all living in a messed up fantasy world. The twists and turns these characters are given and the way the story’s finale kind of trails off leaves readers wanting more, and yet reflects the fate of major players in our own world perfectly. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!
Rating: 10/10
About the Author
Sean Myers was born in Connecticut in 1988. He graduated with a B.A. in English from the University of New Hampshire in 2010 and with a J.D. in human rights law from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. His writings have appeared in numerous places in print and online, including in the Cincinnati Enquirer, Ethical Traveler, and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. Flight of Fools is his first novel.
Sean works as a freelance legal writer. He lives in the Adirondacks with his dog, Marlowe.
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