![Wander West, In Shadow [Slow Burn Dark Fantasy]](../images/98391-wander-west-in-shadow-slow-burn-dark-fantasy.jpg)
Wander West, In Shadow [Slow Burn Dark Fantasy]
by CloverCloverClover
- Graphic Violence
- Profanity
- Sensitive Content
Cover art done by Tofuyi!
BOOK 1 COMPLETED!
The long path starts here. A journey through lands haunted by demons, fae, and the ghosts of the past.
For decades, the lands of Aurum lived in fear beneath the threat of the wicked White Queen. A cruel sorceress, she worked the Art of magic to bring down freezing blizzards and ruin upon those who opposed her. Her mad ambition swallowed an entire generation in flame and horror, and it seemed that all would be swept up in the bloody tyranny of her rule.
For a time.
That's all in the past, now. Years back, the White Queen was slain, her ambitions broken, her erstwhile kingdom shattered. The bones of her kinsmen scattered into the earth, so much dust, all for naught. So it goes.
Though the Queen's War is nothing but a memory now, the lands are tired, broken, bled dry. Charred ruins lie where bustling towns once stood, and quiet shadows settle where folk made their homes, their lives, not so long ago. Where humanity has retreated, dark powers such as fae and demons have crept forth. Even the gods seem exhausted. Some wonder if things will ever be right again.
It is into these scarred and shattered lands that the young wizard Martimeos, now of age, takes his first steps. Such is the nature of the Art; those it embraces are driven forth to wander, to see the lands, no matter the darkness that lies across their path. But unlike most, he has a goal: His older brother left to fight against the White Queen, but never returned, leaving behind only tales of what he had done. Martimeos does not hold onto the hope that his brother may live, or even that he'll find his bones, but to learn of what happened to him, to his friends? That is worth knowing.
And so he follows a fading trail, chasing echoes of the past and haunted by his memories of the war's horror. It will be a long journey, and along the way Martimeos will uncover secrets, tales of his brother's heroism and deeds. He will begin to wonder what sort of man his brother was, and whether or not the war had changed him. In time, these questions will carry him west, far west; deep into the mysteries of the Art and the world itself. Fortune has its plans for Martimeos, and those who would travel with him - whether he would like it or not.
But it all starts here, in a dark forest, and a chance meeting with the mysterious swamp-witch, Elyse, whose easy smiles and charm hide secrets darker than Martimeos suspects. Here, with a quiet shade from his past that haunts him, and strange, cruel thorns that choke the land and his very dreams. Here, with the cursed village of Silverfish, and its tale of woe, and the regrets and sorrows of its folk, with demons and defeated men and a tragedy that has gone on for far, far too long. The world as it once was might never return, but there is always the choice: to do what one can to make it better, or settle into the shadow yourself.
The Art will snare you and Fortune cast you to the wind to tell the tale it wants. Come along and see how it begins.
Wander west with us, if you would.
WANDER WEST, IN SHADOW is a slow-paced, classic adventure tale that takes place in a dark fantasy world of faded kingdoms and lost history, with no litrpg elements. Magic in this setting is less powerful than in many other fictions, especially when Elyse and Martimeos are first starting out their journey: discretion is the better part of valor, and it is often better to run than it is to stand and fight.
If you are interested in a long story full of danger and mystery and some darker themes, where the protagonists gradually become stronger, this may be the series for you!
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Haunting
Reviewed at: A Most Unusual Wizard
Simply incredible! One of the best stories I’ve read both on this website and in real life. The style feels like reading older fantasy, not Tolkien level old, more like Robert Jordan. The characters are mysterious with secrets that are slowly revealed. Elyse feels slightly less fleshed out than Martimeos, but the story is still young. The setting is great, feels very D&D. The story itself can be absolutely haunting at times, which I love. Really tugs at the heart strings. The plot is mysterious as well, which I like, I can’t wait to see how it all unfolds, because things are very vague at the start. Really feels like I’m just along for the ride, rather than being directly written to by the author. Honestly, if I could give it 6 stars, I would, because it’s simply a cut above everything else I’ve read on RR. Keep up the great work, CloverCloverClover!
Some of the best online fiction I've read here
Reviewed at: Death's Door
The world-building is amazing. The prose evocative. What an amazing world. Full of mystery. It's slow, the protagonists wandering, seemingly not particularly in a hurry, but what an interesting journey it is! The writing is among the best I've seen online, good enough for professional publishing. Everything seems to tie together, even characters you didn't think really mattered. I never thought a dying world could be so interesting.
Written very well
Reviewed at: Hunted
There is nothing much I would like to add that hadn't been said about the story. But still here are something if anyone find it useful. I would be very concise with my words.
If you like story with classical fantasy elements with mix of horror and mystry. It's definitely a good read. What really stood out to me is the beautifully written pros. As an author writing webnovels i don't like to focus on pros too much but reading this made me feel like I should also rewrite my stories with better pros once that is finished.
Above all the world, characters and plot is very well done.
Lovely Work
Reviewed at: A Most Unusual Wizard
This was wonderful to read before and I’m very glad the author has revisited it with editing and extra content. I’m looking forward to catching up to where we left off before. I highly recommend checking it out if you’re a fan of classic fantasy. Excellent world building at a natural pace.
PEAK
Reviewed at: Night Fisher Inn
I’ve read most of the original story, almost finished it actually, but I stopped once I realized it was no longer updating. So imagine my surprise seeing it return with an amazing rewrite!
This is genuinely one of the most interesting world-building and magic systems I’ve ever seen. The author has a talent for implying details that are never said out loud, but nonetheless send your mind racing with possible theories. The writing has a way of engulfing you, putting you into a state of absolute immersion as you try to figure things out alongside the characters. I can’t praise the writing style enough. And, I REALLY like how the magic in this world is ‘nerfed’ compared to the magic in other stories, yet still open and esoteric enough to lend an element of horror and vast machinations beyond our comprehension. There are a lot of hard magic systems on RR (not that it’s a bad thing) but it’s refreshing to see a soft magic system done to perfection.
Besides glazing the world-building, I also have to praise the characters. A lot of the information from the previous draft of the story are only half-remembered in my brain, so it’s refreshing to read about Martimeos and Elyse again. It’s great that the characters are just as multifaceted and complex as I remember, each with their own thoughts and agency.
Anyway, since I don’t want to ramble and spout out spoilers eventually, I’ll stop here. I still highly recommend this story though, please read it.
Journeys Ahead
Reviewed at: The Demon-set Path
I'm someone who came from the original rough draft of this story aswell, and I'm leaving this review to hopefully help give the story the boost it deserves.
The author is amazing, and if this story is anything like it's rough draft, which I'm expecting it to be far better, it'll be amazing too. The rough draft for this story was one of my favorite stories on this site despite being, well... a rough draft. I am nothing but excited to see where the author goes with this story, and for anyone who didn't come here from the draft, I implore you to give this story a shot, it's bound to be wonderful.
So unbelievably well polished and complete
Reviewed at: Some announcements (Book 1 Finished!)
When I learned that Wander West is the revised draft, it made so much sense to me. I would have expected a story of this quality to be lining the shelves and inspiring a whole new genre of young adult fiction willing to explore further into cosmic and existential horror. This matches blows with every powerhouse on the library shelves, and the publisher that picks this up is a very lucky publisher indeed.
Characters: phenomenal, all of them. Yes, ALL OF THEM.
The environment and the monsters come alive from the pages in both sound and image.
No real grammar errors, more importantly THE PROSE, THE PROSE! indistinguishable in quality from household names, and really shows off the rewards of the author's efforts and thought.
Events and plot points have clearly been mapped out and crafted, wholly different from how stories released weekly are forced to sacrifice foresight for deadlines. No stray loose ends, only the author's vision and polished craft.
on the horror aspect, not only is it wonderfully terrifying it refrains from being distastefully graphic for graphic's sake.
Probably the most well-rounded and COMPLETE work on bestuseller.com. I would recommend this to anyone remotely interested in fantasy and/or horror.
A Treasure
Reviewed at: A Brief Respite
I read the rough draft back when it came out and it was probably the best fiction and fantasy I had ever read online. So far this new version has surpassed even that, the new content adding so much life and color to an already wonderful work! I have been absolutely enraptured from the start and truly hope I get to see this story finished to completion and more of the world after it. The most important must read on RR, in my opinion.
Amazing. Wow.
Reviewed at: End of the Road
Delightfully Dark
Reviewed at: Other Worlds
I just finished reading Chapter 22, Other Worlds, and am breath taken by the beauty and poetry written by CloverCloverClover. This is the kind of treat a bookworm would relish to find in any bookstore out there. I’m lucky to find something well-edited and thought out here on bestuseller.com.
The story has mature content, like sexual themes, gore and violence. I think this is where these themes are written tastefully, and executed through interesting viewpoints of each character. I think that I seeing parts of the story through different people as I delved further into the depths of this story.
The long chapters satiated my curiosity just enough to wait until I could read the next chapter. I haven’t seen long chapters in novels since I read books like Eragon/The Hobbit, so this makes me feel nostalgic for those times where I would be lost in these worlds of magic, horror and beauty.
One of the best books I have come across on bestuseller.com. The other reviews are spot on when they say it is one of the best books ever on bestuseller.com.
Thank you for sharing this delicious story with us here CloverCloverClover!