Recommended Reading: Unleashed by Travis Kuffel
An exciting new fantasy page-turner
Being severely under the weather has cramped my writing style here in the final third of February, there’s no question. Whatever happens, or doesn’t, in terms of Worldbuilding Wednesday and Flash Fiction Friday this week, I expect to resume my recent rhythm thereafter. My intent is to finish turning this Substack into the official Vaporous Realms website this month, too.
But in the meantime, I want to introduce you to Amazon’s current #1 release in Christian fantasy: Unleashed by Travis Kuffel.
This is the first book of Kuffel’s Baksa series, part of his Tales of Ganden. Woefully behind though I am on my reading list and reviews—with several excellent books languishing, partly finished, since the holidays—this is one novel I actually completed recently. The beta-read deadline helped, to be sure, but I enjoyed the book so thoroughly, I went ahead and bought a copy this past Friday. (The paperback has been available since February 23. The ebook release is March 4.)
I genuinely think many of y’all would enjoy the story as much as I did. Like my Dustsong novella, it reads more like sword and sorcery than high fantasy for the most part, but is clearly part of a wider, epic narrative. There’s something old-school, at its best reminiscent of Tolkien or Lewis, in Kuffel’s prose and his handling of point of view. I wasn’t sure at first where the story was headed, but I kept turning pages—and I turned them faster as the plot and characters drew me deeper into the tale.
Here’s the official blurb featured on Amazon:
In a perilous realm of elite warriors, ancient powers unfold. One warrior's choice leads to a chain reaction affecting many lives—all intertwined in a tapestry of epic proportions as Hadrek awakens.
Cadel, a massive warrior gifted with the skills, acumen, and conviction to become the greatest hero ever born in Ganden, leaves his home deep in Lobana Forest to join the Baksa, a unit of elite warriors gathered from all the realms.
After getting promoted to the Rangers, he catches a young thief in the act. His convictions force him to make a choice that will change both of their lives forever. As he transports the thief to Arukah Prison far across the realm, Cadel is unaware that Sa’res Maeve is hunting the young man as well. A harrowing chase leaves a bloody trail across Ganden as Sa’res will do anything to return an ancient amulet to her chieftain deep in the Niph’al Swamps.
From the Midbaros Desert to the jungle realm of Tamayar, Cadel is caught in a dangerous game with stakes that reach far beyond a simple thief’s life. With the long-dormant power of Hadrek stirring beneath the surface, and the threat of war hanging over the realms, Cadel is about to be unleashed.
I found Kuffel’s characters to be well developed; his main protagonists and antagonists are intriguing and multifaceted. The action scenes, especially the extended battle sequences, are well-wrought—and sometimes brutal. This book is decidedly PG-13 (and pushing the upper limits of that rating in some of the most violent moments), but the light in the story is as bright as the dark is dark. The biblical motifs that gradually become evident add depth. Kuffel’s story-world leaves the impression of being expansive, vibrant, and detailed, yet he doesn’t test the reader with gratuitous description.
At times, the world felt to me like the Vaporous Realms in an alternate dimension. And if the author uses a big word sometimes where a little one would do the trick, well, I’m guilty of the same.
The conclusion of the story—no spoilers!—is immensely satisfying. I, for one, am ready for more.
I hope you’ll take a minute and scope out Unleashed for yourself!