{"id":824,"date":"2022-07-06T14:52:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-06T14:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/?p=824"},"modified":"2022-06-18T15:00:06","modified_gmt":"2022-06-18T15:00:06","slug":"orb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/orb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart","title":{"rendered":"Orb and Arrow: Exploration &#8211; V. L. Stuart"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"shariff shariff-align-flex-start shariff-widget-align-flex-start\" data-services=\"pinterest%7Cfacebook%7Creddit\" data-url=\"https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart\" data-timestamp=\"1655564406\" data-hidezero=\"1\" data-backendurl=\"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/shariff\/v1\/share_counts?\"><ul class=\"shariff-buttons theme-round orientation-horizontal buttonsize-small\"><li class=\"shariff-button twitter shariff-nocustomcolor\" style=\"background-color:#32bbf5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart&text=Orb%20and%20Arrow%3A%20Exploration%20%E2%80%93%20V.%20L.%20Stuart\" title=\"Share on Twitter\" aria-label=\"Share on Twitter\" role=\"button\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"shariff-link\" style=\"; background-color:#55acee; color:#fff\" target=\"_blank\"><span class=\"shariff-icon\" style=\"\"><svg width=\"32px\" height=\"20px\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 30 32\"><path fill=\"#55acee\" d=\"M29.7 6.8q-1.2 1.8-3 3.1 0 0.3 0 0.8 0 2.5-0.7 4.9t-2.2 4.7-3.5 4-4.9 2.8-6.1 1q-5.1 0-9.3-2.7 0.6 0.1 1.5 0.1 4.3 0 7.6-2.6-2-0.1-3.5-1.2t-2.2-3q0.6 0.1 1.1 0.1 0.8 0 1.6-0.2-2.1-0.4-3.5-2.1t-1.4-3.9v-0.1q1.3 0.7 2.8 0.8-1.2-0.8-2-2.2t-0.7-2.9q0-1.7 0.8-3.1 2.3 2.8 5.5 4.5t7 1.9q-0.2-0.7-0.2-1.4 0-2.5 1.8-4.3t4.3-1.8q2.7 0 4.5 1.9 2.1-0.4 3.9-1.5-0.7 2.2-2.7 3.4 1.8-0.2 3.5-0.9z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"shariff-button pinterest shariff-nocustomcolor\" style=\"background-color:#e70f18\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/link\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart&media=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F06%2Forb-and-arrow-.png&description=Orb%20and%20Arrow%3A%20Exploration%20%E2%80%93%20V.%20L.%20Stuart\" title=\"Pin it on Pinterest\" aria-label=\"Pin it on Pinterest\" role=\"button\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"shariff-link\" style=\"; 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background-color:#3b5998; color:#fff\" target=\"_blank\"><span class=\"shariff-icon\" style=\"\"><svg width=\"32px\" height=\"20px\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 18 32\"><path fill=\"#3b5998\" d=\"M17.1 0.2v4.7h-2.8q-1.5 0-2.1 0.6t-0.5 1.9v3.4h5.2l-0.7 5.3h-4.5v13.6h-5.5v-13.6h-4.5v-5.3h4.5v-3.9q0-3.3 1.9-5.2t5-1.8q2.6 0 4.1 0.2z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"shariff-button reddit shariff-nocustomcolor\" style=\"background-color:#ff5700\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart\" title=\"Share on Reddit\" aria-label=\"Share on Reddit\" role=\"button\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"shariff-link\" style=\"; background-color:#ff4500; color:#fff\" target=\"_blank\"><span class=\"shariff-icon\" style=\"\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 512 512\"><path fill=\"#ff4500\" d=\"M440.3 203.5c-15 0-28.2 6.2-37.9 15.9-35.7-24.7-83.8-40.6-137.1-42.3L293 52.3l88.2 19.8c0 21.6 17.6 39.2 39.2 39.2 22 0 39.7-18.1 39.7-39.7s-17.6-39.7-39.7-39.7c-15.4 0-28.7 9.3-35.3 22l-97.4-21.6c-4.9-1.3-9.7 2.2-11 7.1L246.3 177c-52.9 2.2-100.5 18.1-136.3 42.8-9.7-10.1-23.4-16.3-38.4-16.3-55.6 0-73.8 74.6-22.9 100.1-1.8 7.9-2.6 16.3-2.6 24.7 0 83.8 94.4 151.7 210.3 151.7 116.4 0 210.8-67.9 210.8-151.7 0-8.4-.9-17.2-3.1-25.1 49.9-25.6 31.5-99.7-23.8-99.7zM129.4 308.9c0-22 17.6-39.7 39.7-39.7 21.6 0 39.2 17.6 39.2 39.7 0 21.6-17.6 39.2-39.2 39.2-22 .1-39.7-17.6-39.7-39.2zm214.3 93.5c-36.4 36.4-139.1 36.4-175.5 0-4-3.5-4-9.7 0-13.7 3.5-3.5 9.7-3.5 13.2 0 27.8 28.5 120 29 149 0 3.5-3.5 9.7-3.5 13.2 0 4.1 4 4.1 10.2.1 13.7zm-.8-54.2c-21.6 0-39.2-17.6-39.2-39.2 0-22 17.6-39.7 39.2-39.7 22 0 39.7 17.6 39.7 39.7-.1 21.5-17.7 39.2-39.7 39.2z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n<p>\ud83c\udf15\ud83c\udf15\ud83c\udf15\ud83c\udf11\ud83c\udf11<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Brillar is a headstrong woman, determined to forge her own path in life &#8211; instead of the one that had been presumed for her. She&#8217;s a capable archer and hunter, and a talented healer using magic, and so is able to travel alone and make enough coin to support herself. When she happens upon an open fire one night, she&#8217;s almost accosted, but for an almost undetectable voice warning her of the imminent danger. That&#8217;s when she meets the strange Elden, and frees him of his magical bonds. He&#8217;s severely ill, and she heals him back to health &#8211; and as a thank you, he makes her his apprentice of the arcane, magical arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>OK, so I know that&#8217;s a fairly trite summary, that Brillar and Elden have many, many adventures in this story &#8211; but it&#8217;s the heart of it. Elden feels he owes Brillar for freeing him from the tortuous dimlock collar that has sunken into his skin and parts him from the source of his powers <em>the light.<\/em> Brillar feels that now she has freed him and nursed him back to health, she must ensure he doesn&#8217;t get captured again. But, in a way, she&#8217;s also saving her own skin. For a mage to be bonded by a dimlock, they must have committed a great crime &#8211; and for her to free one, it could easily mean death. Is she travelling with him to ensure he tells no one she&#8217;s the one who freed him? Or is it a genuine feeling of duty to ensure he returns to full health?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My main problem with <em>Orb and Arrow: Exploration <\/em>was that in parts it was a little confusing and also dull. While Stuart made a commendable attempt at using rustic, antiquated English when characters were conversing &#8211; at times it was somewhat convoluted and didn&#8217;t actually seem to make much sense. Also, there were times when every single little detail was spelt out (such as the exact vegetables that were in a stew) which contrasted with the hastily acted out scenes that could really have done with much more description and explanation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In all, I honestly enjoyed the overall story arc and the vast array of characters, who grew with the story (Brillar&#8217;s opening naivety, through to strong, battle worn and confident). I&#8217;m looking forward to Elden and Brillar&#8217;s story as it continues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>S. A<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First published on Reedsy Discovery as part of their ARC.  You can read the <a href=\"https:\/\/reedsy.com\/discovery\/book\/orb-and-arrow-exploration-vl-stuart#review\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">original review here. <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can purchase <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Orb-Arrow-Exploration-Book-1-ebook\/dp\/B0B1HKS8SQ\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2RHIDRBWUYJJT&amp;keywords=v+l+stuart&amp;qid=1655564153&amp;sprefix=v+l+stuart%2Caps%2C95&amp;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"broken_link\">Orb and Arrow: Exploration<\/a> <\/em>by clicking on its name. It is also available to read for free on Kindle Unlimited. <\/p>\n<div class=\"shariff shariff-align-flex-start shariff-widget-align-flex-start\" data-services=\"pinterest%7Cfacebook%7Creddit\" data-url=\"https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart\" data-timestamp=\"1655564406\" data-hidezero=\"1\" data-backendurl=\"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/shariff\/v1\/share_counts?\"><ul class=\"shariff-buttons theme-round orientation-horizontal buttonsize-small\"><li class=\"shariff-button twitter shariff-nocustomcolor\" style=\"background-color:#32bbf5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart&text=Orb%20and%20Arrow%3A%20Exploration%20%E2%80%93%20V.%20L.%20Stuart\" title=\"Share on Twitter\" aria-label=\"Share on Twitter\" role=\"button\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"shariff-link\" style=\"; background-color:#55acee; color:#fff\" target=\"_blank\"><span class=\"shariff-icon\" style=\"\"><svg width=\"32px\" height=\"20px\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 30 32\"><path fill=\"#55acee\" d=\"M29.7 6.8q-1.2 1.8-3 3.1 0 0.3 0 0.8 0 2.5-0.7 4.9t-2.2 4.7-3.5 4-4.9 2.8-6.1 1q-5.1 0-9.3-2.7 0.6 0.1 1.5 0.1 4.3 0 7.6-2.6-2-0.1-3.5-1.2t-2.2-3q0.6 0.1 1.1 0.1 0.8 0 1.6-0.2-2.1-0.4-3.5-2.1t-1.4-3.9v-0.1q1.3 0.7 2.8 0.8-1.2-0.8-2-2.2t-0.7-2.9q0-1.7 0.8-3.1 2.3 2.8 5.5 4.5t7 1.9q-0.2-0.7-0.2-1.4 0-2.5 1.8-4.3t4.3-1.8q2.7 0 4.5 1.9 2.1-0.4 3.9-1.5-0.7 2.2-2.7 3.4 1.8-0.2 3.5-0.9z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/li><li class=\"shariff-button pinterest shariff-nocustomcolor\" style=\"background-color:#e70f18\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/link\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fhome%2Forb-and-arrow-exploration-v-l-stuart&media=https%3A%2F%2Findiebooknook.co.uk%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F06%2Forb-and-arrow-.png&description=Orb%20and%20Arrow%3A%20Exploration%20%E2%80%93%20V.%20L.%20Stuart\" title=\"Pin it on Pinterest\" aria-label=\"Pin it on Pinterest\" role=\"button\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"shariff-link\" style=\"; 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instead of the one that had been presumed for her. She&#8217;s a capable archer and hunter, and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":825,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[205,7,120,9,8,256,67,4,259,505],"tags":[15,42,18,11,14,20,41,19,507,68,506],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=824"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":826,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/824\/revisions\/826"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indiebooknook.co.uk\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}