So This Is Ever After

So This Is Ever After is a great sequel to a book that does not exist.

Perfectly serviceable fun is the tale of Arek, Matt, and a rag tag group of cardboard cutouts with varying surface-level complexities yet seldom any real depth. The book begins at the end but not at the end of any good fantasy novel, it starts at the end of a generic fairytale where the Vile One is slain by a teenage chosen one.
The whole plot rests on the worst trope imaginable: miscommunication. I think we can all get over even the tropes we dislike when they are done well, in a believable way. Not the case here what-so-ever. The hoops the plots jumps through just to allow itself to transpire is laughable. From the first few chapters you know the entire ending.

There is a book missing. A whole book of this group of rag tag adventurers that go together to defeat the villain. Essentially, this book is missing Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. We know nothing of these characters and we learn very little of them. This needed to cut out 100 pages of nonsense and replace it with 150 pages of the actual adventure. There are realistically no stakes.
The idea of exploring what happens after the death of the villain is sound and in fantasy seldom tackled. Issues arise when there is no actual difficulty to establishing a new monarchy and regime of King Arek who is bound to the throne by way of happenstance.
‘So This Is Ever After' is what happens after the disasterous ending of the ‘Game of Thrones' TV show! Everything just works...somehow. A person in charge of the money can be a peasant, they definitely have experience. Good that the Big Bad filled the castle with gold else there would be stakes outside of Arek's curse.

The plot hinges on Arek being bound to the throne of Ere. He has to find a spouse by his eighteenth birthday else he pulls Marty McFly and vanishes away. This makes no sense at all for several reasons that sadly reside in the Kingdom of Spoilers.
It could also be circumvented very easily.

“Dear [character], for the sake of political alliance and my own survival, I shall marry you. Although expect no love from me. Thank you.

at all

Chickpea

So This Is Ever After

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