The Chronicle of Heloise & Grimple

A Serial Adventure (in Collected Form)

Fiction - Fantasy - General
178 Pages
Reviewed on 11/01/2016
Buy on Amazon

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Author Biography

Sean Gibson is not a professional mini biography writer (if he were, this would be much more compelling). Instead, he’s a marketing professional by day, hangs out with his amazing wife, son, and daughter by night, and writes somewhere in between. He holds a BA in English Literature from Ohio Wesleyan University and an MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University, but he really wishes he had been able to matriculate at Hogwarts (he would have been in Hufflepuff for sure). Sean is a fan of sports teams from Detroit, a distressingly large number of bands that rose to prominence in the 1980s, and writing in the third person. He currently resides in Northern Virginia, and, given how much he hates moving, and given that his house has an awesome library, is likely to remain there for some time.

In addition to The Chronicle of Heloise & Grimple, Sean is the author of The Camelot Shadow and has written extensively for Kirkus Reviews; his book reviews have also appeared in Esquire.

Follow him on Twitter @Gibknight

    Book Review

Reviewed by Kris Moger for Readers' Favorite

The Chronicles of Heloise and Grimple by Sean Gibson is a clever and quirky adventure. It centers on Heloise, a sarcastic, clever half-elf, who makes a living as a bard and adventurer. And her partner, Grimple, a hill giant under an inconvenient enchantment, which gets in the way of their adventuring abilities. In hopes of breaking the enchantment, they enlist the help of Kevil, an inexperienced wizard lacking in confidence, and Rappy, a cranky but capable dwarf, who has an intimate past with Heloise. Together, they face a deceptive being of powerful magic, with plans of its own. Can they defeat it and fix Grimple, or lose in more ways than they ever imagined.

In The Chronicles of Heloise and Grimple, Sean Gibson executes a humorous tale filled with enjoyable dilemmas and colourful characters. Heloise is a terrific mix of playful and capable confidence, and Grimple's situation leads to no end of problems. Sean Gibson's writing is wacky and fun with a wonderful touch of innuendo. The dialogue creates great banter between characters, and the world is vibrant and intriguing. From beginning to end, this story is an enjoyable read, and Mr. Gibson has the potential to be the next Terry Pratchett. If you like stories filled with wit and action, you will find The Chronicles of Heloise and Grimple an entertaining read. I highly recommend giving this book a chance. Thanks for the read.

Hilary Hawkes

The Chronicles of Heloise and Grimple by Sean Gibson is a fun and entertaining fantasy adventure. Thief turned Bard Heloise, and her hill giant companion, Grimple, must find the lich or wizard who turned Grimple into a bizarre looking creature as payback for crossing him. And Grimple desperately wants his missing club back too. They enlist the help of Kevil, the wizard they kidnap, and set off on a hazardous, hilarious journey. En route they encounter a talking well, bats, dragons, a magically spooky and ghostly shop and eventually The Dwarves of Dormenklehs. The trio has plenty of brilliant plans and magic of their own, but can they overcome the creatures and obstacles that stand in their way?

Sean Gibson’s plot romps along at a wonderfully entertaining pace. I was intrigued and hooked from the start. To me, the story was a cross between a traditional fantasy adventure with magic, spells, challenges and journeys and a hilarious parody. I loved the characters – a lovely mixture of individuals, each one unique and well depicted, and essential to the plot. Heloise's talent for music and singing made her extra interesting and gave a musical flavor to places in the plot. I found the whole adventure delightfully easy to imagine and loved the mix of magic, challenges and funny moments. The story is very much character led as all good stories normally are. The author describes scenes and situations with clarity and enough detail to enable the reader to experience the story, but without slowing down the plot and pace. An enjoyable read and recommended for fans of comedy and fantasy adventures.

Melinda Hills

Heloise, the beautiful half elf/half human bard and Grimple, her bewitched hill giant sidekick, embark on an adventure to track down the undead Lich who cast the spell in The Chronicle of Heloise & Grimple: A Serial Adventure by Sean Gibson. Due to a misunderstanding over a poker game, Grimple has been left mute and shrunken, even though he is still extremely strong. Knowing that they need some help, the adventuresome pair tracks down a wizard to try to reverse the spell, but encounter an unforeseen consequence. Then, they attempt to retrieve ‘Banger’, Grimple’s trusty weapon, and need all their cunning and plenty of luck. Moving on, they hope to get some more help from a dwarf, Rappy, who Grimple thinks owes him money, but they quickly discover things are not what they seem to be in the dwarfs' stronghold, Dormenklehs. The group continues on to their goal and the question is whether or not they can find the Lich, reverse the spell, and look forward to further fun-filled adventures.

With plenty of adventure and full of excitement, The Chronicle of Heloise & Grimple: A Serial Adventure by Sean Gibson is rollicking good fun! The characters are wonderfully nuanced, the action is fast-paced and the writing is so clever it is an absolute pleasure to read. Jokes, double entendres, and just the right amount of dim-wittedness spice up the story that keeps you laughing as you eagerly turn the pages. The plot flows smoothly from adventure to adventure and, even with a happy resolution, you hope that there will be more to come! This is a great read that will amuse you long after you close the book.