The Unremarkable Squire

Great book! Unfortunately, it's not published yet. The Unremarkable Squire is my husband's piece of work. Although it's not his first book, he began writing it in college for a senior project, put it aside in favor of another novel for his senior project, and finally found the time to finish it this year.

I'm reviewing it now since I just read the complete manuscript for the first time, but you all will have to wait a year or three until the book gets through the submission and publication process. I'm confident it will although it's a book probably unlike anything you've ever read.

We've all read or watched or heard the stories of knights and princesses, fantasy tales with strong heros and beautiful heroines. The Unremarkable Squire is like the behind-the-scenes version, casting all the extras and misfits as its main characters. The squire himself is Obed Kainos, a boy approaching manhood, who lives a simple life and keeps to himself and is thrust into service quite accidentally.

What follows is high adventure, taken on by the lowest and humblest (or not) cast of characters, comprised of servants, thieves, bumbling guards, and monsters. Though much like a spoof with the driest of humor liberally flavoring it, the plot is also serious, kept so by the deeply introverted Obed, who swears a squire's oath and means to follow it to the letter, no matter what. He fights mages and thieves, even death, as he learns what it means to be a squire and what it means to be human.

Obed is unique because, unlike other heros whose motivations for acting the way they do are obvious, Obed isn't really motivated in the normal way. He is a boy who does what he must because he said he would. An apparently boring character becomes a fascinating hero as nothing deters him from his mission.

Nick Hayden can't write a normal story, and that's why you should read him. You will find yourself intrigued by the simplest of people and laughing until the very last line.
 

ADDENDUM (June 19, 2012): I have changed this post to reflect the new title of what was before simply The Squire because this book is soon to be published under that new title. Barking Rain Press accepted Nick's manuscript and will be releasing it near the end of this year.

ADDENDUM (August 7, 2015): The Unremarkable Squire is published and can be purchased from Barking Rain Press or Amazon.