Despite being about as clueless about MMA as one can possibly get, there was something undeniably interesting to me about the idea of a book that promises to blend MMA fighting with epic fantasy. Wizards shooting spells are well and good, but every now and then, you just want to see someone get suckerpunched in a story. The Next Goldlighter by Rob Cozander delivers on that unusual combination in ways I didn’t expect. This is a debut that wears its anime and martial arts influences proudly on its sleeve, delivering no shortage of fast-paced action.
The plot is both fairly straightforward and slightly difficult to summarise, but I’ll try. Opren Saphren is a nineteen-year-old small-town MMA fighter whose biggest concern is winning his next kickboxing match, until his twentieth birthday shatters everything. Nightmarish snake-like monsters burn down his house and brutally murder his parents, and Opren inherits a golden orb left to him by his grandfather.
The orb will soon transform him into the Goldlighter, a legendary warrior wrapped in glowing golden light, wielding a sword and supernatural power. Fleeing through a portal to Everniot, a parallel fantasy realm made up of elves and beasts, Opren is rescued by Emerald, a strong-willed Light-Elf princess. She brings him to Rhahkmant’e, a hidden training facility, where he must learn to control his unstable powers while battling grief for his parents. Will Opren master his powers before they consume him, and will he manage to avenge his parents? I hope so!
Cozander’s writing has a clean, accessible quality that makes the action easy to follow while still delivering emotional punch. The prose is notably well-edited, in fact basically flawlessly with genuinely beautiful passages scattered throughout. Lines like, “As Opren left the house with his parents still asleep, the sun started to reveal itself with golds and pastels to break the lingering midnight blue” showcase the author’s ability to create vivid, cinematic imagery. I particularly appreciated the use of italicized thoughts throughout to provide a deeper immersion.
I would say the book is primarily aimed at a YA and New Adult audience, as though there is some violence none of it feels too gory. The writer’s apparent interest in martial arts clearly informs the visceral, grounded combat scenes, whether Opren is kickboxing on Earth or wielding elemental magic in Everniot. Still, the author doesn’t shy away from darkness. The murder of Opren’s parents comes pretty early on (so, hopefully it doesn’t count as spoilers), and that’s obviously never fun. But the story balances this with plenty of moments of humor and budding romance.
The world-building is where this novel truly shines. Cozander has clearly invested a lot of effort into developing Everniot’s cosmology and mythology. The dual-world structure creates an engaging portal fantasy dynamic, though I’ll admit I found the setting slightly confusing at first. The book is set in contemporary times in North Carolina, but there’s minimal presence of modern technology such as phones. The name “Opren”, also took me a moment to adjust to because it reminded me of “Oprah,” which created an odd mental image initially.
That said, once I settled into the story’s logic, it pretty much captivated me. The author has built an imaginative world, with lots of thoughtful details such as enchanted tattoos that serve as magical identification, granwolves (talking wolves), and an elvish language with terms like “Ve harron” and “Laleiy” (a term of endearment). As someone who loves conlangs and fantasy languages, I appreciated these touches. The magic system, centered around “Nuuita” energy and elemental casting, feels clearly thought out. Emerald warns Opren, “Be careful not to overuse it until you increase your Nuuita and mastery. If you expend all your Nuuita, it might take life energy. If that is gone, you die.”
The story is told primarily from Opren’s perspective, and the relationship between Opren and Emerald forms the emotional core of the novel. Emerald is a confident and capable Light-Elf princess who serves as guide for Opren through Everniot. She’s the definition of a strong female character, and their dialogue is enjoyable and fun to read, “…The Goldlight essence seems to make me more spontaneous and boldly confident,” Opren says. “I’m not sure whether to be more frustrated or aroused,” replies Emerald. “But you did win. Congratulations.”
I should note that the book clearly sets up a sequel with multiple largely unresolved plotlines. Readers expecting a conclusive, self-contained story may feel this is more of a Book 1 setup than a complete narrative arc. Minor observations: there are no chapter titles, just numbered chapters, which works fine for navigation but I always prefer chapter titles (slight personal preference). Also, the font is debatably a bit small in our edition, at least. But these are negligible issues in an otherwise polished debut.
The novel’s MMA influence comes through most clearly in Opren’s close-quarters brawls, where real striking technique merges with the supernatural explosiveness of his “Goldlighter” abilities. His confrontation with the villainous High King Rykeron captures this perfectly. The choreography stays grounded even as magic amplifies every blow, illustrated in the moment where “he punched Rykeron in the gut, cracking the armor further than Emerald had already done. Another punch cracked the gauntlet Rykeron used to block, then he kicked Rykeron to knock the king back a few paces.” It’s the type of scene that makes you wish the book would get an adaptation, so you could see it on the big screen.
At its heart, this is a good-natured story with a deep imagination. The Next Goldlighter is a promising series starter that successfully merges elves and MMA, no easy feat. While the ending leaves major threads dangling for Book 2, readers who enjoy loveable characters, strong escapist world-building and anime-inspired action sequences will find much to love here. Despite my minor quibbles, I feel the positives of this book outweigh the negatives, so I’m giving it five stars.
Final verdict: It’s clear Cozander has poured tremendous love into this debut, and I’m curious to see where the series goes next. A heartwarming yet at times gritty fantasy novel that celebrates found family, with an immersive, vividly imagined elven world. Perfect for fans of Eragon, Percy Jackson, and Avatar: The Last Airbender, and readers who are looking for fantasy that feels familiar but also does something creative.
You can get your copy of “The Next Goldlighter” here!
