REVIEW: The Usurper by Rowena Cory Daniells

The Usurper by Rowena Cory Daniells
Publishing Information: Paperback; 448 pages
Publisher: Solaris (2 Sep 2010 - UK, 31 Aug 2010 - US & CA)
ISBN 10: 1907519068
ISBN 13: 978-1907519062
Series: 3rd book of King Rolen's Kin
Copies: Provided by the publisher (Yagiz); Out of pocket (Tyson)
Reviewers: Yagiz and Tyson

Now a slave, Piro finds herself in the Merofynian Palace where, if her real identity is discovered, she will be executed.

Meanwhile, Fyn is desperate to help his brother, Bryen, who is now the uncrowned King.

Bryen never sought power but now he finds himself at the centre of a dangerous resistance movement as the people of Rolencia flee vicious invaders. How can Byren defeat the invaders, when half his warriors are women and children, and the other half are untrained boys and old men?

Yagiz

The beginning of the book is just like the reader would like it to be: dropped into the action straight-away. This third book of the series continues from the point where The Uncrowned King left off.

Daniells' style is still pleasant and The Usurper is a fast-paced and easy-to-read book, just like the previous books. However because this is the last book of the trilogy, I expected some surprises, plot twists, revelations about the setting but unfortunately I was left unsatisfied on various points.

I'm going to try to give an example without spoilers: At this point in the book, we know that an Affinity seep is bad a thing but we don't know what happens to the infected. This remains a mystery. We know the infected becomes evil but there is no specific information about it, no anecdotes told by characters, no references to any historical figures, etc. The reader is hoping to find out more about it in The Usurper, it being the last book. In the story, when one of the secondary characters might be infected, the expectation builds up but this thread dies off without any explanation or elaboration. To tell you the truth the same story thread ends abruptly, as if it had an awkward editor's cut.

I was also disappointed with the end. It gave the impression that it was rushed out. I was hoping for a more imaginative ending. Even though it may seem absurd to talk about realism, it is important, in general, to remain true to the setting. Especially towards the end, the plot and the details left me hoping for better.

The character development follows the same lines drawn by the first two books. I'm surprised that the characters didn't show any further development. My favourite characters were Piro and Fyn however I can't qualify them as memorable.

The King Rolen's Kin trilogy is a fast-paced and easy-to-read trilogy. The best word that comes to my mind qualifying these three books are "affordable". I don't doubt that they are going to please to a great audience: mature as well as young adult. However, readers looking for epic fantasy with realistic battles, detailed settings and memorable characters would be disappointed.

Plot: 6
Characters: 6
Style: 8

Overall: 7/10

Tyson

I was hoping for quite a lot more than what I received when I finished The Usurper. The book left me with a lot of questions and very few answers. Yagiz managed to bring most of them to light without containing spoilers and the other "holes" would spoil things so, I will not be bringing them up.

However, while I enjoyed books 1 and 2, I did not like this finale like I thought I would. The entire book felt disjointed and rushed. While there were a few characters I was dying to know more about, Dunstany, being the one I wanted the most background information for. Once I found out, I was no longer interested in things. There were as Yagiz points out, no twists. Everything comes to a close and it is done about as tidy as one could hope for. For all of the series' build up it was rather anti-climatic. A huge disappointment. It was as if Daniells had a maximum word count she was allowed and stuck to her quota.

The book does leave us with a cliff hanger of sorts as it is open for sequels to see how things unfold after the ending of The Usurper. However, the way things ended, I highly doubt I will be interested in returning to this world. The series was fairly impressive in its early stages but by the conclusion it seemed to stumble on its own feet and fell flat on its face. What was turning out to be a lite version of A Song of Ice and Fire turns out to be nothing like what I was hoping for or expecting. A major bummer.

Plot:  6
Characters:  7
Style:  5

Overall:  5/10

REVIEW: The Uncrowned King by Rowena Cory Daniells

The Uncrowned King by Rowena Cory Daniells
Publishing Information: Paperback; 448 pages
Publisher: Solaris (5 Aug 2010 - UK, 27 Jul 2010 - US & CA)
ISBN 10: 1907519041
ISBN 13: 978-1907519048
Series: 2nd book of King Rolen's Kin
Copies: Provided by the publisher (Yagiz); Out of pocket (Tyson)
Reviewers: Yagiz and Tyson

Thirteen year old Piro watches powerless as her father’s enemies march on his castle. A traitor whispers poison in the King’s ear, undermining his trust in her brother, Byren.

Determined to prove his loyalty, Byren races across the path of the advancing army, towards the Abbey. Somehow, he must get there in time to convince the Abbot to send his warriors to defend the castle.

Meanwhile, the youngest of King Rolen’s sons, Fyn, has barely begun his training as an Abbey mystic, but he wakes in a cold sweat, haunted by dreams of betrayal...

Yagiz

Solaris did a great job in publishing King Rolen's Kin books back to back with only 4 weeks of waiting time in between installments (The King's Bastard: 8 July 2010, The Uncrowned King: 5 Aug 2010, The Usurper: 2 Sep 2010 in the UK). Therefore, if the reader likes The King's Bastard, as I think most of you would, you don't have to wait long before the next book becomes available in your favorite bookshop. There's also no need to worry about the ever-slipping publishing dates.

The story and the events of The Uncrowned King continues from the same point corresponding to the end of The King's Bastard. It is obvious that the installments are not meant to be read as standalones, which is also confirmed by the very close release dates. It feels like a one big continuous story that is broken into three pieces.

The Uncrowned King is considerably shorter than the first volume. Without the introductory type of chapters, it comes across like a faster and more action-packed book. However the plot has less twists and turns that surprise the reader. During our chats with Tyson, we both agreed that the most intriguing character of the book was Lord Dunstany. Without giving any spoilers, let's say that his motives are not clear so we are in for some surprises in the last installment of the series.

Usually it is easy to get disappointed with the second book of a trilogy as the excitement of the beginning and the curiosity of the conclusion are not there. But Daniells delivers a strong second book that is as enjoyable as the first one. If you liked The King's Bastard, this book won't disappoint you. And at the end, I am sure you will want to order your copy of The Usurper.

Plot: 8
Characters: 7
Style: 8

Overall: 8/10

Tyson

The second book in the King Rolen's Kin series is a quick and fast read. I really enjoyed book one and The Uncrowned King picks up right were the first book leaves off and it hits the ground at a sprint.

With the first book out of the way and the plot set up, The Uncrowned King has a chance to settle down and tell a story. We have a few new developments for some of our main characters that I do not really want to spoil but it does have a nod to A Song of Ice and Fire to a certain degree. We also gain more insight into the enemy. There is political intrigue at every turn.

My favorite character in this novel was Lord Dunstany. His motivation is unclear and just where he fits in the "Game of Thrones" is unknown. He seems to be much more than our average magic welder and he seems to have a better understanding of what is going on more then anyone else in the novel. Every time he was in a scene in the book he surprised me with his ability to command and delve into the truth of the matter and glean information that no one else in the room could. He will be the one I watch when the series comes to a close in the next installment.

I was expecting the book to be similar to most second installments in a trilogy with everything looking bleak and as dark as possible but by the end of The Uncrowned King there is light at the end of the tunnel for many of the players. That does not mean all is well, but there is hope for some. A lot has yet to be resolved and I look forward to seeing how that comes about. Daniells has managed to create a light version of A Song of Ice and Fire. Lots of political intrigue, constant backstabbing, large packs of wolves, a kingdom and realm in turmoil, and limited magic in a snow covered world. Best of all, the trilogy is complete so you don't have to wait the better part of a decade for things to come to a close. The Uncrowned King and the opening book in the series, The King's Bastard have their flaws. But it is a series that does what it is suppose to do - entertain you. It is a light read that looks to be coming to a spectacular close. Stay tune as we will bring you the review for the final book in the series soon, The Upsurper.

Plot: 7.5
Characters: 9
Style: 8

Overall: 7.5/10

REVIEW: The King's Bastard by Rowena Cory Daniells

The King's Bastard by Rowena Cory Daniells
Publishing Information: Paperback; 448 pages
Publisher: Solaris; 31 June 2010
ISBN 10: 1907519017
ISBN 13: 978-1907519017
Series: book 1 of King Rolen's Kin Trilogy
Tyson's copy out of pocket/ Yagiz copy provided by publisher
Reviewers: Tyson and Yagiz

Back of the Book: "Cloaked in silent winter snow the Kingdom of Rolencia sleeps as rumours spread of new Affinity Seeps, places where untamed power wells up. Meanwhile, King Rolen plans his jubilee unaware of the growing threat to those he loves.

By royal decree, all those afflicted with Affinity must serve the Abbey or face death. Sent to the Abbey because of his innate Affinity, the King’s youngest son, Fyn, trains to become a warrior monk. Unfortunately, he’s a gentle dreamer and the other acolytes bully him. The only way he can escape them is to serve the Abbey Mystic, but his Affinity is weak.

Fiercely loyal, thirteen year-old Piro is horrified to discover she is also cursed with unwanted Affinity. It broke their mother’s heart to send Fyn away, so she hides her affliction. But, when Fyn confesses his troubles, Piro risks exposure to help him.

Even though Byren Kingson is only seven minutes younger than his twin, Lence, who is the king's heir, Byren has never hungered for the Rolencian throne. When a Seer predicts that he will kill Lence, he laughs. But Lence Kingsheir sees Byren’s growing popularity and resents it. Enduring loyalty could be Byren’s greatest failing."

Tyson

The title alone tells you that you are dealing with something familiar and yet something very different. In Daniells' The King's Bastard we find ourselves with a tight-knit royal family that upon closer inspection is anything close. Political intrigue is found in every corner and no one is safe from the plans of a few cunning individuals.

King Roland and his family start out as cookie cutter characters and then in the blink of an eye everything is turned upside down. We follow the exploits of three of his children, Bryson, Fyn and Piro. Bryson is our main character and Roland's second son, I found myself really liking him from the beginning. He is honorable and trustworthy and will do whatever is necessary to get the job done while protecting those weaker and less fortunate than himself. Piro is Roland's only daughter and reminds me of Arya from George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series. She is headstrong, always getting into trouble and loyal to a fault. Finally, we have Fyn the third son of King Roland and forced to become a warrior monk. Fyn is an interesting character simply for the fact that he has sacrificed a great deal for his family and while he does not enjoy his time at the monastery he does what he must for his family. There is a lot of mystery surrounding Fyn and his order. I think that in the books to come we will be surprised with what happens to him.

The plots in The King's Bastard are fast and furious as we have two political intrigues going on. One is with the royal family and another is located at the monastery where Fyn is training to become accepted into the order and make a life for himself. There is also the plot of invaders entering the kingdom and making life hard for the kingdom's subjects. Daniells does a superb job of keeping them all separated and yet having them intertwine to keep you on your toes and yet not getting you confused as you move from point of view to point of view. There are also a few other plots that I will not spoil for you.

The world building in The King's Bastard is strong in parts and weak in others. The strength in world building lies in its history. The King's Bastard seems to have a well developed history. The timeline of events seem to be well constructed. My issue with the world building is in the map that is found in the front of the novel. The world seems very small. The locations that Rowena talks about seem light years away but, according to the map, are no more than a few hundred miles away (some even less than that). I get the feeling that the world is much, much larger than the map depicts and yet the map makes me feel as though I am completely wrong. It might just be a prospective issue but I took pause on occasion to attempt to get my bearings. It is a small complaint but I thought I would mention the one minor flaw I had with the book.

By the end of The King's Bastard I was ready for more. Even though Solaris has plans to release the trilogy in consecutive months, it is a long time to wait for what just might be one of my favorite books of the year. It is definitely one of the strongest debuts of the year.

Plot 9
Characters 9
Style 8

Overall 8.5/10

Yagiz

I know we shouldn't judge books by their covers but good covers are good first impressions. And I have to admit that I had been curious about The King's Bastard since I first saw its cover. Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed with what I discovered. A few minor complaints aside, the book was very entertaining and I greatly enjoyed it.

The author's style was one of the reasons why this book was glued to my hands. Daniells has a smooth and welcoming style. From the first page the reader gets a feeling of familiarity, and not in a bad way. Each section is written from the point of view of a Protagonist. Even though there was a few situations that I could qualify as sudden point-of-view shifting or leaking, it was well executed. Needless to say, this type of story-telling appeals to me very much.

More than a few times, the story contains man-against-the-beast moments where a magical beast threatens the life of a protagonist. This is probably fine for most readers but I enjoy stories where men doesn't have to dominate the nature by becoming the main predator. The book contains too much animal hunting to my taste. I enjoy stories more when men face men, the first source of wickedness in the known universe. Animals as villains are not very exciting. Having said that the story has enough ups and downs with court intrigues, well guarded secrets, jealousies, hidden agendas and traitors so that the reader keeps turning the pages hungrily.

The author constructed her story on multiple well-balanced story threads. The story is captivating and the reader feels engaged from the first pages. In more than one occasion, The King's Bastard reminded of G. R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire but the tone of the story was not as mature as I'd like a perfect story to have. At first, I thought it was because most of the main characters were young however as I continued through the book, I noticed that it doesn't feel very mature because of the characters in general and not because of their ages. The characters are not very complex, which makes their actions somehow predictable. I couldn't help by feeling nostalgic when Pino reminded me of G. R. R. Martin's Arya and her brother Fyn reminded me of Robin Hobb's Wintrow from the Liveship Traders Trilogy.

Daniells' use of outlawed magic is not an original idea however her execution is very satisfactory. This magic that needs to be contained and controlled is not only part of the nature but can also be part of men, in which case, upon discovery, the magic bearer's life can change completely. Throughout the book, the reader learns more about this soul-tainting magic however it is obvious that there is more to be discovered in the future installments of the series.

One of the surprising touches of this book was the discovery of one of the protagonists' homosexuality. The book doesn't contain anything remotely graphic in nature however I thought that it was a surprising and a good way of becoming out-of-ordinary.

And a last quick word about the book's map. I much prefer to have maps in fantasy books. And I like them when they are well drawn. The King's Bastard does contain a map but it gives the impression that it is not so important.

The King's Bastard, the first installment of The Chronicles of King Rolen’s Kin trilogy, is a greatly enjoyable book. A constant sense of danger, a forbidden magic, court intrigue, hidden agendas, love, friendship and jealousy make this book a surprisingly good read. As of this writing, The Uncrowned King is the next book in my list and I'm looking forward to its secrets.

Plot 9
Characters 7
Style 8

Overall 8.5/10