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literaladdiction
, October 05, 2012
(view all comments by literaladdiction)
Our Review, by LITERAL ADDICTION's Pack Alpha - Michelle L. Olson:
It's been awhile since I settled in for a good high fantasy novel, and this was definitely a good one.
Shadows of Kings is a fabulously written first installment to the DRAGON RISING series with engaging characters, non-stop action, and heart.
The world created by Jack is solidly built and commands attention - the best and worst of medieval times brought to life on the page.
Shadows of Kings gives us dragons, elves, sorcerers and sorceresses, bestial villains, gallant knights, kings, queens, and lowborn with purpose.
The plot starts solid with the Hugue fighting for their lives and their land against the Horde with the help of the Knights of the Order and the Dragon Maidens. It builds to an amazing crescendo as the sole survivor of one of the magickal families, Lucia, works with some veteran knights (Baudoin and his group) and some newly proven allies (Gui - I love Gui!) against the Horde and the Dark Elves to salvage what they can and protect whom they must. There's plenty of treachery, backstabbing, torture, surprise, magic, mayhem, and even a little romance along the way, and it ends in such a way that the reader cannot help but want the next installment as soon as possible.
I found myself struggling a bit at the beginning though. There are A LOT of characters and sects revealed and it was a little hard to keep things straight right up front. Once I got all of the names, territories, and leaders down though, I couldn't put it down.
LITERAL ADDICTION gives Shadows of Kings 4 Skulls and would recommend it to fans of the genre. I think we've found a new up and comer in the fantasy realm and I can't wait to see what Jack brings us next.
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