Genre: low-fantasy, grimdark
I’ll be honest, I was not initially hooked by Kings of Paradise. Just to be clear, that isn’t because this is not a good or important story to tell, but just because I don’t enjoy reading about characters who have to overcome the shittiest of burdens, which to me, is trying to survive in the woods where things/people are trying to kill you. In the early chapters, we join a boy named Ruka who is doing just that - trying to survive in a wild and lawless land. It’s the same reason why I didn’t enjoy the Road but was glad that I read it anyways. While beautiful, Ruka’s story is just too heartbreaking for me, a testament to the writer's ability to make us care about the character's plight. Don't be fooled, however, for there is so much more to this novel than just a few chapters of stealthy forest endurance.
Kings of Paradise weaves the stories of three main characters as they navigate Nell’s fantasy realm. The world takes global inspiration for its different regions, offering up rich religious traditions and linguistic structures that make for fantastic world-building. Having a facial deformity since birth, Ruka only has his strong mother to protect him in the cold and barbaric region of the South. Dala is a young and ambitious girl, also touched with an unwanted facial feature, trying to survive after her father has left her to die. The Sisters of The Galdric Order rule the south, assigning mates for each woman (as it is women who hold positions of authority here) and influencing chiefs who have the brute strength. Kale is a prince trying to find his way in a prominent and high-performing royal family in Pyu, an island nation where a strong a navy is everything. Here it is common for priests and monks to offer advice. Kingdoms trust the priesthoods but are also wary of the power they could potentially wield to overthrow monarchies. Religion provides a strong motivation for several of the characters and it is significant that a lot of detail went into explaining why religion has a featured position in Nell's world.
For a lot of reviewers and I, another big draw to this book is that character arcs cross and intersect in ways not initially anticipated. One (tiny) criticism I have relating to this is that while Dala and Ruka cross paths a few times, Kale’s storyline has been self-contained for the most part. I won’t spoil anything, but the epilogue does set up the next book in the series and I think I will be excited about the upcoming storylines. Dala’s narrative also stops about 3/4 of the way through and I really wanted to know what she gets up to. Of course, I know this is a series and I will likely see the interactions I want but I’m impatient and want it now!
This one hangup, however, is nothing compared to how impressed I was with character motivation in this book, especially with regards to death and grief. It is a testament to strength and survival, fate and personal development. These motivations make for well-rounded and understandable characters that I can relate to and I can never really condemn no matter how bad some of their actions are. There is no true hero or villain, only people who are trying to act in their best interests.
Since this book is the first in an upcoming series, I am curious to see where the characters end up and who will become a king of paradise.
Read if you like: Game of Thrones, The Emporer’s Blades
A big thank you to the author for providing me a free copy of this novel in return for an honest review.
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