Kings and Daemons (Review) – An Incredible Tale of Discovery

Thank you to the author for a free review copy of Kings and Daemons.

Summary

Genre: Fantasy/YA
Publication Date: May 25th 2020

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

‘A tale of conquest, dark kings, and daemonic heroes. A spellbinding story that will enchant you with its plot of ambition, love, betrayal, sacrifice and redemption. Over fifty years have passed since Daleth the seemingly immortal Witch-King and his army conquered the Ember Kingdom. Now, with the once fertile lands and its enslaved people dying around him, the Witch-King, driven by his insatiable thirst for eternal youth, prepares his forces to march on the prosperous neighbouring Freestates.

It will be the beginnings of a conquest that could destroy nations, bringing death and destruction on an unimaginable scale. Then, when a peasant huntress whose rare gift was concealed from birth is exposed, it sets in motion a chain of events that could alter the destiny of generations to come.’ – Amazon

Review

Although Kings and Daemons isn’t the usual sort of book we review on this blog, I have a secret: I am a fantasy nerd. So when Lee got in touch with me asking if I would review this book I was so excited! This Witcher-esque novel makes good use of all the best fantasy tropes, whilst, for the most part, remaining original and inventive.

This is a multi-protagonist novel, which I always love in a story! It allows for such nuance and insight into each character’s story. My favourite of these protagonist’s is Maya. Although the novel begins with you thinking she is going to be a ‘chosen one’ character, you soon realise that she is so much more than that. Yes, she might have special healing powers that she has kept hidden all her life, but she is also just an ordinary girl trying to deal with the trials and tribulations thrown at her throughout the course of the novel.

The biggest strength of the novel is its pace, which is never slowing. This makes for a gripping read – one that I really enjoyed! Despite this fast pace and frequent jump in protagonist, the novel is not confusing. It remains engaging and a fun read throughout.

However, this fast pace is in part why I could not give the novel five stars. I feel it could have been a little longer. Whilst too much filler can make a read tedious to get through, I feel Kings and Daemons could have benefited from slowing down the pace just a notch.

Nevertheless, this is an extremely strong debut novel from Lee. I look forward to reading the rest of the series. Kings and Daemons is a fantastic read for both fantasy lovers and those who want to dip their toes into the genre.

Have you read Kings and Daemons? What’s your favourite Fantasy novel?