Of Kings and Killers

Of Kings and Killers by Will Wight
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

We're all locked in the same burning house. It benefits no one to fight while the flames rise.
- Baldezar Kern

The flames in the Aurelian Empire burn high and hot as the Civil War between the Imperialist and Independent Guilds rages on. All the while the Great Elders led by Kellerac plot and hold a crack in the sky wide open. Humanity needs all their defenders, but they're too busy with the semantics of what the Empire should be going forward.

I believed from the beginning that The Elder Empire had a grand story to be told. I've really enjoyed all of Will Wight's stories except for The Elder Empire, but I've finally enjoyed a book in the series with Of Kings and Killers. My interest was peeked with one little quote towards the end of Of Dawn and Darkness. This single quote made everything occuring much more significant and that was just the beginning.

From the beginning I've found the Sea Side ie Calder's crew the more interesting bunch to read about. Shera and her friends are fearsome, but somewhat strange and dull. Calder and his friends had all the aspects of a family. For all Calder's faults, he loves his crew and he'd do whatever he can for them. They prove time and time again that they'd do the same for him. Calder is an interesting yet flawed protagonist just like his crew. The story also did an excellent job cementing Izaria Woodsman's importance to the crew through flashbacks. In many ways it was as though he was still around even after the events in book 1.

The Great Elders are terror incarnate and I feel like it was glazed over too often rather than emphasized until Of Kings and Killers. The reader gets a good look at the hell scape the characters are trapped within. 

I know Will Wight took a few years off between book 2 and 3, but he really brought a strong conclusion to The Elder Empire series with Of Kings and Killers. All the while leaving the door cracked to revisit the world, should he so wish.

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Skysworn

Skysworn by Will Wight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Blackflame Empire fears a user of the black flame path. Because of that the Skysworn imprisoned Lindon. Unfortunately his duel with Jai Long is still looming. Meanwhile Jai Daishou is desperate to find a way to destroy Eithan. He is so desperate that he's willing to risk the destruction of his clan and the empire in the process.

Skysworn felt like a transition book to me. The book begins with Jai Daishou searching for a way to kill Eithan while becoming increasingly desperate. We also see Lindon imprisoned and preparing to face Jai Long. Their duel takes place shortly afterward and then the tale moves on quickly. A new threat emerges that has been hinted at since the start of the series. The rest of the story is wrapped up in dealing with this new threat.

Skysworn does expand the world of the Cradle. We see more factions that make up the Blackflame Empire and learn about more powerful sacred artists nearby. All this raises the stakes and increases the danger. The more the readers learn of the Blackflame Empire, the greater the danger Eithan, Yerin, and Lindon face.

I wish I could get into more without spoiling things, but I don't believe I can. A lot of unexpected events take place as Skysworn prepares us for the future.

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Blackflame

 

Blackflame by Will Wight
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Eithan has offered Lindon all he could want. A powerful family and instruction from a master. Eithan unfortunately also left Lindon in a predicament. In one year's time, he has to fight the Highgold Jai Long. Lindon is prepared to do anything to get strong enough to win, he just may not realize what that means. Eithan once again has dangerous plans for Lindon and he's made sure to include Yerin as well.

Blackflame was a strong sequel. The scene shifts to the home of the Arelius Family, Serpent's Grave. The Serpent's Grave is also the home of The Jai Clan and they have declared a silent war on the Arelius family. Eithan has plans on plans, but the threat of the Jai underlord looms over everything. Eithan is continuing his training of Yerin and Lindon in attempts to maximize their potential. He just has no interest in doing things in a traditional way. As Eithan said in Soulsmith, "Nothing reaches its full potential unless it's threatened." It's a motto he fully adheres to. Lindon will either grow stronger or die under Eithan's tutelage.

Meanwhile Jai Long has his prize, the spear of the ancestors. He intends to use it's power to get stronger and get his revenge. With the help of the Sandvipers and their Truegold leader Gokren, he plans to start his plans for revenge with the clan who discarded he and his sister Jai Chen. Jai Long is a well written character. His motivations are clear and he's ruthless.

One especially enjoyable part of Blackflame was the study of techniques. More are put on display than ever before as Lindon tries to decide what path to follow with his second core. He's restricted because he needs something strong enough to defeat an opponent that will be undoubtedly stronger than him in a year's time. That leads to some unforeseen developments.

The characters were excellent once more. Yerin struggles with her advancement, Eithan's instruction, and trusting Eithan in general. Lindon is desperate to get strong enough to survive his upcoming duel with Jai Long. Eithan is well Eithan, in the best ways possible. He's equal parts flashy and calculating.

The book featured two especially interesting additions, Cassias Arelius and Orthos. Cassias was the former heir of the Arelius family before Eithan arrived 6 years ago. His personality is the opposite of Eithan's in every way and he disagrees with most of Eithan's choices. He also shares the amazing Arelius bloodline awareness ability. Orthos is the descendant of dragons and a majestic turtle indeed. He has the power of blackflame, but he's losing his mind due to it's power. Orthos is haughty, powerful, and hungry. He's often heard munching on anything he wants including stone.

Blackflame was a really enjoyable story and I can't wait to begin the next book in the series.

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Soulsmith

 

Soulsmith by Will Wight
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In the wilds Yerin and Lindon run into hordes of beasts and remnants. They follow where the beasts are heading to find ancient ruins that contain items of massive power. They also find an alliance of sacred artists who intend to mine it for resources. After what feels like a lifetime, Lindon has finally reached Copper. As Lindon tries to learn the skill of a Soulsmith, he finds himself the prey of a powerful group of Golds.

Soulsmith was a good time. Lindon advances only to realize that in comparison to the world at large, everyone from the Sacred Valley is incredibly weak. Lindon surprisingly finds that encouraging as he's seeking the power to save everything he's known.

The characters really come alive in this book. There is of course Lindon. He stands tall and looks vicious despite his weak skills. Yerin who despite seeming as though she only wishes to fight actually cares for Lindon. There are also some interesting new additions in Jai Long, Fisher Gesha, and the happy yet mysterious Eithan.

Jai Long is the typical angry genius. He has a backstory that makes it wholely justifiable. He's not evil, but he's certainly not good either. Fisher Gesha is a powerful soulsmith who Lindon and Yerin find themself working for. She's the typical gruff old master. Eithan from the start is clearly powerful even though he mostly appears to be looking for fun. These three really stand out among the rest of the new characters.

Soulsmith has me excited to see where the story goes. I really enjoy the way Will Wight crafts his tale and characters.

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Of Dawn and Darkness

 

Of Dawn and Darkness by Will Wight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Empire is leaderless, in turmoil, and fracturing in two. The Imperialists hope to hold it together with a new Emperor. Calder Marten is determined to be that man and the Imperialists are ready for Calder to be seated on the throne as soon as possible. The threats to the Empire didn't die with the previous Emperor and humanity needs every weapon it can get to defend itself.

Of Dawn and Darkness was a solid sequel. I made the decision to treat the companion books as two completely separate series since I didn't care for Shera. Whenever I continue I'll head to Of Kings and Killers rather than Of Darkness and Dawn. I may eventually read the other side, but the sleepy sociopath Shera isn't my cup of tea at all.

I find the story somewhat engaging and the characters somewhat interesting, but nothing about this series really grabs me. Bliss is probably the most interesting character, but even she is likely best in small doses. Her lack of understanding would get old if she was around more.

The biggest thought I find myself having is that everyone involved with the guild Civil War is being idiotic. Humanity has an opponent with power that dwarfs their own. Their best fighters have to take the power of the Elders into themselves to even have a chance. I don't understand why the people who want to defend humanity can't come to an agreement outside of murdering one another. They should always be training and inventing new ways to strengthen humanity to face the onslaught. If that means the Empire splits in two, then so be it as long as they vow to come to one another's aid. Everyone is too focused on gaining or keeping their power to have enough foresight to be fully prepared.

Of Dawn and Darkness is just good enough that it makes me want to see how the series ends.

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Unsouled

Unsouled by Will Wight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The young of the Sacred Valley come twice a year to be tested. Children the ages of 6-8 have the content of their souls evaluated to see what sort of sacred artist they will become in life. It's a test that no one is supposed to fail, but Lindon failed. He was labeled unsouled, powerless and unworthy of teaching in a society that power is as important as honor. Lindon isn't giving up though, he's determined to find a way to become a sacred artist.

Unsouled left me unsure of what to expect. It was clear that young Lindon had been deemed unworthy and would be treated practically as a cripple. It was clear that he'd strive to gain power, but short of that things were very different than I anticipated.

I don't know how anyone couldn't feel for Lindon. He's been deemed to lack the one thing that is valued in his society. He's seen as having no value. An elder, who has known him most of his life, told him to simply stay home. The reason being is, if a stronger member of another clan killed him, Lindon's clan would have to apologize for the inconvenience. As an unsouled Lindon isn't even permitted to marry out of fear he'd pass his defect on. Lindon doesn't quit though most of the world views him as trash. He's clever and hardworking.

Unsouled felt like a long introduction in some ways, but I think it's laying the groundwork for a strong story.

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Of Sea and Shadow

Of Sea and Shadow by Will Wight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Emperor is dead. Calder Marten and his crew have been hired to transport people to find a powerful relic. This relic can help to raise a second Emperor. Calder Marten has plans of his own along with powerful enemies standing in his way.

Of Sea and Shadow is the first book in the Sea portion of The Elder Empire series. I won't call it a trilogy as 6 books make up the series. 3 books from the prospective of the Sea featuring Calder Marten, his crew, and allies. The other 3 books are from the prospective of Shadow featuring Shera, the Consultants Guild, and her allies. It's all a reasonably complicated way to split what should likely be 3 books into 6 books. The idea is you have to read book 1 of each section, then read book 2 of each section, and so on. I read Of Shadow and Sea first and I was underwhelmed. The characters just felt flat to me.

Of Sea and Shadow fortunately had more enjoyable characters. Calder, Andel, Urzaia, Jyrine, and Bliss were all more interesting to me than Shera and the consultants. Calder has depth and reason for all of his actions. He's a complex character in a good way. I wanted to know more about him and I hoped he'd be ok. The others all seemed to have strong motivations for their actions as well. Bliss may be the most interesting character in the series overall. I was glad to see at least a portion of the story from her perspective.

So the dual novels to tell a single tale is not my idea of a good time. I've seen that sort of thing done on occasion and I've yet to see justification for two separate books going over one story. I will say that a lot of different information was presented between the two parallel stories, but in the pivotal moments I already knew where things stood with Calder from reading Of Shadow and Sea. It sucks some of the excitement right out of tense moments.

Of Sea and Shadow was better than Of Shadow and Sea, but not so much better that I can't wait for the next book. I do think that if I continue, I'll only read the Sea side.

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Of Sea and Shadow

 

Of Shadow and Sea by Will Wight
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Emperor of the Aurelian Empire ruled for over a thousand years. He saved mankind and brought them together as an Empire. That was before he died. Now a group is attempting to find an artifact of incredible power, the Heart of Nakothi. The groups' goal is to use it to raise a new Emperor. Standing in their way is the Consultant's Guild. They've served the Empire and the Emperor since the beginning of his reign by hunting down any who mean harm to the Empire.

I'm really conflicted by Of Shadow and Sea. I'm a fan of Will Wight and I've really enjoyed his Traveler's Gate trilogy and his Cradle series. Of Shadow and Sea just didn't hold a candle to the other series.

I didn't enjoy Of Shadow and Sea for a few reasons, but first and foremost are the characters. None of the characters really popped off the page or made me care about them. They felt generic to me. First is Shera who is a near emotionless assassin who would rather sleep than do anything else. That's about all there is to her character. She also worked directly for the Emperor and she cares for her former teammate Lucan. Next is Meia who is an assassin who has been alchemically altered with the strength of beasts. She is determined and had a childhood grudge against Shera. That's about it for her personality. Last of the main group is Lucan. Lucan is another former assassin who thinks too much and cares for Shera. Again that basically wraps him up.

The next thing that led to me being disnterested was the story itself. Nothing about it was particularly compelling. Bad guys want to get an item of untold power to defeat the good guys...err the assassins. The power has an evil supernatural element to it, but it's fairly straightforward.

The one thing that did seem interesting was the magic system. The users imprint their intent on items. Anyone is able to do it, but Readers can wield their intent to change, destroy, and strengthen items. I felt like the story just listed the abilities as though the reader was already familiar with them. When I finished the book I noticed a glossary of the abilities which would have been more useful throughout. Every term and ability was so foreign throughout that even by the end I didn't have a clear understanding on how they worked.

The story flips back and forth from the past to the present. The story goes as far back as 15 years to Shera's youth and how she was introduced to the Consultant's Guild. The flashbacks also cover some of her time serving the Empire. It didn't feel as though so many flashbacks were needed to tell the story, but they worked out fairly well.

Of Shadow and Sea was an ok book. Unfortunately I'm not really excited to see where the series continues from here.

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The Reborn King

 

The Reborn King by Michael R. Miller
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Dragons, Fairies, and Humans face a dire threat in Rectar and his demon forces. They move to extinguish the three races. The Dragons are no longer flying fire breathing beasts. There was a transformation and they now resemble humans albeit faster and stronger. Unfortunately they've scattered as their royalty appeared to be destroyed. A chance remains as the Wizard Brackendon has used a spell to save the life of the dragon prince Darnuir. Brackendon was forced to destroy Darnuir as the world knew him in order to remake him as a baby. He was reborn with no knowledge of his past self. All this was done because the dragons will only follow their king and only the king can use the Dragon's Blade. 20 years later a now grown Darnuir can reclaim the Dragon's Blade and reunite the three races against their demonic foe.

The Reborn King was just ok. I read the book because the idea of forcing the dragon prince to be reborn sounded interesting. It was less interesting and satisfying than I hoped. A small time was spent on Darnuir's upbringing by humans before he was at the age of 20 and the Dragon's Blade returned to him. It largely felt like Darnuir simply had amnesia rather than having his former self destroyed. Once he had the blade dragons followed him no problem.

The Reborn King is definitely for fans of classic fantasy tales. The various races unite to fight a Dark Lord, Rectar in this case, and his minions who happen to be demons and a fallen wizard. I'll be honest, I'm not really a fan of that sort of fantasy story. If I had known it was like that I probably would have skipped it. Nothing felt particularly original and there were no fresh takes on this sort of tale. The characters were all largely forgettable as well.

The Reborn King wasn't what I was hoping it would be.

2.5 out of 5 stars

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The Traveler's Gate Chronicles

The Traveler's Gate Chronicles by Will Wight
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Traveler's Gate Chronicles are a collection of 9 short stories from various territories of the Traveler's Gate world. They are tied together as an Elysian Book of Virtues telling a story to describe each of the Elysian powers along with their purpose. Some of the stories feature some familiar characters from the main series.

First and foremost I have to comment on when someone should read this book. If you don't want to potentially spoil any aspect of the Traveler's Gate trilogy, you should read this after finishing the City of Light. There are definitely spoilers for anyone who hasn't completed the Traveler's Gate trilogy.

None of these short stories are particularly groundbreaking, but I found myself enjoying the ones that focused on characters readers have already met. The stories that feature prominent characters from the main story are The Feathered Plains, The Steel Labyrinth, The Lightning Wastes, and Ragnarus.

The Feathered Plains features Valinhall Traveler Denner Weeks. I always enjoyed seeing Denner in the main series even though we don't get a lot about him. Here we get to see him being recruited for his speciality and showing off a Valinhall power that wasn't seen in the main series. He's sent on a mission to execute a young traveler who can see the future.

The Steel Labyrinth featured the Wanderer himself Valin. Valin is a young man in this story and Valinhall doesn't yet exist. This story was undoubtedly the most interesting to me because Valin is shown to be working for a prior Damascan Queen. Considering what has been revealed about Valin previously, it truly makes me wonder why he becomes determined to kill Damascan royalty later in life. Valin is sent by Queen Deianira III to Taratarus to assist the travelers with murders occuring in their territory. The story also gives some additional insight into who Valin is as a man and I'd truly love to learn more.

The Lightning Wastes features Queen Leah, Simon, and briefly Indirial. Leah, Simom, and an Endross traveler head into Endross. Their goal is to get the Endross traveler's to return to duty in Damasca. It's told from Leah's perspective which isn't always great. In this instance it's appreciated because it lets the reader see Simon as the world sees him. He doesn't look like much initially, but he's deadly when he starts to fight.

Ragnarus is absolute spoiler territory if you haven't read City of Light. It features Queen Cynara the first and Elysia's Rhalia. This describes the final battle between the two and how Cynara found herself hung under a Hanging Tree. It also opened up a potential mystery. I'm interested in finding out more whenever the sequel trilogy is written.

The Traveler's Gate Chronicles was a good set of short stories with a creative Elysian tie in.

3.5 out of 5 stars

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