Book Description (From Amazon):
First in a brand new series from the author of The Broken Empire Trilogy.
The Red Queen is old but the kings of the Broken Empire dread her like no other. For all her reign she has fought the long war, contested in secret, against the powers that stand behind nations, for higher stakes than land or gold. Her greatest weapon is The Silent Sister—unseen by most and unspoken of by all.
The Red Queen’s grandson, Prince Jalan Kendeth—drinker, gambler, seducer of women—is one who can see The Silent Sister. Tenth in line for the throne and content with his role as a minor royal, he pretends that the hideous crone is not there. But war is coming. Witnesses claim an undead army is on the march, and the Red Queen has called on her family to defend the realm. Jal thinks it’s all a rumor—nothing that will affect him.
But he is wrong…
My Thoughts:
I haven’t read an adult Fantasy in quite some time. I find that there is very little that is original out there. And while a really well written fantasy book is my favorite type of reading to do, I find that most of the books are just too formulaic and not to my taste at all. I don’t like Barbarian story, male or female, I don’t really like space operas, I don’t like stories about witches, am getting tired of stories about werewolves and vampires. And while I love the Game of Thrones HBO series, I tried reading the first book and just couldn’t get through it. I got mired down in so many words. Epic fantasy can be really enjoyable, but it is so hard to not draw comparisons between Tolkien and now George R.R. Martin.
However, Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence was on special for $1.99, so I figured why not give it a try and I downloaded the sample. I was hooked after the first paragraph:
I’ve always found hitting a man from behind to be the best way to go about things. This can sometimes be accomplished by dint of a simple ruse. Classics such as, “What’s that over there?” work surprisingly often, but for truly optimal results it’s best if the person doesn’t even know you were there.
Prince Jalan is a rake and seems to frequently be in somewhat compromising situations. The kingdom of Vermillion is ruled by The Red Queen, Prince Jalan’s grandmother, who does not seem to be liked over much. She calls all the royal off spring to her to announce that they will all need to take arms in the coming war. A war in which any dead are to be cremated immediately without fail. Witnesses were brought forth before the throne to speak of the horrors they have seen and that ends the sample.
I really liked what I read of Prince Jalan. He’s crafty, seems a bit lazy, but is also charming. He gets away with a lot and since he is ninth in line to the throne, doesn’t seem to think much of the possibility of ever ruling. I found that I wanted to keep reading to find out just what the heck is going on and what type of war was coming.
Decision?
To buy
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