The Bookwyrm's Review of Season of Kings by A.J. Rettger

 

Buy on Amazon

Buy on Audible

Rating: 9/10 Stars

Plot Synopsis

War is upon the land and the throne sits empty. Who will claim it?

Elbert of Artanzia finds himself in a precarious position. After stealing the throne from his older brother, he finds himself newly crippled and low on friends. The nobles want to undermine him, while the populace wants to depose him. In a desperate attempt to keep his power, he launches a campaign against the barbarian islanders to the north, something that no king has ever done.

In the forest to the south of the capital, lives Anna and her father. While raised in isolation, Anna is taught how to hunt and kill everything that makes its home in the monster-infested forest. However, her quiet life is torn apart when a group of visitors pay her father an unexpected visit. Forced to flee to the capital city, she must find her long-lost aunt, all while fighting to protect herself and socializing with other teenagers for the first time.

Grimm White-Eyes, a legendary barbarian warrior and Shield of the Isles, is accused of murdering the Islander High King’s brother. With a price on his head, he must flee his homeland and find refuge on the continent. Yet no ship will risk carrying someone of his notoriety. Unable to leave, he is forced to ally himself with the enemy, in hopes that he can continue to live his life as the gods intended, free.

Review

Grimdark books to me have always been hit or miss. I think it comes from having to create a morally gray world, where the characters have to steer into that gray area where they are not morally righteous, while at the same time not becoming such turds that they are wholly unsympathetic and unlikable. Some authors, like Glen Cook in his Black Company series, nail it, while others miss to either side of that sweet spot. A.J. Rettger is much more on the Cook side of the equation, hitting the target with a cast of morally questionable characters who nevertheless are still very human and relatable. 

Those characters begin with Elbert, who begins as prince of Artanzia but ends up king after his brother has an "accident" after too much wine and a fall from a palace balcony. Elbert may not be the warrior his brother was, but he has a vision for the kingdom to stop its decline, no matter the cost. After an ill advised meeting with a mage, he ends up paralyzed from the waist down, and that steers a lot of his decision making, especially in a country that values physical ability. He's willing to make alliances and even invade Artanzia's main enemy if that's what it takes to retain his throne. He is a definite schemer, and willing to sacrifice people to accomplish his goals, but he is surprisingly caring about his wife, and he makes a connection with someone in the Isles that is shockingly innocent and pure. It's very different from what you'd expect, and gives him some real depth. 

Anna is the opposite of Elbert in so many ways. She grew up sheltered in the woods, trained to hunt monsters by her father, until his mysterious past catches up to him and she is on the run at the age of 14, trying to reach the capital of Artanzia to find an aunt she has never met to take her in. She has a real struggle to reach the city, avoiding monsters, soldiers and bandits who might mean her harm, until she reaches the city with a troupe of performers she met on the road, where she is separated yet again. Struggling in the city, she is saved from an assault and is taken in by the human thieves guild, where she and a group of other young people learn the ways of the streets. She is ingenious and clever, and a decent fighter, so she has real value to them, but she is naïve as well, and has a real difficulty in discerning when she is being played. Anna is easily the most sympathetic of the three main characters, but she too can be ruthless when the situation calls for it. Her arc is one you don't see progressing the way it does towards the end of the book. 

Grimm White-Eyes is the third POV character, and he is significantly different than Elbert or Anna. A close friend to the King of the Isles, his indiscretions with the King's brother's wife bring tragedy down upon Grimm, who responds by killing the King's brother. This leaves Grimm on the run with all hands turned against him, in a country where he was once one of the most admired of men. Grimm is a brutally violent man, happy to cleave a head off or disembowel anybody who gets in his way. He seems like a man led strictly by his own wants and needs, his passions and lusts, but his interactions with a young dwarven slave girl, someone who he should see as disposable, gives a whole different look into his personality. This cruel, ambitious man does have a heart after all, and it's all the more shocking the lengths he'll go to protect those he cares for. He is very much a Jekyll/Hyde type of character.

The secondary characters are excellently written. Chief among them is Randall, who is Anna's mentor and love in the thieves guild. He has an interesting backstory, and his actions in response to events throughout the book by both the leader of the guild and the crown have much wider effects throughout the kingdom. He seems like such a sympathetic character, but some of actions make you question just what his motives are. There are a variety of other characters, including Elbert's bodyguard, who is ruthless in his duty to protect Elbert, and it's interesting to see where his story goes. Throughout the story all the various characters interact in such interesting ways, and you can see as it progresses that they are all bound for a collision course at the end. It's a bit of a shock just how it ends, and how the decisions made will progress into the next book.

The world building is not overly complex, but that's a strength. The Kingdom of Artanzia reminds me of a medieval European kingdom, with a rank and ruling structure like that of England of that time. The Isles seems to be based on Viking era Denmark, led by the strongest warlord who has united the kingdom, and has no plans to stop raiding Artanzia. The switch up is Artanzia deciding to invade the Isles, something they would never have expected. There is magic, but it doesn't seem common or useful for much. More like the rare curse or seer's vision of the future. No fireballs and shooting lightning or overt magic of that sort, but you get the feeling that there might be some subtle magics at play in the background. It's an excellent setup for the world in general, and leaves lots of potential for expansion in future installments.

The audiobook narration was performed by Cad Delworth. I was unfamiliar with him before this, but he brought a wide range of voices to the story. He was excellent differentiating the accents for the various classes, and brings real emotional weight to the various characters. His voices for the three POV characters are all distinct, and really do channel their various personality traits into them. HIs narrative pacing is excellent, and you never find yourself losing focus on the story. Considering this is his first performance of something that is narrative fiction, I am doubly impressed. I'm looking forward to hearing him again.

All in all, this is an excellent addition to the grimdark fantasy ranks. It has everything a fan of the genre should enjoy, including betrayal, vicious fighting, conspiracies and morally gray characters. I think this author is definitely going places, and recommend you check this story out.