Get ready for an epic adventure that checks all the boxes. There’s a grieving woman who will rise to become king, there’s a determined young man that wants answers, there’s a scared young sorceress that will find the courage to save them all, oh and there’s a dragon, did I mention that? Sung-Il Kim’s amazing new fantasy book, Blood of the Old Kings, translated by Anton Hur, contains all that and more. An evil empire is taking over, spreading through violent wars and maintaining control of those it concurs by brutal force. But as always happens, the Empire eventually hurts the wrong people. When that happens they rise against the Empire. Three heroes with a touch of destiny will change everything in Blood of the Old Kings, out October 8th.
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by Tor for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of Blood of the Old Kings contains some spoilers!]
Unexpected heroes in Sung-Il Kim’s Blood of the Old Kings
Loran, a simple swordswoman, loses her family to the Empire’s unreasonable punishment. Arienne, a young sorceress, is being groomed for her death to feed the Empire’s necromatic magic. And Cain, a seemingly regular guy just trying to get by, loses a close friend and wants answers. Separately, these three will start on journeys that will bring about freedom and ruin, but whether they get the freedom or the ruin waits to be seen.
Loran lives in Arland. It used to be its own independent kingdom, but the last king was defeated by the Empire and now its citizens live under the tyrannical rule of the Empire. In an attempt to break the spirits of Arland’s citizens, almost all of their customs and traditions have been outlawed. Still, her husband writes a funeral song and her daughter sings it in public. So the two are executed. In her devastation, Loran decides to seek out the dragon protector of Arland.
When the king was defeated by the Empire, the dragon was too. The Empire imprisoned it in a volcano and left it there, but Loran seeks it out. Amazingly, she survives the journey and meets the dragon. The two make a deal, Loran will fight to free Arland and become its king. The dragon will support her as king. But there’s not much he can actually do chained in the volcano, so he gives her a magic sword in exchange for her eye and sends her on her way to start a rebellion.
At the same time, Arienne is making a break for it. She lives at the Academy. As a young girl, she was found to have magical talent and was taken from her home in Arland and sent to the Academy for “training”. But all she’s been taught so far is how to stay healthy until she can die and become a generator. The Empire binds all magical people in death, draining them of their power to fuel the Empire. The thought of this future terrifies Arienne so with the help of a long dead sorcerer she’s escaping. If she’s caught the penalty is death, but Arienne doesn’t see the difference between that and her current life, so she’s willing to take the risk.
And then there’s Cain. A young man in the Imperial capital. His closest friend has just been found dead, and he wants to know why. As he looks for answers, he’ll discover far more than he bargained for and will have to make a choice between revenge for the dead or protecting the living. There’s more to Cain than meets the eye, more even than he’s aware of, and his choice will affect the entire Empire, if he can survive long enough to make them.
Blood of the Old Kings is an incredible story
From the first words of Blood of the Old Kings, Sung-Il Kim pulls you into his world. His writing is very exciting and engaging. There are no words lost in unnecessary description, yet you can easily visualize everything he writes. The characters are fantastic. You feel connected to them right away and become invested in their stories instantly. As the three main storylines slowly come together, you find yourself on the edge of your seat, unsure of just how everything will work out. Seeing each character find themselves and rise in power is both thrilling and satisfying.
Blood of the Old Kings is not Sung-Il Kim’s first time out, and it shows in the masterful storytelling. He has several novels under his belt and has won awards for his writing. Now I don’t want to take away from his writing in any way because it is wonderful. But I do want to give some praise to his translator, Anton Hur as well. Sung-Il Kim’s book is amazing, but it was originally written in Korean, which I don’t read. So the only way I was able to enjoy his story is thanks to the work of Hur.
Hur manages to translate Blood of the Old Kings beautifully. If it didn’t say “translated by” on the cover, I would never have guessed that it wasn’t originally written in English by a native English speaker. There are no hiccups or rough spots where the text doesn’t flow naturally or a turn of phrase doesn’t make sense. So thank you for your part in bringing Blood of the Old Kings to the English speaking world, Anton Hur, I greatly appreciate it!
Romance is missing from this fantasy novel, but you don’t notice
One thing that is almost never missing from a fantasy novel is romance. There’s always a relationship at stake, complicating matters for the characters. Commonly, there are multiple relationships being developed, with the main character having to make a heart-wrenching choice between lovers. Often the characters have to choose between duty or love. But Sung-Il Kim skips that angle completely.
Not one of the main characters has a love interest. They love people, of course that’s what drives them in their journeys. Loran loves her family (okay, she has a dead husband, but it’s not an active love interest situation), Cain loves his friend (who is female, but he only has familial love for her, not romantic), and Arienne loves herself (but not in a narcissistic way). They all decide to fight the Empire because the Empire has hurt those they love, so love is important in the story but not in the romantic, “let’s get busy” way that most fantasy incorporates love.
The really great thing is that you don’t miss it. There’s so much action and so much intrigue going on in Blood of the Old Kings that there’s just no room for romance. And honestly, I think it would have detracted from the story. It’s nice to see someone get that fantasy can be more than soft-core porn with magic.
Blood of the Old Kings is the first of three books
While I don’t see a series name anywhere on my copy of Blood of the Old Kings, the back cover did warn me that it is the start of an epic journey. And the press release I received with it calls it the first installment in a trilogy. So I had some warning coming in that there would be unresolved issues at the end of the story.
But it ends up being not so many unresolved issues as more to tell. Blood of the Old Kings is a complete story on its own, we get to see how all the main characters end up. There’s the possibility of more. And it ends with us knowing that while they’ve achieved their goals and could rest, they have new goals and will be continuing on.
As readers, we’re left not so much with a lack of resolution as we are with a desire to see what comes next. It’s an excellent way to end the first installment of a trilogy, and I can’t wait for the next book to come out. Fantasy lovers are going to flip for Blood of the Old Kings. Publishers better make sure to print enough copies because it will be difficult to keep in stock once word gets out!
Rating: 10/10
Blood of the Old Kings by Sung-Il Kim is available for pre-order now and releases on October 8, 2024 wherever books are sold. Are you excited to pick up this book soon? Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus!
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