Synopsis
Blood of the Old Kings begins an epic adventure in which three strangers journey through a vast Empire that uses the power of dead wizards to conquer and subdue, from award-winning author Sung-il Kim and translated by the highly-acclaimed Anton Hur.
Powered by the corpses of sorcerers, the Empire has conquered the world. It claims to have brought peace and stability to its conquered lands, but some see that peace for what it is—a lie—and will give everything in the fight against it.
Loran is desperate for revenge after the Empire killed her family, so much so that the swordswoman climbs the volcano where the legends say an ancient dragon slumbers and leaps in. She finds that the legends are true, and Loran leaves the mountain with a sword made of dragon’s fang and a great purpose before her.
Cain arrived in the Imperial Capital lost and orphaned, and it’s only thanks to the kindness of a stranger-turned-mentor that he survived on the city’s streets. When his friend is found murdered, he will leave no stone unturned to find those responsible, even if it means starting a war.
Arienne’s future has never been in question—born a sorcerer, she’ll be a Power Generator for the Empire upon her death. But when she starts to hear the voice of a powerful necromancer in her head, she realizes the only thing more terrifying than dying for the Empire is never getting to truly live in the first place.
When peace is a lie, there is power in truth—and as Loran, Cain, and Arienne hunt for answers in their own lives, any one of their small rebellions could be the stone that brings the Empire toppling down.
Review
A stunning cover for this wonderful epic fantasy.
My overall enjoyment is a little mixed.
There is a sort of magic, where one character imagines things and they happen, which is quite unusual as the standard fare is sorcerer corpses are used as power generators to keep cities running. There is an evil Empire who scoured a city and now there is a rebellion against. We have three POVs – an escaped sorcerer, a widow on a quest for revenge, and a young man trying to piece all the plots together after a friend is murdered. There’s also a pretty cool dragon!
The premise is really good, with some great concepts and unique takes on fantasy. Arienne’s POV was absolutely my favourite (Loran’s was second) and I wasn’t a huge fan of Cain.
I’ve read a lot of translated shorts and novellas, but this was my first translated novel. Some of the sentences were a little jarring, and it took a little while to get used to the style.
The pace did lag a little around halfway through, but picked up again in the final few chapters.
I would have loved more immersive world building and character development, as it felt a little surface level. Hints at the wider world are scattered throughout, but never dived too deeply into.
It is a quick read and the first of a trilogy, so there’s more coming if you really enjoyed it!
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