A KINGDOM AT WAR.
A ROYAL FAMILY AT WAR WITH ITSELF.
After the massacre of his people, Damien Dreadfire leads a patchwork army of unlikely allies against the Kingdom of Betanthia. The alliance teeters on the edge of a knife, as old rivalries between clans threatens to tear it apart. With the help of his trusted friend, Einarr, and a strange mystic, Damien launches a bold offensive that will decide the future of the free lands. Short on time, and even shorter on men, the fate of a once vibrant culture and its people rests on the outcome of the next battle.
Meanwhile, Betanthia’s crown prince, Gareth Bethard, faces dangers of his own. With his family coming apart at the seams and a growing conspiracy afoot, he tries desperately to hold everything together. Even as Gareth grapples with inner demons, he must learn to take up his father’s mantle as the protector of civilization and defeat Damien’s invading horde. It’s only the fate of a thousand-year dynasty resting on his shoulders, after all.
Review
The Hellborn King is Christopher Brenning’s debut novel. I agreed to read and review this one on the first look due to the powerful front cover. Little did I know that I would be assaulted with a story that would take me on a journey of adventure and discovery. Once again, I’ve discovered a self-published novel that I have loved from start to finish. The skill and finesse of Brenning cracks open the surface and delves behind the reasonings and implications of war as a multi-faceted beast. There are always two sides to a story and I found myself feeling torn between both sides. It is relentless in its brutality and has enough humanity and bloodshed to keep any fantasy fan engrossed.
The Hellborn King ticked all the boxes. From the very start, you can tell that the multiple layers of storytelling, epic world-building, and deep and definitive character building would be worth the investment, in both time and brainpower. It has that instant feeling that you have something incredibly special in your hands. Grief, remorse, guilt, and vengeance are themes that play a crucial role in the development of the story, and you are left with the feeling that you’ve almost watched characters come full circle. It was an investment that plagued my waking moments and I rushed to get back to reading as often as I could.
Some scenes are hard to read and comprehend but it only added to the multi-faceted complexity of the story. The more hardship the characters went through, the more connected to the characters I felt. It’s one of the best fantasy stories that I have had the pleasure of reading.
The Hellborn King takes place in two geographical settings, the rulers of Bethanthia, who are a family that has more issues than vogue. There’s abuse, alcoholism, and apparent mental health issues. It’s the cracks that are holding them together. There is also the POV of the battle taking place between the northern tribes under the banner of Damien Dreadfire and the Bethanthian troops. Some moments turned my stomach but, in a good way, the imagery was crisp and raw.
The standout characters for me were Gareth, Madeline, and Einarr. They each have a measured approach to the war at hand and their character arcs were a sheer testament to the author’s knack of being brutally unapologetic in the roads that they had to take. A lot of the characters are spiteful and not very likable but it gave the reader a spectrum of characters to get to know (not all good) with a prism of realism shining throughout. A book that left me emotionally gutted but worth every minute of being transported into.
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