Witch King (The Rising World, 1)
Winner of the Locus Award!
From the breakout SFF superstar author of Murderbot comes a remarkable story of power and friendship, of trust and betrayal, and of the families we choose. "I didn't know you were a... demon.""You idiot. I'm the demon."
Kai's having a long day in Martha Wells' WITCH KING....
After being murdered, his consciousness dormant and unaware of the passing of time while confined in an elaborate water trap, Kai wakes to find a lesser mage attempting to harness Kai's magic to his own advantage. That was never going to go well. But why was Kai imprisoned in the first place? What has changed in the world since his assassination? And why does the Rising World Coalition appear to be growing in influence? Kai will need to pull his allies close and draw on all his pain magic if he is to answer even the least of these questions. He's not going to like the answers. WITCH KING is Martha Wells's first new fantasy in over a decade, drawing together her signature ability to create characters we adore and identify with, alongside breathtaking action and adventure, and the wit and charm we've come to expect from one of the leading writers of her generation.
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Community Reviews
If you're in the mood for a basic fantasy story, this will suit. It's got a lot of different races of people and styles of magic. The story has some elements of being a political fantasy and a mystery. The main characters are pretty likable, and the villains are pretty easy to dislike. I never got super invested in the story, I never felt like I had a complete understanding of the world, and I never connected fully with the main characters, but I also didn't have any real issues and the reading experience was pleasant. Unrelated to the plot, it became a bit of an inside joke with myself how often the author described what people were wearing. The context is totally different, but I found it amusing because it reminded me of reading YA romance novels.
I was so hyped to read this one since I love Martha Well's Murderbot Diaries.
We did not get on well.
First chapter landed me in the middle of some plot that was afoot regarding the Witch King. It was interesting and I enjoyed it.
Then we flip to the next chapter that take place in his past - more confusion.
Names of characters, hard to keep up with as they can and do change depending on if it's a demon and what body it may be inhabiting.
"Someone kicked his foot. Before he could kick back, Arn-Nefa of Kanavesi Saredi said, "Kai-Enna, Captain Kentdessa wants you." The names were a mouthful - none of them rolled off the tongue at all.
So I'm trying to piece together a plot, keep up with past and present - but it was rather difficult to care enough to continue since the pacing was incredibly slow.
This one was just not for me, hence the DNF.
We did not get on well.
First chapter landed me in the middle of some plot that was afoot regarding the Witch King. It was interesting and I enjoyed it.
Then we flip to the next chapter that take place in his past - more confusion.
Names of characters, hard to keep up with as they can and do change depending on if it's a demon and what body it may be inhabiting.
"Someone kicked his foot. Before he could kick back, Arn-Nefa of Kanavesi Saredi said, "Kai-Enna, Captain Kentdessa wants you." The names were a mouthful - none of them rolled off the tongue at all.
So I'm trying to piece together a plot, keep up with past and present - but it was rather difficult to care enough to continue since the pacing was incredibly slow.
This one was just not for me, hence the DNF.
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