Book Title: Kings and Daemons
Author: Marcus Lee
Series: The Gifted and the Cursed #1
Release: May 25th 2020
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Adult
A tale of conquest, dark kings, and daemonic heroes. A spellbinding story that will enchant you with its plot of ambition, love, betrayal, sacrifice and redemption.
Over fifty years have passed since Daleth the seemingly immortal Witch-King and his army conquered the Ember Kingdom. Now, with the once fertile lands and its enslaved people dying around him, theWitch-King, driven by his insatiable thirst for eternal youth, prepares his forces to march on the prosperous neighbouring Freestates. It will be the beginnings of a conquest that could destroy nations, bringing death and destruction on an unimaginable scale.
Then, when a peasant huntress whose rare gift was concealed from birth is exposed, it sets in motion a chain of events that could alter the destiny of generations to come.
Content/trigger warnings at the end of this post may contain spoilers.
I received a copy of this book from Storytellers On Tour and the publisher for reviewing purposes as part of a blog tour. This does not influence my opinions in any way.
Woooh, okay, where do I start with this review? There’s a lot to unpack from this one and it has been a while since I’ve read a high fantasy book so bear with me if my thoughts are too all over the place. I get easily intimidated by high fantasy books in general so I was initially a bit wary with this one. However, it’s surprising how naturally I got into the story.
The book opens with an introduction to different characters, and through their perspectives we get to see how the story unfolds in different aspects. It’s interesting how we get to learn about their individual experiences then see where their paths end up crossing. It’s also very intriguing to see the thoughts of and what transpired for each character, especially with the antagonists.
A big factor as to why I really enjoyed reading this is the character arcs. Again, this book follows multiple viewpoints, which I’m not usually a fan of. With this however, each character has their own distinct personality so I really like the contrasts of perspective. I grew attached to the main characters and was really invested with how each of them developed.
With that, Rakan would probably be my favorite character. This came as a surprise for me too since he is such a ruthless warrior, with the constant thirst for blood, but his character arc to be the most interesting so I always seem to find myself at the edge of my seat whenever reading from his perspective. Meanwhile, I enjoyed reading about the other characters as well, especially Maya, Taran and Kalas.
Plot-wise, Kings and Daemons is the type of book you constantly crave the next chapter for. Honestly, the amount of times I said “one more chapter” and then ended up reading until dawn! And from the start, the author did an amazing job with the worldbuilding, really solid and it laid out the foundation for a spectacular story! Whenever I pick this book up, I immediately get sucked into its scary world. I literally gasp from time to time, because I got really immersed to the story and characters that my reactions for every revelation were magnified. Although it is also worth mentioning that the book can get really dark so I strongly advice you to check out the content warnings I’ve included at the end before diving into this one. Please let me know if there are more I have missed as well!
Overall, I am at awe with this one! A high fantasy complete with complex characters, a well-written plot and fantastic worldbuilding, Kings and Daemons is a book you wouldn’t want to miss! If you are into dark fantasy stories, then I definitely recommend you try this one.
🚨 Click to reveal content warnings which may contain spoilers for the book. 🚨
– Physical abuse, mention of physical abuse which led to death, beating
– Disowning
– Graphic descriptions of fights
– Blood, gore, graphic injuries
– Death, death of a parent
– Death of animals
– Murder
– Blood drinking
– Hate from crowd, throwing rocks
– Suicidal thoughts
– Intent to rape
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Writing hasn’t always been a serious hobby for me… but it has always been there, lurkingin the shadows, serving me well when called upon.
As I look back over the years, I realise I was guilty of writing many short stories, as well as poetry, and I’d like to think, that even if they were never intended to be published, they were nonetheless warmly received by the intended recipients.
Then in 2019, I was inspired to write not just a short story, or poetry, but a book. Then, suddenly, one book turned into a trilogy and a labour of love, and it was a love I wanted to share with the world.
So, hereweare. The pandemic that put my career in sport on hold also gave me the opportunity to lavish time on my alternative hobby, or if demand dictates my new career.
However, only you, the reader, will decide whether this trilogy, which is still a work in progress, will be the first of many. I genuinely hope so.
Who knows, now these creatives juices are flowing, I might just keep on writing anyway.
Epic fantasy has been my favourite genre since I first read The Odyssey and The Illiad as a seven-year-old. Now it’s my turn to see if I can bring another world to life in the imagination of others.
GIVEAWAY
Get the chance to win one of five paperback copies of Kings and Daemons by Marcus Lee! (UK only)
FOLLOW THE TOUR
AUGUST 9TH–THE WELCOMING
Whispers & Wonder
AUGUST 10TH
Gnoflet Reads
The Sword Smith
@bibliomum
AUGUST 11TH
Out of This World SFF Reviews
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Sometimes Leelynn Reads
AUGUST 12TH
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Bookends & Bagends
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AUGUST 13TH
Gwendalyn’s Books
Mind of Luxe
Lauren Marie’s Musings
AUGUST 14TH
The Book in Hand
@myrelationshipwith
Beneath A Thousand Skies
AUGUST 15TH–THE ENCORE
RockStarlit BookAsylum
Thank you to Storytellers On Tour for organizing this blog tour!
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hallo, hallo —
I agree, I don’t usually go for the darker of the Dark Fantasy stories either but there was something about this story that pulled me into its orbit. Of course, I had reached my fill of the bloodshed before the author had himself which I did point out on my review but I found my way through the story and I found things which drove me to ruminate over the larger picture and the scope of what the heart of the message was within the story too. Overall I appreciated visiting with these characters and taking something out of that experience which I think reflects well on my review. I’m finding such wonderful thoughts being shared tonight as I go through the blog tour route! 🙂
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I hope you didn’t feel too uncomfortable or encountered problems when you’ve had enough of the bloodshed. But I have the same sentiment, the journey that the authors and characters took us along with is fantastic! Thank you!
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Hallo, Hallo again,
I nearly did – but there was something more alluring about the central theme of this story’s arc which kept me firmly rooted into the storyline. I truly wanted to learn how the good was going to overcome the evils of this world and I had to ‘let go’ of the fact this was a bit more intense than stories I generally gravitate towards. I saw the heart of the story and it acted as an anchour to get to the end. I was truly impressed by the scope and depth of it all – that’s why I kept reading.
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That’s amazing to know. Also, despite the gravity of the dark theme, it was surprisingly sad when this first book came to an end and when the realization that we have to wait for the next book to find out what happens 😂
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I know! My heart grieved knowing it was ending ‘there’ and that there is so much more to become known! Stories that have cliffhangers and/or end a bit more ambiguously than resolved are some of the hardest for me to read because I get so many questions rattling round in my head!
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