thehamsterreads's review against another edition
5.0
This is a great story! It takes place shortly after the events of Masters of Deception and while both are technically in different series’, they share some of the same characters. Jie, a half-elf on a mission to find a traitor to the Black Lotus Clan, finds herself caught in the middle of a conflict between the rival Eldaeri nations, Tarkoth and Serikoth. Can she help prevent war and complete her mission at the same time? Far away in a small village, Tomas just wants to sell the fish he catches and impress a pretty girl. But when his land is invaded by the feared Bovyans of the Teleri empire he will do whatever he can to save the girl and his village from their raping and murdering nature.
This book has truly exceptional story telling! The plot is complex and layered and you never know how things are going to turn out. And yet all the plot threads are neatly tied up by the end. The world building is excellent with a rich history and mythology. And lastly the characters are very well developed with depth and personalities all their own. I can’t wait to read the next book and find out where the story goes next!
This book has truly exceptional story telling! The plot is complex and layered and you never know how things are going to turn out. And yet all the plot threads are neatly tied up by the end. The world building is excellent with a rich history and mythology. And lastly the characters are very well developed with depth and personalities all their own. I can’t wait to read the next book and find out where the story goes next!
neilsef's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
This is another excellent novel in the Tivara series that follows on from The Masters of Deception and contains all the aspects you would expect.
This is full of mystery, intrigue, and political plotting as well as some good action sequences, making it a compulsive read.
As usual, all the characters are well-written with interesting and engaging personalities.
One problem with this kindle version was the number of typo errors, which must have been around the three to four dozen mark, give or take, most of which were situated in the latter half of the book, and while not a great number, it was more than enough to spoil my overall enjoyment of the story.
This is full of mystery, intrigue, and political plotting as well as some good action sequences, making it a compulsive read.
As usual, all the characters are well-written with interesting and engaging personalities.
One problem with this kindle version was the number of typo errors, which must have been around the three to four dozen mark, give or take, most of which were situated in the latter half of the book, and while not a great number, it was more than enough to spoil my overall enjoyment of the story.
fantasybooknerd01's review
4.0
I like J.C. Kang’s writing immensely! He has a knack of drawing you into the story immediately. As soon as I read the prologue and he mentions Avarax the dragon, I was hooked.
I always like the fact that at the beginning of the book, J. C. Kang gives us a cast of characters. I always find this useful. However, you never really need it as the characters are all distinctive and well imagined.
During the promotion for Crown of a Sundered Empire, I recently read in an interview with J. C. Kang that Crown of a Sundered Empire is his most accomplished work, and whilst I have very little to compare it to, it is very easy to tell that the story is a well-crafted piece of work. It is so slick in it’s writing, and it simply oozes charm.
Initially, the story revolves around an invasion of the village of Lorium by the Bovyans of the Teleri Empire, whose main motivations for invading the countries that they invade is due to their horrific ideals in relation to obtaining the next generation of soldiers. This is pretty awful, however, whilst sexual violence is referred to several times, it never occurs. However, that does not diminish the horror of the invasion.
In the midst of this, is Tomas, a young streetwise fisher boy who attempts to rescue the girl that he is smitten by. However, he is punished by the Bovyans who remove his eye as recompense.
However, Crown of a Sundered Empire revolves around five points of view, which includes the half-elf super-spy, Jie.
I love Jie, the half-elven spy. I met her first in Songs of Insurrection, and she stole the show in that book, and similarly, in Crown of a Sundered Empire, she steals the limelight each time the story centres on her.
When Jie enters the story, you know that there is going to be heaps of intrigue, and guess what Crown of the Sundered Empire is filled with the stuff. Even the subplots have subplots. But J.C. Kang is such a skilled writer that he keeps a tight leash on them all and then carefully draws them together at the end.
As I mentioned earlier, I had previously read Songs of Insurrection, so this aided me at times with Crown of a Sundered Empire as several times throughout the book, J. C. Kang puts in little easter eggs to other books, which I recognised. I don’t think it impacts on the story if you haven’t read any of the other books, but I did like these little references to the other books in the series.
There are a number of other storylines in the book, that include arranged marriages, the theft of priceless artefacts and infiltrating spies.
If you cannot guess, I enjoyed this book and there are many good things about J.C. Kang’s writings. One of these is his ability to write strong female characters. In fact, when it comes to characters, the female characters stand out more than the male characters and for me they appear to be the main driving force in his stories.
Additionally, I like the fact that he does not coddle the reader in his stories. He simply throws the reader in at the deep end and he expects that whilst the reader may find the introduction to the world and the environment a little confusing, he trusts that the reader will catch up and stick with it. If you do, you are richly rewarded with a satisfying tale of daring dos that and an intriguing plot.
If you like your books to be full of political intrigue, then Crown of a Sundered Empire is definitely a book for you.
I always like the fact that at the beginning of the book, J. C. Kang gives us a cast of characters. I always find this useful. However, you never really need it as the characters are all distinctive and well imagined.
During the promotion for Crown of a Sundered Empire, I recently read in an interview with J. C. Kang that Crown of a Sundered Empire is his most accomplished work, and whilst I have very little to compare it to, it is very easy to tell that the story is a well-crafted piece of work. It is so slick in it’s writing, and it simply oozes charm.
Initially, the story revolves around an invasion of the village of Lorium by the Bovyans of the Teleri Empire, whose main motivations for invading the countries that they invade is due to their horrific ideals in relation to obtaining the next generation of soldiers. This is pretty awful, however, whilst sexual violence is referred to several times, it never occurs. However, that does not diminish the horror of the invasion.
In the midst of this, is Tomas, a young streetwise fisher boy who attempts to rescue the girl that he is smitten by. However, he is punished by the Bovyans who remove his eye as recompense.
However, Crown of a Sundered Empire revolves around five points of view, which includes the half-elf super-spy, Jie.
I love Jie, the half-elven spy. I met her first in Songs of Insurrection, and she stole the show in that book, and similarly, in Crown of a Sundered Empire, she steals the limelight each time the story centres on her.
When Jie enters the story, you know that there is going to be heaps of intrigue, and guess what Crown of the Sundered Empire is filled with the stuff. Even the subplots have subplots. But J.C. Kang is such a skilled writer that he keeps a tight leash on them all and then carefully draws them together at the end.
As I mentioned earlier, I had previously read Songs of Insurrection, so this aided me at times with Crown of a Sundered Empire as several times throughout the book, J. C. Kang puts in little easter eggs to other books, which I recognised. I don’t think it impacts on the story if you haven’t read any of the other books, but I did like these little references to the other books in the series.
There are a number of other storylines in the book, that include arranged marriages, the theft of priceless artefacts and infiltrating spies.
If you cannot guess, I enjoyed this book and there are many good things about J.C. Kang’s writings. One of these is his ability to write strong female characters. In fact, when it comes to characters, the female characters stand out more than the male characters and for me they appear to be the main driving force in his stories.
Additionally, I like the fact that he does not coddle the reader in his stories. He simply throws the reader in at the deep end and he expects that whilst the reader may find the introduction to the world and the environment a little confusing, he trusts that the reader will catch up and stick with it. If you do, you are richly rewarded with a satisfying tale of daring dos that and an intriguing plot.
If you like your books to be full of political intrigue, then Crown of a Sundered Empire is definitely a book for you.
filipmagnus's review
3.0
I can't believe I didn't publish my review here!
Self-Published
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery
Pages: 596
Format: ebook
Review Copy: offered me by the author in return for an honest review.
I approach the review of this one with mixed feelings. On the one hand, I enjoyed much of the story (after a fashion), loved the characters and found several of the plot threads nothing short of riveting. On the other, dozens of typos pulled me out of the action often, much to my annoyance. Further, I admit to some confusion on account of the blurb of this novel only concentrating on a third, at most, of the story it tells. The much more significant conflict, which embroiders four out of the five point-of-view characters of Crown is described by the succinct sentence, “A coming war,” and perhaps by the following line “a broken land where conquerors dream of empires”.
J. C. Kang’s world is multifaceted. History and mythology are one and the same, with fragments of once-corporeal gods empowering the mortal might of broken and aspirant empires both. There’s enough here to be daunting to a new reader to the world of Tivara - at times, I felt lost, uncertain of which of the characters were being introduced for the first time and which of them had starring or supporting roles in Kang's previous works.
I was entranced by Tomas’ story, the point of view which deals with the eponymous Crown of the Sundered Empire and with an invasion by the disgusting Bovyans, a race of large, militaristic males who procreate by forcing themselves on the women of those territories they subjugate through force. Tomas’ sharp wit is easy to grow fond of, and he goes through a dark hero’s journey, which sees him turn far more ruthless, at a very steep price. Only two instances come to mind as somewhat “off” in terms of his PoV sections, one of them when a soldier intent on not trusting the boy has a change of heart after stating very clearly he wouldn’t trust Tomas; the other involves a mid-wife in his village, of whom Tomas only ever thinks of as “the midwife.” This last one feels bizarrely archetypal and not at all like everyone in this tiny fishing and diving village has intimate knowledge of each other.
Our other characters, princes, princesses, bastards and a half-elf assassin, deal with the fallout of Crown Prince Elrayn’s attempt to unite two broken kingdoms in order to further his own power. At its best, this part of the novel reminded me of the plots of some Shakesperean comedies, with men and women desperate to get out of arranged marriages, falling in love with exactly whom they shouldn’t and creating plenty of amusing conflicts. At its worst, however, I just didn’t buy into the casual stupidity the Crown Prince exhibited in the midst of crisis – there’s incompetence, there’s short-sightedness and then there is whatever Elrayn suffers from. His early successes came across as no more than a stroke of luck, and his later failings appeared to me too artificial. Thankfully, he’s not one of the PoV characters – rather, the engine by which most of them come into the conflict.
I was familiar with the high-elf, Jie, from a short novella by the name of “Thorn of the Night Blossoms” and I enjoyed seeing her all grown-up and experienced but also struggling between duty and love. Her affair with Elrayn’s brother, Aryn, was a source of amusement and some well-appreciated tension, which ultimately didn’t come up to the sort of resolution I would’ve liked.
Alwrynn, royal bastard and brother to Elrayn and Aryn, whose overwhelming use of naval terms chafed during several instances, was otherwise an entertaining protagonist, skilled at sea but almost as helpless on land as in the world of politics. His connection with Alaena, the third PoV character and one of the princelings Elrayn attempts to marry into his family, is a source of plenty of tension that pays off really well towards the end of the story.
The action was fantastic, nothing less than what I've come to expect from Kang, based on my limited experience with his work.
Crown of the Sundered Empire is an intriguing read with plenty of positive elements. My enjoyment of it was mired by the typos and the extent to which I felt like a newcomer who lacked basic insight into some of the characters’ pasts and world events. Tomas’s story might’ve been a short novel of its own – and I would argue, it would’ve been a finer entry-point to the world for new readers such as myself. As it is, I liked J. C. Kang’s novel well enough, even with the issues I had, which is why I’m giving it 3/5 stars. I feel obliged to say that I’m in the minority – most of the readers who have scored this book over on Goodreads have given it either 4 or 5 stars. What didn’t work for me might very well work for you.
Self-Published
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery
Pages: 596
Format: ebook
Review Copy: offered me by the author in return for an honest review.
I approach the review of this one with mixed feelings. On the one hand, I enjoyed much of the story (after a fashion), loved the characters and found several of the plot threads nothing short of riveting. On the other, dozens of typos pulled me out of the action often, much to my annoyance. Further, I admit to some confusion on account of the blurb of this novel only concentrating on a third, at most, of the story it tells. The much more significant conflict, which embroiders four out of the five point-of-view characters of Crown is described by the succinct sentence, “A coming war,” and perhaps by the following line “a broken land where conquerors dream of empires”.
J. C. Kang’s world is multifaceted. History and mythology are one and the same, with fragments of once-corporeal gods empowering the mortal might of broken and aspirant empires both. There’s enough here to be daunting to a new reader to the world of Tivara - at times, I felt lost, uncertain of which of the characters were being introduced for the first time and which of them had starring or supporting roles in Kang's previous works.
I was entranced by Tomas’ story, the point of view which deals with the eponymous Crown of the Sundered Empire and with an invasion by the disgusting Bovyans, a race of large, militaristic males who procreate by forcing themselves on the women of those territories they subjugate through force. Tomas’ sharp wit is easy to grow fond of, and he goes through a dark hero’s journey, which sees him turn far more ruthless, at a very steep price. Only two instances come to mind as somewhat “off” in terms of his PoV sections, one of them when a soldier intent on not trusting the boy has a change of heart after stating very clearly he wouldn’t trust Tomas; the other involves a mid-wife in his village, of whom Tomas only ever thinks of as “the midwife.” This last one feels bizarrely archetypal and not at all like everyone in this tiny fishing and diving village has intimate knowledge of each other.
Our other characters, princes, princesses, bastards and a half-elf assassin, deal with the fallout of Crown Prince Elrayn’s attempt to unite two broken kingdoms in order to further his own power. At its best, this part of the novel reminded me of the plots of some Shakesperean comedies, with men and women desperate to get out of arranged marriages, falling in love with exactly whom they shouldn’t and creating plenty of amusing conflicts. At its worst, however, I just didn’t buy into the casual stupidity the Crown Prince exhibited in the midst of crisis – there’s incompetence, there’s short-sightedness and then there is whatever Elrayn suffers from. His early successes came across as no more than a stroke of luck, and his later failings appeared to me too artificial. Thankfully, he’s not one of the PoV characters – rather, the engine by which most of them come into the conflict.
I was familiar with the high-elf, Jie, from a short novella by the name of “Thorn of the Night Blossoms” and I enjoyed seeing her all grown-up and experienced but also struggling between duty and love. Her affair with Elrayn’s brother, Aryn, was a source of amusement and some well-appreciated tension, which ultimately didn’t come up to the sort of resolution I would’ve liked.
Alwrynn, royal bastard and brother to Elrayn and Aryn, whose overwhelming use of naval terms chafed during several instances, was otherwise an entertaining protagonist, skilled at sea but almost as helpless on land as in the world of politics. His connection with Alaena, the third PoV character and one of the princelings Elrayn attempts to marry into his family, is a source of plenty of tension that pays off really well towards the end of the story.
The action was fantastic, nothing less than what I've come to expect from Kang, based on my limited experience with his work.
Crown of the Sundered Empire is an intriguing read with plenty of positive elements. My enjoyment of it was mired by the typos and the extent to which I felt like a newcomer who lacked basic insight into some of the characters’ pasts and world events. Tomas’s story might’ve been a short novel of its own – and I would argue, it would’ve been a finer entry-point to the world for new readers such as myself. As it is, I liked J. C. Kang’s novel well enough, even with the issues I had, which is why I’m giving it 3/5 stars. I feel obliged to say that I’m in the minority – most of the readers who have scored this book over on Goodreads have given it either 4 or 5 stars. What didn’t work for me might very well work for you.
hermes262's review
5.0
I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book! The fantasy elements were amazing. Fast moving, adrenaline pumping plot, full of vivid adventure. Renewed my love for fantasy—I’ve been waiting for a book like this. So glad I found it on here. Honestly one of the first multiple POV books where I truly enjoyed each and every POV! When I read GRRM, I dread some his of his POVs. Here, all of the characters were so well developed and had their own character arcs that worked well together. While reading I was most interested in the Tarkoth and Serikoth political dynamics. Loved all those royals and their issues. But on the other hand I did equally enjoy Tomas’ chapters and his new abilities. The whole world is so well-crafted, I ate it all up. Want to learn more about the Sundered Empire and the conspiracies afoot.
Kang has a neat dynamic with Serikoth and Tarkoth. I appreciate Tarkothi values more, but I relate to the Serikoth characters more—they’re my kind of people. Koryn and Alaena were amazing characters that I wanted badly to succeed. Excited to learn more about them, as well as meet their younger sibling in the future.
And again, all the characters and their interactions are great. Even brief appearances like the one by Fleet the Halfling—I’d read a spin off with him and Jie hands down.
Best fantasy book I’ve read in years. Cannot wait for the sequel. Read this back in March and have been checking back frequently to see if the sequel has come out. Super excited to read more about this awesome cast’s adventures. While I’m most interested in this series, I will check out other books by this author as clearly Kang is a very talented writer.
Kang has a neat dynamic with Serikoth and Tarkoth. I appreciate Tarkothi values more, but I relate to the Serikoth characters more—they’re my kind of people. Koryn and Alaena were amazing characters that I wanted badly to succeed. Excited to learn more about them, as well as meet their younger sibling in the future.
And again, all the characters and their interactions are great. Even brief appearances like the one by Fleet the Halfling—I’d read a spin off with him and Jie hands down.
Best fantasy book I’ve read in years. Cannot wait for the sequel. Read this back in March and have been checking back frequently to see if the sequel has come out. Super excited to read more about this awesome cast’s adventures. While I’m most interested in this series, I will check out other books by this author as clearly Kang is a very talented writer.
margaretadelle's review
4.0
I enjoyed the first book I read in this particular world, "Masters of Deception" so when the author offered me this book to read for review, I was happy to agree!
There are some content warnings to be aware of. The character of Korryn has suicide ideation, regularly putting himself in harm's way with the intent of dying in battle. And there is much more emphasis in this book on the Bovyans sexual assault of the women in the lands they conquer. Nothing explicit is shown in the text, but it is referenced with discomforting regularity. These shouldn't be a problem for the average reader, but be aware if you are someone struggling with either of those things.
Admittedly, I was a bit sad that my favorite characters from the first ones wouldn't be in this one (it's not a direct sequel to Masters of Deception, revolving more around one of the protagonists and a new conflict) but I did enjoy Jie before. In this one she's a bit more fallible than her previous outing, meeting another character that can rival her at what she does. I appreciated seeing her on the backfoot.
The worldbuilding continues to be a struggle for me. There are multiple different kingdoms with a mixing of all the characters. The princess that was born in one country but heir to the throne of another, the difference between one particular race of people split up between two kingdoms (one of whom then split again), multiple different ancient races whose existence has a heavy influence on the modern culture, and so on. At certain points I just focused on the current McGuffin they were focused on, but even that got unwieldy. There was an ancient crown, a magical sphere of light, and blessed water said to have effects on fertility, all of whom were important to multiple groups for varying reasons. This is definitely a book to read slowly and make note of things.
My favorite part of the plot was the Shakespearean levels of melodrama. There were two arranged marriages between princes and princesses to secure alliances and none of them wanted a part of it. All four of them had secret lovers, with all manner of scheming and pretending to be someone else to get out of it. A princess disguised as a cabin boy, a prince disguised as a prostitute, an assassin wandering around in a princess's dress. I half expected someone to bite their thumb at someone else, it was great.
While the world and plot might have been confusing, the characters were clear as crystal. The overly daring prince with his endlessly loyal gay lover, the fiery redhead that knows she's sexy and capable, the adorkable navy lieutenant that's fearsome on a boat and clumsy as a baby giraffe on land, the fisherman that does way more lying and trap-setting than actually catching fish, it was a pretty impressive cast. I may not remember exactly who is with what country in what context, but I remember how much I couldn't decided if I wanted to be or be with Alaena. (Answer: both) It's for them that I read it. And why you should too.
There are some content warnings to be aware of. The character of Korryn has suicide ideation, regularly putting himself in harm's way with the intent of dying in battle. And there is much more emphasis in this book on the Bovyans sexual assault of the women in the lands they conquer. Nothing explicit is shown in the text, but it is referenced with discomforting regularity. These shouldn't be a problem for the average reader, but be aware if you are someone struggling with either of those things.
Admittedly, I was a bit sad that my favorite characters from the first ones wouldn't be in this one (it's not a direct sequel to Masters of Deception, revolving more around one of the protagonists and a new conflict) but I did enjoy Jie before. In this one she's a bit more fallible than her previous outing, meeting another character that can rival her at what she does. I appreciated seeing her on the backfoot.
The worldbuilding continues to be a struggle for me. There are multiple different kingdoms with a mixing of all the characters. The princess that was born in one country but heir to the throne of another, the difference between one particular race of people split up between two kingdoms (one of whom then split again), multiple different ancient races whose existence has a heavy influence on the modern culture, and so on. At certain points I just focused on the current McGuffin they were focused on, but even that got unwieldy. There was an ancient crown, a magical sphere of light, and blessed water said to have effects on fertility, all of whom were important to multiple groups for varying reasons. This is definitely a book to read slowly and make note of things.
My favorite part of the plot was the Shakespearean levels of melodrama. There were two arranged marriages between princes and princesses to secure alliances and none of them wanted a part of it. All four of them had secret lovers, with all manner of scheming and pretending to be someone else to get out of it. A princess disguised as a cabin boy, a prince disguised as a prostitute, an assassin wandering around in a princess's dress. I half expected someone to bite their thumb at someone else, it was great.
While the world and plot might have been confusing, the characters were clear as crystal. The overly daring prince with his endlessly loyal gay lover, the fiery redhead that knows she's sexy and capable, the adorkable navy lieutenant that's fearsome on a boat and clumsy as a baby giraffe on land, the fisherman that does way more lying and trap-setting than actually catching fish, it was a pretty impressive cast. I may not remember exactly who is with what country in what context, but I remember how much I couldn't decided if I wanted to be or be with Alaena. (Answer: both) It's for them that I read it. And why you should too.
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