gregkontaxis's review
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theshaggyshepherd's review
3.0
Return of the Knights started with a bit of action to get your blood flowing before pulling back to a slower pace, which is the way I like to start my books. It felt very much like an introductory novel overall, which isn’t too surprising considering this series is planned to have 5 main books.
This feels like a very ambitious book that some people have compared to ASOIAF, which I personally have not read. Based on what I’ve heard about it though, I can see where the comparison originates. There is a ton of political intrigue and very interesting lore and world-building. You can really tell that the author has put a lot of thought into this, and it’s the part I’m most curious about in future installments for this series.
Sadly though, there are multiple things that I struggled with as well. It was difficult at times to follow the political machinations because there were so many names to keep track of but not enough history with these people yet for them to solidly stick in my memory. While some things felt overly complicated, others felt too simplified in order to fit into the complicated narrative that was needed to move this story along. I do have to say though that this improved some in the second half so I am optimistic moving forward, especially now that we’re a bit more familiar with the characters and setting in general.
Much of the dialogue felt clunky and, for me, the language in it didn’t always fit the world. While I do generally like political intrigue, it occasionally felt a bit too convoluted just for confusion’s sake and that sometimes took the steam out of some of the reveals that otherwise would’ve really surprised me.
In that same vein, the characters didn’t feel quite as fleshed out as I would’ve liked. They felt somewhat one-dimensional for much of the story, which made the ending a little bit anti-climactic because the actions felt more out of character rather than like an unexpected twist that I might’ve appreciated more otherwise. The women especially often felt more like accessories to move the plot along rather than their own characters with motives and feelings.
I do have to say though that for much of the book, I forgot that this was a translation. There were a couple of words that felt out of place but overall, this was a really smooth reading experience in that regard. I’ve read a different translated series before that ended up not working for me and I suspect it was due to the translation as the original received a lot of praise. I did not feel the same here so kudos to the translator on that.
This turned out to be a much longer review than I originally anticipated but the book definitely left me with a lot of feelings. The author set a high bar for himself and managed to meet some aspects better than others. Nonetheless, I do think that he is someone to keep an eye on because this ambitious debut lays the groundwork for a series with a lot of potential.
This feels like a very ambitious book that some people have compared to ASOIAF, which I personally have not read. Based on what I’ve heard about it though, I can see where the comparison originates. There is a ton of political intrigue and very interesting lore and world-building. You can really tell that the author has put a lot of thought into this, and it’s the part I’m most curious about in future installments for this series.
Sadly though, there are multiple things that I struggled with as well. It was difficult at times to follow the political machinations because there were so many names to keep track of but not enough history with these people yet for them to solidly stick in my memory. While some things felt overly complicated, others felt too simplified in order to fit into the complicated narrative that was needed to move this story along. I do have to say though that this improved some in the second half so I am optimistic moving forward, especially now that we’re a bit more familiar with the characters and setting in general.
Much of the dialogue felt clunky and, for me, the language in it didn’t always fit the world. While I do generally like political intrigue, it occasionally felt a bit too convoluted just for confusion’s sake and that sometimes took the steam out of some of the reveals that otherwise would’ve really surprised me.
In that same vein, the characters didn’t feel quite as fleshed out as I would’ve liked. They felt somewhat one-dimensional for much of the story, which made the ending a little bit anti-climactic because the actions felt more out of character rather than like an unexpected twist that I might’ve appreciated more otherwise. The women especially often felt more like accessories to move the plot along rather than their own characters with motives and feelings.
I do have to say though that for much of the book, I forgot that this was a translation. There were a couple of words that felt out of place but overall, this was a really smooth reading experience in that regard. I’ve read a different translated series before that ended up not working for me and I suspect it was due to the translation as the original received a lot of praise. I did not feel the same here so kudos to the translator on that.
This turned out to be a much longer review than I originally anticipated but the book definitely left me with a lot of feelings. The author set a high bar for himself and managed to meet some aspects better than others. Nonetheless, I do think that he is someone to keep an eye on because this ambitious debut lays the groundwork for a series with a lot of potential.
theliteraryapothecary's review
medium-paced
3.5
This was an epic fantasy with all the fixings! My initial rating for The Return of the Knights was 3 stars. It was good but it just felt like there was something missing to make it great.
CAWPILE breakdown:
Characters: 6 - I thought the characters were fine. I would have liked a little bit more development and growth and less cookie cutter, tropish characters.
Atmosphere/Setting: 7 - The atmosphere was good. There were a few places where it could have been built up a bitmore. The setting was great! I could easily imagine all of the places!
Writing Style: 7 - Kontaxis's writing style grew on me the more I read. At first, I just wasn't sure about it all and how we were supposed to feel about certain characters. Beginning felt a bit confusing.
Plot: 8 - The plot felt very easy to follow and straight forward.
Intrigue: 5 - I felt a bit of intrigue at times but it could have been more or stretched out throughout the entire novel instead of just bits and pieces.
Logic/Relationships: 8 - Everything made sense. Even when there were twists and turns, I just thought "yup, of course we're going there now." I didn't question anything, logically.
Enjoyment: 7 - I enjoyed it and I'm interested to see where the story goes from here, like I said there was just something missing to make it feel like a great book to me. But still - it was a good book.
CAWPILE Total: 48/7 = 6.8 = 3.5 stars.
CAWPILE breakdown:
Characters: 6 - I thought the characters were fine. I would have liked a little bit more development and growth and less cookie cutter, tropish characters.
Atmosphere/Setting: 7 - The atmosphere was good. There were a few places where it could have been built up a bitmore. The setting was great! I could easily imagine all of the places!
Writing Style: 7 - Kontaxis's writing style grew on me the more I read. At first, I just wasn't sure about it all and how we were supposed to feel about certain characters. Beginning felt a bit confusing.
Plot: 8 - The plot felt very easy to follow and straight forward.
Intrigue: 5 - I felt a bit of intrigue at times but it could have been more or stretched out throughout the entire novel instead of just bits and pieces.
Logic/Relationships: 8 - Everything made sense. Even when there were twists and turns, I just thought "yup, of course we're going there now." I didn't question anything, logically.
Enjoyment: 7 - I enjoyed it and I'm interested to see where the story goes from here, like I said there was just something missing to make it feel like a great book to me. But still - it was a good book.
CAWPILE Total: 48/7 = 6.8 = 3.5 stars.
luke_harkness's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
bubblewombat's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
relaxing
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
Mr Kontaxis, HOW ARE YOU EXPECTING ME TO WAIT TILL BOOK TWO AFTER THAT ENDING??? I NEED THE SEQUEL IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!!
I had such a fabulous time reading this, I didn't want it to end.
The beginning did feel a bit scary, because you're greeted with pages full of character names and there's a lot of them, but the book itself wasn't confusing at all.
It was so easy to get into, and to learn about the characters. The writing helped things along, so even when we were greeted with new info it didn't feel overwhelming and by the end you get a full understanding of why things were set up the way they were.
I read the ebook version, so I didn't flip back to check the names, and honestly you don't need to. If you have a physical copy though, then flip back if you feel like it, but I think it'll be more useful for the sequel, to remember who everyone was.
The main characters (and some of the side ones) made enough of an impact for me to remember who they were each time they appeared on page.
The pacing was nearly perfect, a tiny bit slow at the start, but when Elliot met Sophie it started to pick up.
Also, I need to compliment the translation, it's wonderfully done and made for a very smooth reading experience.
Now let's get into the characters, starting with the man, the myth, the legend, ELLIOT!!!! Cue crowd cheers.
The whole time Elliot was giving Jason (of the Argonauts) and I was living for it. Like, yes you ARE the best and you CAN do anything, flaunt it! I will accept zero Elliot criticism! You don't get him like I do!!!
You'd think he'd remind me more of Hercules, but no, trust me it's Jason. But he'll be a better hero than Jason when this series is over, mark my words.
Yes, he's a little arrogant, but which great hero isn't? He also shows that he cares a lot about his friends and would die trying to protect them.
He's smart and kind of reckless when angry, but honestly that just makes him a better character to me. And yeah, he's definitely my favourite.
My second favourite is John Long Arm, you can't get any better than a former pirate/bounty hunter, you just can't. He's also a loyal friend (all of Elliot's friends are, really, but John is special). If John doesn't make it till the very end of the series you can expect me to start a riot.
Next fav is Velhisya, I think she's a cool character on her own and I can't wait to see what she becomes in the future. I ship her with Elliot too, I'm just saying.
Last favourite (but don't worry, I love them all) is Walter. Some of you are going what??? But LISTEN, if I wasn't meant to like him why is he blonde and with a tiger too??? Just screams power to me. Yeah he's a villain, AND WHAT ABOUT IT?
I don't know if I'm hoping he survives as the series goes on or not...on one hand he's a good villain, on the other I think the people (and non-humans) of that region deserve some peace.
Speaking of non humans, there's centaurs and elves and pegasi and giants. The world building is vast, and judging by how this book ended, it'll be expanding more on the lore in future installments.
I have to mention that I cried approximately three times while reading, once when a certain someone died near the end, and the other two times because the prose was so beautiful it made me tear up.
Finally, if you want politics - The Return of the Knights has it, if you want a found family hero's journey type of story - TROTK has it, if you want a world with elements from Greek Mythology - TROTK has it, if you want characters you can root for - guess what, TROTK has that too!!!
Please pick up this book so we can scream about it together.
*Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
I had such a fabulous time reading this, I didn't want it to end.
The beginning did feel a bit scary, because you're greeted with pages full of character names and there's a lot of them, but the book itself wasn't confusing at all.
It was so easy to get into, and to learn about the characters. The writing helped things along, so even when we were greeted with new info it didn't feel overwhelming and by the end you get a full understanding of why things were set up the way they were.
I read the ebook version, so I didn't flip back to check the names, and honestly you don't need to. If you have a physical copy though, then flip back if you feel like it, but I think it'll be more useful for the sequel, to remember who everyone was.
The main characters (and some of the side ones) made enough of an impact for me to remember who they were each time they appeared on page.
The pacing was nearly perfect, a tiny bit slow at the start, but when Elliot met Sophie it started to pick up.
Also, I need to compliment the translation, it's wonderfully done and made for a very smooth reading experience.
Now let's get into the characters, starting with the man, the myth, the legend, ELLIOT!!!! Cue crowd cheers.
The whole time Elliot was giving Jason (of the Argonauts) and I was living for it. Like, yes you ARE the best and you CAN do anything, flaunt it! I will accept zero Elliot criticism! You don't get him like I do!!!
You'd think he'd remind me more of Hercules, but no, trust me it's Jason. But he'll be a better hero than Jason when this series is over, mark my words.
Yes, he's a little arrogant, but which great hero isn't? He also shows that he cares a lot about his friends and would die trying to protect them.
He's smart and kind of reckless when angry, but honestly that just makes him a better character to me. And yeah, he's definitely my favourite.
My second favourite is John Long Arm, you can't get any better than a former pirate/bounty hunter, you just can't. He's also a loyal friend (all of Elliot's friends are, really, but John is special). If John doesn't make it till the very end of the series you can expect me to start a riot.
Next fav is Velhisya, I think she's a cool character on her own and I can't wait to see what she becomes in the future. I ship her with Elliot too, I'm just saying.
Last favourite (but don't worry, I love them all) is Walter. Some of you are going what??? But LISTEN, if I wasn't meant to like him why is he blonde and with a tiger too??? Just screams power to me. Yeah he's a villain, AND WHAT ABOUT IT?
I don't know if I'm hoping he survives as the series goes on or not...on one hand he's a good villain, on the other I think the people (and non-humans) of that region deserve some peace.
Speaking of non humans, there's centaurs and elves and pegasi and giants. The world building is vast, and judging by how this book ended, it'll be expanding more on the lore in future installments.
I have to mention that I cried approximately three times while reading, once when a certain someone died near the end, and the other two times because the prose was so beautiful it made me tear up.
Finally, if you want politics - The Return of the Knights has it, if you want a found family hero's journey type of story - TROTK has it, if you want a world with elements from Greek Mythology - TROTK has it, if you want characters you can root for - guess what, TROTK has that too!!!
Please pick up this book so we can scream about it together.
*Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
kayshiddenshelf's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
3/5 Stars
I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Readers will be pulled in with bloody battles, classic fantasy tropes and political intrigue all set within this Greek fantasy epic. Originally published in Greek, The Return of the Knights is book 1 in The Dance of Light series and Gregory Kontaxis’ debut novel.
The story follows the conflicts between the Queen of Knightdorn and leader of a rebellion, Walter Thorn. Walter is a ruthless man, who will stop at nothing to obtain her throne and his victory appears close at hand. After suffering several losses to Walter with no hope in sight, a young man named Elliot arrives with a plan that could save the Queen in her hour of need.
The story follows the conflicts between the Queen of Knightdorn and leader of a rebellion, Walter Thorn. Walter is a ruthless man, who will stop at nothing to obtain her throne and his victory appears close at hand. After suffering several losses to Walter with no hope in sight, a young man named Elliot arrives with a plan that could save the Queen in her hour of need.
Elliot is a young man trained by his master and raised in a small village towards one purpose in life. Despite his humble upbringing he demonstrates great skill and loyalty to the Queen of Knightdorn. Yet, while he shows great skill with combat, and strategy; he is also rash, arrogant, and at times naïve. To me, this made Elliot a believable, yet flawed protagonist. I found myself both rooting for and against him at times due to his behaviour or choices, which makes sense considering Elliot is seventeen years old throughout the story.
Walter, on the other hand, quickly caught my interest. He is unapologetically cruel and efficient in his quest for the throne. The means he uses to punish and the POVs we saw from his character demonstrated a calculating mind and remorseless heart making him a compelling villain.
I also found the political scheming, strategies, betrayals, and the tensions within the plot were well written. All these developments were enticing in their complexity, and yet it felt like we only scratched the surface. The same can be said for the rich world, lore, and mythical creatures. The scope of the world feels large, and carefully built while maintaining an air of mystery.
I was also surprised by how quickly I was pulled into the world, story, characters, and the severity of their circumstances. Within the first 20%, Gregory Kontaxis drops readers right into action, and history making this complex political intrigue accessible.
Not only that, but it also features a Knights, animal companions, the chosen one and band of misfits tropes, war, reveals, twists, and much more.
However, as a character driven reader I found the choice of storytelling took me out of the reading experience at times. It felt plot driven, lacked character growth I often crave, and relied on telling rather than showing.
Despite this, the complexity of the world, plot, and the fantastic action scenes remained enticing and shows that Gregory Kontaxis is an author to watch.
I look forward to continuing the series to see what happens next and recommend this for fans of plot driven political fantasy with a refreshing lore.
I look forward to continuing the series to see what happens next and recommend this for fans of plot driven political fantasy with a refreshing lore.
npscott's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Our story starts in a Kingdom at the end of a bloody civil war. We are introduced to our main protagonist (Elliott) who is a nobody from a small village; but his Master and father-figure is at the end of his days when the Kingdom suffers its latest loss in the war. Elliott is sent by his Master to the Queen to convince her of a radical plan to defeat the enemy and maybe survive the war.
This book has the common tropes of lost warrior, found family, good versus evil but used in a way that keeps the reader interested and guessing from beginning to end. If you like epic type fantasy with these tropes, then The Return of the Knights may be the book for you.
This book has the common tropes of lost warrior, found family, good versus evil but used in a way that keeps the reader interested and guessing from beginning to end. If you like epic type fantasy with these tropes, then The Return of the Knights may be the book for you.
stxrlight's review
5.0
The Return of the Knights is an exciting NA historical-fantasy story, one i'd definitely recommend to anyone who loves this genre!
The plot is amazingly well thought out, equally well executed and pulls you in right from the start till finish. Throughout the book you connect to the characters more and I love how the main characters have their flaws. Also the suspense is written really well, without spoiling where it's going! Some of the twists also caught me off guard and were really well done!
I can't wait for the second book in this series!
The plot is amazingly well thought out, equally well executed and pulls you in right from the start till finish. Throughout the book you connect to the characters more and I love how the main characters have their flaws. Also the suspense is written really well, without spoiling where it's going! Some of the twists also caught me off guard and were really well done!
I can't wait for the second book in this series!
keandrews95's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I was given a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. First off, the cover of this book is so gorgeous. Kontaxis has created a world that is filled with lore, magic, and mythical creatures. It gave off Game of Thrones and Percy Jackson vibes. There were several different POVs in the story that give you a look at almost all sides of those involved in the conflict. Walter is definitely a terrifying villain and Sophie becomes morally gray compared to how she is first portrayed. There were a lot of great female characters and the twist at the end was interesting. I struggled to like Elliot. While his arrogance is noted, not many people do much to set him straight. He does learn his lesson in the end but it doesn't really feel like he changed much. While he sets off while an interesting group of people, the only person we don't get a POV for us Eleanor and I felt that was a missed opportunity to bring out her character besides her being a woman who fights and needs to be protected by the group. The pacing in places felt a bit off. There was a lot of exposition that bogged down the narrative and some of which felt unnecessary. I did like Syrella, Peter, and John as characters. This series has a lot of potential and no doubt Kontaxis has a lot in store for Elliot and the others. 3.5 out of 5, rounded up