A review by brewsandbooks
The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This book is really well done. I enjoyed the premise of the book and how Swan wrote the characters. I was impressed with the tool of using a narrator looking back on their life, and the way he was able to sprinkle in foreshadowing and large moments of the plot and the series overall. As an attorney, I was also incredibly impressed with how he discusses the common law and used a very creative world where law is used. Every time he went into detail, I was reminded of my history of the law class in undergrad. Swan's worldbuilding with this was amazing and just so unique.
I thought the plot was interesting and interwoven. The way we are set up for the rest of the series is also incredible and well written. However, parts of this novel did lose me. I often felt like I was being told about relationships instead of shown them. Oftentimes we are told how a speech should be making us feel instead of allowing us to read the tenor of the words or the way an audience experienced them around the person. This lost some of the power of the characters, and fell a bit flat. I also thought the relationships were a bit rushed in a lot of places. The people's own feelings for each other are just a bit muddled and not given the space they could have used to really make me feel for them. Overall, it felt very plot and world building focused and therefore sometimes the reactions to the characters felt a little lost for me. I was intrigued with the interpersonal relationships, I just wanted to see more of them. A great debut, and I'm interested to see where this goes. I think I was just so excited by the characters and therefore got a little disappointed in parts.
I thought the plot was interesting and interwoven. The way we are set up for the rest of the series is also incredible and well written. However, parts of this novel did lose me. I often felt like I was being told about relationships instead of shown them. Oftentimes we are told how a speech should be making us feel instead of allowing us to read the tenor of the words or the way an audience experienced them around the person. This lost some of the power of the characters, and fell a bit flat. I also thought the relationships were a bit rushed in a lot of places. The people's own feelings for each other are just a bit muddled and not given the space they could have used to really make me feel for them. Overall, it felt very plot and world building focused and therefore sometimes the reactions to the characters felt a little lost for me. I was intrigued with the interpersonal relationships, I just wanted to see more of them. A great debut, and I'm interested to see where this goes. I think I was just so excited by the characters and therefore got a little disappointed in parts.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault