A review by wardenred
The Last Sun by K.D. Edwards

adventurous emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I hear all the cool bodyguards love to shut their clients in a strange room with a strange man. Extra points when zombies are involved.

This series has been recommended to me more times than I can count, but I've shied away from it because of the trigger warnings. I cracked open the Amazon sample once, and the way Rune's past trauma was mentioned/handled at the very beginning didn't sit well with me. But the recs kept coming, so I eventually caved, and wow, I don't regret it one bit! There were some aspects of the trauma narrative I remained slightly put out by until the end, I admit, but there were also scenes where I liked the handling of it, and anyway, there is just SO MUCH MORE to this book.

I really loved the worldbuilding and how it was delivered. The author uses my absolute favorite approach: just plunge the reader in the middle of things, throw in a bunch of stuff that is completely natural to the POV character so he doesn't dwell on every detail and just experiences things instead of actively explaining them, and wait until it all makes sense. A tad overwhelming at first, but by the end of first act I felt like I had a strong grasp on the basics of the setting, and then more exciting stuff kept getting added throughout the book, making for a super exciting kitchen-sink-type urban fantasy setting with complex political relations between the Tarot-inspred courts and an interesting take on the Vancian magic system. And it's not just the worldbuilding info that's delivered this way: Rune definitely keeps secrets from the reader that he alludes to periodically—or rather, it's not that he actively keeps secrets, it's that he only narrates what is immediately relevant. So I'm very excited to keep reading and learning more about all the things that's been hinted at.

The character dynamics are a huge strength of the story. There's a big web of relationships growing around Rune, each of them unique and compelling. I particularly adored the relationship he has with Brand, and how most of their interactions consist of sniping at each other in fluent sarcasm, but when it matters, they're always able to brush it aside and have an honest, vulnerable conversation. I also liked the budding relationship between Rune and Addam, and Rune's interactions with Lord Tower, and so many more connections. Also, the banter is absolutely to die for. I may have burst out into loud laughter at least four times. I also found myself a huge fan of action scenes here. A lot of them are long, but they never feel drown out and are always exciting in more ways than one, slipping in plenty of character development and worldbuilding info between all the tension. 

The plotting overall is solid, both in terms of delivering a self-contained adventure and setting up the foundations for an overarching plot. I was, however, a bit annoyed by the number of times the characters were backed into a corner and then saved by a happy accident. Though this kind of thing was easier to stomach when I remembered that
a lot of these 'accidents' were actually set up by a teenage Seer with more good intentions than common sense
. And speaking of things that miffed me, I didn't love how few female characters there were. The ones we do meet all seem interesting but get so little page time. 

Finally, a shoutout to Josh Hurley who's 100% one of the best audiobook narrators I've come across. Such an amazing job making every character feel distinct and maintaining the mood throughout!
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