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A review by aelynreads
The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner
4.0
I have a few things to say about the books in this series as a whole so far (no spoilers, don't worry).
1. the characters are well-rounded
The main characters in this series are complex and interesting and I love how Megan Whalen Turner has crafted their multi-faceted and realistic personalities. I feel that I understand all of the characters and their motivations, which lends authenticity to their actions and makes the story immersive and believable.
2. the religion, mythology and world building are great
The world this series is set in is fantastically built. Megan Whalen Turner has created four distinct kingdoms and an engaging political climate which makes the world feel incredibly real. The inclusion of the religions and the folklore stories that are told across the series are intriguing and add character to the world and the plot.
3. the pacing is a little uneven
The plot will, seemingly at random, skip over weeks or even months of action by summarising the events during the missing time in just a few sentences. Obviously this is ideal if nothing happens in the missing time, but the story skips over a lot of the war strategy and the moves and counter-moves of the different nations. It leads to these little pockets of what I'm calling 'plot dump' and you emerge on the other side into a new political situation where you have to find your bearings despite not actually reading through the action.
4. the story is twisty and turny and surprising
To be fair, some of the plot is quite predictable which is true of almost all books, but this series has also managed to surprise me a couple of times. And more than that, this series manages to be original and offers a refreshing and new story that doesn't rely on overused tropes or plot devices that are so common in this genre.
Overall I am really enjoying this series. It has engaging and likeable characters with strong motivations and personalities, a realistic romance subplot that evolves naturally over several books, intriguing political manoeuvring and war strategy within and between kingdoms, and deep, rich world building, religion and lore that offer insight into the setting, plot and characters.
1. the characters are well-rounded
The main characters in this series are complex and interesting and I love how Megan Whalen Turner has crafted their multi-faceted and realistic personalities. I feel that I understand all of the characters and their motivations, which lends authenticity to their actions and makes the story immersive and believable.
2. the religion, mythology and world building are great
The world this series is set in is fantastically built. Megan Whalen Turner has created four distinct kingdoms and an engaging political climate which makes the world feel incredibly real. The inclusion of the religions and the folklore stories that are told across the series are intriguing and add character to the world and the plot.
3. the pacing is a little uneven
The plot will, seemingly at random, skip over weeks or even months of action by summarising the events during the missing time in just a few sentences. Obviously this is ideal if nothing happens in the missing time, but the story skips over a lot of the war strategy and the moves and counter-moves of the different nations. It leads to these little pockets of what I'm calling 'plot dump' and you emerge on the other side into a new political situation where you have to find your bearings despite not actually reading through the action.
4. the story is twisty and turny and surprising
To be fair, some of the plot is quite predictable which is true of almost all books, but this series has also managed to surprise me a couple of times. And more than that, this series manages to be original and offers a refreshing and new story that doesn't rely on overused tropes or plot devices that are so common in this genre.
Overall I am really enjoying this series. It has engaging and likeable characters with strong motivations and personalities, a realistic romance subplot that evolves naturally over several books, intriguing political manoeuvring and war strategy within and between kingdoms, and deep, rich world building, religion and lore that offer insight into the setting, plot and characters.