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A review by joaosilvawrites
Kings of Paradise by Richard Nell
5.0
Probably one of the best books I've read in a long, long time.
I'll admit - expectations were high for this one. It was, admittedly, the first fantasy work by an indie author that I've read. I was intrigued by the strong reviews and by the concept of "epic" yet "low" fantasy. It seemed like it was tailor-made for me. And that turned out to be completely true. Kings of Paradise is (very) dark and gritty without using sexual violence as a plot point or abusing body horror and gruesome descriptions as a crutch to convey the dark themes and environment that are present in this world. The darkness penetrates everything. The world, the characters.... But the author does an outstanding job of always making sure to show there is a thin little sliver of hope that will always be in reach. This book felt deeply personal on a level that is hard to describe. The characters were deeply flawed, as you'd expect humans to be and their belief system is a fruit of the world that they are in. And yet, I've felt like I got to know them deeply, on a level of depth that I don't often find in books. I felt their struggles, I cheered their successes and I cringed at every bad decision or gruesome act. The worldbuilding was masterfully shown through the eyes of each character. The cultural, geographical and political landscapes were very clear and explained without even a single instance of info-dumping. Never once did I feel like the book was too slow or too fast-paced, which is an accomplishment in itself given the big time-jumps between some chapters and even sometimes within the same chapter. The plot was also not predictable and had enough twists along the way to keep me hooked the entire time. There were more than a handful of really powerful moments/scenes that took me by surprise and shook me hard. I was not expecting it. The prose is also beautiful, yet melancholic and sometimes sad - which contributes deeply to the atmosphere the author was trying to create. If I was going to point out anything the book could have done better would be that the ending did not feel entirely complete. I was hoping for a tighter ending, even though this story is part of a trilogy and it will obviously continue right where we left off. Without a tighter ending, it could make some readers think that the author simply wrote a very very large book and cut it into three parts (books). Nonetheless, this book deserves five stars and I fully recommend it to someone who is looking for a deep yet sad, beautiful yet dark book with heavy themes and atmosphere. It will be worth your time!
I'll admit - expectations were high for this one. It was, admittedly, the first fantasy work by an indie author that I've read. I was intrigued by the strong reviews and by the concept of "epic" yet "low" fantasy. It seemed like it was tailor-made for me. And that turned out to be completely true. Kings of Paradise is (very) dark and gritty without using sexual violence as a plot point or abusing body horror and gruesome descriptions as a crutch to convey the dark themes and environment that are present in this world. The darkness penetrates everything. The world, the characters.... But the author does an outstanding job of always making sure to show there is a thin little sliver of hope that will always be in reach. This book felt deeply personal on a level that is hard to describe. The characters were deeply flawed, as you'd expect humans to be and their belief system is a fruit of the world that they are in. And yet, I've felt like I got to know them deeply, on a level of depth that I don't often find in books. I felt their struggles, I cheered their successes and I cringed at every bad decision or gruesome act. The worldbuilding was masterfully shown through the eyes of each character. The cultural, geographical and political landscapes were very clear and explained without even a single instance of info-dumping. Never once did I feel like the book was too slow or too fast-paced, which is an accomplishment in itself given the big time-jumps between some chapters and even sometimes within the same chapter. The plot was also not predictable and had enough twists along the way to keep me hooked the entire time. There were more than a handful of really powerful moments/scenes that took me by surprise and shook me hard. I was not expecting it. The prose is also beautiful, yet melancholic and sometimes sad - which contributes deeply to the atmosphere the author was trying to create. If I was going to point out anything the book could have done better would be that the ending did not feel entirely complete. I was hoping for a tighter ending, even though this story is part of a trilogy and it will obviously continue right where we left off. Without a tighter ending, it could make some readers think that the author simply wrote a very very large book and cut it into three parts (books). Nonetheless, this book deserves five stars and I fully recommend it to someone who is looking for a deep yet sad, beautiful yet dark book with heavy themes and atmosphere. It will be worth your time!