Ashley
Written on Sep 26, 2020
Bloody brilliant! Can't wait for the next book.
Michael was branded a traitor and his family exiled from courtly life after his father, David Kingman, murdered the king's nine-year-old son.
Now he survives by conning, cheating and duelling minor royals in a weak attempt to strike back at the world that abandoned him and his family, sure all the while that his father must be innocent . . . and aware that some powerful secret lurks in the hot white emptiness of his mind.
So when the opportunity arrives to return to court, via the most dangerous of the King's royal council, Michael takes it,...Read more
Michael was branded a traitor and his family exiled from courtly life after his father, David Kingman, murdered the king's nine-year-old son.
Now he survives by conning, cheating and duelling minor royals in a weak attempt to strike back at the world that abandoned him and his family, sure all the while that his father must be innocent . . . and aware that some powerful secret lurks in the hot white emptiness of his mind.
So when the opportunity arrives to return to court, via the most dangerous of the King's royal council, Michael takes it, hoping for clues to unlock his hidden past. Instead, he's going to find a royal family spiralling into a self-serving dictatorship, as beyond the walls gun-wielding rebels clash against magically trained militia.
But if he can find his way to the truth, he could completely reverse the injustices which rule the Hollows . . . if Michael and his family can survive long enough to see it . . .
Now he survives by conning, cheating and duelling minor royals in a weak attempt to strike back at the world that abandoned him and his family, sure all the while that his father must be innocent . . . and aware that some powerful secret lurks in the hot white emptiness of his mind.
So when the opportunity arrives to return to court, via the most dangerous of the King's royal council, Michael takes it, hoping for clues to unlock his hidden past. Instead, he's going to find a royal family spiralling into a self-serving dictatorship, as beyond the walls gun-wielding rebels clash against magically trained militia.
But if he can find his way to the truth, he could completely reverse the injustices which rule the Hollows . . . if Michael and his family can survive long enough to see it . . .
- ISBN10 1534437789
- ISBN13 9781534437784
- Publish Date 23 June 2020 (first published 5 May 2020)
- Publish Status Out of Stock
- Out of Print 18 January 2023
- Imprint S&s/Saga Press
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 608
- Language English
Reviews
Lianne
Written on Aug 3, 2020
I wanted to like this book, I...Read more
I was approved an ARC of this book by the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This review in its entirety was originally posted at my blog, eclectic tales: http://eclectictales.insanitysandwich.com/blog/2020/08/14/review-the-kingdom-of-liars/
I wanted to like this book, I really did. As I mentioned the premise was interesting, loved the book cover, Brandon Sanderson was on the blurb…And yeah. What interested me the most about this book was the magic system, the Fabricators, and the use of memory in this novel. I wish it was explored more but there was a lot going on in this book: the politics, the dynamics, the struggle to survive.
Another reason why I didn’t like the book as much as I wanted to was the main character. Michael…his intentions are well-meaning, the only one who could really shoulder the memory of the Kingsman family, but man was he whiny, which then lends to some of his decision making. The whole scheme just did not convince me at all, he didn’t evoke enough empathy in me to see his story through with my support.
So yeah, unfortunately I did not enjoy reading The Kingdom of Liars. It had potential with the complex web of politicking and scheming and social class upheaval as well as the magic system but the characters and the worldbuilding just did not do anything for me.
I wanted to like this book, I really did. As I mentioned the premise was interesting, loved the book cover, Brandon Sanderson was on the blurb…And yeah. What interested me the most about this book was the magic system, the Fabricators, and the use of memory in this novel. I wish it was explored more but there was a lot going on in this book: the politics, the dynamics, the struggle to survive.
Another reason why I didn’t like the book as much as I wanted to was the main character. Michael…his intentions are well-meaning, the only one who could really shoulder the memory of the Kingsman family, but man was he whiny, which then lends to some of his decision making. The whole scheme just did not convince me at all, he didn’t evoke enough empathy in me to see his story through with my support.
So yeah, unfortunately I did not enjoy reading The Kingdom of Liars. It had potential with the complex web of politicking and scheming and social class upheaval as well as the magic system but the characters and the worldbuilding just did not do anything for me.
Quirky Cat
Written on Apr 16, 2020
The Kingdom of Liars is the first novel in a new series, The Legacy of the Mercenary Kings by...Read more
I received a copy of The Kingdom of Liars through BookishFirst in exchange for a fair and honest review.
The Kingdom of Liars is the first novel in a new series, The Legacy of the Mercenary Kings by Nick Martell. It's an epic fantasy series, full of political intrigue, past wrongs, plots of revenge, and so much more.
What sort of life would one have, when their father is branded and killed for being a traitor? That is the fate that Michael faces. His family used to be an essential part of the Kingdom. But now? They're considered worse than scum.
Michael is on a course to find the truth of what happened that night so long ago. Along the way, he's going to fight for his and his family's name. But doing so means he has to dive into a world of politics and magic. A world that does not play nicely, as Michael knows all too well.
“But the problem is, the older you become, the more you discover that memories change on their own. Some fade away, some stories change slightly, and some memories are so drastically different a decade after they occurred that no one can be quite sure what the truth is.”
The Kingdom of Liars is one of those slow-burning fantasies. While it starts off on the slower side, by the end it is a world full of dramatic and intense moments. It easily became a world I couldn't look away from, and I am already anxiously looking forward to the next in the series.
Politics and magic. One of my favorite combinations in a novel. I knew from the moment I saw those keywords in the description, that I would love reading The Kingdom of Liars. I wasn't wrong. This novel delivered on all of the promises it made, while throwing in a few surprising twists along the way.
I'll confess that The Kingdom of Liars did have a bit of a slow start. It took me a while to get into the world and to appreciate the characters involved. But once it hits around the halfway mark (though perhaps even sooner than that) it turns into something so much more. So if you find yourself struggling with this read, I urge you to keep going just a little bit more.
The payoff will be worth it. This rapidly became a complex world, full of scheming, politics, threats, magic, and so much more. All of these elements seem to revolve around Michael and his family – the Kingman family. The intrigue of the past would have been enough to keep me going, but the character development (and secondary characters) was the icing on the cake. At least, for me.
The magical system is admittedly another highlight for, albeit one that I feel needs to be explored more. Here's hoping that later novels will dive into that a bit more because I have so many questions!
On the whole, I found myself really enjoying The Kingdom of Liars. While it may have taken me a few chapters to really get into things, I really did become hooked by the end. So much so that I was actually sad to see it end. On the bright side, that just means I get to look forward to the next novel all the more, though that will probably be a bit of a wait.
Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
The Kingdom of Liars is the first novel in a new series, The Legacy of the Mercenary Kings by Nick Martell. It's an epic fantasy series, full of political intrigue, past wrongs, plots of revenge, and so much more.
What sort of life would one have, when their father is branded and killed for being a traitor? That is the fate that Michael faces. His family used to be an essential part of the Kingdom. But now? They're considered worse than scum.
Michael is on a course to find the truth of what happened that night so long ago. Along the way, he's going to fight for his and his family's name. But doing so means he has to dive into a world of politics and magic. A world that does not play nicely, as Michael knows all too well.
“But the problem is, the older you become, the more you discover that memories change on their own. Some fade away, some stories change slightly, and some memories are so drastically different a decade after they occurred that no one can be quite sure what the truth is.”
The Kingdom of Liars is one of those slow-burning fantasies. While it starts off on the slower side, by the end it is a world full of dramatic and intense moments. It easily became a world I couldn't look away from, and I am already anxiously looking forward to the next in the series.
Politics and magic. One of my favorite combinations in a novel. I knew from the moment I saw those keywords in the description, that I would love reading The Kingdom of Liars. I wasn't wrong. This novel delivered on all of the promises it made, while throwing in a few surprising twists along the way.
I'll confess that The Kingdom of Liars did have a bit of a slow start. It took me a while to get into the world and to appreciate the characters involved. But once it hits around the halfway mark (though perhaps even sooner than that) it turns into something so much more. So if you find yourself struggling with this read, I urge you to keep going just a little bit more.
The payoff will be worth it. This rapidly became a complex world, full of scheming, politics, threats, magic, and so much more. All of these elements seem to revolve around Michael and his family – the Kingman family. The intrigue of the past would have been enough to keep me going, but the character development (and secondary characters) was the icing on the cake. At least, for me.
The magical system is admittedly another highlight for, albeit one that I feel needs to be explored more. Here's hoping that later novels will dive into that a bit more because I have so many questions!
On the whole, I found myself really enjoying The Kingdom of Liars. While it may have taken me a few chapters to really get into things, I really did become hooked by the end. So much so that I was actually sad to see it end. On the bright side, that just means I get to look forward to the next novel all the more, though that will probably be a bit of a wait.
Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Metaphorosis Reviews
Written on Mar 1, 2020
Summary
Michael Kingman is the son of a traitor, but also the descendant of a family that made the kingdom what it is. Trying to find a place in society, he stumbles onto...Read more
2 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary
Michael Kingman is the son of a traitor, but also the descendant of a family that made the kingdom what it is. Trying to find a place in society, he stumbles onto a mystery that may explain much about his executed father.
Review
I generally ignore blurbs, but every now and then, if it's from an author I like, one catches my attention. Sometimes, that's a mistake. I picked up Nick Martell's The Kingdom of Liars mostly for its interesting premise that magic costs memory, but partly because Brandon Sanderson's blurb said it was "excellent". You never know what goes into the decision to blurb a book, but this time I can say, at the least, that I disagree strongly with Sanderson's characterization. The Kingdom of Liars is interesting, but it's a very long way from excellent.
Mostly, the book would have benefited from several more rounds of developmental editing. There's a host of clever ideas in here, but they're all mixed together in a murky mess, and none of them is properly developed. It's the kind of manuscript an astute agent would see and say, "This has promise. Let's work on it." It's not at a stage where it should have been published to a mass audience. For example, we're halfway through the book before we learn what a 'tweeker' is - a type introduced very early on. I can't understand how this came from a major publisher.
I got an early foreboding from errors in the grammar of the prologue. I was reading an advance reader copy, so some typos are to be expected, but this is grammar, not spelling, and very early in the book. As I went on, the foreboding grew. The prose was often clumsy, and decidedly amateur in places. The errors continued. In addition, the balance of the book was off - too much was withheld from the reader, with the effect of making the action unclear. Notably, the story takes place entirely within one city, yet the geography of the place is very unclear, and there's no helpful map. Characters move from place to place as it's convenient for the story, and I never had any sense of the look of the place beyond one ruined keep (there seem to be several in the city) and one banquet hall. Not only is the travel random, much of the plot is as well - this is part of the balance and development problem mentioned above. Things happened because they needed to to move the plot forward, not because it made much sense. I couldn't get the economy or society to make sense either.
I found it hard to empathize with the narrator. While posited as a clever, likable, right-thinking underdog, he appears to have no qualms about torture, and not many about betrayal. He's constantly making promises to other characters, but it's never clear why he should be the one to take on this burden. Instead, the book simply leans heavily on us knowing the trope of heroic narrator as protector. He learns that part of his memory is missing - set up as a key plot point, but then abandoned with an 'oh well' attitude. He's occasionally very intelligent, though - from knowing flintlock pistols, he immediately grasps the idea of a revolver with cartridges.
The editing overall is just sloppy - both on a developmental and line level. There's evidently not been much effort to focus the book or to have the plot points make sense. Random strangers are suddenly crucial to the plot. Established central characters fade away. I wish I could say these are intended to surprise us by defying expectations and standard tropes, but I'm pretty sure they're just poor editing. The 'villain tells all' ending just confirms it all.
It's an odd book to review - very good ideas (too many jammed into one book) - but very little editing. I think Mr. Martell has a promising future. On the other hand, this looks to be the first book in a series, and I definitely won't be buying the rest. Maybe if he moves to another publisher, I could be interested again.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
Summary
Michael Kingman is the son of a traitor, but also the descendant of a family that made the kingdom what it is. Trying to find a place in society, he stumbles onto a mystery that may explain much about his executed father.
Review
I generally ignore blurbs, but every now and then, if it's from an author I like, one catches my attention. Sometimes, that's a mistake. I picked up Nick Martell's The Kingdom of Liars mostly for its interesting premise that magic costs memory, but partly because Brandon Sanderson's blurb said it was "excellent". You never know what goes into the decision to blurb a book, but this time I can say, at the least, that I disagree strongly with Sanderson's characterization. The Kingdom of Liars is interesting, but it's a very long way from excellent.
Mostly, the book would have benefited from several more rounds of developmental editing. There's a host of clever ideas in here, but they're all mixed together in a murky mess, and none of them is properly developed. It's the kind of manuscript an astute agent would see and say, "This has promise. Let's work on it." It's not at a stage where it should have been published to a mass audience. For example, we're halfway through the book before we learn what a 'tweeker' is - a type introduced very early on. I can't understand how this came from a major publisher.
I got an early foreboding from errors in the grammar of the prologue. I was reading an advance reader copy, so some typos are to be expected, but this is grammar, not spelling, and very early in the book. As I went on, the foreboding grew. The prose was often clumsy, and decidedly amateur in places. The errors continued. In addition, the balance of the book was off - too much was withheld from the reader, with the effect of making the action unclear. Notably, the story takes place entirely within one city, yet the geography of the place is very unclear, and there's no helpful map. Characters move from place to place as it's convenient for the story, and I never had any sense of the look of the place beyond one ruined keep (there seem to be several in the city) and one banquet hall. Not only is the travel random, much of the plot is as well - this is part of the balance and development problem mentioned above. Things happened because they needed to to move the plot forward, not because it made much sense. I couldn't get the economy or society to make sense either.
I found it hard to empathize with the narrator. While posited as a clever, likable, right-thinking underdog, he appears to have no qualms about torture, and not many about betrayal. He's constantly making promises to other characters, but it's never clear why he should be the one to take on this burden. Instead, the book simply leans heavily on us knowing the trope of heroic narrator as protector. He learns that part of his memory is missing - set up as a key plot point, but then abandoned with an 'oh well' attitude. He's occasionally very intelligent, though - from knowing flintlock pistols, he immediately grasps the idea of a revolver with cartridges.
The editing overall is just sloppy - both on a developmental and line level. There's evidently not been much effort to focus the book or to have the plot points make sense. Random strangers are suddenly crucial to the plot. Established central characters fade away. I wish I could say these are intended to surprise us by defying expectations and standard tropes, but I'm pretty sure they're just poor editing. The 'villain tells all' ending just confirms it all.
It's an odd book to review - very good ideas (too many jammed into one book) - but very little editing. I think Mr. Martell has a promising future. On the other hand, this looks to be the first book in a series, and I definitely won't be buying the rest. Maybe if he moves to another publisher, I could be interested again.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.