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Shadow Saga #7
King of Hell
Peter Octavian's powerful sorcery guards his world against evil. Now he must go on a perilous journey to save those condemned to a fate worse than death itself...
When Octavian called upon Gaea to rid the Earth of demons, her magic banished not only the demons but also the Shadows -- vampires who had foresworn evil and fought alongside him, some for many years.
Together with two unlikely companions -- a wise-cracking goblin with the ability to walk the paths between worlds, and a demon changeling struggling to come to terms with what he is -- Octavian sets out on what seems to be an impossible mission: to free his friends from Hell.
There he finds some unexpected figures from his past -- and an enemy of his own making, driven by an implacable hatred, whose power is equal to his own and whose quest for vengeance is personal...
When Octavian called upon Gaea to rid the Earth of demons, her magic banished not only the demons but also the Shadows -- vampires who had foresworn evil and fought alongside him, some for many years.
Together with two unlikely companions -- a wise-cracking goblin with the ability to walk the paths between worlds, and a demon changeling struggling to come to terms with what he is -- Octavian sets out on what seems to be an impossible mission: to free his friends from Hell.
There he finds some unexpected figures from his past -- and an enemy of his own making, driven by an implacable hatred, whose power is equal to his own and whose quest for vengeance is personal...
273 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 13, 2014
About the author
Christopher Golden
762 books3,061 followersCHRISTOPHER GOLDEN has been called “the king of the horror-thriller.” The New York Times bestselling, multi-award-winning storyteller has made his mark in many mediums, as a writer of novels, screenplays, animation, audio dramas, and comics, and as an editor of landmark horror anthologies. His work has been published in dozens of languages around the world. Winner of the Bram Stoker Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, and the Audie Award, he has been nominated for others, including the British Fantasy Award. His best-known novels include Road of Bones, The House of Last Resort, All Hallows, and his latest, Carry Me to My Grave. He lives in Massachusetts, where he watches too many movies and eats too much chocolate.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 26, 2018
Where can the hell this series go after having already had multiple trips to hell and back?
One way, of course.
Peter lost everything that gave him happiness thanks to a certain Gaia-Avatar and all his friends are stuck in hell. All the gates are closed. He's considering a pogrom of burning and salting the earth to get Gaia to let him through the locked gates to pull back all the heroic Shadows caught on the other side. And everyone he cares for, for that matter, but doing so would leave him utterly unwelcome on the whole planet. Deeply unwelcome.
So for most of this novel we need to find a way out, meet up with some demons, kill even more, and have an epic battle between totally overpowered vampires (shadows) and all the denizens of hell. Oh, and Lazarus, too. :) He seems to have been stuck in hell for longer than Peter and learned quite a few magic tricks.
As a conclusion to the Shadow Saga, it's one hell of a blow-out action extravaganza. The horror bits are beautifully disgusting and creative, the cinema of the mind's eye is so much better than practically any other novel including a trip to hell, and the special effects budget is totally infernal.
Being relatively short, it makes up any kind of character-building lack by acting almost like a beefed -up direct-continuation of the previous novel and could easily have been combined without any lack. It might have been slightly large, but who cares when the action movie is this good?
Huge magic battles, hoards of demons, matter-manipulating vampires, you might not realize this is a prototypical good UF and not an epic fantasy/horror, but it is. :)
My only complaint is that it's done now. ; ;
One way, of course.
Peter lost everything that gave him happiness thanks to a certain Gaia-Avatar and all his friends are stuck in hell. All the gates are closed. He's considering a pogrom of burning and salting the earth to get Gaia to let him through the locked gates to pull back all the heroic Shadows caught on the other side. And everyone he cares for, for that matter, but doing so would leave him utterly unwelcome on the whole planet. Deeply unwelcome.
So for most of this novel we need to find a way out, meet up with some demons, kill even more, and have an epic battle between totally overpowered vampires (shadows) and all the denizens of hell. Oh, and Lazarus, too. :) He seems to have been stuck in hell for longer than Peter and learned quite a few magic tricks.
As a conclusion to the Shadow Saga, it's one hell of a blow-out action extravaganza. The horror bits are beautifully disgusting and creative, the cinema of the mind's eye is so much better than practically any other novel including a trip to hell, and the special effects budget is totally infernal.
Being relatively short, it makes up any kind of character-building lack by acting almost like a beefed -up direct-continuation of the previous novel and could easily have been combined without any lack. It might have been slightly large, but who cares when the action movie is this good?
Huge magic battles, hoards of demons, matter-manipulating vampires, you might not realize this is a prototypical good UF and not an epic fantasy/horror, but it is. :)
My only complaint is that it's done now. ; ;
April 24, 2015
Loved it. Great way to end the series. Although I do plan on exploring some of the other books to understand where the other characters came from. I have enjoyed the series since I first picked it up years ago.
August 29, 2025
3.5/5
A solid entry and a fitting ending to the series.
A solid entry and a fitting ending to the series.
August 20, 2019
When author Charlaine Harris blurbs your new novel it is no small event. When she goes on to state of Christopher Golden's THE SHADOW SAGA: 'I was amazed how many elements now familiar in the vampire and thriller genres appeared in OF SAINTS AND SHADOWS first'.
I have read all the novels in Golden's stellar SHADOW SAGA and have encouraged like-minded friends to pick up what may very well be the best modern vampire series in the business. With six previous novels in this stellar series preceding it, KING OF HELL had big shoes to fill. It is highly recommended that you have read the earlier novel to have a working knowledge of the plot and characters.
The protagonist of these novels is vampire, Peter Octavian. In prior novels in the series, he had to make a risky choice to save his realm from the hordes of demons sent from hell to vanquish his kind. Regrettably, Octavian's choice to summon Gaea to rid Earth of these demons saw most of his kind --- as well as all of his closest friends and 'family' --- vanquished to Hell.
Now, in what reads like an unearthly sort of 'Fellowship Of the Ring' quest --- Octavian is joined by a wise-cracking hobgoblin named Squire (who reminded me a lot of Rocket Raccoon from The Guardians Of the Galaxy) and a demon-boy named Danny, into Hell itself in an attempt to rescue his vampire legion that had fought by his side for many, many years. Octavian briefly reflects on his own 'making', when Karl von Reinman offered him the power to kill as many Turks as he could in an ancient battle --- a power that would make him immortal.
Octavian, who is quite weary from the centuries of battles, need muster up all his strength to rectify the event that the vampire community is referring to as 'the vanishing' or 'the excommunication'. The trek that our three characters take really picks up once they enter Hell itself. They are a formidable trio --- but are they equal to the evil that they are completely unaware of? An evil that holds not only Octavian's kind but also his beloved sister, Alexandra Nueva? However, Octavian is himself a force to be reckoned with and even his new colleagues failed to realize that he was actually Orias, son of Oriax, a demon whose reputation precedes him.
KING OF HELL is an outstanding read and the depiction of Hell is enough to make Dante himself blush. Originally released in 2014, I hope this version intrigues new fans enough to go back and engulf themselves in the entire SHADOW SAGA.
Reviewed by Ray Palen for JournalStone
I have read all the novels in Golden's stellar SHADOW SAGA and have encouraged like-minded friends to pick up what may very well be the best modern vampire series in the business. With six previous novels in this stellar series preceding it, KING OF HELL had big shoes to fill. It is highly recommended that you have read the earlier novel to have a working knowledge of the plot and characters.
The protagonist of these novels is vampire, Peter Octavian. In prior novels in the series, he had to make a risky choice to save his realm from the hordes of demons sent from hell to vanquish his kind. Regrettably, Octavian's choice to summon Gaea to rid Earth of these demons saw most of his kind --- as well as all of his closest friends and 'family' --- vanquished to Hell.
Now, in what reads like an unearthly sort of 'Fellowship Of the Ring' quest --- Octavian is joined by a wise-cracking hobgoblin named Squire (who reminded me a lot of Rocket Raccoon from The Guardians Of the Galaxy) and a demon-boy named Danny, into Hell itself in an attempt to rescue his vampire legion that had fought by his side for many, many years. Octavian briefly reflects on his own 'making', when Karl von Reinman offered him the power to kill as many Turks as he could in an ancient battle --- a power that would make him immortal.
Octavian, who is quite weary from the centuries of battles, need muster up all his strength to rectify the event that the vampire community is referring to as 'the vanishing' or 'the excommunication'. The trek that our three characters take really picks up once they enter Hell itself. They are a formidable trio --- but are they equal to the evil that they are completely unaware of? An evil that holds not only Octavian's kind but also his beloved sister, Alexandra Nueva? However, Octavian is himself a force to be reckoned with and even his new colleagues failed to realize that he was actually Orias, son of Oriax, a demon whose reputation precedes him.
KING OF HELL is an outstanding read and the depiction of Hell is enough to make Dante himself blush. Originally released in 2014, I hope this version intrigues new fans enough to go back and engulf themselves in the entire SHADOW SAGA.
Reviewed by Ray Palen for JournalStone
August 19, 2021
I need MORE! This can't be the end of the series! I really didn't expect the story to be drawn out in 7 books but each book is its own story with the addition of new characters from the book before. I REALLY enjoyed reading all of the Peter Octavian novels. Fantastic writing! Please, Christopher Golden, write another one?
August 27, 2024
I love Peter.
I have this book 4 stars instead of 5 because, 1. I don't want it to end. 2. I was hoping Cody and some of the others would have come back. I was hoping that in the new world that they were going that they would have been there, or Peter would have had a spell that could bring them back.
I have this book 4 stars instead of 5 because, 1. I don't want it to end. 2. I was hoping Cody and some of the others would have come back. I was hoping that in the new world that they were going that they would have been there, or Peter would have had a spell that could bring them back.
June 10, 2014
Pretty much Crisis on Infinite Golden. Mr. Golden does an excellent job of wrapping up the Octavian series.
February 27, 2015
My least favorite of the series. He really had entire books based around Phoenix? That seems painful.
March 19, 2015
Christopher Golden does an excellent job of finishing up the Shadow Saga (and throws in some interesting characters from some of his other works as well). Fun, fast paced, and a fitting end.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews