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Blade Asunder #1
Mercenary
Bereaved and exiled from his homeland, Ganry ekes out a living as a wandering mercenary. A contract to protect a fifteen year old princess sees him embark on a quest across the kingdom. Confronted with danger at every turn, they get help from some unlikely companions. And Ganry discovers that there is more at stake than his own survival. A fast-paced, full-length, heroic fantasy novel.
274 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2014
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1024 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
December 26, 2017
This book was part of Booknest's grouping and has since been eliminated. I listened to the audiobook here, so please forgive my spelling!
Plot:
Princess Miriam is on the run because of her uncle trying to take over the kingdom. You get a POV of this uncle as well, and he's rather brutal. He's systematically executing or murdering everyone who gets in his way of getting the crown. He can't do that while the princess lives, however, so he has to track her down and kill her before she can come back and claim her crown. He got away with imprisoning the King and Queen by accusing them of treason.
Miriam has a grandmother who's also a royal member of a different kingdom, she has special gifts almost like a seer, she can see that her granddaughter is in danger, and she knows when people close to her die. There doesn't seem to be a lot of control though, so it's more like passive magic rather than something skilled. Right now the Duchess is preparing her nation for war because she sees what has happened to her daughter, the Queen, and needs to rally before she gets overrun.
Miriam is running through the woods and gets caught up in a secluded and secretive race of 'river people' who want their identity and whereabouts known to no one besides themselves. It's customary for them to kill foreigners on site, but instead, the clan chief offers Miriam his son instead of a death sentence. She has to get out of there before she gets forced into a marriage and can't help her family or kingdom.
Final Score: 6.5/10
Characters:
Miriam - she's 15 and a Princess, she isn't as annoying as that sounds, however. She does seem to have some kind of intelligence and manages to spearhead an escape plan when others failed. She's an okay character, I liked her well enough but she wasn't exactly a 'deep' character.
Duchess - I think I liked her POV the most even though she's not at all a main character, just because she has these crazy visions going on and she seems like a fair and decent person.
Harold - the uncle who's striving for power. This guy is relentless and ruthless and shows zero remorse for his actions. He's a pretty standard evil villain grasping for power character, and reading his chapters kind of suck because he's usually executing people I kind of liked.
Final Score: 7/10
World Building:
The world building was kind of light, there were some strange creatures, some seer kind of magic. But this was not a magic heavy kind of book - it's eluded to that there are dragons and things like that, and it keeps hinting at something larger, but for the most part this book doesn't have a lot as far as magic systems, creatures, lore and what not.
The river people are a secluded and somewhat unusual culture hidden deep in the woods at a secret lake. They have some interesting fishing techniques and cultural things, I would have liked for that to be fleshed out more about how they've managed to stay hidden all these years.
Final Score: 5.5/10
Pacing/Prose/Tone:
The tone kind of changed from one chapter to the next depending on who's POV you were reading. The chapters where the POV of the character is executed is rather grim, and it happens more than once. I wouldn't call any of the POV's light hearted, but some are darker than others.
The pacing was okay, this was a quick book and I read it within a day.
Pacing Final Score: 7.5/10
Writing Final Score: 7.5/10
Originality:
I've read many books about an ousted heir struggling to take back their crown, and I've read a lot of princess in distress stories as well. So, unfortunately for me this is something I've seen before.
What I will say though, is several times I kept expecting a 'save' for a few characters, and it never came. It didn't have any conveniently timed rescuing of characters, so it earns points there. I often times know when a character is about to have some kind of miraculous save, and I was expecting it and it never came.
Final Score: 6.5/10
Audience:
People who enjoy low magic fantasy
People who like "escort missions" where a person is tasked with getting someone to a location safely with perils along the way
People who like multi pov
People who like female pov
People who like shorter stories
Final Score: 40.5/60 or 6.7/10 or 3 stars on GR.
Plot:
Princess Miriam is on the run because of her uncle trying to take over the kingdom. You get a POV of this uncle as well, and he's rather brutal. He's systematically executing or murdering everyone who gets in his way of getting the crown. He can't do that while the princess lives, however, so he has to track her down and kill her before she can come back and claim her crown. He got away with imprisoning the King and Queen by accusing them of treason.
Miriam has a grandmother who's also a royal member of a different kingdom, she has special gifts almost like a seer, she can see that her granddaughter is in danger, and she knows when people close to her die. There doesn't seem to be a lot of control though, so it's more like passive magic rather than something skilled. Right now the Duchess is preparing her nation for war because she sees what has happened to her daughter, the Queen, and needs to rally before she gets overrun.
Miriam is running through the woods and gets caught up in a secluded and secretive race of 'river people' who want their identity and whereabouts known to no one besides themselves. It's customary for them to kill foreigners on site, but instead, the clan chief offers Miriam his son instead of a death sentence. She has to get out of there before she gets forced into a marriage and can't help her family or kingdom.
Final Score: 6.5/10
Characters:
Miriam - she's 15 and a Princess, she isn't as annoying as that sounds, however. She does seem to have some kind of intelligence and manages to spearhead an escape plan when others failed. She's an okay character, I liked her well enough but she wasn't exactly a 'deep' character.
Duchess - I think I liked her POV the most even though she's not at all a main character, just because she has these crazy visions going on and she seems like a fair and decent person.
Harold - the uncle who's striving for power. This guy is relentless and ruthless and shows zero remorse for his actions. He's a pretty standard evil villain grasping for power character, and reading his chapters kind of suck because he's usually executing people I kind of liked.
Final Score: 7/10
World Building:
The world building was kind of light, there were some strange creatures, some seer kind of magic. But this was not a magic heavy kind of book - it's eluded to that there are dragons and things like that, and it keeps hinting at something larger, but for the most part this book doesn't have a lot as far as magic systems, creatures, lore and what not.
The river people are a secluded and somewhat unusual culture hidden deep in the woods at a secret lake. They have some interesting fishing techniques and cultural things, I would have liked for that to be fleshed out more about how they've managed to stay hidden all these years.
Final Score: 5.5/10
Pacing/Prose/Tone:
The tone kind of changed from one chapter to the next depending on who's POV you were reading. The chapters where the POV of the character is executed is rather grim, and it happens more than once. I wouldn't call any of the POV's light hearted, but some are darker than others.
The pacing was okay, this was a quick book and I read it within a day.
Pacing Final Score: 7.5/10
Writing Final Score: 7.5/10
Originality:
I've read many books about an ousted heir struggling to take back their crown, and I've read a lot of princess in distress stories as well. So, unfortunately for me this is something I've seen before.
What I will say though, is several times I kept expecting a 'save' for a few characters, and it never came. It didn't have any conveniently timed rescuing of characters, so it earns points there. I often times know when a character is about to have some kind of miraculous save, and I was expecting it and it never came.
Final Score: 6.5/10
Audience:
People who enjoy low magic fantasy
People who like "escort missions" where a person is tasked with getting someone to a location safely with perils along the way
People who like multi pov
People who like female pov
People who like shorter stories
Final Score: 40.5/60 or 6.7/10 or 3 stars on GR.
November 18, 2017
The best RETARDED fantasy novel in History! BUY IT!
When you think of comical fantasy books there is only one name coming to mind: Terry Pratchett. Some of his books are nice, but I always find his humour to be a bit “unnatural”, like he is trying really hard to make you laugh. Maybe he is too “British” for my taste.
Today there is a new rising star in fantasy History: Jon Kiln. This book (its characters, the situations, the plot) is so retarded, but so retarded that there has to be a plan behind, there has to be study. It cannot be accidental. He is genius.
Believe me: you will laugh your asses off while reading this story, as I did at home or on the train while commuting to work (with people giving me suspicious glances)! It is the funniest fantasy book I have ever read and probably in my all time top 5!
Let’s make some examples.
These are just a few examples, but the story is full of such hilarious moments. The author is an absolute genius. Making people laugh with just words is a gift and I’ll reward it with 5 stars. I am going to start the second book today and if it keeps up the promises I will continue the series and possibly buy other books from Jon Kiln.
I close this long review with another quote:
When you think of comical fantasy books there is only one name coming to mind: Terry Pratchett. Some of his books are nice, but I always find his humour to be a bit “unnatural”, like he is trying really hard to make you laugh. Maybe he is too “British” for my taste.
Today there is a new rising star in fantasy History: Jon Kiln. This book (its characters, the situations, the plot) is so retarded, but so retarded that there has to be a plan behind, there has to be study. It cannot be accidental. He is genius.
Believe me: you will laugh your asses off while reading this story, as I did at home or on the train while commuting to work (with people giving me suspicious glances)! It is the funniest fantasy book I have ever read and probably in my all time top 5!
Let’s make some examples.
These are just a few examples, but the story is full of such hilarious moments. The author is an absolute genius. Making people laugh with just words is a gift and I’ll reward it with 5 stars. I am going to start the second book today and if it keeps up the promises I will continue the series and possibly buy other books from Jon Kiln.
I close this long review with another quote:
July 5, 2016
Mercenary (Blade Asunder) by Jon kiln
I loved the cover. The love stopped right there. I can’t believe this, what happened to all the great historical fantasy writers? This one comes across like it was written by a spunky 12-year-old. Reminded me of my niece. She’s cute but I don’t want to read stories written from her level of ADD.
The story starts with traveling and more traveling which is a really bad start and some half tossed salad idea of a plot that involved an evil uncle lord, a dead father king, and a princess on the run who, had it been me, I would have held her head underwater for a few minutes then gone home for a sandwich. Ganry seemed to be the author’s attempt to put characteristics from two great characters’ from another author’s book. The fusion of characteristics are too close to dismiss as coincidence. Be inspired by Michael Sullivan, do not attempt to copy from him.
The head hopping point of view was the big deal breaker here. Some spots so bad, a sentences started off in Gentry’s POV only to be finished by the annoying Princess Myriam’s POV. When the author added Artas (another rip off from MS [the Viscount]) to the story, we’re suddenly in a trio of head hopping in the same paragraphs.
There is also a problem with pacing. Draws sword to start the battle swings and ‘Oh’ let me pause that a second to introduce you to horse, Bluebell. Okay, back to fighting. It doesn’t offer much to get absorbed into in the first place, so to have the sequence broken with dumb details like that made it all the more unbearable to keep reading. Author glossed over attempts to have some action that didn’t quiet pan out. The things is, if your MC is already in the bad guy’s face with his dagger in the bad guy’s throat, then he can’t rush MC with a sword. The physics need to add up and it doesn’t.
The sum up is: no pacing, no depth of character, laws of simple physics and arrangement ignored, head hopping, borrowed characters and lots of assumptions of newly introduced characters that are told to the reader, instead of being played out for the reader to discover.
By 55% nothing had happened to motivate me to suffer through it any longer.
Marked this one down as a DNF
I loved the cover. The love stopped right there. I can’t believe this, what happened to all the great historical fantasy writers? This one comes across like it was written by a spunky 12-year-old. Reminded me of my niece. She’s cute but I don’t want to read stories written from her level of ADD.
The story starts with traveling and more traveling which is a really bad start and some half tossed salad idea of a plot that involved an evil uncle lord, a dead father king, and a princess on the run who, had it been me, I would have held her head underwater for a few minutes then gone home for a sandwich. Ganry seemed to be the author’s attempt to put characteristics from two great characters’ from another author’s book. The fusion of characteristics are too close to dismiss as coincidence. Be inspired by Michael Sullivan, do not attempt to copy from him.
The head hopping point of view was the big deal breaker here. Some spots so bad, a sentences started off in Gentry’s POV only to be finished by the annoying Princess Myriam’s POV. When the author added Artas (another rip off from MS [the Viscount]) to the story, we’re suddenly in a trio of head hopping in the same paragraphs.
There is also a problem with pacing. Draws sword to start the battle swings and ‘Oh’ let me pause that a second to introduce you to horse, Bluebell. Okay, back to fighting. It doesn’t offer much to get absorbed into in the first place, so to have the sequence broken with dumb details like that made it all the more unbearable to keep reading. Author glossed over attempts to have some action that didn’t quiet pan out. The things is, if your MC is already in the bad guy’s face with his dagger in the bad guy’s throat, then he can’t rush MC with a sword. The physics need to add up and it doesn’t.
The sum up is: no pacing, no depth of character, laws of simple physics and arrangement ignored, head hopping, borrowed characters and lots of assumptions of newly introduced characters that are told to the reader, instead of being played out for the reader to discover.
By 55% nothing had happened to motivate me to suffer through it any longer.
Marked this one down as a DNF
January 22, 2015
Good story but very rushed toward the end
It has the makings of a good adventure. The characters were there, while vague. Some of the conversations came off as more modern, very little use of old vocabulary.
You have classic good, evil, and middle ground for protagonists and villains. There was minimal history to the backgrounds of characters, just hints and minimal information. You knew the princess was pretty, artas handsome, ganry old but in shape.
Story was it had its ups and downs but road a very mediocre line. Deaths happened fast with no build up which led to not really feeling attachment to them or any weight they bared.
I don't care for drawn out boring sections and i never felt that, since each chapter was very short. The lack of depth in all facets was a turn off. You kept waiting for some meat but only got scraps.
Overall it was an average book. It felt very rushed particularly toward the end. Also the cliffhanger ending with not even a basic satisfactory conclusion of any sort left something to be desired. Had more detail and slower, deep, more enriched development and structure been involved, it would have been a great read.
It has the makings of a good adventure. The characters were there, while vague. Some of the conversations came off as more modern, very little use of old vocabulary.
You have classic good, evil, and middle ground for protagonists and villains. There was minimal history to the backgrounds of characters, just hints and minimal information. You knew the princess was pretty, artas handsome, ganry old but in shape.
Story was it had its ups and downs but road a very mediocre line. Deaths happened fast with no build up which led to not really feeling attachment to them or any weight they bared.
I don't care for drawn out boring sections and i never felt that, since each chapter was very short. The lack of depth in all facets was a turn off. You kept waiting for some meat but only got scraps.
Overall it was an average book. It felt very rushed particularly toward the end. Also the cliffhanger ending with not even a basic satisfactory conclusion of any sort left something to be desired. Had more detail and slower, deep, more enriched development and structure been involved, it would have been a great read.
August 7, 2015
Classic example of bad writing.
The writer states Gemmell and Iggulden are his examples. He has a long, long way to go even approximate those two. His writing is simplistic in the extreme-plotting, characters and description are all lacking. I can't believe how much of the book is taken up in repetitive gory executions of characters that are tangential to the story! After the first, I speed read through the rest. The only event that was somewhat interesting was the very end of the book! I only stayed with this book because I understood the second book was much better. I hope so! If the second book doesn't pick up after the first part, I will not be reading anything more from this writer! The only redeeming factor with these books is they are Amazon Unlimited.
The writer states Gemmell and Iggulden are his examples. He has a long, long way to go even approximate those two. His writing is simplistic in the extreme-plotting, characters and description are all lacking. I can't believe how much of the book is taken up in repetitive gory executions of characters that are tangential to the story! After the first, I speed read through the rest. The only event that was somewhat interesting was the very end of the book! I only stayed with this book because I understood the second book was much better. I hope so! If the second book doesn't pick up after the first part, I will not be reading anything more from this writer! The only redeeming factor with these books is they are Amazon Unlimited.
July 22, 2016
I bought this book based on what seemed like a promising premise. There are very few books that I've picked up that I fail to finish; even when I am ambivalent about a story I will usually stick with it to see where it goes. However, the prose was so bland that after the first 6 chapters I has to quit. I felt like I was reading an unedited manuscript written by a high school student. I was getting no pleasure from reading it, so I felt there was no point in continuing.
If you are a fan of good writing, skip this one.
If you are a fan of good writing, skip this one.
January 15, 2015
I really enjoyed this story. I was not too sure what to think based on the title, but I was pleasantly surprised! It was just enough blood and gore along with running and saving. I love that the main character, Ganry the Mercenary, needs to be saved as much as the princess. Highly recommended!
June 21, 2016
Very good book, with a interesting take on the "saving the princess" story.
March 10, 2018
A straighforward escort type fantasy story with classic characters and easy-to-read writing. I liked the time that I spend on the road with the mercenary Ganry, the princess Myriam and all the different characters that came along the way mainly because the author stayed focus on the escort the princess storyline. There is strenght in the classic fantasy tropes when they are well used (and when you have not read them in a while) and Jon Kiln use them with confidence. For me a rare quality in a novel is when I'm easily capable of picturing what I'm reading, and this book is almost flawless in that department. Still I did find the writing style of the author to be to clean, too simple, almost clinical. I have pick up the complete Blade Asunder series in a bundle from Amazon and I'm definately glad that I will be able to continue my adventure with Ganry and friends.
November 9, 2017
Fairly standard fantasy, with few surprises.
Starts straight in the action, as a princess is trying to escape when her uncle decides to take over the kingdom.
It's pretty much one chase scene after another, and they conveniently seem to meet someone helpful at each point, until there's quite a crowd trying to get the princess to a safe place.
There's not much in the way of character or plot development, but the story moves along at a good pace (ending seems a bit rushed), and it's a quick read.
This is book 1 of 5, and the ending doesn't really resolve anything, so will see if book 2 improves things.
Starts straight in the action, as a princess is trying to escape when her uncle decides to take over the kingdom.
It's pretty much one chase scene after another, and they conveniently seem to meet someone helpful at each point, until there's quite a crowd trying to get the princess to a safe place.
There's not much in the way of character or plot development, but the story moves along at a good pace (ending seems a bit rushed), and it's a quick read.
This is book 1 of 5, and the ending doesn't really resolve anything, so will see if book 2 improves things.
June 30, 2017
for a saving the princess story the book moves in a bit different direction. not enough depth at the end and the plot was rushed.
slow read
slow read
April 27, 2018
I can’t imagine finishing this. Ugh
December 23, 2024
Good…
…but rather simplistic. The writing lacks passion, for me. Good story but doesn’t make want to rush out and get the sequel. I will, but not yet.
…but rather simplistic. The writing lacks passion, for me. Good story but doesn’t make want to rush out and get the sequel. I will, but not yet.
January 9, 2015
Ganry has nothing. No home, no family. As a wandering mercenary he makes a living helping others and doing other's dirty work. He is no stranger to hard times or battle, but his current job may push him to his limits.
Myriam, the 15-year-old princess of Palara, is running from her uncle. After he arrested her family and took over the kingdom, he was determined to be the ruler either by marrying Myriam or murdering her. Unwilling to submit to either option she ran, and is now trying to reach her mother's family in hopes they will give her sanctuary.
Although they are two completely different people-Ganry trusts no one and sees everyone as a threat while Myriam trys to see the good in people and always wants Ganry to help-and Ganry often wonders why he was dumb enough to take this job, they develop a bond that will cause him to risk everything to finish this job and keep her safe.
This was an amazing book. It grabs your attention page one and never lets go. A real page-turner, Mercenary is a book you definitely want on your bookshelf.
The writing in Mercenary is the first thing that catches your eye. Jon Kiln has the incredible ability to put you right in the middle of everything and make you forget that you are reading a book.
This is a book that is deeper than you think at first glance, but it never gets confusing or disjointed. Kiln manages to weave together the different pieces of the story seamlessly and flawlessly.
The characters are another example of the author's talent. Every one of them is fully developed and complex; even the secondary characters. There are no throwaway characters in Mercenary, and you can tell that Kiln put a lot of thought and heart in his writing.
If Mercenary is any gauge of the level of talent Jon Kiln has then it is certain he will have a long and successful career. This book was amazing, and every page kept you wanting more. You will not be disappointed! Now I begin the wait for the next book!
Myriam, the 15-year-old princess of Palara, is running from her uncle. After he arrested her family and took over the kingdom, he was determined to be the ruler either by marrying Myriam or murdering her. Unwilling to submit to either option she ran, and is now trying to reach her mother's family in hopes they will give her sanctuary.
Although they are two completely different people-Ganry trusts no one and sees everyone as a threat while Myriam trys to see the good in people and always wants Ganry to help-and Ganry often wonders why he was dumb enough to take this job, they develop a bond that will cause him to risk everything to finish this job and keep her safe.
This was an amazing book. It grabs your attention page one and never lets go. A real page-turner, Mercenary is a book you definitely want on your bookshelf.
The writing in Mercenary is the first thing that catches your eye. Jon Kiln has the incredible ability to put you right in the middle of everything and make you forget that you are reading a book.
This is a book that is deeper than you think at first glance, but it never gets confusing or disjointed. Kiln manages to weave together the different pieces of the story seamlessly and flawlessly.
The characters are another example of the author's talent. Every one of them is fully developed and complex; even the secondary characters. There are no throwaway characters in Mercenary, and you can tell that Kiln put a lot of thought and heart in his writing.
If Mercenary is any gauge of the level of talent Jon Kiln has then it is certain he will have a long and successful career. This book was amazing, and every page kept you wanting more. You will not be disappointed! Now I begin the wait for the next book!
May 29, 2015
After saving Princess Myriam from assassination by her uncle, Ganry must brave the many dangers along the road to bring her safely to her Grandmother and the forces that can put her back on the throne. Along the way they collect a motley assortment of allies and enemies as they attempt to escape the ever tightening net. Ganry might be the Mercenary of the title but he’s not really the main character. That would be the Princess and we see her succeed due to all her allies, not just Ganry. This is the first book in a series and it does end at a natural stopping point but there is plenty to be resolved in the future. Fans of Lloyd Alexander’s Pyridan Chronicles will enjoy this series.
March 8, 2015
Solid storyline
Very fast read with a couple unexpected turns. Enjoyable read. Looking forward to the next installment. I hope the plot becomes more complicated .
Very fast read with a couple unexpected turns. Enjoyable read. Looking forward to the next installment. I hope the plot becomes more complicated .
September 16, 2015
I only got 50 pages into it before I quit. I didn't find a single character that acted in a believable manner. They were all too, well, nice. That includes the villains. Gah!
September 28, 2015
Good book
March 2, 2015
Lemmed it.
Read
July 3, 2017Run of the mill "save the princess" stories. Nothing against Kiln, but this type of story is just so overdone. Most of the story follows the characters on a journey that never seems to end and then you realize it's just book 1. They travel for a bit, run into people that need to die, travel some more, stay a night in a village where someone needs to be rescued.
Rinse and repeat.
A lot of authors are guilty of this, deciding to write a series and using filler to create book 1 so people will buy it to read the 2nd, 3rd, and beyond. Some it works for because the characters are at least interesting and the world building gives an interesting world to get lost in. But with the child-like naming of animals and weapons to the dry fight scenes, this is not one of those.
There is no real character development here and you won't feel for a single one of them. Ganry wants so badly to be a likable character but falls flat just like the insufferable princess and this random
Artas character who is just along for the journey. The plot is also kind of "meh" and didn't grab me from the beginning. Princess runs away after Uncle decides he wants the throne and will stop at nothing to find her.
All in all, I didn't hate the book. It just wasn't for me and is more suited for a younger audience as the writing just doesn't match up with some of the more popular writers out today. I did like the cover art, though.
Rinse and repeat.
A lot of authors are guilty of this, deciding to write a series and using filler to create book 1 so people will buy it to read the 2nd, 3rd, and beyond. Some it works for because the characters are at least interesting and the world building gives an interesting world to get lost in. But with the child-like naming of animals and weapons to the dry fight scenes, this is not one of those.
There is no real character development here and you won't feel for a single one of them. Ganry wants so badly to be a likable character but falls flat just like the insufferable princess and this random
Artas character who is just along for the journey. The plot is also kind of "meh" and didn't grab me from the beginning. Princess runs away after Uncle decides he wants the throne and will stop at nothing to find her.
All in all, I didn't hate the book. It just wasn't for me and is more suited for a younger audience as the writing just doesn't match up with some of the more popular writers out today. I did like the cover art, though.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews