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The Sleeping King #1
The Sleeping King
The Sleeping King is the start of a new fantasy series by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Cindy Dees.
The Sleeping King is the first in an epic fantasy series, featuring the best of the genre: near immortal imperial overlords, a prophecy of a sleeping elven king who's said to be the savior of the races . . . and two young people who are set on a path to save the day.
The Sleeping King is the first in an epic fantasy series, featuring the best of the genre: near immortal imperial overlords, a prophecy of a sleeping elven king who's said to be the savior of the races . . . and two young people who are set on a path to save the day.
496 pages, Hardcover
First published September 8, 2015
23 people are currently reading
1638 people want to read
About the author
Cindy Dees
172 books1,953 followersCindy Dees started flying airplanes while sitting in her dad’s lap at the age of three and got a pilot’s license before she got a driver’s license. At age fifteen, she dropped out of high school and left the horse farm in Michigan where she grew up to attend the University of Michigan.
After earning a degree in Russian and East European studies, she joined the U.S. Air Force and became the youngest female pilot in the history of the Air Force. She flew supersonic jets, VIP airlift and the “C-5” Galaxy, the world’s largest airplane. She also worked part-time gathering intelligence. During her military career, she traveled to forty countries on five continents, was detained by the KGB and East German secret police, she got shot at, flew in the first Gulf War, met her husband and amassed a lifetime’s worth of war stories.
Her hobbies include professional Middle Eastern dancing, Japanese gardening and medieval reenacting. She started writing on a one-dollar bet with her mother and was thrilled to win that bet with the publication of her first book in 2001.
After earning a degree in Russian and East European studies, she joined the U.S. Air Force and became the youngest female pilot in the history of the Air Force. She flew supersonic jets, VIP airlift and the “C-5” Galaxy, the world’s largest airplane. She also worked part-time gathering intelligence. During her military career, she traveled to forty countries on five continents, was detained by the KGB and East German secret police, she got shot at, flew in the first Gulf War, met her husband and amassed a lifetime’s worth of war stories.
Her hobbies include professional Middle Eastern dancing, Japanese gardening and medieval reenacting. She started writing on a one-dollar bet with her mother and was thrilled to win that bet with the publication of her first book in 2001.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
December 2, 2025
The Sleeping King is a complex, multi-character story that reads like an epic fantasy tale.
I found the beginning packed full of world building and set up which made for a little slow going but soon found myself grabbed by this dark, magical world.
This was not an easy read but a many faceted plot with lots of intrigue, an evil ruler, and a mythical king.
If you are a fan of high fantasy then I would strongly recommend you check out The Sleeping King.
I received this ARC copy of The Sleeping King from Macmillan-Tor/Forge - Tor Books in exchange for an honest review.
I found the beginning packed full of world building and set up which made for a little slow going but soon found myself grabbed by this dark, magical world.
This was not an easy read but a many faceted plot with lots of intrigue, an evil ruler, and a mythical king.
If you are a fan of high fantasy then I would strongly recommend you check out The Sleeping King.
I received this ARC copy of The Sleeping King from Macmillan-Tor/Forge - Tor Books in exchange for an honest review.
September 6, 2015
4-4.5/5
mon avis en Français
my ENglish review
By receiving the book, the cover intrigued me right away. I tried several books lately disappointing me but I was hoping it would change with The Sleeping King. The fact that this is fantasy did not demotivate me and I must say that it was great to get into the adventure because the history was really amazing.
We discover a quite original world, a world filled with different creatures and characters that we take pleasure to learn about. The first chapter presents us a bit the universe, with an Emperor meeting one of the central protagonists of the story. We then continue with several characters, some arriving later than others and who take us into their lives. It is difficult to understand at first how their lives will bind together, but they’ll manage to do that in a very unusual way. I’m sure you are already wondering if the number of POVs is not too much for our poor memory … but no! I think the main idea of the novel is really well done. Indeed, we can get to know the two main characters in the story slowly, leaving us time to mingle a bit before launching into another, never leaving us the possibility to be lost.
But even if we discover some other protagonists, we mainly follow two of them as I said, Will and Raina. The two had not intended to meet, in fact, the Will’s family was destroyed by orcs one day, and his life was turned upside from that time. Promising his parents to resume the quest they had begun long ago, he must find the Sleeping King to free his country. Raina, meanwhile, ran away from home, with hopes of finding a solution to the curse that hangs over her family and save her older sister.
Thus we embark on an epic journey that our heroes will undertake separately and that will connect them gradually to save a king who could only be a legend. An adventure that keeps us in suspense throughout the story and which we eagerly await for the outcome. Yes, you can understand that I had a great time with the story and the characters and I’m really curious to discover what will happen because a large number of events are initiated and that much remains to be undertaken.
In conclusion, I recommend with great pleasure this fantasy story!
mon avis en Français
my ENglish review
By receiving the book, the cover intrigued me right away. I tried several books lately disappointing me but I was hoping it would change with The Sleeping King. The fact that this is fantasy did not demotivate me and I must say that it was great to get into the adventure because the history was really amazing.
We discover a quite original world, a world filled with different creatures and characters that we take pleasure to learn about. The first chapter presents us a bit the universe, with an Emperor meeting one of the central protagonists of the story. We then continue with several characters, some arriving later than others and who take us into their lives. It is difficult to understand at first how their lives will bind together, but they’ll manage to do that in a very unusual way. I’m sure you are already wondering if the number of POVs is not too much for our poor memory … but no! I think the main idea of the novel is really well done. Indeed, we can get to know the two main characters in the story slowly, leaving us time to mingle a bit before launching into another, never leaving us the possibility to be lost.
But even if we discover some other protagonists, we mainly follow two of them as I said, Will and Raina. The two had not intended to meet, in fact, the Will’s family was destroyed by orcs one day, and his life was turned upside from that time. Promising his parents to resume the quest they had begun long ago, he must find the Sleeping King to free his country. Raina, meanwhile, ran away from home, with hopes of finding a solution to the curse that hangs over her family and save her older sister.
Thus we embark on an epic journey that our heroes will undertake separately and that will connect them gradually to save a king who could only be a legend. An adventure that keeps us in suspense throughout the story and which we eagerly await for the outcome. Yes, you can understand that I had a great time with the story and the characters and I’m really curious to discover what will happen because a large number of events are initiated and that much remains to be undertaken.
In conclusion, I recommend with great pleasure this fantasy story!
December 28, 2016
This is a book that would have benefited from a better editor. The two authors do not blend voices well at all; the dialogue and characterization from chapter to chapter is haphazard and inconsistent. I occasionally found myself reading back to figure out why the hell a character had gone from speaking with educated and polished diction to the hokiest, most broken pidgin ever, in case I'd missed something.
The story idea was interesting, but it just went downhill. I made it about 60% of the way through, growing more and more depressed with every page, until I finally just gave up.
The story idea was interesting, but it just went downhill. I made it about 60% of the way through, growing more and more depressed with every page, until I finally just gave up.
August 18, 2016
A halfway decent story nearly ruined by poor editing--spelling mistakes, misplaced punctuation marks, inconsistent dialogue, constant repetitiveness, unbelievable chance encounters that drive the plot. I won't be carrying on with this series.
August 30, 2015
When I began reading this, I was completely smitten with it. The elements I love were in alignment: shady politics, immortal tyrant, young people stumbling upon their magical abilities, and an almost limitless variety of different races of humanoids. The worldbuilding was in The Sleeping King's favor as well- lots of factions, trades, and mythical creatures to be found. I love those all those fantastic elements! Even the pacing was spot on.
The characters, while fairly mainstream in fantasy, still had me concerned when they ran into trouble. My favorite character by far arrived about halfway through, a lizardman girl named Sha'Li, who spiced up the group of characters considerably. Still, compared with the impressive worldbuilding, I was a bit put out that the characters weren't so dynamic.
The problems arose as I neared the end. The storyline, which had originally been extremely multi-faceted, devolved to follow only the main quest: to find the Sleeping King. Sure, there were complications with the main quest, and other forces became apparent as the book drew on. But by then, the surprise factor had worn off, and what I originally had assumed would become a new favorite epic fantasy of mine, became a book I would like to own a physical copy of, but with no dire need of it. Since the book is based on a live action RPG, it makes much more sense that everything else would be so fully fleshed, leaving much of the plot to follow a more linear direction.
If you've ever played the Elder Scrolls, you may find many of the humanoid beings familiar. Although I would've preferred beings I've never ever seen before in fantasy, at some point it's hard to be 'new' without inspiring memories of that book, that movie, or that video game. Still, I prefer fantasy books like The Sleeping King with lots of different races to fantasy books with just plain old humans with a pocket full of magic.
I also had issues with some of the later antagonists, the Boki. When we get to see them up close and personal, none of them really have a distinct personality. Yes, they are supposed to be highly skilled warriors, and therefore maybe have no room for personality, but I was disappointed nonetheless. I'm beginning to feel terribly for orc-like people, as they are always cast as the villains.
The Sleeping King had a beginning that swept me off my feet... but an ending that didn't quite match my expectations. Regardless of that, it has a lot of magic left for those of us who love to see amazing worldbuilding and distinctive races. If you're okay with books that lack in the character and plot department, but deliver the complete package with a fully fleshed fantasy world, I'd recommend this book. Otherwise, you could probably skip it.
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars for a good start to a series that I expected a bit more from.
Disclaimer: I was given a free advance e-copy of this book from Tor Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My opinion remains as forthright as ever.
As seen on my book blog, Victorian Soul Critiques.
The characters, while fairly mainstream in fantasy, still had me concerned when they ran into trouble. My favorite character by far arrived about halfway through, a lizardman girl named Sha'Li, who spiced up the group of characters considerably. Still, compared with the impressive worldbuilding, I was a bit put out that the characters weren't so dynamic.
The problems arose as I neared the end. The storyline, which had originally been extremely multi-faceted, devolved to follow only the main quest: to find the Sleeping King. Sure, there were complications with the main quest, and other forces became apparent as the book drew on. But by then, the surprise factor had worn off, and what I originally had assumed would become a new favorite epic fantasy of mine, became a book I would like to own a physical copy of, but with no dire need of it. Since the book is based on a live action RPG, it makes much more sense that everything else would be so fully fleshed, leaving much of the plot to follow a more linear direction.
If you've ever played the Elder Scrolls, you may find many of the humanoid beings familiar. Although I would've preferred beings I've never ever seen before in fantasy, at some point it's hard to be 'new' without inspiring memories of that book, that movie, or that video game. Still, I prefer fantasy books like The Sleeping King with lots of different races to fantasy books with just plain old humans with a pocket full of magic.
I also had issues with some of the later antagonists, the Boki. When we get to see them up close and personal, none of them really have a distinct personality. Yes, they are supposed to be highly skilled warriors, and therefore maybe have no room for personality, but I was disappointed nonetheless. I'm beginning to feel terribly for orc-like people, as they are always cast as the villains.
The Sleeping King had a beginning that swept me off my feet... but an ending that didn't quite match my expectations. Regardless of that, it has a lot of magic left for those of us who love to see amazing worldbuilding and distinctive races. If you're okay with books that lack in the character and plot department, but deliver the complete package with a fully fleshed fantasy world, I'd recommend this book. Otherwise, you could probably skip it.
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars for a good start to a series that I expected a bit more from.
Disclaimer: I was given a free advance e-copy of this book from Tor Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My opinion remains as forthright as ever.
As seen on my book blog, Victorian Soul Critiques.
September 3, 2015
I rarely read epic fantasy novels these days as I am invariably disappointed because I always compare them to classic series like The Lord of the Rings, The Belgariad, Lord Foulsbane, The Sword of Shannara and The Fionavar Tapestry among others. To say that this novel blew me away is an understatement. I actually kept putting my kindle down to make it last longer. The beginning is a bit overwhelming and hard to get through but that is normal when you are reading a novel with so much depth and detail. Once you begin to understand what the story is about and who the main characters are then you literally fall into an incredible fantasy world. It is full of all that should be in a fantasy novel: elves, orcs, trolls, magic, quests, and the inevitable love story. I was not disappointed at the ending in the least as I understand that this is the first novel in a series so I am sure unfinished story-lines will be explained later on as the series progresses. This is really a fantastic novel that should stand beside the classics I mentioned earlier. I can't wait until the next novel in the series comes out. I received a copy of "The Sleeping King" from the publisher via Netgalley for free in exchange for an honest review. I want to thank them for the opportunity. This book was a treat to read.
September 8, 2015
I like to read a good fantasy book every once in a while. Thus the reason I decided to pick up a copy of this book to check out. I must admit that I am not familiar with Dragon Crest yet my husband is. Either way...familiar or not, I enjoyed reading this book. Although in the beginning I lied down to start reading this book and was not instantly drawn into it and so I grew sleepy. Which was not a good sign and I even wondered if I would be able to even complete reading this book or I should call it a tome. Again, either way, I am glad I picked this book up again to start reading it. I started to get into it the more and more I read of it. However, there were a lot of different characters to try and keep track of in the beginning.
I don't know about any other readers but for me, the elves all spoke in an Irish accent. I don't know where that came from but in my head they spoke it and I even found myself starting to speak this way while reading this book. This book would make a good movie.
I don't know about any other readers but for me, the elves all spoke in an Irish accent. I don't know where that came from but in my head they spoke it and I even found myself starting to speak this way while reading this book. This book would make a good movie.
September 13, 2015
Let me say first that I'm convinced Ithat this book and I aren't meant for each other. Its not the right epic fantasy for me. I'm not the right reader for it.
I was enjoying it until the 30% mark where it suddenly felt tedious to read moving forward. I know how epic fantasy works, the plot takes time to develop as there are a lot of.players involved. I guess it just didn't work for me so I ended up skimming and skipping parts until I finally got to the Sleeping King part.
It was a good meeting but anti-climactic. I'm guessing there are a couple or so more books coming. Obviously I'm skipping those. And btw, the novel is based on a game.
I was enjoying it until the 30% mark where it suddenly felt tedious to read moving forward. I know how epic fantasy works, the plot takes time to develop as there are a lot of.players involved. I guess it just didn't work for me so I ended up skimming and skipping parts until I finally got to the Sleeping King part.
It was a good meeting but anti-climactic. I'm guessing there are a couple or so more books coming. Obviously I'm skipping those. And btw, the novel is based on a game.
July 19, 2015
This is a wonderful start to a new fantasy series. It contains all the crucial elements of magic, a greedy ruler, a mythical king, a lush setting and several love interests. Well written and easy to read with a story line that has you eagerly turning the pages. Will definitely be looking for book two.
September 5, 2015
3.5 stars. If you like traditional epic fantasy with humans and elves and orcs and magic and prophecies and orphans with Great Destinies, then this book is for you. There is a lot of world-building to be done at the start of this book (despite it taking place on a planet named Urth), laying down the foundations of the terrible empire with its immortal Emperor who can read the thoughts of his subjects – all the better to keep them in line. There’s also a deep political plot to be laid, with ambitious politicians, a terrible prophecy and a recently conquered land that is wild and refusing to be tamed.
From there the book splits into multiple characters, with different plot strands pulling in all directions, as the story slowly unfolds. Those familiar with epic fantasy will be completely at home with a book like this. The world is detailed and the politics are nicely snarled, while the many characters are possibly not as multifaceted as I might have liked. Most of the main characters involved with the quest to find the Sleeping King are teenagers. There’s Will, the country boy who doesn’t realise his own secret history, and Raina, the talented healer who runs away from home. There’s also another young healer, Rosana, whose path crosses with Will’s, not to mention a wood elf called Cicero, who inadvertently becomes Raina’s protector. Add in a young lord, his sword-fighting best friend and a lizard girl and the motley crew is complete.
Or at least, it is eventually, but it takes a fair chunk of the novel before these various story lines intersect. Alongside them there’s also the villainous governor, the powerful heir to the empire, a minor queen, a local lord, an archmage elf and an assassin. Like I said, multiple characters, some of which play a greater role in this book than others.
The plot is pretty slow moving all the way through, building up the world and setting up the characters, then outlining the quest. I have to admit a couple of the characters – namely the ones at the Emperor’s court – didn’t really add a lot to this book, except confusion. For me, anyway. Whenever Gabrielle showed up I had to think hard to remember who she was and why I should care. Thankfully she doesn’t appear often. Away from that the good people are almost entirely good, while the bad people are thoroughly bad. With the exception of one of the elves, but since he holds his honour very high, then I suppose he is also good by his own interpretation. The addition of orcs attempts to muddy the waters with regard to prejudice and warfare, but since the orcs themselves are all seemingly brutish warriors, this didn’t make as much of an impact as it could have done.
There’s a lot of travelling in this tale, not to mention a lot of injuries that go away very quickly – whether they’ve been magically healed or not. One particular character seems to be at death’s door for a great chunk of the book, but still manages to do remarkable things. However, there was one thing that I did find fascinating and that was death: it’s rarely permanent. Healers can grab a departing spirit and bring it back to a body, or if that fails the spirit can be resurrected through spells or via a Heartstone, manifesting a new body if needs be.
This makes more sense when I found out this book/world is based on an RPG, and this concept fits in really well with a game idea, but I still found it intriguing how death – or lack thereof – was incorporated into this world. Not that this stops characters from dying completely, of course. Especially if it’s more convenient for them to do so, like friends and family members whose loss will push the heroic characters onto new feats of heroism and endurance. I still liked it, though.
Overall, there’s nothing much new or surprising here. The world is nicely detailed, while falling into the familiar forms of the genre. The characters too are what I would expect from this sort of book, with the male ones being strong and warlike, while the female ones are healers and political manipulators – unless she’s a lizard, in which case she can be warlike too. The plot is enjoyable and I did find the whole thing thoroughly readable, but if you don’t like epic fantasy then you probably won’t like this. If, however, you love RPG and Tolkien-esque worlds, then this is definitely aimed at you. Don’t expect any surprises and you’ll enjoy it just fine. I would certainly like to read whatever happens next, since this tale is far from over yet.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
From there the book splits into multiple characters, with different plot strands pulling in all directions, as the story slowly unfolds. Those familiar with epic fantasy will be completely at home with a book like this. The world is detailed and the politics are nicely snarled, while the many characters are possibly not as multifaceted as I might have liked. Most of the main characters involved with the quest to find the Sleeping King are teenagers. There’s Will, the country boy who doesn’t realise his own secret history, and Raina, the talented healer who runs away from home. There’s also another young healer, Rosana, whose path crosses with Will’s, not to mention a wood elf called Cicero, who inadvertently becomes Raina’s protector. Add in a young lord, his sword-fighting best friend and a lizard girl and the motley crew is complete.
Or at least, it is eventually, but it takes a fair chunk of the novel before these various story lines intersect. Alongside them there’s also the villainous governor, the powerful heir to the empire, a minor queen, a local lord, an archmage elf and an assassin. Like I said, multiple characters, some of which play a greater role in this book than others.
The plot is pretty slow moving all the way through, building up the world and setting up the characters, then outlining the quest. I have to admit a couple of the characters – namely the ones at the Emperor’s court – didn’t really add a lot to this book, except confusion. For me, anyway. Whenever Gabrielle showed up I had to think hard to remember who she was and why I should care. Thankfully she doesn’t appear often. Away from that the good people are almost entirely good, while the bad people are thoroughly bad. With the exception of one of the elves, but since he holds his honour very high, then I suppose he is also good by his own interpretation. The addition of orcs attempts to muddy the waters with regard to prejudice and warfare, but since the orcs themselves are all seemingly brutish warriors, this didn’t make as much of an impact as it could have done.
There’s a lot of travelling in this tale, not to mention a lot of injuries that go away very quickly – whether they’ve been magically healed or not. One particular character seems to be at death’s door for a great chunk of the book, but still manages to do remarkable things. However, there was one thing that I did find fascinating and that was death: it’s rarely permanent. Healers can grab a departing spirit and bring it back to a body, or if that fails the spirit can be resurrected through spells or via a Heartstone, manifesting a new body if needs be.
This makes more sense when I found out this book/world is based on an RPG, and this concept fits in really well with a game idea, but I still found it intriguing how death – or lack thereof – was incorporated into this world. Not that this stops characters from dying completely, of course. Especially if it’s more convenient for them to do so, like friends and family members whose loss will push the heroic characters onto new feats of heroism and endurance. I still liked it, though.
Overall, there’s nothing much new or surprising here. The world is nicely detailed, while falling into the familiar forms of the genre. The characters too are what I would expect from this sort of book, with the male ones being strong and warlike, while the female ones are healers and political manipulators – unless she’s a lizard, in which case she can be warlike too. The plot is enjoyable and I did find the whole thing thoroughly readable, but if you don’t like epic fantasy then you probably won’t like this. If, however, you love RPG and Tolkien-esque worlds, then this is definitely aimed at you. Don’t expect any surprises and you’ll enjoy it just fine. I would certainly like to read whatever happens next, since this tale is far from over yet.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
July 23, 2020
The sleeping king is such a good book. True to my silliness I started to read the second book first and realized that the sleeping king was first.
I love the story line, it's about a handful of teens that go in a quest to find the sleeping king.
The story shows bravery, courage, loyalty and that friendships can be forged out of most unlikely bunch. I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next ones
I love the story line, it's about a handful of teens that go in a quest to find the sleeping king.
The story shows bravery, courage, loyalty and that friendships can be forged out of most unlikely bunch. I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next ones
April 26, 2018
This was a good read, but for the love of GOD either make Rosana someone who can speak in full sentences or someone who can’t, don’t just make everyone think she does crack in between the chapters so she alternates between personalities...
November 17, 2015
4.5*s
After a seriously slow start, this got really good
Review posted here...
http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.co...
The Sleeping King is the first book in a new epic fantasy series by Cindy Dees and epic it turned out to be!
The synopsis seems to tell the reader more about the author than the actual book so I’ll try and tempt you a little….
In this adventure fantasy story we have a world – Urth – that has varying lands and inhabitants. Magic is aplenty but so is the tyranny. We start the book with events that happened years ago, a controlling emperor who can bend anyones thoughts and will to his own, his power hungry overlords who rule regions of Urth in any manner they choose as long as they line the Emperor’s pockets and some good people who a forced to make sacrifices for the greater good…… but there is also a prophecy…. One that portends the downfall of the Emperor and his regime! The emperor will do everything in his power to stop this from happening but can you change fate?
Fast forward a few years and we meet Will, a young lad on the brink of adulthood wanting to prove to his parents that he should be allowed to train & fight for his little village. Little does he know that his village will need fighting for very soon and everything he thought he knew – is not all there is to know. He is sent on an errand to a nearby city to report to one person alone and to warn them that the enemy is moving and they need to prepare – but will he be taken seriously when the Governor of the city is corrupt as they come?
Elsewhere Raina is on the verge of becoming a woman, 16 and on the cusp of life – that is until she has a family tradition thrust upon her that will change everything and leave her all but caged. Headstrong Raina will refuse her family tradition, she will not accept what is laid out for her and she will flee her home in a desperate escape from a life that she doesn’t want. With help from a mysterious Elf she will search for a way to relieve her family from its duty so that no other daughter will be forced to accept a fate like that which is waiting for her.
Both Will and Raina believe the answer to their problems is in the prophecy of the ‘Sleeping King’ who will conquer all and bring the world back into balance. They head out with some friends in the hopes they will find the Kings resting place so they can awaken him…..but many enemies await and they journey will be full of danger – will they set a prophecy in motion? Will they wake the Sleeping King?
So, it sounds good right? Well it was! It was epic! I love books like this that can take you far away from your life and deposit you into a whole other world filled with all kinds of wonderful things. The author did a great job of bringing this world to life, as you may have read – it is based upon an online game ‘Dragon Crest’ and how fab that she has made it into a book! I loved nearly everything about this although I didn’t really get into it until the 20% mark when things started to get moving. I really enjoyed getting to know all of the characters, they were all written as such that their character is true to their person for instance Will is extremely brave and moral and that really comes across well, which helps connect with them. Raina is another example in that you can tell she is headstrong, sassy and not afraid to fight for what she wants. The bad guys felt like bad guys, as a reader I wanted them caught and punished, I wanted bad stuff to happen to them for what they put everyone else through so that indicates to me how good the author portrayed the characters of the book because I was invested in every one of them.
The storyline was great, lots of different lands and scenery to be discovered with all of its creatures too. It was quite easy to understand the dynamics of Urth and I didn’t feel like I got overloaded with information. To be fair, the characters really made this book for me but I really appreciated the rest too, I mean when you have portals that drop you in a dryad grove – it’s always going to impress. I loved the prophecy angle, it gave the book a very adventurous feel where the main characters go on a quest and encounter all manner of things. I suppose it could be compared to a Lord of the Rings –esque scenario on a lesser scale but the same sort of enjoyment to be had. For all the story had a really slow start, once the character were in place and things started moving, the pacing was good and I was kept interested all of the way through. There are side threads to this story also which will probably develop over the series so it isn’t all focused on the prophecy and I do look forward to those being revealed. As fantasies go though, this was brilliant! It had everything you could want in a fantasy – prophecy, strange worlds, diverse set of characters & species, evil enemies with one that you just know will be the end series bad guy, plenty of magic, secrets, discoveries, battles, puzzles……even a smidgen of romance - it’s all there and it’s all very enthralling. I simply can’t wait for book two!
After a seriously slow start, this got really good
Review posted here...
http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.co...
The Sleeping King is the first book in a new epic fantasy series by Cindy Dees and epic it turned out to be!
The synopsis seems to tell the reader more about the author than the actual book so I’ll try and tempt you a little….
In this adventure fantasy story we have a world – Urth – that has varying lands and inhabitants. Magic is aplenty but so is the tyranny. We start the book with events that happened years ago, a controlling emperor who can bend anyones thoughts and will to his own, his power hungry overlords who rule regions of Urth in any manner they choose as long as they line the Emperor’s pockets and some good people who a forced to make sacrifices for the greater good…… but there is also a prophecy…. One that portends the downfall of the Emperor and his regime! The emperor will do everything in his power to stop this from happening but can you change fate?
Fast forward a few years and we meet Will, a young lad on the brink of adulthood wanting to prove to his parents that he should be allowed to train & fight for his little village. Little does he know that his village will need fighting for very soon and everything he thought he knew – is not all there is to know. He is sent on an errand to a nearby city to report to one person alone and to warn them that the enemy is moving and they need to prepare – but will he be taken seriously when the Governor of the city is corrupt as they come?
Elsewhere Raina is on the verge of becoming a woman, 16 and on the cusp of life – that is until she has a family tradition thrust upon her that will change everything and leave her all but caged. Headstrong Raina will refuse her family tradition, she will not accept what is laid out for her and she will flee her home in a desperate escape from a life that she doesn’t want. With help from a mysterious Elf she will search for a way to relieve her family from its duty so that no other daughter will be forced to accept a fate like that which is waiting for her.
Both Will and Raina believe the answer to their problems is in the prophecy of the ‘Sleeping King’ who will conquer all and bring the world back into balance. They head out with some friends in the hopes they will find the Kings resting place so they can awaken him…..but many enemies await and they journey will be full of danger – will they set a prophecy in motion? Will they wake the Sleeping King?
So, it sounds good right? Well it was! It was epic! I love books like this that can take you far away from your life and deposit you into a whole other world filled with all kinds of wonderful things. The author did a great job of bringing this world to life, as you may have read – it is based upon an online game ‘Dragon Crest’ and how fab that she has made it into a book! I loved nearly everything about this although I didn’t really get into it until the 20% mark when things started to get moving. I really enjoyed getting to know all of the characters, they were all written as such that their character is true to their person for instance Will is extremely brave and moral and that really comes across well, which helps connect with them. Raina is another example in that you can tell she is headstrong, sassy and not afraid to fight for what she wants. The bad guys felt like bad guys, as a reader I wanted them caught and punished, I wanted bad stuff to happen to them for what they put everyone else through so that indicates to me how good the author portrayed the characters of the book because I was invested in every one of them.
The storyline was great, lots of different lands and scenery to be discovered with all of its creatures too. It was quite easy to understand the dynamics of Urth and I didn’t feel like I got overloaded with information. To be fair, the characters really made this book for me but I really appreciated the rest too, I mean when you have portals that drop you in a dryad grove – it’s always going to impress. I loved the prophecy angle, it gave the book a very adventurous feel where the main characters go on a quest and encounter all manner of things. I suppose it could be compared to a Lord of the Rings –esque scenario on a lesser scale but the same sort of enjoyment to be had. For all the story had a really slow start, once the character were in place and things started moving, the pacing was good and I was kept interested all of the way through. There are side threads to this story also which will probably develop over the series so it isn’t all focused on the prophecy and I do look forward to those being revealed. As fantasies go though, this was brilliant! It had everything you could want in a fantasy – prophecy, strange worlds, diverse set of characters & species, evil enemies with one that you just know will be the end series bad guy, plenty of magic, secrets, discoveries, battles, puzzles……even a smidgen of romance - it’s all there and it’s all very enthralling. I simply can’t wait for book two!
September 2, 2016
3.5 stars.
Why are prophesies always involving people under 25 years old? *sighs*
This is a very typical fantasy adventure story. You have a plucky band of misfits off on a quest to save something or other. We fans of fantasy and sci-fi have seen that plot about a million times, I'm sure. We'll see it again, no doubt, and while it does get awfully tiresome, we still keep reading it. Or, I do, anyway. Maybe I'm a bit of a glutton for punishment in that way.
The story is cliche. It's highly predictable and there is never any true fear for the lives of the heroes. I don't think I'm exactly spoiling anything by saying that, frankly, if you have an option to resurrect, then your death is by no means any sacrifice and is not something to be all that concerned about. My understanding is that this book was adapted from a roleplaying session, and it definitely acts that way, but even so, when you can't muster any worry for your heroes, that's kind of boring.
I have read books with more than one author before, but I've never been sure if they were both writing together or if one of them was more helping the writer with plot ideas and characters but not doing any of the actual writing themselves. With this book, I'm pretty sure both people named on the cover of the book did mostly equal amounts of actual writing. In some places, it shows in a bad way. For example, one of the characters and his niece are said to have had flaming red hair. Later, the hair is described as white. And Rosana, the gypsy healer, is said to have an accent. That's acceptable enough. But in some parts of the book, she speaks proper English. In other parts, she speaks in broken English, then goes back to speaking proper English again later still. Another character speaks something akin to how Yoda does, but her dialect switches from proper English and back to Yoda-speak in several places in much the way Rosana's dialect does. Who the heck edited this book? How the heck did they not catch such glaring mistakes??
Even considering the mistakes made with the way characters speak and look, I still enjoyed how different their personalities usually were.
The villains are stupid, though...
Anyway, decent start to a series. As with many books designed to be the beginning of a series, this one has all the hallmarks of being a first book. It's a set up, for the most part. Its purpose is to help build the world and introduce characters. Beyond that, it doesn't have a whole lot of substance. I hope the second book in this series will kick up the action a little.
Why are prophesies always involving people under 25 years old? *sighs*
This is a very typical fantasy adventure story. You have a plucky band of misfits off on a quest to save something or other. We fans of fantasy and sci-fi have seen that plot about a million times, I'm sure. We'll see it again, no doubt, and while it does get awfully tiresome, we still keep reading it. Or, I do, anyway. Maybe I'm a bit of a glutton for punishment in that way.
The story is cliche. It's highly predictable and there is never any true fear for the lives of the heroes. I don't think I'm exactly spoiling anything by saying that, frankly, if you have an option to resurrect, then your death is by no means any sacrifice and is not something to be all that concerned about. My understanding is that this book was adapted from a roleplaying session, and it definitely acts that way, but even so, when you can't muster any worry for your heroes, that's kind of boring.
I have read books with more than one author before, but I've never been sure if they were both writing together or if one of them was more helping the writer with plot ideas and characters but not doing any of the actual writing themselves. With this book, I'm pretty sure both people named on the cover of the book did mostly equal amounts of actual writing. In some places, it shows in a bad way. For example, one of the characters and his niece are said to have had flaming red hair. Later, the hair is described as white. And Rosana, the gypsy healer, is said to have an accent. That's acceptable enough. But in some parts of the book, she speaks proper English. In other parts, she speaks in broken English, then goes back to speaking proper English again later still. Another character speaks something akin to how Yoda does, but her dialect switches from proper English and back to Yoda-speak in several places in much the way Rosana's dialect does. Who the heck edited this book? How the heck did they not catch such glaring mistakes??
Even considering the mistakes made with the way characters speak and look, I still enjoyed how different their personalities usually were.
The villains are stupid, though...
Anyway, decent start to a series. As with many books designed to be the beginning of a series, this one has all the hallmarks of being a first book. It's a set up, for the most part. Its purpose is to help build the world and introduce characters. Beyond that, it doesn't have a whole lot of substance. I hope the second book in this series will kick up the action a little.
September 9, 2015
So live action role-playing games have fascinated me for a time now, mainly because I've never actually participated in one and it sounds like a whole lot of fun, but also like a huge investment of both time and also costumes and such (some of my friends LARP and they have the most amazing props). Which is why the mention of this being the base for this epic fantasy immediately drew my attention!
I have to be honest, I was a bit daunted by the size of The Sleeping King (it's a whole whopping 496 pages), but the writing drew me in from the start, so my worries were soon non-existant. And I really loved the voices of both Will and Raina, who are our two main heroes. Obviously, there's a whole band of characters to get to know and I really liked that there's a quest. I mean, they actually really have a purpose in setting everything in motion, and while to sorta fall into it in the beginning, they definitely man up to the challenge so to speak.
There's a whole lot of worldbuilding going on and I was immediately intrigued, so the amount of information that is given didn't bother me in the slightest, cause I'd love to know even more of this world. I will however say that the story was a bit slow to really take off in the beginning and I'm still kinda wondering where all the different players tie in and how their storylines will come together, but I'm sure that will be further explained in the next book. And I do get that our two heroes need a backstory, but I very much liked it when they fell in with the same band and the story could take off.
The Sleeping King is my kind of epic fantasy, there's a quest and lots of travelling and there's so much scheming going on and just characters for me to love and root for! The romance that plays a minor part was a little too sweet for my liking, but it did develop sorta naturally, so I can get behind it, but it's not my favourite ever. I am however REALLY curious to find out what happens next for Will and Raina and everyone! I'm definitely hooked on this world and the people in it.
My rating: 4,5 stars
I have to be honest, I was a bit daunted by the size of The Sleeping King (it's a whole whopping 496 pages), but the writing drew me in from the start, so my worries were soon non-existant. And I really loved the voices of both Will and Raina, who are our two main heroes. Obviously, there's a whole band of characters to get to know and I really liked that there's a quest. I mean, they actually really have a purpose in setting everything in motion, and while to sorta fall into it in the beginning, they definitely man up to the challenge so to speak.
There's a whole lot of worldbuilding going on and I was immediately intrigued, so the amount of information that is given didn't bother me in the slightest, cause I'd love to know even more of this world. I will however say that the story was a bit slow to really take off in the beginning and I'm still kinda wondering where all the different players tie in and how their storylines will come together, but I'm sure that will be further explained in the next book. And I do get that our two heroes need a backstory, but I very much liked it when they fell in with the same band and the story could take off.
The Sleeping King is my kind of epic fantasy, there's a quest and lots of travelling and there's so much scheming going on and just characters for me to love and root for! The romance that plays a minor part was a little too sweet for my liking, but it did develop sorta naturally, so I can get behind it, but it's not my favourite ever. I am however REALLY curious to find out what happens next for Will and Raina and everyone! I'm definitely hooked on this world and the people in it.
My rating: 4,5 stars
Read
November 7, 2015Originally posted at Butterfly-o-Meter Books on Oct 2 , 2015:
In a Flutter: Not bad, but not for me
Review
Yeaah…as you guys know, I’m always looking to try new things, or give things a second (and n-th) chance. So I wanted to give high fantasy another chance. I was really optimistic about The Sleeping King, but unfortunately it didn’t work out.
I stopped reading about the 25% point, and this is a good length novel, so it was more than my first-30-pages rule. The story felt slow to start, and when it did it still felt slow to me, though I’m not generally a rabid action fan. But the story felt just too slow to me, for some reason.
Maybe it was the writing style. The third person, past tense, multiple POV had that epic fantasy style flair, which is obviously adequate and fitting. But it didn’t do it for me, despite not having anything wrong with it. To be fair, third person multiple POV tends to have that effect on me, detachment from all characters rather than connecting with more than one MC.
The characters were kind of interesting, but not exciting for me personally; and with great appeal to young adults (or even middle graders) imo – another note I tend not to resonate with. Maybe further along the novel (or series!) the tone becomes more adult-oriented, though I honestly doubt it. I feel confident it’s gonna be a YA-ish sort of read, all in all. But if any of you read it and feel it’s better described as addressed to an adult audience, do let me know, so I can re-categorize it properly.
The fantasy world was diverse, with lots of elements – prophecies, wizards and mages, fantastic creatures, but without a connection with the characters or a particular crush on the writing style, it didn’t have the chance to shine for me.
All in all, The Sleeping King will most likely provide a very different reading experience for epic/high fantasy bildungsroman kind of fans. It was a bad fit for me, though.
In a Flutter: Not bad, but not for me
Review
Yeaah…as you guys know, I’m always looking to try new things, or give things a second (and n-th) chance. So I wanted to give high fantasy another chance. I was really optimistic about The Sleeping King, but unfortunately it didn’t work out.
I stopped reading about the 25% point, and this is a good length novel, so it was more than my first-30-pages rule. The story felt slow to start, and when it did it still felt slow to me, though I’m not generally a rabid action fan. But the story felt just too slow to me, for some reason.
Maybe it was the writing style. The third person, past tense, multiple POV had that epic fantasy style flair, which is obviously adequate and fitting. But it didn’t do it for me, despite not having anything wrong with it. To be fair, third person multiple POV tends to have that effect on me, detachment from all characters rather than connecting with more than one MC.
The characters were kind of interesting, but not exciting for me personally; and with great appeal to young adults (or even middle graders) imo – another note I tend not to resonate with. Maybe further along the novel (or series!) the tone becomes more adult-oriented, though I honestly doubt it. I feel confident it’s gonna be a YA-ish sort of read, all in all. But if any of you read it and feel it’s better described as addressed to an adult audience, do let me know, so I can re-categorize it properly.
The fantasy world was diverse, with lots of elements – prophecies, wizards and mages, fantastic creatures, but without a connection with the characters or a particular crush on the writing style, it didn’t have the chance to shine for me.
All in all, The Sleeping King will most likely provide a very different reading experience for epic/high fantasy bildungsroman kind of fans. It was a bad fit for me, though.
September 12, 2015
I have to confess that I was a bit confused at the beginning because there are so many characters and it jumps between those characters at first. You can see this is first book in a series so there is lot of introducing and world building to do.
Basically we have seven characters on this quest to wake the Sleeping King but the main people are Will; who learns family secrets after family is murdered and Raina; a healer who runs away from family. Sleeping King is supposed to save the world from this evil Emperor who we see on the first chapter. I wish there would have been more about him and the court but hopefully in the next book.
There’s adventure, battles, betrayals, evil emperors, orcs, elves etc. Lots of stuff happening! And I do have a weakness for elves…
One interesting fact was that death isn’t always permanent but you can be resurrected. It makes sense since the book is based on an RPG game but I though it was cool.
Basically we have seven characters on this quest to wake the Sleeping King but the main people are Will; who learns family secrets after family is murdered and Raina; a healer who runs away from family. Sleeping King is supposed to save the world from this evil Emperor who we see on the first chapter. I wish there would have been more about him and the court but hopefully in the next book.
There’s adventure, battles, betrayals, evil emperors, orcs, elves etc. Lots of stuff happening! And I do have a weakness for elves…
One interesting fact was that death isn’t always permanent but you can be resurrected. It makes sense since the book is based on an RPG game but I though it was cool.
October 8, 2015
From netgalley for a review:
Oh high fantasy, you are fun, a headache to follow sometimes, but fun. While reading this I couldn't help but think of my own various RPG adventures and how plot threads kinda go all over the place...and it turns out this is based on her RPG she has been playing for almost 20 years, that is some Dragonlance level stuff there.
I was pretty lukewarm overall on this story, I kept finding myself bored by a plot thread, and then as soon as it would get interesting it would switch to a different point of view and I would find myself bored again. This cycle continues for most of the book. The characters are, for the most part, pretty standard 'good guy is good, bad guy is bad' and not of them really interested me, well, except for the villains. I would be perfectly content reading an entire book following their weird magic and political machinations, that part was awesome!
Oh high fantasy, you are fun, a headache to follow sometimes, but fun. While reading this I couldn't help but think of my own various RPG adventures and how plot threads kinda go all over the place...and it turns out this is based on her RPG she has been playing for almost 20 years, that is some Dragonlance level stuff there.
I was pretty lukewarm overall on this story, I kept finding myself bored by a plot thread, and then as soon as it would get interesting it would switch to a different point of view and I would find myself bored again. This cycle continues for most of the book. The characters are, for the most part, pretty standard 'good guy is good, bad guy is bad' and not of them really interested me, well, except for the villains. I would be perfectly content reading an entire book following their weird magic and political machinations, that part was awesome!
February 20, 2016
I read The Sleeping King and it was awesome. I could not put it down. I have a book hangover. Good thing it's Friday.
It's epic fantasy but it's fresh. It's like the authors took all the expected elements: elves, orcs, magic, evil emperors, healers, mages, etc. and shook it up in a bottle and came up with an awesome picture.
It had such interesting characters. Every time someone new was introduced I kept thinking, "Ooo, I want to know more about this guy or girl."
The basic plot is an evil emperor has ruled for over 3,000 years. The people are plotting against him but the emperor can read people's thoughts so they have to be very careful. There has been a prophecy that someone can overthrow him and give the people freedom.
I'm not doing this book justice but there are a lot of cool characters and awesome magic and lots of detailed world building.
It's epic fantasy but it's fresh. It's like the authors took all the expected elements: elves, orcs, magic, evil emperors, healers, mages, etc. and shook it up in a bottle and came up with an awesome picture.
It had such interesting characters. Every time someone new was introduced I kept thinking, "Ooo, I want to know more about this guy or girl."
The basic plot is an evil emperor has ruled for over 3,000 years. The people are plotting against him but the emperor can read people's thoughts so they have to be very careful. There has been a prophecy that someone can overthrow him and give the people freedom.
I'm not doing this book justice but there are a lot of cool characters and awesome magic and lots of detailed world building.
August 2, 2019
EXCELLENT book! EXCELLENT series. If you love fantasy novels with magic and dragons and battles and evil and good and love stories(very clean, no sex, courtly love) then this series if for you. I picked this book up at a Little Free Library and simply LOVED it. I wrote to the author probably the 3rd piece of fan mail ever since I was 13 years old to ask about the continuation of the series. The publisher is holding off! EVERYONE read this series then let the publisher know we need this story to be published. This was one of the best books I've ever read. I was so invested with the characters and the storyline that I would not hear when my family would talk to me. I was in another world.
Amazing, you will love these books.
Amazing, you will love these books.
February 1, 2016
It took about two hundred pages for me to finally be drawn into the story. I think there's almost too much happening too soon and not enough description to ground the reader. It was hard for me to really care about the characters who spend way too much time thinking to themselves. There's a lot of exposition, which I think is the primary weakness of the novel. I might recommend it if you're looking for a high fantasy novel and you like Dungeons and Dragons. I would not read this again.
January 10, 2017
I wish I was writing a good review for this book because I really wanted it to be good. The ideas for this were original and intriguing. There was just too much explaining for me to get into the story. When a character stops in the middle of a fight to explain something I could have figured out myself with detail, I am taken out of the story. I read to discover.....not to be told everything.
November 16, 2017
I wanted to love this book but I just couldn't get past the disjointed, clearly unedited, changing story!! It felt like I was missing valuable info to understanding the storyline so at times I thought I was reading Book 2 of a series instead of the first one!! Not enough background story!!! Very disappointing!
March 11, 2018
I wanted to like it, the story was engaging, but there were some serious errors in writing. First they needed an editor; blatant spelling errors and inconsistent characterization were the most obvious. Also you create a 500 page fantasy novel with a variety of species and the only thing you can come up with is 'lizardman girl'?
August 29, 2017
I thought it was pretty great. There was a touch of inconsistency, and I got a bit confused when one character started to speak oddly, but other than that the story flowed pretty well, and it was a good story. I enjoyed it and look forward to the next one.
June 19, 2015
Received an ARC- review to come
May 27, 2019
Really engaging plot, but grammatical errors and typos were frustrating and distracting.
August 31, 2017
I won this book as a Goodreads giveaway.
As per usual, I'm going to critique as I go, and since this is a 700 page doorstop, even as a paperback, this could get messy.
I'd like to start off by saying I have read quite a few of Cindy Dees' romance novels in the past. She was an author I always looked for when I was picking up my monthly haul of Harlequins many moons ago (before I started getting everything digitally -- hey, don't judge; they're cheap and I can read them fast...). So when I won this book I was kinda happy.
Then I started reading the book...
I'm not even 100 pages in and already this book is on the fence with making it into my did not finish shelf. I'm not quite there yet, and I'm going to tough it out for a couple hundred more pages but we will see. My reasons are as follows.
The language... holy shitballs dude. You CAN write a high fantasy book and keep it in modern English. Seriously, you CAN. 80% of this book so far is, but then every once in a while everything reverts to really laughable medieval speak that just doesn't sit right. Is this really how they spoke back then? I dunno, I'm not a medieval historian. But you can't have both. Either they need to talk like it always, or never. Personally, I'd go for never, because I'm pretty sure medieval comedy isn't what the author's were going for. I'm going to confess, I flipped to the back of the book and read the afterward before I started the book. This gave me a little hint on what to expect, and it kinda explains the previous paragraph. This is basically a novelization of a specialized SCA group. And THIS is exactly why you will never see me attend one of their events... the dialog sounds like a bunch of part-time actors playing at princesses and knights who have had a wee bit too much of the mead, which is what I imagine an SCA event would be like.
Next, we've got 16 and 18 year olds in a medieval setting acting like pre-teens (think 11-12), not the adults they would have been treated as in that sort of time period. Rolling around and play wrestling, and hell, just being alone together, especially since she was a princess and he a commoner, and no chaperone? Nope, not buying it. On top of that, about 20 pages after miss princess rolling around and fishing and then running, we find out she's wearing a corset... Um, this is not just a no, but a holy fuck no. She'd have a hard time merely walking and breathing, with one of those torture devices on let alone all that other stuff. And did I mention no chaperone?
Then, we have the whole mother telling her she's going to basically be forced to pop out a couple of kids forced upon her by a person she doesn't even know, 'because that's just the way this family has always done things for the last 300 generations' shit.... Um, fuck no. Surely, SOMEONE somewhere along the line, probably someone with more of a spine than Raina would have told her mother to take that mage and go fuck herself (or him herself, for that matter). Or a mother somewhere along the line would have refused to prostitute out her own daughter. I'm not buying it...
Just one comment on dialog with dialect... JUST DON'T DO IT. Your job as an author is to tell a story, not provide the reader with a cryptic puzzle and force us to try to figure out what the fuck the character is trying to say.
I'm now about 150 pages in and here's something I'm trying to wrap my head around (well, not the only thing, the have been plenty of others along the way up until now, but it's something that was so jarring that I had to comment on it). How in the hell is Raina going to teach anyone how to properly spice their bland food when she's a spoiled little sheltered princess whose vast knowledge of kitchen drudgery would be how to steal sweets out from under the cooks nose? Please, someone explain this one to me. Or all these improvements she's supposed to be making to the peasants' way of life... Seriously? THEY should be teaching HER the simple things such as how to draw water, or better yet, how to boil water, since Raina has had servants do all that shit for her her entire life. WTF man... for people who spend a great deal of time living in this imaginary world for fun, the authors sure don't have a single clue between them as to the natural order of the ruling class vs the poor folk they rule over. (Here's a clue though, for the most part, the people being served generally don't know, or give a shit for that matter, how things are done, just that they get done when they demand it.)
Now let's pick apart something else that made me literally throw the book at the wall. Cicero exclaims that someone is coming. He's heard them. Everyone heard them, so it's not a matter of enhanced elvish hearing. And he tells Raina to douse the fire. What the actual fuck is that going to accomplish? First off, if they are close enough to be able to discern their conversation, they sure as shit have already SEEN AND SMELLED the smoke coming from the fire. And little miss genius Raina throws water on the fire, which will only produce MORE smoke to attract attention.
I'm almost done with this book, and I'm only on page 145... if I make it to 200, it will be a miracle.
After much contemplation, I've decided to shelve this book. Maybe I'll revisit it in the future, but for now, it's going to go quietly into my did not finish pile. As someone else commented, life's too short for bad books. I couldn't agree more.
As per usual, I'm going to critique as I go, and since this is a 700 page doorstop, even as a paperback, this could get messy.
I'd like to start off by saying I have read quite a few of Cindy Dees' romance novels in the past. She was an author I always looked for when I was picking up my monthly haul of Harlequins many moons ago (before I started getting everything digitally -- hey, don't judge; they're cheap and I can read them fast...). So when I won this book I was kinda happy.
Then I started reading the book...
I'm not even 100 pages in and already this book is on the fence with making it into my did not finish shelf. I'm not quite there yet, and I'm going to tough it out for a couple hundred more pages but we will see. My reasons are as follows.
The language... holy shitballs dude. You CAN write a high fantasy book and keep it in modern English. Seriously, you CAN. 80% of this book so far is, but then every once in a while everything reverts to really laughable medieval speak that just doesn't sit right. Is this really how they spoke back then? I dunno, I'm not a medieval historian. But you can't have both. Either they need to talk like it always, or never. Personally, I'd go for never, because I'm pretty sure medieval comedy isn't what the author's were going for. I'm going to confess, I flipped to the back of the book and read the afterward before I started the book. This gave me a little hint on what to expect, and it kinda explains the previous paragraph. This is basically a novelization of a specialized SCA group. And THIS is exactly why you will never see me attend one of their events... the dialog sounds like a bunch of part-time actors playing at princesses and knights who have had a wee bit too much of the mead, which is what I imagine an SCA event would be like.
Next, we've got 16 and 18 year olds in a medieval setting acting like pre-teens (think 11-12), not the adults they would have been treated as in that sort of time period. Rolling around and play wrestling, and hell, just being alone together, especially since she was a princess and he a commoner, and no chaperone? Nope, not buying it. On top of that, about 20 pages after miss princess rolling around and fishing and then running, we find out she's wearing a corset... Um, this is not just a no, but a holy fuck no. She'd have a hard time merely walking and breathing, with one of those torture devices on let alone all that other stuff. And did I mention no chaperone?
Then, we have the whole mother telling her she's going to basically be forced to pop out a couple of kids forced upon her by a person she doesn't even know, 'because that's just the way this family has always done things for the last 300 generations' shit.... Um, fuck no. Surely, SOMEONE somewhere along the line, probably someone with more of a spine than Raina would have told her mother to take that mage and go fuck herself (or him herself, for that matter). Or a mother somewhere along the line would have refused to prostitute out her own daughter. I'm not buying it...
Just one comment on dialog with dialect... JUST DON'T DO IT. Your job as an author is to tell a story, not provide the reader with a cryptic puzzle and force us to try to figure out what the fuck the character is trying to say.
I'm now about 150 pages in and here's something I'm trying to wrap my head around (well, not the only thing, the have been plenty of others along the way up until now, but it's something that was so jarring that I had to comment on it). How in the hell is Raina going to teach anyone how to properly spice their bland food when she's a spoiled little sheltered princess whose vast knowledge of kitchen drudgery would be how to steal sweets out from under the cooks nose? Please, someone explain this one to me. Or all these improvements she's supposed to be making to the peasants' way of life... Seriously? THEY should be teaching HER the simple things such as how to draw water, or better yet, how to boil water, since Raina has had servants do all that shit for her her entire life. WTF man... for people who spend a great deal of time living in this imaginary world for fun, the authors sure don't have a single clue between them as to the natural order of the ruling class vs the poor folk they rule over. (Here's a clue though, for the most part, the people being served generally don't know, or give a shit for that matter, how things are done, just that they get done when they demand it.)
Now let's pick apart something else that made me literally throw the book at the wall. Cicero exclaims that someone is coming. He's heard them. Everyone heard them, so it's not a matter of enhanced elvish hearing. And he tells Raina to douse the fire. What the actual fuck is that going to accomplish? First off, if they are close enough to be able to discern their conversation, they sure as shit have already SEEN AND SMELLED the smoke coming from the fire. And little miss genius Raina throws water on the fire, which will only produce MORE smoke to attract attention.
I'm almost done with this book, and I'm only on page 145... if I make it to 200, it will be a miracle.
After much contemplation, I've decided to shelve this book. Maybe I'll revisit it in the future, but for now, it's going to go quietly into my did not finish pile. As someone else commented, life's too short for bad books. I couldn't agree more.
July 16, 2017
Ugh. Just ugh. First off, it's not a bad fantasy for a Dungeons and Dragons
like game, but it's filled with many of the same pitfalls as the role playing game (RPG). Since it's largely a retelling of a live game that spanned twenty years I can forgive it's rather disjointed storytelling and obvious plateaus where "the party will rest and revive overnight." I Love playing D&D with my kids and find it a fun game. But it's not a story. It's a series of puzzles, and "quests" that the people playing collaborate on.
This book had two distinct and not cohesive voices. Characters would swap between broken English, Yodda like dialogue, and a stilted form of speaking I hear a lot in Ren-Faire and LARP events. Characters were archetypes which is not uncommon for RPG characters (you are a Cleric with +3 healing, and +2 perception) etc. But at least give the characters some personality. The point of view shifted by the page and often left me having to reread sections to figure out who was speaking and what on earth was going on.
There were large sections of exposition (it read like what a Dungeon Master/ GM reads before the party enters the next section of the game) "you are entering a large dark forest, it is ominous and the roots are too large to climb over... what do you do now?" And sometimes a party member just decides to cast rubber duckies and tear off on a side jaunt. And the Sleeping King dungeon/cave? Solve a puzzle, defeat ever increasing difficult bad guys, until you reach the Boss level. However, since there is an Arch Mage healer in the party, no need to worry since they can resurrect you even if you die.
The book could have used an editor for voice, and at almost 700 pages, length. There was just too much filler, and in the end I just didn't care enough about the characters, especially with the magic equivalent of a video game +1life where no one dies. (This is used in D&D so players don't have to start over unless they piss off the DM).
This makes a terrific outline for a table game, but I'm not going to invest the time or energy to read any more in the series.
like game, but it's filled with many of the same pitfalls as the role playing game (RPG). Since it's largely a retelling of a live game that spanned twenty years I can forgive it's rather disjointed storytelling and obvious plateaus where "the party will rest and revive overnight." I Love playing D&D with my kids and find it a fun game. But it's not a story. It's a series of puzzles, and "quests" that the people playing collaborate on.
This book had two distinct and not cohesive voices. Characters would swap between broken English, Yodda like dialogue, and a stilted form of speaking I hear a lot in Ren-Faire and LARP events. Characters were archetypes which is not uncommon for RPG characters (you are a Cleric with +3 healing, and +2 perception) etc. But at least give the characters some personality. The point of view shifted by the page and often left me having to reread sections to figure out who was speaking and what on earth was going on.
There were large sections of exposition (it read like what a Dungeon Master/ GM reads before the party enters the next section of the game) "you are entering a large dark forest, it is ominous and the roots are too large to climb over... what do you do now?" And sometimes a party member just decides to cast rubber duckies and tear off on a side jaunt. And the Sleeping King dungeon/cave? Solve a puzzle, defeat ever increasing difficult bad guys, until you reach the Boss level. However, since there is an Arch Mage healer in the party, no need to worry since they can resurrect you even if you die.
The book could have used an editor for voice, and at almost 700 pages, length. There was just too much filler, and in the end I just didn't care enough about the characters, especially with the magic equivalent of a video game +1life where no one dies. (This is used in D&D so players don't have to start over unless they piss off the DM).
This makes a terrific outline for a table game, but I'm not going to invest the time or energy to read any more in the series.
November 9, 2022
When the Orcs came to Will's village and massacred everyone they found, he managed to get home quickly enough to warn his parents and they ran for the forest. While there, he was astonished to discover that his father was a warrior with magic and his mother an elf who also had magical skills. Neither of them had taught Will any magic or how to fight but realizing that they would die that night, they tasked Will with fulfilling a quest. That was to find and awaken The Sleeping King.
Raina was the second daughter of an old family. When she discovered that her life was predetermined to be entangled with that of the Sleeping King, she rebelled. She refused to have her life spelled out by others and ran away from home, accompanied by a mercenary elf.
Will and Raina meet up and realize they are sharing the same mission. They are joined by others, a gypsy healer, a Jann who has escaped slavery and others who want to fight the current situation. The Kothrites had achieved power and since they were more or less immortal, their reins on the world grew tighter and tighter. Only the Sleeping King can break their hold if the mission of the group is successful and if he really even exists.
This is the first novel in the Sleeping King trilogy. It is based on a real fantasy video game, Dragon Crest and has the approval of the Dragon Crest founder, Bill Flippen. The world building is interesting and there is a clear demarcation between good and evil in the world Dees has created. Some beings are misunderstood and wrongly assigned to one side or the other, an error that is remedied as the book progresses. There is romance, magic, and a quest to save the world. This book is recommended for fantasy readers.
Raina was the second daughter of an old family. When she discovered that her life was predetermined to be entangled with that of the Sleeping King, she rebelled. She refused to have her life spelled out by others and ran away from home, accompanied by a mercenary elf.
Will and Raina meet up and realize they are sharing the same mission. They are joined by others, a gypsy healer, a Jann who has escaped slavery and others who want to fight the current situation. The Kothrites had achieved power and since they were more or less immortal, their reins on the world grew tighter and tighter. Only the Sleeping King can break their hold if the mission of the group is successful and if he really even exists.
This is the first novel in the Sleeping King trilogy. It is based on a real fantasy video game, Dragon Crest and has the approval of the Dragon Crest founder, Bill Flippen. The world building is interesting and there is a clear demarcation between good and evil in the world Dees has created. Some beings are misunderstood and wrongly assigned to one side or the other, an error that is remedied as the book progresses. There is romance, magic, and a quest to save the world. This book is recommended for fantasy readers.
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