The Reminiscence of Good King Carnack

by Jack Harvey

Carnack rules a vast kingdom, with millions of people looking to him for leadership and protection.

But he wasn't born royalty, and never had any interest in taking care of anyone but himself. So what changes a cold and ruthless mercenary into a trusted and caring king?

That story begins with a belt buckle, and the unexpectedly complicated adventure required to obtain it...

Genres: Fantasy

52 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 1, 2016

Reviews

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another really good story set in the "Tales of Carnack" universe--and the one it got its name from. The world is starting to knit itself together a little more clearly.

While the plot is fun, it's the titular character who made me really like this story. King Carnack is not a royal by blood--he started as a ruthless mercenary, and in fact, he was pretty much the villain in the first book. He starts the story as a respected and revered king, but as he looks back, we see he's not like a lot of kings we read about in fantasy. He's strong and cunning, sure, but there's a different aura to him--something heavy and unsettling that will hopefully be explored in future stories. He's also asexual and seemingly aromantic, setting him apart from king characters who equate power with a voracious sexual appetite.

I seemed to enjoy this one a lot more than other readers here on GoodReads. I'm guessing others haven't read The Scars of Jocasta Lacroix yet, which I think would help give a feel for the universe, even though they aren't sequential. This isn't a terribly involved or complicated fantasy world. There are good and bad men, those who seek power, those who seek chaos. Each story takes one character in the game and shows us their part. I'm enjoying them so far for what they are--short snippets that act as puzzle pieces to a bigger picture.

[charlotte, · Rating 1 out of 5]

Galley provided by publisher

I think a book like this one aims to be would actually work best as a full-length novel rather than a 40 page novella, because there is just not enough time to get me involved and invested in the world. In fact, I got bored after 10 pages, because we're told immediately how Carnack is going to end up - it's called The Reminiscence of Good King Carnack for crying out loud. And that's basically like reading the end of the book to find out what happens. I'm not overly fond of that style.

Also, the writing wasn't amazing (see: The day he lost his hair, he decided to permanently tattoo his face with the most intimidating war paint imaginable. His father, naturally, was furious, but that little problem solved itself when Carnack's parents were assassinated by political rivals shortly after. I don't know how tongue-in-cheek that is supposed to be).

And Carnack did just seem to be an emotionless mercenary, who goes round threatening and torturing (or threatening to torture) people. Enough of that, thanks.

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm as much a fan of the anti-hero as the next person (if not more, honestly), but unfortunately, Carnack just didn't work for me.

The problem is that this is a super short novella. To truly tell Carnack's story, the book needed to be a couple hundred pages, minimum. This was really just a memory, a snapshot of how Carnack began his trek to the throne.

But we don't get to see the important bits! At this point, Carnack barely wants to be a mercenary, much less a leader or ruler. I can't reconcile the character we followed for 40ish pages with the one from the end who had to get ready to meet with one of his ministers (finance or something, I think).

I'd be interested in reading Carnack's full story, but this bit wasn't even enough to make me want more. I'm pretty much left cold.

[Reader (Show me, don't tell me) · Rating 2 out of 5]

meh.
Would have been better off telling the full story. Half hour of reminiscing tells nothing.

[Josephine (biblioseph)]

Sounds interesting, but...

(Wake me when this gets turned into a full novel.)