Review by Master A -- The King of May by Matthew Tysz

[Master A]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The King of May" by Matthew Tysz.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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The King of May by Matthew Tysz is a book about power and survival. The story takes place after an event that changed the earth. Two men emerged as heroes for fighting to save humanity. They are friends and have been through many experiences together. They decided to kill gods because they believed that the gods had too much power that they did not use well. There was also a warlord who rose from being a slaver to a conqueror and now wanted to be a ruler. He killed a powerful king who was also a god and took over his kingdom. This happened after he had conquered several other lands.

One of the most important themes for me in this story is war. Some characters in this book fought to get power while others fought to survive. Humans fought gods to release themselves from under their rule and gods fought to retain their power and to get more power. There were times when gods fought among themselves and aligned themselves with humans. The king of May who was a god of the sun blackmailed Scholar who was human to kill one of his enemies.

Leadership was also a big topic in this book. Most leaders in the story take power for their own selfish gains and not to provide fair rule over the common citizenry. The king of May made people happy only to take that joy back. It was a game for him. He enjoyed hurting people. Other leaders took power only to realize that it was not easy to rule. Power became a burden to them. Cattleprod had a tough decision to make between taking his people to safety and using them as soldiers. Children and the elderly were used as soldiers because they stood to suffer more if the enemy won.

I liked the humor in this book. An assassin was contracted to go to kill a god. Instead of going to perform his duty he went to steal from his employer. I also liked how betrayal was used in this story. A god betrayed his wife and have her killed.

I did not see anything in this book that I did not like. It is edited professionally. It has a nice plot and a good flow. It is entertaining and educating. I rate it 4 out 4 stars. I recommend it to those interested in fiction. It is not suitable for very young readers because of the violence.

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The King of May
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