2 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
The Kingdom of Thieves introduces the Kingdom of Ellish, a land ruled by the corrupt and greedy Magi who work their people to the bone. The magi king, King Levethin, outlawed steel and with it, weapons. Defenseless, the people of Ellish suffer under the tyrannical rule of the magi. Iceksgard, a northman on a quest to find his daughter, is caught up by a mysterious fae woman, Tage. Tage is on a mission to find Patticus Mysticus and guide him to his destiny. Meanwhile, Patticus Mysticus is part of a band of thieves that steal from the magi. While he does seek riches, his greatest wish is for freedom. A freedom that will be buried under the constraints of a crown.
Let’s start with what I like about The Kingdom of Thieves. I enjoyed the world the author built. It was unique and held a kind of magic that few fantasy writers can bring forth in their writing. Fae are also one of my favourite mystical beings. They have a moral ambiguity that always makes for an exciting read. Iceskgard and Tage have a great chemistry, and Iceskgard’s protectiveness over the ‘little fairy’ is adorable. Even though I found myself calling Pat a bit of a brat, I empathized with his need for freedom. The fast-pace is also something new that few in the fantasy genre have done.
However, the fast-pace left out details that I wish had been there. Fantasy is a difficult genre because you must teach your reader about a whole new world. I wouldn’t have minded reading a few extra pages if it meant I got to learn more about the world of Ol'world.
I also felt like the story was forcing its ‘greatness'. Not every scene or piece of dialogue needs to be profound and wise. Sometimes readers connect more with characters when they do normal human things, like talking about something nonsensical. There was no build up or discernible climax and the end of the book left much to be desired. A pet peeve of mine is when a character is made a leader for no other reason than destiny. I’m not going to root for the guy that is special just because he’s special. For me, Pat fell into that category.
The Kingdom of Thieves had many typos and there were a lot of run-on sentences. I found myself thinking that two different people had written the book. Every so often the writing was great, and I felt myself getting sucked into the story, but then the writing would stumble. It just made for an abrupt, awkward read.
I rate The Kingdom of Thieves 2 out of 4 stars. Although Pat was a bit of a brat and the writing wasn't great, I would like to read more about the world of Ol’world that Mitchell Edward Bell has introduced. This is the debut of the author. My hope is that with stricter editing and more character development the story will become clearer and reach its fullest potential.
******
The Kingdom of Thieves
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like JR Mercier's review? Post a comment saying so!
) and if it doesn't have that, it just falls flat. Thank you for commenting!
