Solve the murder. Stop the war. Save the world.Sir Brannon Kesh spent years building a new life as a physician, leaving the name Bloodhawk and the war that spawned it behind. But when the King’s cousin is murdered, duty calls him back. The crime scene suggests dark magic and the evidence points to the ambassador of Nilar, an alluring woman with secrets of her own, who sees Bloodhawk as little … little more than a war criminal.
As bodies pile up and political ramifications escalate, Brannon must join forces with a vain mage, a socially awkward priest, and a corpse animating shaman to solve the murders and prevent another war. But who can he trust when the phases of a bigger plan take shape?
The Risen are the greatest danger Brannon has ever faced. If he and his team cannot stop the killer then all of Kalanon – and the world – will descend into darkness.
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Decent prose and characters but the story itself, and to some extent the characters, never really caught my interest. The characters had no personal narratives or conflicts and the story suffered from somewhat weak plotting. ‘Predictable’ is too strong a word, but nothing the story attempted surprised me, inspired doubts or invited me to really think about what was happening and where everything was going.
There were some neat worldbuilding elements with one of the countries, but that country is also sidelined as the actuall plot happens elsewhere, in a more standard environment. We get mentions of gas lamps and alchemy through, but again these are ancillary details and the world ends up feeling quasi-medieval with its more interesting elements regulated to aesthetics.
Finally, the ending was rushed, with an anticipated final ‘twist’ and a fairly significant treason plotline getting a perfunctory resolution.
For those interested, we have also posted a video review. Available here-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhpnD…. Beware, we occasionally behave like buffoons. It may be comedic, it may be tragic, it is likely not informative.
PODCAST PORTAL https://adventuresome.libsyn.com/kalanons-rising-book-review
I love it when an author combines my two favorite genres – fantasy and mystery – and does justice to both. This is one of the best of the fantasy mysteries I’ve read. Interesting characters, intriguing magic systems, and solid investigative techniques. I’m looking forward to reading the next in the series.
Kalanon’s Rising was one of the finalists of SPFBO 2019, and the premise of magical murders mystery caught my eye.
*** What to expect
The murder of the king’s nephew (and presumptive heir) is guaranteed to draw attention. The King’s Champion, a current physician and previous war leader, is tasked with finding the murderer and resolving what promises to be a highly political crime.
Together with a few unlikely helpers, Sir Brannon must navigate a world where mages draw on spirits from other worlds and animate the dead, where everyone has secrets and a single mistake would see the spark of a war that would tear his country apart.
*** What I liked
Smith gives us a fast moving plot and an interesting magic system. I enjoyed Brannon working to solve the murder, with the occasional detour to other points of view. I enjoyed learning about the world and its interesting mechanics.
*** What to be aware of
One of the most immediate things I noticed was the language. To me, it felt too modern for a non-contemporary setting. That also applies to some of the concepts that the characters bandy about, which seem anachronistic. Still, this would likely appeal to any fans of the CSI shows.
*** Felix’s Review
Felix found the mystery part a bit predictable, without any major twists. He also had some questions about the interactions and choices of a few of the characters: he’ll fully stand behind the intrigue and scheming, but found those on a personal level of some of the side characters stretching his credulity.
*** Summary
It’s an interesting work, with a lot of promise. Though I feel it could have been much more, that could be down to personal tastes. I’d recommend it if you like epic-ish fantasy adventures and crime shows.
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Assaph Mehr, author of Murder In Absentia: A Story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic – for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
Sometimes you just want CSI in Middle Earth. And when you do, Kalanon’s Rising is the book for you–a murder mystery with magic that matters, swirling around a warrior-turned-medic tasked with solving the prince’s murder by a begrieved king, who turns out to have more than one motive in doing so…
Book feels like a fresh take on murder mystery, and held up enough believable culprits that I was guessing until the truth came out.
And then there were MORE truths that had to come out… I you like clean prose, undead heroes, whodunnits, or maybe a mix of those, Kalanon’s Rising is your book! Also a finalist in the current SPFBO, making it one of the year’s most buzzworthy indie books.