Coffee2words

The King's Ward is the second of Chris Northern's books I've read, and while both books have been enjoyable, each had its own problems. My review of The Last Kings Amulet highlighted my issues with characters and character development coupled with a little too much war theory. The King's Ward, however, has likeable characters and quite a robust plot.

When I realised that the book was about fey, scenes of Tinkerbell from Peter Pan flashed into my mind, quickly followed by something like this:


Very quickly it became apparent that this was not the case. My mind then went to my memories of Pan's Labyrinth and the fairies there...


And, while this was a little closer, it still didn't quite sync with Chris' thoughts on the fey. I've read a number of stories that incorporate the fey, they always seem to vary, sometimes the fey are good, sometimes evil, and sometimes in the middle. Chris' fey end up in the middle. I liked that, because they were different from humans, but not so different that they couldn't blend in.

One of the most interesting aspects of the story was on the reproduction of fey, it reminded me a little of True Blood (the book series, not the TV show).

Where this book fell down, is the production. This book doesn't read like a polished novel. There's a lot of little typos I've pointed out below, but this book needs a once over by a good editor, there's grammatical errors, superfluous words and overall it's just a bit unwieldily. This detracted from the interesting plot, the likeable characters and the world that was bursting with creativity.

Definitely within the Young Adult genre, with strong fantasy ties, this book should appeal to all ages, if they can overlook the slightly juvenile POV of the protagonists. There's plenty of action to keep you reading, with some softer moments for those of us who enjoy a little sweetness too.

Things I noticed:

11% - Well, when you have g(r)own a bit...
22% - ...just putting of(f) the encounter with the...
23% - ...invisible bonds (of) her attention...
25% - Your (You) need me, he had...
27% - shoulder length b(l)ack hair...
28% - ...headband and (delete and) framed a flat featured face.
...For now," he he (delete he) turned and gestured...
30% - Abarta was it's (remove apostrophe) target...
36% - Brea bustled to her feet. " I'll (remove space before I'll) go prepare...
39% - We made out (our) way down to the beach...
40% - I dropped my my (delete my) hand and opened...
41% - ...I (turned) to look at the figure...
...cross me or seek (to) bring harm...
43% - We sat at (a) table in the great hall...
...I didn't fell (delete fell, add feel) like pressing...
52% - ...to take (a) look around...
55% - ...hair in disarray about may (delete may, add my) face...
58% - He pointed to where the st(r)eam through the valley...
59% - ...either burn out of (delete of, add or) come through...
61% - "Ow," I though(t) I'd better contribute.
65% - Frey(a) looked at me...
68% - "Thank you "I said absently (closing speech marks are misplaced.)
75% - ...and you'll forger (delete forger, add forget)
82% - The(n) I beat down, forced...
83% - I skipped a(s)ide as someone tried to walk...
85% - why can people see her now? She doesn't have much of a reaction to that...seems odd
Excerpt:
99% - Sumo (Sumto)

**Note: I was provided an electronic copy in return for an honest review**