| Hachette Book Group, Inc. |
Nicholas Eames
2017
The Summary
"Glory never gets old.
"Clay Cooper and his band were once the best of the best, the most feared and renowned crew of mercenaries this side of the Heartwyld.
"Their glory days long past, the mercs have grown apart and grown old, fat, drunk, or a combination of the three. Then an ex-bandmate turns up at Clay's door with a plea for help--the kind of mission that only the very brave or the very stupid would sign up for.
"It's time to get the band back together."
The Good
This is arguably one of the best books I read in 2017. Sometimes ridiculous, sometimes gory, Kings of the Wyld is an unexpectedly endearing and simultaneously adventurous novel. It's hilarious, heart-warming, and yet still action-packed.
I absolutely loved it.
I first stumbled across this book at my local library (though I will probably be acquiring a copy for my own shelves) and I was immediately caught by the cover. At first, I couldn't quite reconcile the gritty, fantasy-esque cover image with the rock band motif. I mean, "the boys are back in town"? Really?
It just seemed so weird. Mercenaries treated like rock stars? It's absurd, but it was just the right level of absurdity to draw me in to the story. Full of odd creatures and fascinatingly complex characters, it's a story that turns fantasy (as I have known it) on its head.
As far as fantasy heroes go, Clay and his band are not quite your typical heroes. Granted, no one is perfect, but Moog, Gabriel, Matrick, and Ganelon are about as far from perfect as you can get. Moog is a bit demented and terribly forgetful; Gabriel is a drunk whose life has spiraled out of control; Matrick is caught in a loveless marriage with a queen who wants him dead, not to mention he's kind of a horrible person; and Ganelon--well, Ganelon has spent the last decade or two trapped in stone, but, before that, he was a stone-cold killer.
They are seriously flawed, but they kind of grow on you. I mean, Gabriel, despite being a crappy husband and a not-so-great dad, is setting out to save his daughter, Rose, against all odds, and Clay is going to help him do it. They're fighting against age, personal demons, and time to save Rose. While they may be a little more willing to break laws (and bones), they're ultimately good people.
And, personally, I found I liked Clay the best.
He wasn't the narrator, but much of the story is told from his perspective and he offered uncanny insight into the story. Jaded and tough, gifted with a deadpan sense of humor, Clay was by far my favorite character. (Moog, however, comes in at a close second.) He was the driving force within the book, a steady voice, almost like the conscience of the story.
He has a dark past, but I admired him for his tenacity and loyalty. Moreover, I couldn't help but appreciate the way he loved his wife, Ginny, and his daughter, Talley. Clay is a big brute of a man, as you read on the first page: "[His] shadow, drawn out by the setting sun, skulked behind him like a dogged reminder of the man he used to be: great and dark and more than a little monstrous."
He was not a good man; in fact, he may not even be a very good man, even now. But he cares about Ginny and Talley, and he'd do anything to protect them. He respects Ginny, and he admires Talley. If nothing else, I liked him for being a decent human being who cares about his family and doggedly follows his friends into battle to save another man's daughter.
The Bad
Admittedly, the story is a bit drawn out. There's always so much happening, so many plot twists and adventures are thrown at our heroes that it can get a little tedious; however, it's an easily forgivable sin. The ending was so satisfying, the absurd adventures in between were totally worth it.
Overall, it's an excellent debut.
The Ugly
People are not perfect. They can make terrible mistakes and they can commit truly horrible atrocities.
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