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qjbrown96's review
4.0
Very happy with this book and I can not believe how underrated it is!
For some reason it is very hard to talk about this book without giving spoilers but I’ll give it a shot.
The story follows Lukien, The Bronze Knight, who is basically King Akeela’s bodyguard. They have been best friends since they were kids.
Akeela wants to be known as a good king who seeks peace among a war torn nation. He also wants to create a library where everyone, including the paupers, can come educate themselves.
One way he creates peace is by marrying Princess Cassandra who is the most beautiful woman in the land. But Lukien also wants a piece of the Cassandra pie and is fighting his urges of betrayal.
Cassandra also has an illness that is killing her and the only way to save her is for Lukien to find 1 of 2 amulets called The Eyes of God.
Marco’s story is a very basic fantasy that I think is absolutely perfect for fantasy newbies but I think anyone can enjoy him.
If I had never read fantasy before I would give this 5 stars but after reading Martin, Jordan, Hobb, etc, I’ll have to bring it down a star. He doesn’t have the complexity of Martin or Jordan, the in depth lore of Tolkien, or the action packed writing style of John Gwynne, but his characters are so enjoyable to read about. I’d put him on a tier or two below Robin Hobb as far character development. There is betrayal, death, love and love lost. He really shows that choices have consequences and some consequences can be heartbreaking.
He also includes a people called Inhumans that are people with disabilities that are saved by The Witch and blessed with powers that I thought was very unique and I am super interested in the rest of the series and will be reading anything else he’s written.
For some reason it is very hard to talk about this book without giving spoilers but I’ll give it a shot.
The story follows Lukien, The Bronze Knight, who is basically King Akeela’s bodyguard. They have been best friends since they were kids.
Akeela wants to be known as a good king who seeks peace among a war torn nation. He also wants to create a library where everyone, including the paupers, can come educate themselves.
One way he creates peace is by marrying Princess Cassandra who is the most beautiful woman in the land. But Lukien also wants a piece of the Cassandra pie and is fighting his urges of betrayal.
Cassandra also has an illness that is killing her and the only way to save her is for Lukien to find 1 of 2 amulets called The Eyes of God.
Marco’s story is a very basic fantasy that I think is absolutely perfect for fantasy newbies but I think anyone can enjoy him.
If I had never read fantasy before I would give this 5 stars but after reading Martin, Jordan, Hobb, etc, I’ll have to bring it down a star. He doesn’t have the complexity of Martin or Jordan, the in depth lore of Tolkien, or the action packed writing style of John Gwynne, but his characters are so enjoyable to read about. I’d put him on a tier or two below Robin Hobb as far character development. There is betrayal, death, love and love lost. He really shows that choices have consequences and some consequences can be heartbreaking.
He also includes a people called Inhumans that are people with disabilities that are saved by The Witch and blessed with powers that I thought was very unique and I am super interested in the rest of the series and will be reading anything else he’s written.
ladyethyme's review
1.0
Ok let’s be honest. The writing is bad. Like, BAD.... harlequin romance bad, obviously written by a man who has maybe a third grade understanding of women’s bodies and the equivalent writing skills of an avocado.
ronercat's review
2.0
Other reviews can be found at http://wellreadviking.blogspot.com/
Recently I won the fourth book of this series. I figured to give it a fair shake I should probably read the first three. As I started into the first book of the series I couldn't help but make comparisons to a famous legend.
As the book starts out King Akeela (Arthur) is trying to make peace with the lands around him and he ends up engaged to a lovely princess named Cassandra (Guinevere). The King's champion is named Lukien (Lancelot). He has never been beaten in battle or game, he is simply the best my far. (Camelot reference for you folks out there) Both Lukien and Cassandra love the king, but sadly they both love him like a brother. They try to tell themselves that their affection for each other is wrong, but it is too powerful. They end up betraying the king by getting together to act on their love. They hate what they are doing to the king, but they are unable to stop.
Sound similar at all? Oh and did I mention that the young king is an idealist who is trying to make his kingdom one that is based on equality? To make your life easier just remember this legend and skip to page two hundred and once you get there be prepared for a rough slog through the next few hundred pages. Normally a book of this size will take me a few days to read. Pages 200-370 took me about a week and a half. I just could not find the energy or interest to keep reading. When I read a book and I am distracted by needing to work or do real things (it happens on occasion, not often mind you, but it happens) I will almost always head right back to the book as soon as I am able. That was not the case with this book. I would finish my work, look over at the book and decide that staring out the window seemed like a much better use of my time.
Eventually the writing of the book improved and the story seemed to take off. After the rough start I finally found myself interested with what was happening to the characters and the story arc. Maybe it was because the story jumped to 16 years in the future or maybe it was just the fact that the characters seemed more rounded and less like their counterparts in Arthurian legend or maybe I knew that I couldn't move on to another book until I finished this one. No matter the reason the last four hundred pages went by like a breeze.
If you are willing to give an author a chance on their first book and you don't mind a blatant rehashing of a legend for a quarter of the book I guess you could do worse than pick up this book. The last half of the book gave me enough hope to go on with the rest of the series. Fingers crossed that this doesn't become a decision I regret.
Rating: 3 Stars
Recently I won the fourth book of this series. I figured to give it a fair shake I should probably read the first three. As I started into the first book of the series I couldn't help but make comparisons to a famous legend.
As the book starts out King Akeela (Arthur) is trying to make peace with the lands around him and he ends up engaged to a lovely princess named Cassandra (Guinevere). The King's champion is named Lukien (Lancelot). He has never been beaten in battle or game, he is simply the best my far. (Camelot reference for you folks out there) Both Lukien and Cassandra love the king, but sadly they both love him like a brother. They try to tell themselves that their affection for each other is wrong, but it is too powerful. They end up betraying the king by getting together to act on their love. They hate what they are doing to the king, but they are unable to stop.
Sound similar at all? Oh and did I mention that the young king is an idealist who is trying to make his kingdom one that is based on equality? To make your life easier just remember this legend and skip to page two hundred and once you get there be prepared for a rough slog through the next few hundred pages. Normally a book of this size will take me a few days to read. Pages 200-370 took me about a week and a half. I just could not find the energy or interest to keep reading. When I read a book and I am distracted by needing to work or do real things (it happens on occasion, not often mind you, but it happens) I will almost always head right back to the book as soon as I am able. That was not the case with this book. I would finish my work, look over at the book and decide that staring out the window seemed like a much better use of my time.
Eventually the writing of the book improved and the story seemed to take off. After the rough start I finally found myself interested with what was happening to the characters and the story arc. Maybe it was because the story jumped to 16 years in the future or maybe it was just the fact that the characters seemed more rounded and less like their counterparts in Arthurian legend or maybe I knew that I couldn't move on to another book until I finished this one. No matter the reason the last four hundred pages went by like a breeze.
If you are willing to give an author a chance on their first book and you don't mind a blatant rehashing of a legend for a quarter of the book I guess you could do worse than pick up this book. The last half of the book gave me enough hope to go on with the rest of the series. Fingers crossed that this doesn't become a decision I regret.
Rating: 3 Stars
tani's review
3.0
Finally finished! I don't think that this was a bad book, by any stretch, but I do feel like John Marco is more of a plot author than a character author. There were definitely times that a character would make a decision that felt wrong for them, and you could tell it was so that the plot would go the way it was supposed to. Not my preferred style, but still not terrible. Akeela was definitely my favorite character, and I always felt like his descent into madness was too abrupt.
Relationships also suffer because of this focus on plot over character. For a story where love is a main motivator, I never got behind any of the romance. It felt contrived, based on bad decisions (and physical attraction, something I don't have a lot of patience for on the best of days).
Still, there were certainly some good seeds here. If the book could just convince me of the emotions that are supposed to be behind it, this could really be a great read. And I could certainly see where the author was doing good things and trying to make the emotions work. He's just not there yet. But he could be, so I will definitely keep reading.
Relationships also suffer because of this focus on plot over character. For a story where love is a main motivator, I never got behind any of the romance. It felt contrived, based on bad decisions (and physical attraction, something I don't have a lot of patience for on the best of days).
Still, there were certainly some good seeds here. If the book could just convince me of the emotions that are supposed to be behind it, this could really be a great read. And I could certainly see where the author was doing good things and trying to make the emotions work. He's just not there yet. But he could be, so I will definitely keep reading.
tfrex's review
4.0
If you like A Song of Ice and Fire then you're probably going to like this series. As with many male authors, particularly in the fantasy genre, the female characters fall a bit flat and into fairly standard tropes, in particular the young and beautiful princess who loves her father, enjoys using and flaunting her beauty to manipulate men, and ultimately falls for the 'bad boy'. That being said there is a lot of complex character development and Marco manages to avoid they stereotypical good guy vs bad guy with almost all the characters changing 'sides' frequently.
In response to the reviews complaining that this epic trek to an unknown far off land only took 5 days, here is some clarification: There were weeks of travelling through various countries before even reaching the edge of the desert, they crossed to an entirely different continent. Only there did they learn that the journey would take 5 days and that it was a trade route (not at all a frequent one). Marco glazes over a lot of the travel bit which may make it seem not as substantial, but who really wants to read chapter after chapter about travelling through unremarkable lands?
In response to the reviews complaining that this epic trek to an unknown far off land only took 5 days, here is some clarification: There were weeks of travelling through various countries before even reaching the edge of the desert, they crossed to an entirely different continent. Only there did they learn that the journey would take 5 days and that it was a trade route (not at all a frequent one). Marco glazes over a lot of the travel bit which may make it seem not as substantial, but who really wants to read chapter after chapter about travelling through unremarkable lands?
jhansell's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, War, and Violence
lyrrael's review
3.0
I'm giving this book 5 stars, and yet I'm also giving up on this book a third of the way through. I loved the writing, and the characters and the culture, but the story is all about the messes people make for themselves, and it just...makes me flinch so hard I can't keep up with it. It is not graphic or gory, just the intensely human faults that lead me to stop watching some movies because I can envision all too well what it would feel like to be in their shoes. My failure to finish this book is entirely my own failure and no fault of either the book or the author. Well worth the read if you're made of sterner stuff than I.
***
Okay, so I went back, skipped a few chapters, and kept going. And finished it. A good read, ripe with the follies of man and the pain it brings. Definitely worth the read, but could have been better served by being a bit shorter..
***
Okay, so I went back, skipped a few chapters, and kept going. And finished it. A good read, ripe with the follies of man and the pain it brings. Definitely worth the read, but could have been better served by being a bit shorter..
seak's review
5.0
Hey, I have a booktube channel (youtube for book reviews, etc.), and I include John Marco and his Bronze Knight series in my Top 10 Underrated Books list here. Please subscribe if I earned it!
John Marco took a break from writing for a little while, but is back in the game in April with the next installment in The Bronze Knight series, The Forever Knight. Sadly, part of the reason for that break was because his editor sat on TFK without even reading it for 2 years.
This kind of stuff gets my blood boiling and if you want more thoughts, I wrote a little bit more here.
Marco is a unique fantasy writer in my opinion. He writes adult fantasy, but not gritty or over-sexualized fantasy as is the current trend. He writes quests, but not travelogues. He writes about library apprentices, but not about their destiny for power and glory. He writes a unique tale that's filled with action and thought, that skips over the fluff and gets right to the point. And sometimes I just need to get my head out of the gutter, it's not really all that pleasant a place.
For some reason, many fantasy writers have begun telling a story only to feel the need to go back and fill the reader in on backstory. Suddenly, instead of moving forward, the plot stagnates and a 700 page behemoth is mostly filler.
Not so in The Eyes of God. There is so much that goes on, I was amazed. They travel to and from distant places without any mention of what kinds of dried meat they had for breakfast. Then, they travel back again. There's betrayal, tragedy, hope, madness, it has it all.
But quite possibly my favorite part about Marco's writing is how real his characters are. They are flawed in a very human way that makes them compelling, and at times makes you both love and hate them. It brings the storytelling to a whole new level to understand the motives of the villain and even pity them, to root for the hero and yet despise his or her actions and thoughts.
The Eyes of God is largely about The Bronze Knight, Lukien. He's a character who has it all, looks, swagger, military prowess. He even wins all the tourneys with hardly a second thought. He's also a very flawed character that you root for nonetheless. Because he's good at fighting, he loves war. While he can get almost any woman he wants, he longs for noble women he can't attain because of his low beginnings.
The thing that gets me is that Lukien is a real person. Who doesn't want to belong? And if the only thing you're good at is war, why wouldn't you want wars to continue?
Lukien's best friend is also the king, Akeela. Akeela is a man of learning and peace. He will do anything it takes to not only erect his grand library, but to offer peace to his enemies, even if that means giving some things up. But at the same time, Akeela lacks Lukien's looks and grace with the ladies. Thus sets up the tale that is really just about the characters, one of the ultimate betrayal and constant forward momentum.
Like I said above, there are so many things that happen in this book. Everything is precisely planned and worked to the fullest and most efficient. Besides the characters, and to be honest, because of the characters, Marco sets up and executes some of the best twists I've seen.
Because the characters are so real, they can be "good" one moment and "evil" the next. I'm using those terms in the sense of the typical archetypes, hence the quotation marks. Not unlike ourselves. They can be driven to the point of no turning back and it really makes for some great surprises in where the story goes.
John Marco is an author that I wish more people would read. I hope you give this series a chance or another favorite, The Jackal of Nar. This epic fantasy will have you reading for the characters as it breaks your heart and puts it back together.
4.5 out of 5 Stars (Very Highly Recommended!)
John Marco took a break from writing for a little while, but is back in the game in April with the next installment in The Bronze Knight series, The Forever Knight. Sadly, part of the reason for that break was because his editor sat on TFK without even reading it for 2 years.
This kind of stuff gets my blood boiling and if you want more thoughts, I wrote a little bit more here.
Marco is a unique fantasy writer in my opinion. He writes adult fantasy, but not gritty or over-sexualized fantasy as is the current trend. He writes quests, but not travelogues. He writes about library apprentices, but not about their destiny for power and glory. He writes a unique tale that's filled with action and thought, that skips over the fluff and gets right to the point. And sometimes I just need to get my head out of the gutter, it's not really all that pleasant a place.
For some reason, many fantasy writers have begun telling a story only to feel the need to go back and fill the reader in on backstory. Suddenly, instead of moving forward, the plot stagnates and a 700 page behemoth is mostly filler.
Not so in The Eyes of God. There is so much that goes on, I was amazed. They travel to and from distant places without any mention of what kinds of dried meat they had for breakfast. Then, they travel back again. There's betrayal, tragedy, hope, madness, it has it all.
But quite possibly my favorite part about Marco's writing is how real his characters are. They are flawed in a very human way that makes them compelling, and at times makes you both love and hate them. It brings the storytelling to a whole new level to understand the motives of the villain and even pity them, to root for the hero and yet despise his or her actions and thoughts.
The Eyes of God is largely about The Bronze Knight, Lukien. He's a character who has it all, looks, swagger, military prowess. He even wins all the tourneys with hardly a second thought. He's also a very flawed character that you root for nonetheless. Because he's good at fighting, he loves war. While he can get almost any woman he wants, he longs for noble women he can't attain because of his low beginnings.
The thing that gets me is that Lukien is a real person. Who doesn't want to belong? And if the only thing you're good at is war, why wouldn't you want wars to continue?
Lukien's best friend is also the king, Akeela. Akeela is a man of learning and peace. He will do anything it takes to not only erect his grand library, but to offer peace to his enemies, even if that means giving some things up. But at the same time, Akeela lacks Lukien's looks and grace with the ladies. Thus sets up the tale that is really just about the characters, one of the ultimate betrayal and constant forward momentum.
Like I said above, there are so many things that happen in this book. Everything is precisely planned and worked to the fullest and most efficient. Besides the characters, and to be honest, because of the characters, Marco sets up and executes some of the best twists I've seen.
Because the characters are so real, they can be "good" one moment and "evil" the next. I'm using those terms in the sense of the typical archetypes, hence the quotation marks. Not unlike ourselves. They can be driven to the point of no turning back and it really makes for some great surprises in where the story goes.
John Marco is an author that I wish more people would read. I hope you give this series a chance or another favorite, The Jackal of Nar. This epic fantasy will have you reading for the characters as it breaks your heart and puts it back together.
4.5 out of 5 Stars (Very Highly Recommended!)
ms_m's review
4.0
it took me a while to get into this book, when it finally happened (about 200 pages in) it was very enjoyable. I have the second book on standby on my TBR pile.
nick_borrelli's review
4.0
I've been a fan of John Marco's writing since his first book of the Tyrants and Kings Series - The Jackal of Nar. While the Jackal of Nar and the rest of that series was in-your-face, smash mouth military fantasy, The Eyes of God is something much deeper and more character-oriented. A definite departure for Marco, but one that shows his incredible talent and flexibility for writing deeply personal stories as well as action packed ones. Lukien the Bronze Knight is torn between his love for his king Akeela and also Akeela's soon-to-be queen Cassandra. The story takes many twists and turns as Lukien battles with the inner-turmoil of knowing that he will alienate and possibly lose forever one of the two people who he loves most in the world. But this book isn't just about love and human behavior, not by a long shot. Once the story gets ramped up, there is plenty of action to keep you on the edge of your seat. Not enough credit is given to John Marco as one of the leading writers in fantasy today. While the Sandersons and the Weeks of the world get all of the pub, John Marco simply writes amazing fantasy. Hopefully some day he will get the credit that he deserves, but until then, I will continue to trumpet his talent and continue to read his books.
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