Good book!

This was a fun fantasy book that had great characters! It fell short for me with the plot. There was just something missing. There is so much information within the book that makes it great, it’s simply how it was presented. Overall I liked the book!

Oof, this review hurts me…

We all know I love the Murderbot series but I have never read any of Wells’ fantasy. And like that series, this book was actually very well written, and had some very cool aspects that I would love to explore.

The issue is that there is almost no world building or proper background on characters. Which is fine for a sci-fi book with a simple and limited plot and minimal characters. It is not fine for an epic fantasy with time jumps, multiple locales, multiple political systems, and a multi page character listing. Seriously, the beginning of the book has several pages listing the characters and their titles. But there’s no explanation of what any of those titles mean, how those characters relate to each other, and if those characters are important. Oh, and I have no idea why Kai is called the Witch King — he is neither a witch nor a king, and nowhere is there any indication that he rules over all the witches.

Reading this book very much felt like reading book three or four in a series. There seems to be so much background missing that I would’ve gotten in previous books…except this is book one.

I am sure that there are plenty of people who will enjoy this book. I just had way too many questions about how this world and people work.

Thank you to NetGalley & Tor Publishing Group for this advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

Originally the southern tribes would bring demons from the Underearth to animate bodies of those of the tribe who were lost too early, allowing their memories to be recovered Then the Hierarchs came along and destroyed the desert tribes as they did other peoples. Kalisteron, had inhabited the body of Enns when the war began and he was a part of the rebellion becoming known as Witch King ( hard fromTordotcom) After the establishment of the Rising World, Kai is kidnapped and trapped in water. Martha Wells tells the exciting tale of his quest for answers and for his missing friend, while filling in the details of what happened during the rebellion. Very exciting and sure to get major nominations.

Amazon Review is submitted and pending system approval

Witch King by Martha Wells is her newest epic fantasy novel, a big change from her more recent works. Witch King follows Kai, the Witch King of the title, as he goes on a quest with his friends to find another old friend. Along the way we are also told the story of how Kai grew up in this world (in a fashion), was caught up in a war, and became the ‘Witch King’.

This is a, like I mentioned, a big change from the Murderbot Diaries. For one, though Well’s humor and amazing character work is evident, there is a lot more to catch up on and time needed to get used to the world. The Past/Present time jumps help in a way, yet also confuse the reader as we move between the Present (Kai’s escape from his watery tomb), to his past. The Past helps us understand the world, but it doesn’t quite do the pacing of the novel any favors. That in truth is my only complaint about the whole book. Just a strange disconnect with that pacing and the novel’s dual timelines.

Outside of that the world is complex and beautiful. Martha Wells is an amazing character writer, but she also has incredible gift for painting a scene. The world felt vivid and wet and alive, but relevant. No wasted details were given, only what we needed to see the scene and somehow we still got a beautifully rich one. I will 100% pick up anymore of these books, and this has cemented my plans to dive into her backlist. It’s been many long years since I’ve read some of her fantasy, but I intend to return.

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this for all fans of Murderbot, unless they enjoy epic fantasy and are willing to put the time in for the payoff. It worked damn near perfectly for me however, the work was worth it and I ended up loving this one. Witch King is a fantastic new fantasy novel, I cannot wait to get more like this from Martha Wells in the future.

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I didn't know what to expect here but I love scifi and Murderbot is one of my very favorite series. However, Witch King feels more like epic fantasy. There are lots of characters and types of characters with complex abilities and magic. I think I will definitely want to read again, possibly listening while reading along in the ebook. I don't feel like I grasped everything in the plot.

I never felt bored or like I wanted to stop reading. There was a good sense of the battles and particularly Kai's magic. HIs found family of sorts was trying to figure out who betrayed them. So while they search for people and end up in battles in the present, there are also some sections from the past.

It's lucky Kai has some healing abilities because he is injured repeatedly. He also makes the choice not to drain strength from others but to gather it from his own pain, so he is hurting himself sometimes.

I enjoyed this and like the characters but the world is so diverse and rich with extraordinary magic, I know I will pick up more each time I read Witch King. Somewhere I got the impression this is the start of a new series and I hope that is true.

THIS BOOK!!!

I mean did i fell for the morally grey character in chapter one? yep

do i regret it? nope
cheff kiss

Thankyou NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group, Tordotcom for a free e-arc in exchange of an honest review.

I DNF'd this book at 30% however i do not think that this is a true reflection of the actual book and writing.
I love fantasy however with some i do struggle to get my head around the world building and this book, i found really dense and left me feeling really dim. I struggled to grasp the history or the world and felt lost pretty much the whole time of reading.

For this iv definitely needed to put it down... it does not however mean i wont ever pick it up again but maybe when i am in a different frame of mind, and maybe when i can take notes along side reading it.

3.5 rounded to a 4! A very strong start to a series, but I had my issues. I think that while I enjoyed the world building and Kai, our main character, I felt that the rest of the cast of characters were kind of forgettable. Which is interesting considering the extensive list of characters we were introduced to at the start of the book. I also felt the writing was a bit sterile at times and it made it feel like I was at a distance from out MC. Loved the non-binary world building and m/m romantic elements. I’ll definitely move on with the series, I loved the world and lore enough to want to know more!

Thank you Netgalley and Tor for providing me with an ARC!

I came to this novel because of the Murderbot Series written by the same author. If you have not read it yet, do yourself a favour and look up the series on Goodreads/Storygraph. It consists of short novellas that veer towards whimsical science fiction. I fell in love with the deadpan sass of the main character, Murderbot. If it is available to you I highly recommend the audiobooks! Anyways, I digress… this series is unlike the Murderbot series in almost every way imaginable which I think may be somewhat jarring for Murderbot fans. It certainly was for me.

In Witch King, we follow Kai, a demon prince entombed at the end of a war many years ago. He has been reawaken and has to deal with the fallout of losing the war. This book is DENSE. It is heavy on worldbuilding, which at times seemed never-ending. I found myself wholly engrossed in the storytelling in some scenes. I loved the concept of post-war from the losing side’s prerogative. The characters were complex and Kai’s journey in different bodies was fascinating. Yet there were other moments when I felt like skimming pages or giving up because it just felt endless with absolutely no clear stakes.

The story unfolds at a slow pace with a lot of details, which may be preferable for some. I struggled because I tend to gravitate towards more easily digestible fantasy novels. Overall, there were things that I definitely enjoyed but at the same time I had to find ways to motivate myself not to put down the book during many a chapter.

Thank you to Tor Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2/5

Thanks to Netgalley and Tor for the ARC.

I wanted to hold my review until the book was published to don't affect the sales because it's not a bad book, is just not a book for me. I love high fantasy but this was so dense and with such a dump of world building and history that it lost me often.

I completely understand why so many people have DNF it, I would have done it were not an ARC.

I get that some people might enjoy this, I just didn't and I won't hold it against Martha Wells, I'm planning on reading more of her work to see if this was an isolated case.

I didn't like any of the characters but the book was beautifully written.

This book was the perfect fantasy read for me. The world building at times was confusing and took a little while for my brain to wrap around but, aside from that there is zero con to this book.

The character building and growth was beyond expectations. I need more of this world. More. More. More.

Kaiisteron, the Witch King, has awoken and claimed a new sacrificial mortal body to serve as his own. He has escaped his imprisonment in an underwater tomb and regained much of his power, but now he must seek answers. Which of his loyal friends and followers betrayed him, allowing him to be trapped in the first place?

Kai is a demon, eating the life force of others to power his magic. Now he’s gathering the allies he believes he can trust in order to solve the mystery of his captivity. Interspersed throughout his reawakened life are chapters relating one of his past mortal lives, and his rise to claim the title of Witch King.

Martha Wells is one of my favorite contemporary writers of science fiction novellas (honestly, who doesn’t love Murderbot?) and so when I found out that she had a new fantasy novel coming out this year, I knew that I had to read it as soon as possible. Witch King is a phenomenal journey through Kai’s past and present, finding family and friends and seeking revenge. It’s out in the world as of yesterday, so you can enjoy it too.

My utmost thanks to NetGalley and Tor.com for the eARC of Witch King in exchange for a fair review.

This review originally appeared here: https://swordsoftheancients.com/2023/05/31/witch-king-a-review/

I loved the characters in this book. The worldbuilding took a little long to make full sense to me, but once it came together, it was great!

Witch King by Martha Wells was a fantastic read. I'm so happy to have gotten the opportunity to read Wells' return to fantasy. Witch King still holds the fun and sassy characters you got in Murderbot, too. The characters were amazing and you couldn't help but fall a little in love with their found family vibes. Overall, I highly recommend everything and anything Martha Wells writes.

Witch King, by Martha Well, is a novel that I mostly gently enjoyed throughout but which also had some definite flaws. While they weren’t “dealbreakers”, they definitely had an effect. How much or little that will hold true for you will probably depend on what you look for in a fantasy work.

Kai, the titular Witch King, is a demon of the Underneath who has the power to leap into bodies of the dead (he can also “eat” the life of people). The book opens with him waking up disoriented in a strange place, and what eventually is revealed that he was captured and imprisoned, along with his close friend Ziede, also a magic user. After the two manage to extricate themselves from their current situation, picking up a young girl named Sanja along the way, they Ziede’s wife Tahren (an Immortal Marshall) and Tahren’s brother (a Lesser Blessed) are also missing, and so they set out to find out what has happened to them while also trying to figure out how they themselves were betrayed and imprisoned.

The quest for Tahren and Dahin take place in current time, while the second narrative in the book (roughly the same length) takes place decades earlier, when a seemingly unstoppable group of people known as the Hierarchs have swept in and conquered nation after nation, often wiping out or nearly so entire peoples. The Hierarchs are strong wielders of magic, have “Expositors” as a sort of sub-group of magic users, and managed to convince the Immortal Marshalls to ally with them rather than fight them. In this timeline, Kai has been captured and imprisoned in the Summer Halls of the Hierarches, and it is there he meets Basha, a royal prince held there as hostage for his nation’s good behavior. This is also where the rest — Ziede, Tahren, Dahin — all meet for the first time as they plot a rebellion against the Hierarchs.

To start with the positives, the opening scene is wonderfully tense, and Kai’s disorientation is echoed by the reader’s own as they’re dropped in media res into this story and world. Kai is a mostly engaging character if not a compelling one, his relationship with Ziede is nicely depicted and the wry banter between them fondly humorous. The magic systems presented are diverse and interesting, including spirit manipulation, tapping of “wells” of power, Kai’s body-hopping as well as his near-invulnerability (he heals incredible fast, kind of like Wolverine). More fascinating is the way Kai’s power source is pain. While the Expositors use others’ pain, Kai refuses that path and uses his own, cutting himself for example (and sometimes doing far worse) to gain the power needed for a spell. We’re also introduced early on to a wonderfully fantastic relationship with a whale.

The background politics are interesting as well, focusing on what happens with the defeat of the Hierarchs (this is not a spoiler; we know early on they were beaten) by an alliance of nations/peoples: does the alliance end itself? Does it remain a loose confederation? Does it centralize more power to itself? Become an empire? Meanwhile, the groups that make up the political structure are vividly detailed and distinguished, as with the grassland nomads we see Kai spending his youth with.

The novel’s structure works well and is quite effective in a number of ways. One is we get to see how Kai has changed over the time period from a young demon newly part of the upper world (the demons of the Underneath have a mutually beneficial pact with a nomadic tribe that a demon will occupy the body of a newly deceased tribesperson) to a despairing prisoner to an in-over-his-head-but-growing-into-the-role rebel to the wiser-to-the-world-but-trying-not-to-become-jaded Witch King. The past story also fills in some (but only some) of the blanks with regard to how magic work, who the Hierarchs are, why the current world is do devoid of people, etc. The alternating between times allows Wells to make good use of the switches back and forth to enhance suspense, dropping us out of one time period at a pivotal moment. And finally, the two timelines nicely shadow one another, as for how Kai is imprisoned in both for instance, and the way places of the past become important in the present as well, all of this showing how in that classic Faulkner line, “the past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

As for the more problematic elements. While as noted I quite liked being thrown into the midst of things at the start, and while I’m generally a fan of having information doled out in bits and pieces, here it felt like Well held back a little too much. I feel pretty confident I understand the basic gist of things — how the magic works, who the various groups and alliances/enemies are, etc. But it all feels more than a little wispy. I know the Blessed Immortals are arrogant twits with powerful magic, but not a lot more than that. I know the Hierarchs are even more powerful and enacted genocides and atrocities, but not much more than that. There’s a similar restraint to worldbuilding in Wells’ (fantastic) MURDERBOT series, but there the background is so familiar to genre readers and based mostly in our real world physics/laws that we don’t need much. Tell me “space dock” or “planet colony” and I can visualize/understand it enough from just those phrases. Here though, I’d argue the reader needs more help from the author in fully grasping how this world works.

The overly sparse construction held for the characters as well. I get Ziede’s fierce worry over Tahren and desire to find her but can’t say I had any true sense of their relationship (which seemed to form way too fast in the early timeline). I mostly understood Ziede’s anxiety on an intellectual basic — “they’re married, it's logical she’d be upset.” Beyond Kai, none of the characters felt fully fleshed out or used to their full potential. One character, for instance, had their memories wiped and then they were compelled to do things against their will, but beyond a few mentions that’s pretty much all we get from a situation ripe for emotional impact. Even with Kai, who is certainly the most developed and is in fact pretty well developed, one feels Wells leaves some material on the table. The pain element of his magic is somewhat touched upon, but it felt like it cried out for more attention, more depth. All that said, while the side characters didn’t come wholly to life, I still found the times Wells focused on Kai’s relationship to them to be the stronger elements of the novel.

In terms of plot, one has to consider them separately. The early plot is mostly interesting for seeing how relationships formed. There isn’t much suspense in terms of the rebellion because we know of course the main people survive and that the Hierarchs are defeated. That defeat is also more than a little anti-climactic as they’re built up as so unstoppable and powerful (albeit pretty faceless and enigmatic villains otherwise) but in the end they go down surprisingly easily. Or maybe easily is the wrong word, as it did take some unique abilities and a lot of pain, but still, it didn’t feel as difficult as it should have. And I’m still not quite clear on how the entire group of Hierarchs, as opposed to the two killed in the Summer Hall rebellion, were stopped. The current time plot, meanwhile, is solid enough but a bit flat, and while I liked the way their journey echoes the past timeline, it feels a bit perfunctory at times and similarly to the rebellion, a bit anti-climactic. Finally, I never felt grounded in the time aspect of things. The way people talked about events of the past for some reason always felt like those events were far deeper in the past than they actually were. I was always surprised each time something reminded me only a few decades had passed.

Issues with plot, as long as they don’t involve plot holes, are rarely dealbreakers for me. I was intrigued enough by Kai’s inner thoughts and his growth to happily follow along despite some pacing issues, some lack of clarity with how the world worked, and a not-too-compelling plot. Depending on your preferences, you may find the book utterly enjoyable or totally frustrating. Recommended with caveats.

Thank you to Tor Books and NetGalley for providing an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

"Witch King" contained an elaborately crafted world with a cast of compelling characters navigating a mysterious plot against them with flashbacks to the war where the characters first met.

I found the first 30% of the book to be full of world-building and names that took me a while to get a grasp on. There was a character list at the start, which I feel would be easier to reference with a physical copy of the book, but I found it a bit challenging with an eARC. Because of all the heavy world-building, it took me a while to really get invested in the story, although I eventually did. I especially enjoyed the ending and seeing how everything came together.

The main strength of this book was the characters. I loved Kai, especially, and thought he was a compelling main character to follow. He was likable, often sarcastic, and had a consistent set of morals that guided him. The supporting cast was also great, especially Ziede and Ramad. I loved the found family vibes and how the characters looked out for each other, even when suspicious or wary of their motivations. The casual queerness of the characters was also refreshing, with plenty of queer relationships and characters who used they/them pronouns.

I think if you're ready for some heavy world-building and characters you can get invested in, this is a solid queer fantasy read. Not a new favourite for me, but I enjoyed my time reading it.

Writing a charismatic and loveable character despite said character being a murderous being is a tough one but Martha Wells was able to do so with Kaiisteron aka Kai.

Kai's a demon - a life-sucking, body snatching type who has no remorse eating people and who also just so happen to have a soft spot for those he cares about. He'd scour the ends of the world just to be reunited with the missing members of his found family.

From the get-go the reader's plunged head first in the middle of the story and from there this adventure unfold quite nicely. I have a strong aversion to dual timeline stories as they are rarely done right, but in the case of Witch King, it was utilized wonderfully filling in the gaps and showing Kai's backstory.

The world-building in itself was adequate. Don't get me wrong I thoroughly enjoyed what was provided, however there could've been more and though I do believe this is a standalone I wouldn't be averse to seeing an expansion of the world as there's so much more to explore on its lore and the characters as well.

The story's dense and complex but the characters, the writing and the lore made this a worthwhile read.

A solid 4 stars out of 5 stars and I recommend giving this a try.

This book was unlike anything I have read. I love the world, the characters we got to meet, to learn about. I think it's very interesting the book doesn't start with Kai as the underdog, we start with him experienced... and pissed off. Being able to get the glances into who he used to be, the loss of his identity, the growth of his friendships and found family, all while seeing what he'd grown into, was such an interesting way of going about this story.

Speaking of the found family... oh. Oh my god. I loved every single character, even the ones from the past that we know are no longer with us, so much. Found family tropes are always a weak spot in my heart and Wells knows just how to expose it and write it well. And Ziede and Tahren!!! Their relationship from "enemies" to friends to wives, I loved so, so much. And even having Kai around to see it happening, in the past, was so much fun.

Not having the full cast in the present, but showing the relationship they all built in the past, really added to the paralyzing fear of... what if something goes wrong?? What if these people I know and love, just like Kai does, get hurt?

Towards the end it grew to be a little frustrating and repetitive, Kai and his entourage constantly getting into situations that are anxiety inducing, but they get out unscathed... every. time. The stakes that should have had me biting my nails off (I still did, Wells exceeds at anxiety inducing moments) fell short because the risk was shrugged off.

The ending... oh god. Don't get me started. <spoiler>It wasn't nearly as satisfying as it should've been because the conspiracy we were trying unravel <i>with</i> Kai and his entourage was already solved by Kai... and, by the way, he already stopped the bad things that might happen from happening FIVE YEARS AGO.</spoiler> Again, it was shrugged off, I didn't get to be tense and worry with the characters because they had everything handled, off screen no less.

If Kai weren't Kai, if Wells didn't excel at writing characters like him and making them loveable, this book would've been unbearable. Which, again, just speaks to how well done the characters in this novel are. And of the characters... there just wasn't enough Tahren, in my humble opinion. I need more of my stoic lesbian representation XD

All in all, despite the books little bit of OP characters (which like.. makes sense but I love a struggle) it was such a fun ride, with an interesting world, a queer as hell cast, and a still interesting mystery (even if our main character had already figured it out... I'll never let that one go). I loved it. But then again, everything Wells does I love.

Kai is just having a horrible day all around and it may just be kind of associated with him you know being murdered and his consciousness becoming dormant as well as unaware of time passing. Plus, on top of that he is confined into a water trap. So, with all of that said, Kai does wake up, but then he finds a lesser mage who is channeling Kai's magic to their own advantage. Kai is pretty certain that all of this is not going to go well, but he must first figure out why was he assassinated and imprisoned?

I have never read a book by Martha Wells before, but I have heard good things about her previous books.

Witch King definitely did not disappoint for my first Martha Wells book, and I loved Kai as a character since he is a super charismatic demon that is from the Underworld.

When it came to first starting this book. I felt like it was hard to get my bearing and know the world as well as knowing what actually is going on. It does feel like us as the reader are just thrown into the story and it being up to the reader to figure out the world, but once the story gets going it becomes easier to understand and really get into the story. Once you understand the world you instantly become immersed. So, if you are to pick this book up, then please pay attention to the details because it will ultimately help you understand what is going on and how the world is built.

Witch King is told in a dual timeline of present time and in the past. This story is a slow burn type of fantasy, which I typically love when an author does it right. In this case, Martha Wells does a great job once I got my bearings into this book.

The cast of characters were a delight, and it has been a while since I got to dive into an epic fantasy book for a while and it really made me see that I have missed reading awesome epic fantasy books since I love some really good complex worlds, characters, and magic systems.

I look forward to reading whatever Martha Wells puts out and will definitely look up The MurderBot series that is highly acclaimed by her.

Thank you to NetGalley, Tor, and Ms. Wells for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

I will say this: if you are coming to this book solely to get your greedy hands on a MurderBot fix, you are going to be disappointed. This is NOT MurderBot. MurderBot is (snarky, sarcastic, hilarious) SciFi. *This*, Witch King is High Fantasy.

Honestly, and this is solely my opinion, YMMV, but I sort of feel that High Fantasy is a under-appreciated art form. At work I feel like I see a lot of readers who are into the "latest Patterson" or whatever TikTok told them to read or a KU book where the author writes "weary" instead of wary and "conscious" instead of conscience, SMH. Do people still have the attention span to dive into a fully realized fantasy world? I'll admit: the Dramatis Personae chapter at the beginning was daunting. My advice: skip it. It's frankly very confusing and I had no problem learning the characters' names organically as I read. I could see that chapter being an absolute roadblock in an audiobook.

Kai was a terrific character. Don't get me wrong, Kai is no MurderBot (my forever favorite), but I've been loving antiheroes lately and Kai was a terrific exemplar. He exhibits a lot of charisma and a sardonic personality that made me root for him even as he guzzled people like a Chick Fil A milkshake. As much as I strongly dislike dual timeline stories, I felt that the format worked here to fill in Kai's backstory.

I struggled a little bit with keeping the location names straight, and some of the titles of the various characters, but it's partially my fault, as I kept trying to read in places full of distractions. Frankly, I think the story could stay as a standalone but I could see the possibilities should Ms. Wells choose to develop the characters or world further. Even though it was a fairly complex and dense story, it was well worth the read and I would highly recommend this to readers who (a) like a good high/epic fantasy and (b) aren't expecting a MurderBot installment. I have already purchased this for my library's fiction collection.