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A King’s Radiance by L.R.Schulz — Book Review & Summary

BLURB

The sun’s light shines bright over the land of Zapour, and only a select few can harness its power. But all power comes with a cost, and the world is not kind to those who refuse to pay it.

Raiz Glaive, a strong shine wielder, was born into royalty, though even royals have to answer to someone. When the King-Radiant sends one of his precious underlings to the Kingdom of Trost, Raiz quickly learns who holds the true power in the realm. After his sister is taken prisoner simply for having the violet eyes of a mystic, Raiz swears vengeance. But when an unwilling father stands in his way, Raiz promises to take revenge into his own hands.

Dazen Glaive remains heir to the throne of Trost, and a sworn defender of the King-Radiant, but he has not forgotten what happened to his sister, and will not forgive their cruelty.

Forced to be the centrepiece of her “master’s” twisted human art gallery, Isha remains a prisoner. Though she has not lost hope. Finding friends among fellow captives, she begins to formulate a plan for escape. Though what she discovers has a much more sinister bearing on the fate of all of Zapour.

A King's Radiance by L.R.Schulz Cover
A King’s Radiance by L.R.Schulz

AUTHOR: L.R. Schulz

PUBLISHING ON: 22 March 2022

GENRE: Fantasy

RATING: 4 Stars

PUBLISHING DATE: 22 May 22

E-Arc provided for A King’s Radiance by the Author

CONVINCING YOU TO READ THIS IN 6 WORDS:

A beautiful take on classic stories, siblings bond, outlaw, secrets, cool magic system and constant surprises but in a good way.

“In many ways, you are the person I wish to be. The person I strive to be one day. You are brash yet strong. Arrogant but also fiercely loyal.”

SUMMARY

A King’s Radiance by L.R. Schulz takes us on the amazing journey of Zapour. Prologue gives us a small back story to how Isha was captured and how the Princess of Trost becomes a slave. Now, we fast forward and witness how Isha’s younger brother Riaz has abandoned his kingdom and lives as a outlaw. There is only one thing in his mind. Get his sister back and so Riaz along with a small crew train hard. Though each of them have their own reason, they do have a common motive, a common goal: The Eagles have to be removed from the equation. And so Riaz trains. He trains hard and improves himself. He learns to use his Shine and despite trying to think or wonder, he still has no clue why his Shine is different than others. Till he knows, he has never witnessed anyone else who has a Red tinge in their White Shine.

After small-small steps, Riaz and his crew finally stop one Eagle and in the process start a rebellion against the King-Radiant. Events after events and after years of no information about his sister, when he finally receives the news, he is on the way to find his sister. Their reunion is a lot more different than what each of them would’ve liked. There is so much to share, so much to talk about and yet the years seem heavy on them. Slowly, after each secret is reveled, unexpected tragedy strikes again and this time it is Riaz who is in chains being transported to the King Radiant.

Isha is captured from her own kingdom by the Eagle of the King Radiant and is one of the captive. For years, Isha is held as a captive but she doesn’t let it break her spirit. Her tentative friendship with the prisoners around her and the guards keep her spirit. She is aware that she is a prisoner and she may never see her kingdom back but that doesn’t stop her from constantly taking in her surroundings in case. And when that opportunity rises, she grabs it and saves not only her life but also the life of a couple of prisoners with her and a soldier who can’t speak. The journey to freedom was not easy. It was paved with bloodshed and unexpected kindness. But in the end, the could only do so much and were captured again. But this time, her brothers were there to save her. And after years of separation, she met her brothers and was on the way back to her kingdom. But while she expected some problems and changes after years, what she didn’t expect to see her little brother, who was not so little anymore, in chains and her becoming a prisoner yet again. But Isha would not let it happen and so, she decided to go back to the pace she never wanted to see to save her brother and if it hampers the King-Radiant and the fellow Eagles, it is just an added bonus.

Dazen is constantly in position of confusion. He is outraged at his father for letting his sister taken as captive. And when his brother runs away, he is angry. He is angry at his younger brother to just leave everything. And while he wants to do the same, march out and take his siter back, he is reminded of being the Prince. Of the past, of the horrors of the war and his people. And so, he does what is expected of him and takes care of his kingdom with loss of not one but two of his siblings. With unexpected friendship with a younger prince and helping him train, Dazen is reminded of what is stollen from him, how he could have spent all these moments with his younger brother. When he visited the King- Radiant and saw his sister from afar for first time in years, all he could think of was his sister and how he could get her back. Unexpected fights results unexpected results and when Dazen met Riaz, it was nothing like they imaged. Years of anger and anguish weighted on them yet one thing that bought them together was their sister and so, they set on the journey to get her sister. And after being together with his siblings for the first time in years, his happiness knew no bounds. But he had no idea that he would lose his brother just as soon. And he was again trust into responsibilities. He had to chose into being a brother or do well for his people, his kingdom. And thus the beginning of chaos commences.

“They were meant for each other. If their world was broken, why not fill the hole with another broken piece?

MY THOUGHTS

Oh my gosh. I really really loved A King’s Radiance so much. It started with me being intrigued by 2 things: a cool cover and a story based on siblings. But these two things quickly changed into the outstanding plots, some new take on old tropes and compelling storytelling. So, let’s break this up, shall we?

A King’s Radiance is paced beautifully. I think till now anyone who reads my blog has an idea that it takes a while for me to get invested in the story but I genuinely was invested since the first chapter. What I loved, even more, was the fact that this book was very well-paced. There were no graphs for me. I was looking forward to know about everyone and wanted to read everything. I was up till 1 AM to read this book and I have zero regrets.

What impresses me immensely is the fact that this is Schulz’s debut book. Because there is a constant lyrical flow for A King’s Radiance. The writing isn’t flowery but the smooth sail in which we have complex politics, and fights and at the same time shows 3 different perspectives and each has a different voice. And with change in each perspective, you can hear the different voices. And that’s commendable. You’re just sucked into reading.

The storyline. According to me, the storyline of A King’s Radiance is a mixture of being classic and at the same time having a different touch. And well, there is something peaceful- to be on edge to know something but at the same time know that it is going to be simple. No unnecessary profanity, no need to add extra sex scenes just to add pages (mind you, I do enjoy reading smut) – just something simple to enjoy. There were stages or rather scenes where you could predict something but when the prediction did come to pass, you would be smacked.

The worldbuilding and the magic systems. Schulz managed to suck me into reading a book with a beautiful world and a bit complex magic system without having any info-dumps or any dragging story. Every detail was simple, clear and crisp. And if this is just the debut, I can’t wait to see what cool things are stored for me.

Another important aspect for me is Characters. And I loved them. I am a sucker for some amazing and well crafted characters. I love world-building, I really do but it is the characters that are a decision factor for me. And when I read the details about the arc, what took me were simple words:

A rebel

A prince

A prisoner

And I knew I wanted to know more about them. What was even more interesting was that I was not only invested in knowing the fate of the three siblings but also Riaz’s crew, Isha’s slave-mates? You get the point.

The whole book is the perfect example of giving some details, intriguing you and than ending with a bang. Another thing that was my most favorite was (which cannot be said fav)  the ending. It wasn’t a cliff hanger. While I know cliff hangers are fun. They aren’t. At least not for me. Because I like binging series. Devouring one book after another till the books blur and all I can think about is one big book. So, yes, I loved it. And I can’t wait to come back and know how they move ahead.

I would suggest A King’s Radiance to everyone who wants to enjoy a clean book with amazing story and characters without having to about anything.

======= SPOILER ZONE======

No, there is nothing wrong with me but I genuinely love when we have some equations about Human slaves. When it was introduced, I was like Yipee. Though that part isn’t as cruel as it sounds. And I have read some major cruel stories, this one was a much better read. As I said, a clean read. So, yup I enjoyed that.

Riaz’s parentage. Halfway, there you start expecting different things, you kinda know something is coming and when the shock came about not just his father but also his grandfather. Yup, I enjoyed it.

I wanted to know more about the magic associated with the mystic violet eyes. I was eagerly waiting for some more magic there and while nothing substantial happens, I am positive it will happen in the next books.

The last battle or I can say about the different alliances formed, it was a crazy house. There was so much happening around and people are screaming, shouting, killing all at the same time. Yup, definitely a strong ending.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Luke is a fantasy addict born in Melbourne, Australia. He discovered a passion for fantasy at a young age which developed into a love for the imaginary and a desire to write.

Despite an early passion for storytelling, Luke obtained a teaching degree before beginning a career as a primary school teacher.

When he is not reading and writing, Luke enjoys spending time with his Golden Retriever named Gem, gaming, and surfing.

A King’s Radiance is Luke’s debut novel, though he is always coming up with ideas for his next project, as well as working towards a sequel.

You can read the review for A Drowned Kingdom by P.L.Stuart here.

You can read the review for The Blood of Outcasts here.

You can read the review for A Touch of Light here.

You can read an article for Creation & Destruction here.

 

krina

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