The Grace of Kings

The Grace of Kings is masterful in its ability to match worldbuilding and political intrigue with slow-boil, complex, utterly human characters. It is also of that rare breed of first volumes in a multiple volume set that is able to full satisfy the standalone reader and multiple volume lover alike. Ken Liu had already proven his worth to the world of genre literature. Lauded as a masterful short story writer and utterly welcome in his introduction of tried and new voices of Chinese literature alike, his impact has been felt for years. With this first novel, he has cemented himself as a new masterful voice not only in genre writing but in the greater literary world. We have much to look forward to in the next installment of The Dandelion Dynasty.

This book is a refreshing change of pace amongst the fantasy community, breaking away not just from the normal medieval Europe-based setting, but also telling a story of companionship, sacrifice and invoking a sense of true awe in me in a grand setting. I eagerly await the next entry in the series

"The Grace of Kings" was a fantastic read. Liu has found a perfect balance between the intricate politics of "A Song of Ice and Fire" and the swift pace and detailed battles of "The Black Company" and similar novels. Ken Liu seems poised to become the next big name in fantasy writing. I can not wait for more full length novels from him.