Hello Fellow Journeyers,
We have another self-published tale from M. H. Woodscourt in The Crow King. This story is advertised as part one of the duology of Wintervale.
From the beginning, this story sets up the premise immediately and without delay. As was the case with The Bard's Blade, I appreciated this immediacy in the story immensely. Instead of taking far too long with setting up the world, Woodscourt shows us where the story is headed and makes quick time of it. With a simple premise comes little detail and that's for the better because the author wants to reveal the important information as the story progresses, which is what happens. That said, it does move very quickly in the beginning and it's a little jarring that we don't get to know the main character too well before the adventure. But it doesn't detract too much because the reader gets a decent amount of time as the journey takes place.
There was an odd quality to the book that took me awhile to identify, and that's because the summary you hear about the book leads one to believe this book will mostly be an adventure story when in fact, the adventure is only part of the first half. From there, things tend to go from event to event like the author was thinking of ways to continue the story without it being a linear path. The reason why many things happen takes a while to understand in some cases, or in many cases, never warrants understanding. There was just a lack of detail in the plot in the second half primarily. This made for some odd moments, but the endearing qualities of the characters always kept me invested for the most part.
The last thing I will say is that overall, the story is a good story, but loses it's way in a drastic and confoundedly confusing way. By the end, you're wondering if it is even the same story that you started out with as it goes from good to bad to frustratingly cringey. Some things stay consistent, such as a few characters' actions and the descriptions, but the plot becomes a fool's errand, side characters start to act with full cheese mode, and everything else comes to a fruition that doesn't make much sense overall.
★★★ 2.5 Stars - The Crow King is a fun and gripping tale based heavily in classic fantasy. A noble quest, evil kings, magical creatures; it has everything that classic fantasy boasts, and yet it is none too boring or bland. Woodscourt weaves a tale with interesting characters, a plot that is worth getting behind even if it handles awkwardly in many places, and a level of lightness that is rarely found in modern fantasy. While there are stumbling blocks that made me scratch my head, the adventure is still one worth going on.
Let me hear from you! If you like what you read, want to hear more thoughts on this book, other reviews, or talk book recommendations and Essential Reading, leave a comment below.
Rating system:
★★★★★ 5 Stars: It was amazing; I loved it. Read this book; it is definitely Essential Reading!
★★★★★* 4.5 Stars: It was nearly perfect. I really loved almost every aspect of it, but a few things kept it from being amazing.
★★★★ 4 Stars: It was very worth reading and satisfying; highly recommend.
★★★★* 3.5 Stars: I thoroughly enjoyed this story, but it was lacking in certain crucial areas.
★★★ 3 Stars: It was good, but could've been better or improved upon significantly.
★★★* 2.5 Stars: I wanted to enjoy it. Certain aspects were good, it was worth finishing, but many issues.
★★ 2 Stars: It was okay, I didn't feel strongly about it.
★★* 1.5 Stars: I finished it, but it was a chore to get through.
★ 1 Star: I did not like it. It was not worth finishing or I did not finish it.
*I round up based on the system on Goodreads.