Cover Image: Sage and King

Sage and King

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

A feel good story.

A book with a simple plot without much drama, but still entertaining. I think this books is written like a fairy tale, with that beautiful ending that we all hope for heroes.

I really liked the dynamics between Col and Zaya... this story between a king and a sage is fabulous. The contrast between someone who knows nothing about magic and someone who has known it all his life. And despite the very different lives they have, Zaya and Col have similar hearts: with a lot of love, loyalty and two men who seek the good of the kingdom.

Was this review helpful?

I have the biggest grin right now. And my heart is still fluttering.
Molly Ringle has a gift when it comes to writing novels that feel like one of the fairy tales we all loved and read when we were children, masterfully weaving that timeless, magical and all-encompassing atmosphere with mature themes, a lovely romance, high-stakes and life-or-death situations.
I loved her previous novel "Lava Red Feather Blue" with my whole heart, so when I saw "Sage and King" on Netgalley... I've never requested a book faster. I'm so glad I got to read and review it in advance. Like it's predecessor, I know I'll be thinking about it for weeks on end.

The plot revolves around Zaya, whose life is upended when he is inherits the throne of a fantastical kingdom where magic exists and is severely frowned upon, where strict laws limit magicians's lives, and Col, a young sage with great magical powers and that has been chosen to guide Zaya through his first weeks of reign.
The plot is fairly straight-forward, but it captures the reader's attention from the start. Ringle blends sweet and soft moments between the two MCs with conversations about morals and prejudices, tough decisions and life-alterning secrets, complicated familial relationships and divided loyalties.
I loved both Zaya and Col so much. They're both young and artless in some, different, ways, but they're also nice and decent, and yes, wise, both desperate and eager to make the right choices when their life-plans get upended. Together, they were sweet and soft and made my heart ache for all the best reasons.

When this book comes out in May, go and buy it. If you're looking for a story with a magical, timeless atmosphere, a romance that will leave you sighing and starry-eyed, this is the novel for you.

Was this review helpful?

This was a lovely, fluffy LGBT fantasy. I’m not a big fantasy reader, but I really enjoyed the sweet and steamy love story of Zaya and Col. It was a super easy read and I thought the world building was very good, it was sort of medieval-esque with magic thrown in. Since finishing the book I’ve seen the author state that she was inspired by the BBC series Merlin which I haven’t seen but that was pretty much the aesthetic I imagined just from reading it. I thought the characters were likeable, the drama was predictable but still worked well, and overall I did really enjoy this book.

Was this review helpful?

Ringle has done it again! Sage and King is a thoroughly enchanting fantasy that made me laugh and cry happy tears.

This book is loosely Merthur story. I am not familiar with Arthurian legends so can't comment on the parallels however I can testify that this book is an absolute joy to read even if you aren't a Merthur stan.

This book is my favourite kind of romance, filled with a yearning, slow-burn romance but also has a little bit of spice ;)

I genuinely think Ringle's work gets better with every book that she writes!

Was this review helpful?