DNF - stopped at 33%

This book started STRONG for me. Three POV characters and three fantastic opening scenes for each of them. But by 1/3 of the way through it was really dragging, the three characters hadn't connected in any way that was interesting to me, and I began to wonder what the point was. Maybe it comes together later and I lack the patience to get there? Either way, it unfortunately wasn't for me even though I see it's great potential!

This review has been a very long time coming. I actually started reading Blood of the Old Kings way back in December. I read the first chapter and had ... mixed feelings, so I put the book down and finally picked it back up this month as I'm trying really hard to get caught up on my ARCs after requesting WAY too many last year. That being said, I made it about a quarter in before I knew for sure that I would not be finishing this book.

I love being thrown directly into the action. It's engaging and fun (when done well), and sets an excellent tone for the rest of the story. I don't know if I would classify this start exactly as action, but it was very close. At the very least, we started with all of the characters doing something entirely outside their norm, and I thought that was a great way to start. I'm also aware, though, that sometimes this choice brings with it a bit of confusion, as instead of starting with the exposition, we'll get all that information later. So, I was confused, but that wasn't surprising to me.

However, my confusion never truly went away, even after getting through a quarter of the book. There was some great exposition and world-building. The magic was fascinating, as the world is powered by these generator things that house the dead bodies of sorcerers. Like, what? How cool. I mean, not for the sorcerers, but you get the idea. The characters were interesting and had distinct motivations (mostly). But it just wasn't enough.

There were three main characters, and every chapter bounced between them. As far as I got, there were no double chapters, as the next chapter had a different character than the one before, which was part of the problem. Every time the chapter would get somewhere interesting, we would jump to a different POV. It ultimately was very frustrating, as it felt like the chapter would build and build and then drop out of nowhere. Then, I had to wait at least one chapter to return to where we were. I don't know. It was really jarring and left me unsatisfied. It wouldn't have been so bad if the characters were near each other and the action picked up with the next person talking about it, but all three characters were in completely different areas and were doing completely different things.

I also felt that we never got the explanations I was looking for. The starting chapters were excellent and engaging, but the endings left much to be desired, and the exposition I was expecting never really came. It felt like a lot of information was missing, and I walked away from every reading session even more confused than when I started.

Blood of the Old Kings had a lot of potential, but it wasn't the book for me. I wasn't getting all the things I was looking for, leaving me confused, frustrated, and unable to engage with the story.

I received an advanced copy of Blood of the Old Kings from Netgalley and the publisher and am leaving this review voluntarily.

Excellent! I now must spend time catching up on my housework since I spent most of the day reading this book. I like the complexity of the stories and am eager for all three to join together. Reading from a Korean author was enlightening .

This was an interesting fantasy story, but I felt disappointed by the way it turned out The writing sometimes could be weak and as someone who loves good character writing, I felt that a lot of the time the characters didn't have as much depth as I woud have liked them to have. The story ends in a good way that leaves things kind of open for the future of the series but I wouldn't be disappoointed if they even stuck with just the one book. I wish I had enjoyed this more but I'm still willing to give it a solid 3 stars because of the world building and the work that went into it. I just didn't fall in love with the story.

This book was so unique and well written, in more ways than I am able to describe. I put this on our purchase list after only getting through the first five chapters! I was hooked from the first sentence!

Blood of the old kings was an excellent read. The writing was propulsive and the character development was rich.

The best kind of fantasy with an interesting story and great female characters. As a first installment it was excellent and left just enough unanswered questions and plenty of potential in the sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the world-building, the magic system, and the different storylines. I am really looking forward to how the stories become intertwined in the later novels. I will absolutely recommend this book, and I will be reading the future books in the series.

While I wanted to love the premise of this, I found it particularly verbose in its storytelling. I also think I am struggling with the translation, which I will keep in mind for future books.

I am not sure whether something is lost in translation or if it's just growing pains of a new author, but the writing felt really clunky. I also felt like we picked up this story in kind of an odd spot. The characters have some very emotional backstories that would have really made me feel more connected to them and invested in their journeys had we gotten to see some of that earlier character development. But the pros were a very interesting world and I do want to find out what happens. Just really missing the connection to the story and characters.

Excellent debut. I loved the writing; it feels like an epic tale, but isn't stuffy and it reads incredibly smooth. I kept wanting to know what was going to happen next, and I was deeply invested in our three protagonists and their roles in this tale. This novel has a lot to say about imperialism and how its claws are far-reaching, the validity of self-manifestation, and the power of hope and community in the face of oppression and unjust laws. Excited for the sequel.

While the premise was nice, the writing was... not what I expected. I wanted more from the characters because I felt that what was on the front cover and the front flap was not what we were given.

This book delivers an immersive fantasy world built on necromancy and rebellion. The world-building is intricate, and the magic system feels fresh and well-developed, making it easy to get lost in the lore. Each of the characters—Arienne, Loran, and Cain—brings a unique perspective to the story, keeping the narrative engaging and well-paced.

The plot held my attention throughout, and I appreciated the balance between action, intrigue, and character development. The themes of power, oppression, and destiny are woven seamlessly into the story, making it even more compelling. I’d love to explore more of this world and its magic systems in future books!

Highly recommended for fans of dark fantasy with rich lore and complex characters.

3.5 rounded up, I enjoyed this a lot, it's very unique with the necromancy using zombies as power generators and the three POVs going about separately until we finally get the connection. I did drift here and there but I think that was more a me problem than the book. For a translated work this also read very smoothly. I kind of wish it was longer to help build all the bigger moments that will lead into book 2, it's wild how short this is when this could definitely have been a 500+ page book and it would still be just as intriguing, if not more so. I think I just chose a poor time to read it for my mentality but I do anticipate epicness in the 2nd book that will grip me given the story itself.

It seems like any Asian inspired/influenced story now a days just slaps you in the face with the most amazing covers. Its simply not fair. The quality of the cover does not always match the quality of the book, but I simply can't.. NOT pick up a book when it looks like this y'know?

Fortunately Blood of the Old Kings did not disappoint. Kim weaves a world that has all the makings of high fantasy. Raw and gritty characters with great POVs. Unique, if not disturbing, magic system. And well... dragon. You'll always have me when there's a dragon.

The translation is well done. There's no rough patches or any areas where I questioned what I was reading. I will say, and I do find this to be common with translated work, the prose falls a little flat. I think its just natural for certain things to be lost no matter how good the translator is.

Blood of the Old Kings is the first in a trilogy and I cannot wait for the next two books. Thank you NetGalley and Tor for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

this book was so fast. we are dumped right into the action and i think that hindered our growth with the characters that were our main POVs. while i was engaged, there was a lot of world building that i was confused on and the main sorcery as well. however, i still want to see what’s next. everything seemed to close really fairly at the end of the novel and there seemed no need for a second novel, but im into it.

I had high hopes for this but it felt flat for me. I couldn't get myself invested in any characters, and the plot felt disconnected to me

Confession, I have been on a manwha deep-dive for the last two years--both your regular contemporary read as well as historical and political fantasy. It was so nice to have another somewhat similar story to consume with my binge.

The main three characters are compelling and fascinating, often showcasing a level of depth that is rare in fantasy with a feminine-centric POV. I'm a sucker for Chosen One stories, so this scratched that itch, and I found the world and magic itself super fun to be immersed in.

My only nit picky complaint is I think there may have been some translation issues only in that sometimes things felt a bit flat? But honestly, it's a solid fantasy read for someone wanting a fun fantasy world to live in!

Blood of the Old Kings presents an intriguing world where the empire’s magic is powered by the corpses of dead sorcerers, an unsettling and unique premise that immediately caught my attention. The story follows three protagonists—Loran, Cain, and Arienne—each with their own rebellion against the empire’s oppressive rule. Loran, a vengeance-driven warrior, wields a dragon-forged sword. Cain is a street-savvy investigator searching for his friend’s murderer. Arienne, born to be a living battery for the empire’s magic, begins questioning everything when she starts hearing the voice of a necromancer.

The novel shines in its worldbuilding and political intrigue, painting a grim and fascinating landscape of rebellion, power, and oppression. The characters' struggles feel real, and the magic system is both dark and compelling. However, the execution sometimes falters—character development feels rushed, and certain emotional beats don’t land as impactfully as they should. Some sections also drag, making the pacing inconsistent.

Despite these flaws, I appreciated the unique setting and themes, especially the rare representation of an over-30 female protagonist with depth and agency. The book's ambition is commendable, even if it doesn’t always fully deliver. A solid read for fans of dark fantasy and rebellion narratives, but it may not leave a lasting impression.

Until very recently, science fiction and fantasy had a predominant flow of cultural borrowing that generally went from non-Eurocentric cultures, to America and Britain. This started with the idea of orientalism and places beyond the metaphysical Great Wall of Europe, if depicted at all, being done in an exoticizing fashion most of the time. As science fiction and fantasy has brought more global voices to Western audiences, that of course, has changed. We are now getting plenty of fantasy from beyond that Great Wall, from Africa and particularly from East Asia. Borrowings of tropes from Africa and East and South Asia have been moving toward more nuanced and less problematic directions on the whole.

But culture is never a one-way street. The world is not a game of Civilization where one country’s dominant culture overwhelms all others. There is give and take, and cultures borrow from each other all the time. And in this day and age, it seems logical that we can and will find Western SFF tropes in science fiction and fantasy written outside the West. But given publishing, such stories have been not easy to find or read in the West until comparatively recently.

Cover of Blood of the Old Kings, by Sung Il-Kim, featuring an Asian-style dragon looming over and coiling around someone reaching for a sword.
And so we come to Blood of the Old Kings by Korean author Sung-il Kim, translated into English by Anton Hur. It might look at first like just a typical epic fantasy novel, but a closer read reveals something rather different than you’d expect, even by the standards of modern fantasy epics.