This was a wild ride and so were my opinions about it. At first I was totally on board. Then there was a part in the middle where I started to wonder whether the author had a plan…but then the character development suddenly kicked into high gear and led to a satisfying (and somewhat surprising) ending!

Anji is a very realistic feeling protagonist…in the sense that she is sometimes kind of stupid. The book is overall very gritty, in the sense that it is gross. The author loves to describe bodily fluids, particularly snot, urine, etc. Probably realistic given the number of fight scenes in cold weather, living in campsites, etc. But maybe a bit excessive at times, for my personal liking. Very grim in that anyone can die (again, sometimes maybe verging on gratuitous, and sometimes tragic).

The slow, satisfying character growth, in both of the two main characters, pays off well in the end. I wish that character development had started earlier but it did work (she gets less stupid, for one thing). Similarly, the world-building: we are thrown right into the middle of the action, and it takes a long time for information to be revealed. Maybe slightly too long, and maybe not quite enough information, but enough for the plot to make sense and to keep me interested.

With all of that said, I would recommend this book. It was engaging and gritty, and very consciously plays around with a lot of fantasy tropes; also, the audiobook narrator, Moira Quirk, is great.

Wow! What a remarkable adventure!

Remember when Arya Stark and the Hound from Game Of Thrones were road companions? That’s the feeling I got from this book. I absolutely loved it.
It was funny, it was violent, it was action packed, the world building was really cool but kind of simple so it’s easily digestible fantasy.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc, the first book hasn’t even been released yet and I’m impatiently awaiting book 2! That ending was wild and I never saw that coming.

This was so, so good! I went in blind and I really enjoyed it. It was a fun and engaging fantasy. The writing and characters and plot are very compelling and kept me very interested in the story. I initially devoured this book, as Leikam's writing style is generally easy to read, and easy to follow. Later on some parts came through as somewhat repetitive and slow, I think they could have been condensed in less pages and the pace of the plot could have been handled better. For the most part, however, Leikam's world building is beautiful, detailed, and well worth the read. When all the pieces click, it's really fun and it kept me hooked.
If I’m 100% honest, high fantasy has always felt a little too sanitised for my taste. Blood and death have a brutal honesty that is difficult to ignore. And Anji Kills a King walks the line between them perfectly. I had a really great time with this one, I was entertained throughout it. All in all, if you enjoy fantasy with complicated heroines, interesting world building and stunning writing then I deeply suggest you pick up Anji Kills a King .
Last but not least, I listened to an audio version and it was marvelous. All in all a very satisfactory reading experience! HUGE Recommend.

Ahoy there me mateys!  This is a debut and the first in a series from a "co-host of the Book Reviews Kill podcast, and a book influencer on TikTok and Instagram."  I have not heard of the author before this and picked up the book based on the fact that it deals with an assassin on the run.  Cause, aye, Anji killed a king.

Anji is not yer typical assassin.  She is a teenage laundress with no real skills.  Her assassination plot was all chance and luck.  Anji flees in terror at her success and manages to get caught fairly quickly by one of the kingdom's famous bounty hunters named Hawk,

Hawk is a member of the Menagerie.  These mercenaries have magical animal masks and are considered heros by the populace.  The reality isn't so pretty.  Hawk is a dying drug addict in for one last take.  The reward for the murderer of a slain king is astronomical.  Hawk will stop at nothing to get the loot - including acting against the Menagerie.  The Menagerie members in pursuit are actually vicious and have no redeeming qualities.  Torture is fun.  Ugh.

The world building and history of the kingdom is rather light with nothing much about the dead king or the kingdom of Yem's politics or the neighboring countries.  There are hints about Nine Gods, Sun Wardens, Order of the Inheritance, and a state religion.  I don't feel I know anything about them.  I also really don't understand the magic system called Maxia and what it can do or how it works.  I would have preferred to receive a lot more details about the whys and wherefores of things.

Ultimately this is a travel story focused on the relationship between Hawk and Anji.  They end up begrudgingly relying on each other.  I have to admit that I ended up enjoying Hawk a lot more than Anji.  Anji is, frankly, a very annoying protagonist and hard to root for.  She is stubborn to the point of stupidity, loud, and irritating.  Given how she was raised, she is discussed as being intelligent.  I just wanted her to shut up and think.  Or shut up and die.  Listening to her continually go against her best interests was frustrating.  Even her being tortured led to no sympathy because she caused it by frank stupidity.

Even though I had a lot of issues with the book, it was fasted paced and the narrator, Moira Quirk, did an excellent job.  Also Anji's actions at the very end of the book were surprising and kinda fun.  I am not sure I would pick up the next book as this felt like a very good standalone.  I will have to see what direction the author chooses to take Anji's next steps in.  Arrr!

3.5 rounded up

Anji Kills a King is an absolute masterpiece in story telling - a fantasy focusing on Anji's journey after she has killed a king and is subsequently captured by the Hawk, part of the menagerie, a fearsome group of mercenaries and bounty hunters. As the Hawk works to bring Anji to justice, we learn more about their world and the political and religious machinations keeping people in their places. The novel is a classic journey with peril and adventure along the way.

I initially was drawn to the book because I absolutely love anything that Moira Quirk narrates, and this is no exception - Quirk brings so much life and personality to each of the characters, I could not stop listening. But the writing itself is truly fantastic. The world building is done in such a smart way and where the layers of the world and characters are slowly peeled away. I am blown away that this was a debut novel and look so forward to more of Evan Leikam's work. Get this book on your TBR as soon as possible.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio and to NetGalley for the advanced listening copy.

I started Anji Kills a King because of the cover.  I didn’t read the synopsis (I did read the tagline because it was on the cover), and I didn’t read any of the reviews.  I just went into this one blind right from the cover art.  I kept listening, despite the myriad of content issues (see warnings at the end of the review on my blog), because the presentation—including the narration—was absolutely fantastic.  

First and foremost, Anji delivers epic fantasy under 400 pages.  It is also, blessedly, not a romantasy.   For a story that really just follows characters as they travel, this should not have been as interesting to me as it was.  Travel narratives bore me, even if the travel happens for only a segment.  Leikam keeps the pacing tight, and it, as Margaret Atwood says, “hold[s] my attention.”  

The biggest strength in this book lies in the world building and characters.  The world feels like any other typical medieval kind of world, but the addition of The Menagerie and interesting ways in which magic works gives a bit of a subtle feel that prevents the plot crutch some fantasies lean on when there’s an imbalance.  Many books with fantastic world development lack a proper plot, and many books with a decent plot lack adequate world building.  I didn’t feel that here.

Or main character, Anji, steals the show.  Anji’s situation is terrible, but she just can’t help her tendency toward agitating everyone around her.  The Menagerie reminds readers to never get to know your heroes.  Some things just don’t make all the sense or add up until the end when the last piece falls in place.  Then, some of the character development happens all at once as the big, twisty realization hits.  The ending really, for lack of a better term and though I hate the phrase because it’s overused in the book influencer world, left me reeling.  

Overall, 4/5 for the story and 5/5 for the narration.  At its core, it is a great story told fantastically.  I definitely have some reservations about the content, but I haven’t read a plot like this where the characters just travel and fight stuff that didn’t bore me to tears in forever.  I also checked all of Quirk’s narrated titles, and I plan to listen to some just for the narration alone.  

My thanks to Macmillan Audio for the ALC, for which I willing give my own, honest opinion.

I knew very little about this book going in, other than the fact that there’s a girl named Anji and she offs a king. And that happens in the first two sentences!

Anji kills a king is, more than anything, I think a story about relationships and hardships. There is certainly a plot, but it is second to the overall dynamic between Anji and the one who catches her, the Hawk. I spent half the book fully certain the Hawk was going to be her mom because I never believe anyone is dead in books until the book is done. Proven wrong, but I stand by it.

It’s interesting because Anji doesn’t quite develop a Stockholm syndrome situation with the Hawk. She does spend a majority of time trying to get away, but you can definitely see their dynamic shift after a while. They come to, unexpectedly, look out for each other and protect one another. Both say it’s in the name of either keeping the bounty alive or trying valiantly to escape without being lost in the middle of nowhere, but it feels like more.

It’s not quite a mother daughter relationship and not exactly a mentor/pupil dynamic either. It’s a unique thing all its own. The tides really turn when they meet friends of the Hawk and Anji gets a glimpse at her past and who she was before the mask and the drugs that took over her life.

This isn’t high fantasy by any means. There’s no real magic, but it is in a Fantastical setting. Again, this one is more of a character study and how you can learn to understand someone and how they came to be the way they are.

Spoiler alert but wow the end actually shocked me. No guys no glory Anji will stab if the opportunity arises. I’m excited for book 2! Thank you NetGalley for the early audio ARC!

This book was real easy to dive into, riding in on the banter between a murderous, wisecrack laundress and a jaded bounty hunter who captured her.

Story Structure
• The story had an interesting opening, where in Chapter 1, the MC, Anji, kills the king, and the story that follows is of what happens when she is immediately apprehended afterwards. I feel like this is a departure from what we'd normally see, where the death of a monarch is usually a climax point of tension rather than the intro, so Anji Kills a King I appreciate the novel entry for a plot.
• It's told from 3rd person POV, tightly coupling the reader to Anji's perspective. The bounty hunter captures Anji and tries her best to be as terse at possible in replies, which is definitely tested as Anji seems to compulsively need to speak and fill in the silence hilariously. It's a fairly linear story, where you go from point A of capture to point B of turning the criminal in to receive a bounty, no complicated multi-storylines or multi-timeline or multi-universe or whatever to keep track of.

Thoughts
• The strongest part about this story was definitely the banter between Anji and the Hawk (bounty hunter). It made getting into the story easy.
• And the world building from the magic drugs to the magic tethers were used in a logical way that did not feel gimmicky/ overly convenient way to resolve all the strife the that characters are encountering, which is a plus. Additionally the cult-like fervor of the team of guards/mercenaries/fighters that the bounty hunter is a part of all was believable (as in yup, y'all are crazy and brainwashed).
• However, a drawback is that I felt like this story felt a bit to simplistic. It was definitely a linear story line, get from point A to B, where a few events happen in the middle to slow down your progress to get to point B. I was waiting for the plot to get more complicated, but it never came--which was surprising and a bit disappointing, because Leikam's writing that does make an appearance feels so airtight and cleaned up that you definitely think he absolutely could write something more expansive, but just didn't.

Narrator
• Just wanted to shout out to Moira Quirk, who narrated this story as well as other books I loved, including Gideon the Ninth. She's fantastic!!
• Very adept at making distinct character voices, which could be pretty tricky if you're a voice actor with not as much finesse as Quirk for this story, b/c there are actually several female characters (main character, parade of villains, etc.) and you don't want them to all sound the same and confuse the living daylights out of the listener.
• If you have the option of listening to this story and not just reading the print, highly recommend you do so.

Overall, 3.5 ⭐️'s, rounding up. Looking forward to what I hope will be a sequel, where we can hopefully explore more of the world and hopefully get a more complex and intricate plot to stick the interesting characters into.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

From the moment I saw the title Anji Kills a King and the classic fantasy-inspired cover, I was hooked. The premise—Anji on the run after assassinating a king—immediately promised a gripping, high-stakes adventure, and the book definitely delivered.

The story wastes no time pulling you in, and I found myself quickly immersed in both the world and the characters’ journeys. While the worldbuilding takes more of a backseat, the fast pace and strong character focus more than make up for it. The writing is clean, accessible, and perfect for readers who might be newer to fantasy or just want a fast, engaging read.

What really stood out to me was the dynamic between Anji and the Hawk. Their banter, tension, and gradual character development were highlights that kept me turning the pages. Even in the darkest moments, their humour and chemistry added a spark that brought the story to life.

Overall, Anji Kills a King is a strong, adventurous fantasy debut filled with sharp dialogue, unlikely allies, and a protagonist you can’t help but root for. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for whatever this author writes next.

I also loved listening to this via audiobook. The narrator did a fantastic job as always!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this audio copy to review.

Excerpted from my blog - full review is at:
https://overentertained.wordpress.com/2025/04/10/anji-kills-a-king-evan-leikam-review/

People…I’m happy to say I was wrong. This book f*cking rocked. This is a killer debut and I am somewhat shocked with how much I liked it

As usual, I’ll avoid recapping the plot – the blurb on the book does a perfectly adequate job of giving you the basics. There is some interesting, but not overwhelming, world building that Leikam engages in that I found fascinating. Not too much detail…but enough to give you the gist of what’s going on (and played out slowly over the course of the novel). The Menagerie are a truly fascinating and terrifying group of psychopaths on Anji’s heels – in lesser hands they would have been played as more “grey” than they are in Leikam’s novel. I half expected them to show up and be the “rescuers” of her…and was happy when they proved themselves to be much worse than I could have imagined.

Leikam’s world feels true and lived in. I mention grimdark above because there is definitely an element of that here. This is NOT an easy read – nasty things happen to a lot of people, guilty and innocent, and his world is not for the feint of heart. There are a ton of interesting ideas of religious extremism and the “power behind the scenes” stuff that made for a lot of interesting discussion in the book. The use of drugs, the blatant corruption, the various powers who will use the death of the king in different ways and for differennt reasons.

Have I mentioned how absolutely terrifying The Menagerie is? Dear Gods. The Goat alone…whew.

I really liked this. In this particular case, I listened to the audiobook, read by Moira Quirk (whom I’ve never heard before) and she was outstanding. It moves along at almost breakneck speed at times and there is a fantastic “reveal” towards the end that I really didn’t see coming (though in hindsight…maybe I should have). There’s enough here for future novels and…man…I was wrong. Here is a “book influencer” who has written a fantastic novel that is outside my current comfort zone and yet…I really dug it. He deserves all the kudos I’ve seen for it.

There are a couple of quibbles here and there, mostly with the ending (I won’t spoil it here…I just found it somewhat…implausible maybe? It works…but it comes across as too neat for my taste. Too easy and maybe unrealistic. It requires a suspension of disbelief I simply struggled with). But that’s really minor. This is a terrific debut that I was absolutely wrong about. 4.5 stars – it is just short of a 5 star…even if I’m rounding up for GR.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a chance to read/listen to an advance copy of this in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and are uncompensated. Anji Kills a King is out May 13th from Tor and Macmillan Audio and you can preorder it here.

Anji Kills a King gives western buddy comedy meets grimdark fantasy vibes in the weirdest but most interesting way. Anji and bounty hunter Hawk's burgeoning relationship provides some dark humor that starkly highlights the absolute brutality of the world they occupy, and especially the brutalism of the other bounty hunters. Every time I felt myself veering into annoyance with Anji - an adolescent murderess who must face the consequences of her crimes - Evan Leikam both slapped Anji and the reader with the dark realities of her situation, kicking the bite out of Anji and surprising me as a reader. I personally struggled with some of the darker, more violent moments because this fantasy is truly cruel, but the character work pulled me right along. Add on an absolutely brilliant narrative performance from Moira Quirk, and I would highly recommend this audiobook to any epic fantasy reader.

🌳Anji Kills a King by Evan Leikam.

4/5⭐️

I have been waiting for this debut for a long time. And boy what a debut and so full of adventure! I had the opportunity to experience this story through ARC audiobook (thank you Macmillan Audio). The narrator Moira Quirk did an amazing job with the narration of each character. I was not made to guess which character was speaking. The pacing of the story was fast, action packed and engaging all through out.

Although the world build was lighter than some fantasy novels I have read, I really enjoyed the fact that it was character focused. The relationship and character development between the two main characters was outstanding and kept me engaged. I can’t wait to see what’s next for Anji.

I recommended to anyone who loves
Epic fantasy, journeys with unlikely allies, hard truths and unique magic.

4.5 stars!!

Anji Kills a King was such a solid debut! The writing was really simple and accessible, but not too simple to where anything felt stilted or awkward. I liked how young and headstrong Anji was and how it lead her to make some mistakes. I enjoyed her growth by the end and I am really curious to see her development throughout the series. There wasn’t as much world building as I would have liked. A lot of it happened in conversations between Anji and the Hawk, but I would have liked to learn a bit more. Hopefully the next book expands on it! This is a travel story, so it did feel slowly paced at times, but I enjoyed seeing Anji and the Hawk’s interactions in the various places they travels to and with the various characters they encountered along the way. The ending was wild and it has me excited for book two! Moira Quirk did an amazing job narrating the audiobook!

Thank you so much to Tor Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the Audio ARC!

3.75/5 stars

Moira Quirk is a top tier narrator and everything she reads is magic - wonderful job!

This was a well written, fun, interesting, and engaging story. It had all the makings of an amazing fantasy, but I can't say that it felt incredibly unique. But regardless, it was a lot of fun to read and I really did enjoy the story and the characters. I loved the concept of a group of bounty hunters in the persona of animals, employed by the government and make into folk heroes to the masses.....who are also just people that become twisted by power and begin to enjoy the pain they inflict. It was fascinating to read and watch develop, especially when entwined with the poignant commentary on corruption in power and religion.

But my favorite part was how Anji became an assassin and perpetrator of regicide - basically by accident. She is brash and stubborn and annoyingly unwilling to change or listen most of the book, but she's an interesting FMC that just sort of stumbles into the history books - I really enjoyed wondering what she would do next.

This is an amazing debut and while it wasn't perfect, you can bet I'll read whatever Leikam puts out next - every epic fantasy lover needs to check this out!

I had some high hopes for this book despite knowing it's a debut, and I'm very happy to see that it met and exceeded those hopes! Leikam has a great sense of humour and infuses that into his characters with witty banter and easy charisma. The pacing is awesome, and the writing feels like it has a lot of depth and understanding of the world that's being created. I could feel the anxiety and frantic need to *move* as Anji is launched into the story and quite literally on the run.

This was a very strong debut, I don't have any complaints and I'm excited to see where this author can go not only with this story but others in the future.

Moira Quirk is always an exceptional narrator and I was so happy to see she was taking on this story. Her voice was fantastic for Anji and she added extra depth to an already compelling and well written story. I'm so grateful I got to listen to this one, it was like an extra layer of magic.

Anji and Hawk have a fantastic dynamic. I loved their banter and watching their relationship develop over the course of the story. The world-building, the humor, the action, the pacing—I loved it all, and I cannot wait for the next book!

✧ ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰʀᴇᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ, @tor @netgalley

➤ 𝚂𝚈𝙽𝙾𝙿𝚂𝙸𝚂

Anji, a castle servant turned assassin, kills a hated king and goes on the run with a massive bounty on her head. Hunted by the deadly Menagerie, mercenaries with magical animal masks, she’s caught by the Hawk, a grizzled swordswoman with her own agenda. What follows is a tense and uneasy alliance as they race to survive, with the fate of the kingdom hanging in the balance. Perfect for fans of Joe Abercrombie, R.F. Kuang, and Christopher Buehlman.

➤ 𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚄𝙶𝙷𝚃𝚂

Anji Kills a King opens with a bold move when Anji kills the king, and the story takes off at full speed from there. What follows is a gritty, fast-moving fantasy that stands out for its originality and emotional weight. Anji and the Hawk feel like real people, not just fantasy archetypes. Their choices have consequences, their goals shift, and their pain feels earned. The book explores heavy themes like grief, addiction, and religious trauma without turning overly dramatic. Some side characters could have used more development, but the core relationship more than carries the story. It is raw, intense, and surprisingly moving.

The pacing is relentless, which will appeal to readers who enjoy a quick and urgent story, though it might feel rushed for those who prefer deeper world-building. Still, the tension stays high, and even the more predictable twists land with impact. The story leans into its weird, eerie tone in all the right ways and ends on a dark and satisfying note. It also sets up the next book without feeling like a placeholder. For a debut, this is a strong and memorable start. Evan is clearly a talent worth watching, and I will be picking up the sequel.

I have followed Evan's IG profile @BookReviewsKill for a long time, appreciating his considered thoughts on not just modern popular books, but the full breadth of sci-fi and fantasy literature. His massive collection of tattered paperbacks and well-worn trade editions from the background of his older videos evoked an instant feeling of comradery with a fellow book lover. I was thrilled when he announced he had a book deal with Tor and would be coming out with his very own fantasy series, and so pleased when I saw a copy of the audiobook in my inbox for early review.

Long story short, I'm impressed.

The premise is self-described in the title. Anji, a servant in the king's castle, kills him in the prologue. It becomes clear shortly after that she was not quite anticipating the wider implications of his death either for herself, or the greater realm. What follows is a reluctant journey she can't escape.

I really loved Moira Quirk's narration of this novel. Anji has a strong voice and it felt all the more powerful with the right narrator to do her justice.

The novel is relatively fast paced. I found it got a little meandering around the two thirds mark where I was craving something new, but I can't disparage it much on pacing, as it gets going right away and the integrity of the writing itself maintains itself all the way through. The world building is far from overwhelming, giving only bits and spurts in a way that kept it interesting and intriguing.

Overall, this is a very strong debut, and after that ending, I am so interested to find out what happens next for Anji. Way to go Evan, this really lived up to the hype I was expecting.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The debut fantasy novel “Anji Kills a King” by Evan Leikam follows the castle servant Anji that escaped the capital after killing the current King. With the kingdom in turmoil she is being hunted by the famous mercenaries of the so called Menagerie.This group of powerful, animal mask wearing bounty hunters will stop at nothing to see Anji brought to justice.

This was a good debut! The writing and plot were immediately engaging. This is a book with the characters constantly on the move and focused on their destination. So if you like road trip heavy books without any romantic subplot this will be for you!

I especially enjoyed the relationship between Anji and the Hawk. The dynamic and development between Anji and the older woman was fascinating. Furthermore I always find it refreshing to read a unique character pairing. Sadly the story lost a lot of its momentum in the middle part, which was filled with action scenes but could stick the landing for me.

The world building was well done while the magic system rarely really factored much into the story during their trip. It felt more like an introduction into a world that would span multiple books while for me the story had a great end point. I always appreciate fantasy books that work great as a standalone.

I had the pleasure to listen to the book as an audiobook and can only say good things about the performance by Moira Quirk. I found her voices fitted the characters and I was always aware who was speaking. I particularly liked her portrayal of the raspy voice of the Hawk.

A big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Macmillan Audio for giving me the opportunity to listen to an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

So look. Anji Kills a King is basically a long, tortuous road trip with so much blood and other gross bodily fluids that it was tough for me to finish! Basically you've got Anji, who (yes) kills the tyrant king of her country and then goes on the lam. She's quickly picked up by a bounty hunter, the Hawk, and then the rest of the book is them on the road back to the capital where Anji is to be tortured and executed for her crime. And I'm not talking about an Immortals After Dark "Torture Island" road trip that, while tortuous, is also sexy. The Hawk takes a lot of time bringing Anji to the capital city, and the encounter a lot of different people on the roads who want to separate them so they can get the money for her capture themselves. We will eventually discover why Anji killed the king, why the Hawk is so single-minded about collecting the bounty, and what the consequences will be for both of them if Anji escapes, but it takes a lot of miles traveled, blood spilled, and black saliva spit to get there.

If you like fantasy road trips but wish there was less romance and lots more blood than LOTR, this is the book for you. I listened to the audiobook and narrator Moira Quick does a great job of differentiating all of the characters. This is the first in a series, but I don't know if my stomach is strong enough to continue, despite my interest in the continued plot (assuming Anji gets off the road)!

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the audiobook.