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Member Reviews

What is the truth? And does it matter?

K.J. Parker wrote “Set in Stone,” one of the best short stories I read last year. If you’re on the fence about this novella, take a gander at that. If you love it, as I did, Making History will make your day.

In all honesty, my brain is mush right now and my attention span is practically nonexistent, but this book managed to suck me in anyway and reignite my old ancient history/classical world-flavored comedy hyperfixation.

It’s fun, it’s clever, it’s pretty topical (unfortunately), and I recommend it.

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Making History by K.J. Parker is my latest review book via Net Galley. What’s this one about?

In Making History, a group of scholars are given an impossible task by a king: create an ancient city. The king wants it as an excuse for a war. What could go wrong?

The narrator of Making History has “unreliable narrator” stamped on his forehead. Not literally. That would be ridiculous. But unreliable narrator he is. By the end of the story, you have to wonder how much of this was true. It makes for a really interesting story full of plot twists that you don’t see coming.

The story is also full of dark humor, with moments that made me laugh and shake my head. The narrator could also dive into the weeds on his scholarly subject and that just made my eyes glaze over. And he was aware of that!

Making History isn’t a long story at all. It could probably be read in a day or two. I thought it was really good story though. For such a short story, its full of detail and it sets the world and its characters wonderfully. You really start to wonder “how the heck are they going to get out of this?” Things just get really bad. In a humorous way.

Without a doubt, Making History isn’t a story to be taken seriously and yet it does give you some food for thought about truth, lies, and yes history. K.J. Parker weaved together a really good story. I enjoyed it a lot!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing an early copy of this book. Making History releases on September 2, 2025.

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Unrest in the Kingdom of Aelia has settled and the new dictator Gyges has plans. He 'volunteers' a group of academics to 'find' an ancient city that will serve as his justification for war with one of the neighboring city-states. The only problem is that as the academics delve into the project creating the language, artifacts and physical location is that copycat objects appear in the markets or traders arrive speaking this lost language. Is reality adapting to the work their undertaking? Or is something more nefarious at play?

Our unnamed narrator is a linguist, writing with a dry humorous tone, the novella a recording of this undertaking. It's fun and playful, poking at many different themes such as the academic life, machinations of politics, and do or die ethos. It's a blend of history with fantasy, perhaps a genre due for its own boom akin to 'romantasy.'

Recommended to readers of historically based fiction, creation of empires or those deciding on sword or glove.

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I was between 3 and 4 stars for this book until the last few pages. The plot twist at the end really turned the tide for me and pushed this into the 4 star bucket.

This book is really unlike anything I’ve read recently and possibly ever. The main character essentially speaks directly to the reader, often breaking the fourth wall in a way and it reads like he’s telling you a story. He gets lost in tangents and then brings himself back to the point several times but the tangents provide the backstory and world building for the rest of the book.

It was a quick read. It took a little while to really understand everything but I think that’s the point, following the storytelling of the main character and holding onto pieces of information he gives waiting for them to come back up later.

I’d read more from this author but I’m not sure if I’m ready to tackle their extensive back list just yet 😂

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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This book is such a clever, darkly funny gem. K. J. Parker just has this way of making you think while keeping you completely entertained, and this story is no exception. It’s wickedly smart, filled with dry wit and biting commentary on power, truth, and how history gets shaped by those in control. The characters are fantastic, intelligent, and cynical.
The writing is masterful, it’s concise yet layered with meaning. Every sentence feels purposeful, and the story never lags. The dark fantasy setting is gritty and unforgiving, but the way Parker infuses it with irony makes it feel strangely hopeful in its own twisted way. It’s one of those stories that makes you question the nature of truth while thoroughly enjoying every moment of its chaos. The balance between grim reality and biting humor is perfect, and it left me thinking long after I finished. A definite must-read for those who love dark fantasy with brains and bite.

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Witty, sly, knowingly charming, this sharp fantasy novella is a darkly amusing romp in a single tart bite. Everything I always want in a SFF novella - a clever idea, brilliantly executed.

Thank you to the publisher for the advance review copy!

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Thank you Netgalley! Actually a 3.5.

This is an extremely interesting premise and the prose is beautiful. The author definitely went into this knowing the story he wanted to tell and, especially in regard to the ending, the message he wanted to send. For such a short novella, I was very impressed by the world building it was able to get across.

What I really found lacking was the actual…meat of the story. It can be hard to write a really good novella, but I do think this is a story that COULD have been told and felt fully fleshed out within 150 pages. When you’re working with that kind of page count, you really have to make everything count, and I don’t feel like that was accomplished here. I felt no real attachment to the characters, I realized by the end of it I didn’t even know the main character’s name; the first half of the book felt like it was the set up to a novel, with the latter half then remembering it’s a novella and making it all feel like a sprint to the finish line. It’s a shame because the story and the message are both genuinely compelling.

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Thank you for allowing me to read this small excerpt of the book. It is not on Goodreads yet as the book doesn’t exist there. I will wait to review on Goodreads until full book is read. From what I have read so far it is interesting.

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The premise of this story is that a group of scholars are given an impossible task by their king. They must accurately recreate an old city in order to justify the king trying to take over more land. The narrator of the story is the linguist among the group of scholars.

This one is a bit hard to review since it is a fairly short novella. Overall, the story was enjoyable and I would recommend that if someone is curious, that they give it a try.

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A group of scholars must construct a fake anxiety city for a tyranical king and if they fail to do so... they'll face death. This was definitely an interesting story, especially with how it ended. It's a short and fast read and definitely covers a unique storyline. I do think it's an easy one to get into and that if you like a bit of fantasy read then I'd give it a go.

Release Date: Sep 2, 2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group | Tordotcom for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

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