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Science Fiction and Fantasy Association of New Zealand |
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A Kingdom Beseiged by Raymond E. Feist HarperVoyager Supplied for review by Harper Collins New Zealand |
Reviewed By: Simon Litten |
| Raymond E. Feist broke on to the science fiction and fantasy
stage with his Magician trilogy, and introduced a legion of
readers to Pug the magician, the ducal house of ConDoin at Crydee and the world of
Krondor. A Kingdom Besieged is a return to Krondor almost a
hundred years on from that opening novel. Unsurprisingly, A Kingdom Besieged is the start of a new Krondor sequence (probably a trilogy) that sets the stage for another epic struggle between the Kingdom of the Isles (a.k.a. Krondor) and its enemies. As the story unfolds the author reveals that this is not a simple case of thrust and counter thrust, feint and parry; long-dated Machiavellian schemes have been brought to fruition with the bonus of natural enemies (and long defeated foes) working together to avert even greater disharmony. Pug, still going after all these years, and the dukes of Crydee have their work cut out to rescue the Kingdom from this incipient conflagration. A Kingdom Besieged is Raymond E. Feist’s latest foray into Krondor, and after at least twenty five trips there the casual reader would be right to question whether the authorial flesh is still capable given that the spirit is so obviously willing. For this reviewer the answer to that question is a resounding, "Yes!" A Kingdom Besieged was a fast paced read that drew me into the story. I was concerned that the story would be yet another go around the usual sights and characters, rehashing old themes and setting, but from the starting scene in the world of the demons to military action in Crydee and the espionages of Pug(!) and Jimmy Dasher my interest was and remained piqued. The book, of course, ended on the veritable cliffhanger. If anything annoyed it was the author’s need to supply back story to link the current characters to those that went before – understandable but not entirely necessary. In summation: a book about Krondor that can be read by those new to Feist, who have read a few of his early novels and just recently returned, or devotees of old. A neat trick and one I wasn’t expecting. |
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