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Title: The One Kingdom
Series: The Swan’s War #1
Author: Sean Russell
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 544
Format: Digital Edition
| Synopsis: |
Magician’s don’t die. If they’re powerful enough, they can exist without going through Death’s Gate.
Hundreds of years ago, the children of the most powerful magician the world had ever known were each given a gift from their father. Their choices split the One Kingdom and resulted in death and devastation.
Now, the families of the Renne’s and the Wills have their own feud that could tear apart the fragile peace of the land. One of the Renne’s is determined to make the peace last while his family plots to assassinate him for such thoughts. The Wills plot to strengthen themselves through marriage with an outside family, the Innes. The Innes are being “guided” by a man who is much more than he appears and much more dangerous than they know.
At the same time, 3 young men from the Northern Vale take a trip down the river to buy horses. They come across a man name Alain and their misfortunes/adventures start. They come into contact with a Naga, the embodiment of the daughter of the magician.
The Naga, Alain and the Guide are all so much more than the people around them know. Can the land survive the return of the Children?
| My Thoughts: |
I went into this really wondering if I was going to like it as much as I did back in ’09. Thankfully, this lived up to my memories and my current expectations of a good book.
This is a slow book. It meanders like the river that much of the story takes place on. In many ways, the river itself is a character, at times benevolent, at other times very malevolent.
Besides being a slow book, it is also very character driven. The Valemen trio start out as the main characters, but Russell deftly moves from group to group, from individual to individual in such a way that I never felt either bored or wanting something else. There is a lot of description of landscapes and what surrounds the characters but for whatever reason I didn’t blow by it like I usually do in other books. I was able to sit back and take it in.
Where I have described Patricia McKillip’s writings as “silk”, Russell’s writing is like a river. Some times meandering, some times fast and furious, some times appearing calm, some times dragging you along a current you don’t even realize you are in. I felt like I was sitting in a boat going down a river while reading this. Why I was intrigued instead of bored, I do not know. But I loved this story.
I also like how Russell portrays magic. It is something dangerous, subtle and never good. It destroys those who use it and hurts those around them. It is not flashy fireballs or the calling forth of demon lords. It is influence, power, strength, persuaviness and the ability to bend others to your will. It is scary.
So another fantastic re-read. Definitely glad that I bought this in hardcover.
Ooh I love the sound of this one- definitely has me intrigued!
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I feel much better about the rest of the trilogy now that the first book is as good as I remember.
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Ah that’s good!
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Plus it has great cover art.
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The hardcover I own has the gold’y bridge cover that is more prevalent, but this one fits the mood of the book better. It was pretty melancholic throughout…
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I thought I had read this one. I checked Goodreads though and find no hint. But it sounds familiar. I need to check my best friends shelf, maybe I borrowed it from him and his extensive collection.
This is going to bug me now.
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Have you read anything by Russell? He tends to tell very similar stories…
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5 stars! Uau! Never heard of it. And I thought I was well read…
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Russell is a little known author who appeared for about 10 books and then I haven’t heard anything more about him.
It’s no surprise you haven’t heard of him. I’m not sure even how I came across him. My guess is my library…
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No. It’ll be the first for me. Thanks for the tip.
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If you do get around to these books, I’ll be looking forward to your review…
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Got the first one!
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Wow, that was quick!
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I don’t want to pass up a potentially 5 star book…
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I am going to laugh very heartily if you end up rating it 3 stars. I’ll roar if you rate it 2 and I’ll collapse in giggles if you rate it 1. The irony would just kill me 🙂
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I like your comparison of this author’s writing to a river: it means that the story keep flowing, no matter the pace – and that’s a high compliment!
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True. At no point did I feel like the story was stuck. It might not have been going where I wanted it to, but never stuck 🙂
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This sound great! I love character driven fantasy! I also can appreciate when the paces fluctuates in titles if it is done right. The approach to the magic system is very interesting!
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In all of Russell’s books, the magic is very understated. It almost makes it frustrating to read about, but since he’s focused on his characters, the magic doesn’t detract from them. It simply enhances their good, or bad, qualities…
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That sounds really promising. I am surprised I haven’t heard of it before. Will go on my wishlist
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Russell never made a big splash as an author…
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This sounds fantastic. Even if its slow-paced, it feels like it works in its favor. ++ it’s character-driven! Seems like everything is justified.
The twist on the role of magic also makes this sound like a perfect read. Great review!
– Lashaan
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Yep, the pacing definitely works with the type of book it is.
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