Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Wicked Lovely
SERIES: The Black Blade Chronicles #1
AUTHOR: J K Hogan
PUBLISHER: Euphoria Press
LENGTH: 355 Pages
RELEASE DATE: October 12, 2021
BLURB:
From the mind of romance author J.K. Hogan comes a new series that combines the adventure and magic of epic fantasy with the enchantment of romance.
Darkness grows in the realm of Taleth. To the west, a power-hungry despot schemes to conquer kingdoms and territories alike by chasing an ancient elven prophecy that could give him the power to rule all. In the east, after a prince’s murder goes years unanswered, a princess learns there was much more to her brother’s death—and to her life—than she realized.
The House of Kjenelach is shaken to its foundation when Princess Sigrid is stolen away. Her faithful guardian, Sir Senne Clayward, reluctantly accepts help from his nemesis, a notorious halfling mercenary of questionable morals—but indispensable tracking skills—called Kasimir vas Hjardar.
Kasimir makes his living hunting monsters, both creatures and men. While he exists outside the law, he lives by his own unassailable code of honor. At the top of that list: never harm a child. When he turns down a contract to kidnap Sigrid and later finds out she was taken by someone else, he offers his help to the prickly knight tasked with protecting her.
Together, they embark upon a journey across the continent to save Sigrid and foil King Prosper’s plans to conquer Taleth. The way is fraught with dangers and pitfalls, from supernatural beasts to Senne’s deathly fear of magic, but they must not fail, for Sigrid may very well be the savior of the realm: the long prophesied Aisnellach Fuil. Somehow, the two men must set their differences aside and work together to rescue Sigrid, and possibly find love along the way.
REVIEW:
When the love of his life, Del, died in his arms, Senne vowed nothing like it would happen again. So, when Del’s sister, Princess Sigrid, was kidnapped, leaving Senne injured, he was beside himself with the need to get her back. The man who comes to his aid is the elf/berserker halfling Kasimir. The two embark on a journey across the lands. They may have been looking for Sigrid, but they found more between themselves.
This is a story that I am beyond torn over. The world created is brilliant. However, there is so much that I found reading confusing. Consequently, I was unable to appreciate what was before me. The opening pages contain a somewhat extensive glossary of terminology, people, clothing, and tools used within the realms. As much as I welcomed the list, it also left me daunted – especially when characters are known by more than one name. The sheer volume of otherworldly beings ensured that just about any twist or turn was possible. A map of the world is also included, and the artwork is phenomenal.
The story is told in the third person from the viewpoints of Senne, Kasimir, and Sigrid. As the first in a series, the worldbuilding is vividly comprehensive and paves the way for future installments. Kudos to the author for not holding back. The different placenames are impressive, but I found myself dallying for too long, experimenting with pronunciations. I also experimented with what accent to use while reading the dialogue. I couldn’t get the image of the Cockney/London musical Oliver out of my head – which suited the words but not the high-ranking royalty within the story.
As for our heroes, most of the exchanges between Kasimir and Senne are barb-filled. Next to the ruthless Kasimir, Senne is the equivalent of a naïve maiden who frequently jumps to enough wrong conclusions for me to wonder at his sanity. They both have baggage, which airs through their journey, and the act of almost killing one another turns into foreplay, which didn’t really do it for me.
I admire the time and effort that went into this novel, and if you connect with the world and its characters, I do not doubt that many readers will find it one hell of a ride. But I felt somewhat disconnected between the language, people, and the world created – less could have been more. Imagine Lord of the Rings in the era of the musical Oliver then add some extras. Some scenes are beautiful nuggets of mastery, but there weren’t enough of them to keep me turning the page. I found it quite hard to make it to the end.
As I’ve already said, I’m sure many people will immerse themselves in the world; it just wasn’t my cup of tea.
RATING: 
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