Witch King by Martha Wells

From the breakout SFF superstar author of Murderbot comes a remarkable story of power and friendship, of trust and betrayal, and of the families we choose. Kai-Enna is the Witch King, though he hasn’t always been, and he hasn’t even always been Kai-Enna! After being murdered, his consciousness dormant and unaware of the passing of time while confined in an elaborate water trap, Kai wakes to find a lesser mage attempting to harness Kai’s magic to his own advantage. That was never going to go well. But why was Kai imprisoned in the first place? What has changed in the world since his assassination? And why does the Rising World Coalition appear to be growing in influence? Kai will need to pull his allies close and draw on all his pain magic if he is to answer even the least of these questions. He’s not going to like the answers. WITCH KING is Martha Wells’s first new fantasy in over a decade, drawing together her signature ability to create characters we adore and identify with, alongside breathtaking action and adventure, and the wit and charm we’ve come to expect from one of the leading writers of her generation.

This is a different book. The style of the plot and the feel of the world reminded me of old pulpy sword and sorcery tales from well back in the 20th century those stories had a sense of wonder at the world and a sort of glee at crazy ideas or the possibilities of magic- but far too many had paper thin characters, few female characters worth speaking of and spotty descriptions.

This book is not like that.

This book has that old fashioned sense of wonder, it has the feeling of glee at the possibilities of magic and it has plenty of crazy ideas - but Martha Wells takes all of the good parts of sword and sorcery and then she adds huge, rich layers of characterisation, gorgeous description and deep characterisation to make this a book that creates a world and a cast that feel real and make your brain hum like a crystal glass.

If I have one negative it is that this feels very much like an introduction to the people and the world. The plot does resolve itself - Ms Wells is not cheating us. It's just that I have that edgy feeling I get when I was halfway through a really nice cup of tea and someone tidied it up before I was finished.

I really want more from this world!

A fast-paced fantasy that manages to balance light and dark. I am looking forward to any future continuation.

This book felt like a chaotic mess that needed far more editing and a much stronger plot. Would not recommend. A disappointment compared to her other books and considering the setting and main characters feels like they could have been so much better.