‘The Justice of Kings’ – Richard Swan (Orbit)

Now here’s a book that I’ve had my eye on for what seems like months so a big thank you to Orbit for providing a review copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I don’t think I’ve heard a single bad word about ‘The Justice of Kings’ so I’ve been really eager to crack the book open and dive in. Having said that, life did its absolute best to stop me reading ‘The Justice of Kings as quickly as I wanted to so in the end, I hid in a café (over the weekend) and refused to come out until I was done, or until it was time to go back to work, whichever came first 😉

Luckily for me, I finished the book before I had to go back to work. I don’t think I could have done a day in the office while waiting to see how it ended. Let me tell you all about it…   

NO MAN IS ABOVE THE LAW

The Empire of the Wolf simmers with unrest. Rebels, heretics and powerful patricians all challenge the power of the imperial throne.

Only the Order of Justices stands in the way of chaos. Sir Konrad Vonvalt is the most feared Justice of all, upholding the law by way of his sharp mind, arcane powers and skill as a swordsman. At his side stands Helena Sedanka, his clerk and protégé, orphaned by the wars that forged the empire.

When the pair investigate the murder of a provincial aristocrat, they unearth a conspiracy that stretches to the very top of imperial society. As the stakes rise and become ever more personal, Vonvalt and Helena must make a choice: will they abandon the laws they've sworn to uphold in order to protect the empire?

Let me kick things off by saying that if you want to stop reading here and go and buy yourself a copy of ‘The Justice of Kings’, and read that instead, I’ll totally understand. I’d probably do exactly the same in your position, ‘The Justice of Kings’ is that good, it really is 😊

That’s not to say it’s perfect though… There is a lot of necessary worldbuilding, in the early stages of the book, and given the subject matter, a lot of this worldbuilding is around the law and its application by Justices such as Konrad Vonvalt. If that’s your thing then you’re in for a treat as Swan goes all out to ensure that his readers have everything that they need in order to be able to navigate the Empire. The result is an undeniably rich background, that the plot plays out against, but I’m more about things actually moving forward in the plot (limited reading time and all that) so this wasn’t for me as much as it would have been in the past. Swan does win the award for ‘best Explanation of Insurance in a Fantasy Novel’ (previous holder – Terry Pratchett) though, I learnt a lot there 😉

‘The Justice of Kings’ is a slow burner but don’t let that put you off, a little perseverance pays big rewards over the course of the rest of the plot. The introduction of a murder mystery spices things up nicely and playing this off against trouble in the capitol lends both sub-plots an extra sense of urgency as it’s made clear that Vonvalt cannot help but concentrate on one and it will inevitably be at the expense of the other. Is there any way round this? Well… You’ll have to read and find out which is no chore when you’re in the hands of a writer who is on top of their game like Richard Swan, clearly very much at home both in the ‘grim streets police procedural’ as he is in the worlds of courtly intrigue. He switches back and forth in such a way that it’s very clear to the reader how minor events can shake nations (and he leaves you wanting more, just to see how it all works out, I’m definitely on for the ride). Not only that but liberal doses of action really let you know what the law is about in this Empire. 

But that’s not Swan’s masterstroke though.

When I first picked up ‘The Justice of Kings’, I was looking forward to some ‘Fantasy Judge Dredd’ action. I mean, looking at that blurb… You would, wouldn’t you? Well, while Vonvalt is key to the plot, and he even says ‘I am the Law’ in his own way, this story is about Helena and that’s the masterstroke because you see, she’s a far more interesting character than Vonvalt himself.

Vonvalt has already seen great potential in Helena and it’s easy to see why; she’s a free spirit who wants to do the right thing. The right thing by herself that is, once she has figured out what that is. She doesn’t even really know if the Law is for her at this point. While we do come across a female Justice, this is still a very male oriented world and watching Helena move through it, more or less on her own terms, makes for compelling reading. Helena is a large part of the reason why I will be back for book two, I want good things for her and she deserves them.

Helena is also at a very early stage of her career, in the Law, and so makes for a very interesting lens through which to watch Vonvalt navigate treacherous waters of his own. I can’t give away too much but where they both are, come the end of the book, is going to make for a ‘must read’ second book, it’s that simple. 

‘The Justice of Kings’ is the perfect blend of intrigue and action, set against a richly detailed world, that makes for superb reading. I can’t say it enough, read this book.