The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this! It's solidly YA genre fantasy and there's nothing especially new here but it was fun. I like the main characters a lot: Raisa ana'Marianna, princess heir of the Fellsmarch, and "reformed thief" Han Alister. It has a lot of the stuff that makes Game of Thrones fun without all the painful stuff that bogs it down. Royalty, soldiers, and wizards vying for power.

I love the world building. The world has a specific though somewhat unclear history. Hanalea was a legendary warrior queen who killed the Demon King and saved the world, except maybe that's not what happened at all. My favorite part of the world building is the lifestyle of the clan. The clan characters are also particularly interesting especially Han's clan friend, Dancer, and his mother the potions maker. Raisa's father and grandmother are also from the clan and add a lot to the story once they appear.

A lot of it is predictable, and it's a bit slow at the beginning but it's just really fun. I'm excited to read the next book and see what happens now that all the characters are finally in motion.




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