Good for Reading? ∣ The Grace of Kings Honest Review

Have you ever wondered if storytelling could save the world?

Before you roll your eyes at me for the absurd thing I say, I must tell you they can. But you’re right, stories might not change everything on their own; they’re just a good start. Where do you think money came from? Trees? Last I checked, a sheet of paper is worth less than a dollar.

That’s right, money started off as a story, not an objective reality.

Welcome to my odd review series, where I categorize how much novels question our beliefs about life, and how much they merely take them for granted.

W H A T I S T H E G R A C E O F K I N G S ?

Before we begin, I’m placing a bet—or two.

I bet you thought I would continue along the path I was adamantly pursuing. I bet you thought I was continuing with Sanderson’s ginormous universe, didn’t you? Or, I bet, perhaps you thought I was gone from the face of the Earth because it took, like, four months—or more —for me to post anything at all? Well, you’re WRONG. I am back, and I am here with another award-winning author, Ken Liu.

I decided I had to space my Sanderson a bit, or else it grew stale…

Because it happened.

Thus, here we are, with a book I didn’t even know if I wanted to read, and a book I admit to knowing nothing about until I read the whole thing and saw its first review on YouTube. Because apparently, I can’t even read book covers that tell me this story has won an award and whatnot.

So, what is it about?

Without spoilers, please.

***

Kuni Garu, ever the rebel he is, refuses to do as he is told. A drunkard, a bandit, a good-for-nothing son of a commoner, ends up where he was never expected; part of a revolution. Mata Zyndu, forgotten prince of the greatest of warriors, dethroned and with a thirst for vengeance, forms the other part of said revolution. When they meet, sparks fly—they complement each other as is said of those who are opposites.

The brawn and the brain, together, to overthrow the oppressive rule of the Emperor.

What could possibly go wrong?

F U N

This, probably, is the weakest beginning to a series of compliments I’m gonna give this book.

I did not feel it was a book written to my tastes, despite having the majority of things I look for in a story. I did not feel much throughout it, and I think this is what my urge as a reader tends to follow, which I did not get from this novel, and it shows in my overall enjoyment. It was a series of plot points one after the other, sometimes, with an explicit explanation of who the character is and how they got where they got and why they are doing what they’re doing. It was a series of battles, one after the other, of people falling, others rising, of rebels, and rebels and emperors, and you get the gist. It was about getting to like a character and then, boom, a time skip, and ugh! I was just liking their perspective!

In a few words, a plot-driven story.

Not my jam.

Still, among all that, I found a semblance of enjoyment. Curiously, it was on the small things. Those moments where characters spoke to each other from the heart, and in all those monologues. Some were unnecessary, I will be the first to admit, but I am a sucker for monologues, and many in this book got me. Maybe they were not as emotional as I would’ve preferred, but they were so heavy with intellectual satisfaction, I couldn’t help myself.

This book is smart, a little on the nose, and massive in scope.

 I do not think is fun, but I cannot say it’s not a good read.

Verdict? M A Y B E

W E L L W R I T T E N

One thing is being fun, and the other is being well written.

This is a vivid example of that. This is not a book written in a way we’re used to, and just because it’s strange or unusual, doesn’t mean it's bad. And it is Unusual, with a capital u. This is fiction written as a history book, with snippets of character development that make it fiction, but a series of events that make it historical. At least in the way we’re used to seeing history being presented as, but that’s another can of worms we need not get into.

The marvel of this writing style is actually in the meaning it takes on a larger scale. It is written in an omniscient perspective, as if to tell us, we, readers, are those gods that observe the people, rooting for one or the other, depending on how history flows. It’s meta commentary in the best of its version.

But it’s not just the writing style that’s good, but how well it does what it does.

We’ve already gone over the monologues, where you get raw emotions and intellectual truths. What I’ve not said is how well he writes character when that is not his focus. Characters have their own stories, their snippets of time to shine, and how, in a short time, you get to the core of who they are. Some that make emotions surface, others that make you think, and others that you don’t truly care about because they’re awful. But the thing is, they resonate. And each plays a part.

I won’t say much about plot points except I found them compelling to tell the story they told.

And boy, what a story they told…!

Verdict? M A Y B E

T H O U G T - P R O V O K I N G T H E M E S

And here we are. The story those plot points told.

It is the history of a nation based on kings who, in turn, believe in the gods that put them there. The wars they wage between them, the desire to make all people get along, and how everything turns on its head despite the best of intentions. Well, sometimes. Because sometimes it all just goes as planned.

Battles, after battles, after court intrigue, after blood, sweat, and tears, because there is so much happening, I can’t even begin to give a list.

Just to keep it spoiler-free for a sec, I have to tell you what other reviewers have said. This story is about power. It’s so evident no one missed it. It’s about how power works and how the gods play into that narrative of power through prophecies. It’s about polar opposites crashing with the weight of power behind them.

How power controls everything around it.

I don’t think I can do better than that without getting into specifics, so here on out, spoilers ahead.

With what we know of just this installment, it is unclear what the destination of the discussion is. From what we get is how relationships, as strong as that of blood, even, get torn apart when power comes in between. We get that obviously from Mata and Kuni, but we get that with the two brothers torn from each other, also with the first rebel king and his partner, with Phin and Mata, with the gods themselves…

Power corrupts, yes.

But power, in this novel, comes from the gods. How the gods favor one or the other. How they make prophecies, or spew signs men interpret as blessings.

But the truth is, those ideas that men hang on to are just stories men tell each other to justify their thirst. Ideas serve kings to keep doing what they do, for wars to continue as they will.

Who is wrong and who is right? Is Kuni the good guy and Mata the bad guy? Or will it play out differently?

This book offers a discussion that has just begun.

What I wonder now is where it leads.

Verdict? W O R K S F O R M E

C R I T I C A L C O M M E N T A R Y

I do not have to say much for anyone to see why this is a good commentary on how power plays out today. I won’t go too into it because I believe it’s already too evident, but yes, power corrupts.

Corrupts relationships, ideas, and outcomes.

Wars have been waged, families torn, and societies destroyed.

Isn’t it too poignant?

It shouldn’t be, and I’m not talking about the book.

Verdict? W O R K S F O R M E

P R O P O S E S A L T E R N A T I V E S

The great thing about a series is that it has volumes to propose a discussion and explore its nuance.

We have a clear critique of power, but in the end, we don’t know the full spectrum of what the author wants us to see.

From what I gather, this book is promising.

Power is the major thing holding us prisoners.

We’ll just have to see if the discussion pans out. I will continue the series, though it’s not one I will very much enjoy, I know I want to see it through for what it has said and what it will.

Verdict?  M A Y B E  

To make a long story short, this book got: