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The Royal Heretic
Bakari is the netkoleh, ruler of the Ega empire and the living embodiment of the gods. When his eldest son and heir falls ill and dies, Bakari drowns in despair. He decides that the gods are nonexistent and bans the empire's religion. He expects the people to rejoice at being "liberated" but talk of rebellion soon begins instead. In the north, in a long ago conquered kingdom, the second queen of the empire is sent to deliver the news. Her father, the king, wants to bargain with the netkoleh but she and her siblings know the man can't be reasoned with. Their religion was the last bit of dignity th Ega had left their people. To defy this decree will bring the wrath of the netkoleh down on their lands and hopefully the path to freedom. Meanwhile, the south is grappling with their recent occupation. The untried leader must balance the needs of her people with the demands of the Ega. The increasing pressures may not only break her but her land as well. In the end, a rash decree by a distant ruler may be the least of her worries. The bonds of family and fealty will be tested. The strength of nations' faith will be strained. And the fate of the entire empire will rest in the hands of a few.
322 pages, Paperback
Published July 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 5, 2020
A fast-paced, thrill ride about a grieving father who also happens to rule an empire. When his firstborn son dies, this emperor, who is supposed to be a god in the flesh, grows completely disenchanted with all gods and endeavors to banish religion as a whole from his entire domain. To say his subjects are unhappy with his decree would be a gross understatement. There are several moving parts to this story as the author takes us to visit several cities under Bakari's rule. Each city's government and citizens have their own stories and intrigue, skillfully woven into the overall theme of religion eradication. We find many of its citizens already unhappy with Bakari and his newest decree pushes them over the edge.
None are unhappier than the gods Bakari swears do not exist. There is one god in particular, and he's a big one, who commandeers the aid of a young woman to spread his message. This god sends her off with a little protective help, making her adventure alone worth reading the book.
As all the different places prepare to revolt or at least think really hard about it, I began to develop a favoritism toward specific cities and root for them to get out from under Bakari's boot. This book is for mature audiences as there are sexual situations and some profanity. Admittedly, these scenarios threw me off, but they didn't last long and the story moved along quickly.
The idea of all religion being abolished is not new, but the characters involved are. It is more than refreshing to read a story about self-sufficient people who are from all different walks of life, different beliefs and economic echelons, yet are all people of color. No big deal; they just are who they are. Wonderful. The story also includes Bakari's two wives who do not get along (surprise), the most vicious homicidal priests, insurrections, impending wars, and a magical jungle that one wants to avoid at all costs.
This is Sarah Macklin's debut novel and unless you knew that, you would never know. The Royal Heretic makes for a rollicking great read. I can't wait for book 2.
May 15, 2022
its quite something that in the fantasy book world where most books draw inspiration from some of the oldest civilization in the world Egyptian influence is severely lacking. In my quest to find a fantasy book that is inspired by ancient Egypt I came across this little book
I have to say never in my life have I read a book that is simultaneously so long yet so short.
The story starts off at funeral procession a royal child is dead and we see the entire royal family in mourning via the pov of a woman called Izriamat who is the second wife to the Netkoleh {read pharaoh} and afterwards the pharaoh decides that since his child died there is no way that gods exist and the entire plot of this book is him removing the influence of gods from the empire.
This plot is a very weak plot I find it quite unbelievable that a person who has been obsessively religious all their life would stop believing in gods entirely because of grief in my opinion that would even delve deeper in an effort to soften their grief, Bakari who is the emperor, {which is the name he orders everyone to call him after his change} is almost painfully stupid he wants to change the entire basis of what essentially gives him power over his subjects and start a meaningless war with everyone? Lets not mention the glaring plot holes
Aside from the weak plot, this book has no desriptive writing, it is basically a shift from dialogue to a little exposition and neither of these is done well hence there is white room syndrome I can neither tell you what the world in this book looks like nor the people. There is a lot of telling in this book, Izriamat constantly tells us how her husband is a bad person and they have had only one interaction on page and the writing comes of very juvenile with sentences like
“She hated them. People had no idea how she hated them” and “her posture changed.” Into what exactly
Every chapter of this book is an introduction to a new character, it makes the story forgettable as no one stands out since we don’t spend enough time with any of them before its another characters turn to bore us, the characters are very underdeveloped because the plot is happening to them and no one acts on the narrative.
This book is too abrupt to be anything but boring and if you must take inspiration from the real world it would be great to have a twist on it surprise your reader and awe us otherwise what’s the point of writing fantasy then?
I have to say never in my life have I read a book that is simultaneously so long yet so short.
The story starts off at funeral procession a royal child is dead and we see the entire royal family in mourning via the pov of a woman called Izriamat who is the second wife to the Netkoleh {read pharaoh} and afterwards the pharaoh decides that since his child died there is no way that gods exist and the entire plot of this book is him removing the influence of gods from the empire.
This plot is a very weak plot I find it quite unbelievable that a person who has been obsessively religious all their life would stop believing in gods entirely because of grief in my opinion that would even delve deeper in an effort to soften their grief, Bakari who is the emperor, {which is the name he orders everyone to call him after his change} is almost painfully stupid he wants to change the entire basis of what essentially gives him power over his subjects and start a meaningless war with everyone? Lets not mention the glaring plot holes
Aside from the weak plot, this book has no desriptive writing, it is basically a shift from dialogue to a little exposition and neither of these is done well hence there is white room syndrome I can neither tell you what the world in this book looks like nor the people. There is a lot of telling in this book, Izriamat constantly tells us how her husband is a bad person and they have had only one interaction on page and the writing comes of very juvenile with sentences like
“She hated them. People had no idea how she hated them” and “her posture changed.” Into what exactly
Every chapter of this book is an introduction to a new character, it makes the story forgettable as no one stands out since we don’t spend enough time with any of them before its another characters turn to bore us, the characters are very underdeveloped because the plot is happening to them and no one acts on the narrative.
This book is too abrupt to be anything but boring and if you must take inspiration from the real world it would be great to have a twist on it surprise your reader and awe us otherwise what’s the point of writing fantasy then?
September 16, 2020
This is a great debut from Sarah Macklin. Good characters, gods, politics, and an ending that will leave you wanting to see what happens next! I can't wait to see how the next book plays out! Highly recommended!!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews