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King of the Labyrinth Light Novel #3
King of the Labyrinth, Vol. 3 (light novel): Gods, Beasts, and Humans
To defeat the minotaur known far and wide as the King of the Labyrinth, Zara, the son of the hero Panzel, embarked on a journey of self-improvement. Over
the course of his travels, he met many influential figures—including a daughter of the mountains, a lamia, and a shrine maiden—with each encounter contributing immensely to his growth. On the latest leg of his trip, he meets a knight in red armor named Laura. But shortly after Zara joins her party, the knight’s hometown falls victim to a bloody siege. With many lifechanging adventures behind him, Zara returns to the Sazardon Labyrinth…but will his newfound strength and experience prove sufficient for him to emerge with the minotaur’s head?
the course of his travels, he met many influential figures—including a daughter of the mountains, a lamia, and a shrine maiden—with each encounter contributing immensely to his growth. On the latest leg of his trip, he meets a knight in red armor named Laura. But shortly after Zara joins her party, the knight’s hometown falls victim to a bloody siege. With many lifechanging adventures behind him, Zara returns to the Sazardon Labyrinth…but will his newfound strength and experience prove sufficient for him to emerge with the minotaur’s head?
- GenresFantasy
176 pages, Hardcover
Published March 8, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 25, 2023
A repetitive and disappointing case. Serviceable action. Credulous annalistic lore. Very little sinew worthy of binding them together. KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 reads like two or three separate stories all smashed together at excruciatingly convenient and low-drama moments: the fractured and incomplete tale of the minotaur; the adventuresome exploits of the quickly maturing Zara; the history of a small patch of land and the errant quest for power by its lordship, House Riga.
KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 may have proven a commendable read if the author had focused on any one of these disparate tales. But with too many stories come too many distractions. Balance is not this author's strong suit, and the end result, here, is a stilted and tedious narrative with too much space. This novel bears the attempted burden of a tapestry capable of holding the design of dozens of different characters, in vastly different epochs in time, with widely differing needs and ambitions.
Reader interest in any of these facets will surely vary. However, writing to all at once invariably leaves one unable to oblige any single facet with the attention and detail it deserves.
The tale of the minotaur? Again, the mythological creature is no longer the focus of the story. As if the author truly had no idea what to do with the character after it conquered the Sazardon Labyrinth, readers track the creature's inexplicable teleportation to a deva labyrinth. This other labyrinth of mythos is said to hold the residual energy of blessed weapons from all labyrinths past. And now, for some reason, said labyrinth requires a hero to conquer it.
The tale of Zara? Azra Goran, styled Zara, continues his quest to age, learn, study, and grow into his nascent adulthood. The young man finds himself in awkward and stressful combat scenarios all over the place, from a monastery with corrupt officials to a desert city with a renowned "Red Knight." Zara even joins up with a(nother) band of skilled warriors. One of said warriors is a tenacious woman (Laura), the fearless heir to a desert kingdom under attack from legions of monsters.
And of House Riga? As with the previous volume in this novel series, KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 dedicates copious pages to an annalistic storytelling style. It's beautiful, when done well. But it's not for everyone. Indeed, one might go so far as to say it's a style of rhetorical storytelling almost nobody favors these days. The tale of House Riga's rise, fall, and subsequent rise includes parallel rises and demises of politicians and ministers of immense ambition. These individuals were, to a point, Zara's ancestors. For readers of historical fiction or historical nonfiction who delight in castle intrigue and long-suffering plots and betrayals, House Riga is a remarkable case study. For everyone else, it's a waste of one-third of a novel.
The background on House Riga eventually merges with the exploits of Zara, and the minotaur's story and Zara's story eventually converge, but altogether, it's a half-hearted effort, and readers will be hard-pressed to finagle a reason as to why much of this novel was necessary.
KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 yields the same narrative trappings as its predecessor: abandoned character dynamics (e.g., Laura and the warriors of Bia-Dharla are a great but ultimately wasted cast), misplaced and unfocused backstory (e.g., generations-old measures of failed subjugation with little relevance to the present), and directionless heroism (e.g., the concept of heroism is widely distorted due to the book's anticlimactic ending).
KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 may have proven a commendable read if the author had focused on any one of these disparate tales. But with too many stories come too many distractions. Balance is not this author's strong suit, and the end result, here, is a stilted and tedious narrative with too much space. This novel bears the attempted burden of a tapestry capable of holding the design of dozens of different characters, in vastly different epochs in time, with widely differing needs and ambitions.
Reader interest in any of these facets will surely vary. However, writing to all at once invariably leaves one unable to oblige any single facet with the attention and detail it deserves.
The tale of the minotaur? Again, the mythological creature is no longer the focus of the story. As if the author truly had no idea what to do with the character after it conquered the Sazardon Labyrinth, readers track the creature's inexplicable teleportation to a deva labyrinth. This other labyrinth of mythos is said to hold the residual energy of blessed weapons from all labyrinths past. And now, for some reason, said labyrinth requires a hero to conquer it.
The tale of Zara? Azra Goran, styled Zara, continues his quest to age, learn, study, and grow into his nascent adulthood. The young man finds himself in awkward and stressful combat scenarios all over the place, from a monastery with corrupt officials to a desert city with a renowned "Red Knight." Zara even joins up with a(nother) band of skilled warriors. One of said warriors is a tenacious woman (Laura), the fearless heir to a desert kingdom under attack from legions of monsters.
And of House Riga? As with the previous volume in this novel series, KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 dedicates copious pages to an annalistic storytelling style. It's beautiful, when done well. But it's not for everyone. Indeed, one might go so far as to say it's a style of rhetorical storytelling almost nobody favors these days. The tale of House Riga's rise, fall, and subsequent rise includes parallel rises and demises of politicians and ministers of immense ambition. These individuals were, to a point, Zara's ancestors. For readers of historical fiction or historical nonfiction who delight in castle intrigue and long-suffering plots and betrayals, House Riga is a remarkable case study. For everyone else, it's a waste of one-third of a novel.
The background on House Riga eventually merges with the exploits of Zara, and the minotaur's story and Zara's story eventually converge, but altogether, it's a half-hearted effort, and readers will be hard-pressed to finagle a reason as to why much of this novel was necessary.
KING OF THE LABYRINTH v3 yields the same narrative trappings as its predecessor: abandoned character dynamics (e.g., Laura and the warriors of Bia-Dharla are a great but ultimately wasted cast), misplaced and unfocused backstory (e.g., generations-old measures of failed subjugation with little relevance to the present), and directionless heroism (e.g., the concept of heroism is widely distorted due to the book's anticlimactic ending).
August 17, 2026
This was a step up from the previous volume and a satisfying conclusion to the series. If the first volume captured your attention with the minotaur, then the second one was a sudden diversion that tried to make you care about the humans and the politics happening in the world. Because it was so sudden, I don't think it worked well. However, after an entire volume, I grew accustomed to the humans and their politics and so was a little more intrigued by them. And this volume brings it all together and also re-interprets old events in an interesting manner.
March 31, 2022
I have to admit the last book in the series was a bit of a letdown. However, I did enjoy the first two books much more and am still glad I read the entire series. Would still recommend it, but I think the conclusion is a bit underwhelming.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews