From the Bookshelf of Grimdark Fantasy…

Kings of the Wyld (The Band, #1)

Nicholas Eames

Start date: January 10, 2018

Finish date: February 28, 2018

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* May/June '18 - Blackwing - **BEWARE OF SPOILERS**
By Tracey the Li… , First In, Last Out · 11 posts · 81 views

last updated Sep 27, 2018 05:21AM

* May/June '18 - Blackwing by Ed Mcdonald - **NO SPOILERS**
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last updated May 28, 2018 08:41PM

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What Members Thought

Jan 08, 2019 Mark Lawrence added it

I liked this a lot, and I can see why it has done so well. Eames is an excellent writer and funny with it too. I very rarely laugh out loud at books, but I did once with this one. Right near the end there was this (that is much funnier in context):

What’s that, honey? What was I doing while Uncle Gabe was duelling a god with all of civilization at stake? Why, I was wrestling in the muck with an exceptionally tenacious cow.

& it also sets up something that reminded me of a certain horse kick...

Th ...more

569 likes · Like · see review

Jun 23, 2017 ManaChelle rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

I love it and can't wait for book 2. The humor is great, the characters amazing and heartfelt. Moog is my favorite :) ...more

15 likes · Like · see review

Nov 28, 2019 Robert Kemp rated it really liked it

My father was in the US Air Force when I was a kid. This meant that we often found ourselves on long road trips across the country and, since this was before smartphones, the whole family would listen to the classic rock station over the car’s sound system. This book reminds me of all the good times my family spent together and all the quarters us kids won when we correctly guessed what band was playing over the radio. The coins were usually followed by some piece of rock lore my Dad would share ...more

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Apr 20, 2020 Shawn Wickersheim rated it it was amazing

I've had this book on my TBR Mountain for a while, and despite hearing a number of great things about it, I was hesitant to start it simply because my knowledge of rock bands is rather limited. Putting aside this concern, I finally dove in and was pleasantly surprised to find I didn't need to have an extensive knowledge of rock bands in order to enjoy the book, the characters or the story. YAY! Would knowing more about musicians or rock bands improve my reading experience --? Perhaps -- but even ...more

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Sep 16, 2018 Will rated it really liked it

Shelves: epic, 2018

4.2 / 5 stars

In a world where mercenary bands are the rockstars and killing monsters are the gigs, Clay Cooper and his former mates were legendary. They were the Kings of the Wyld, the most famous band in history. Their deeds were epic, their names hallowed, their wrath feared.

That was years ago.

Clay Cooper has since retired to obscurity, but one day his old mate Golden Gabe comes a-calling. Gabe’s daughter is in trouble; an entire city is surrounded by a vast legion of the worst monsters and be 4.2 / 5 stars

In a world where mercenary bands are the rockstars and killing monsters are the gigs, Clay Cooper and his former mates were legendary. They were the Kings of the Wyld, the most famous band in history. Their deeds were epic, their names hallowed, their wrath feared.

That was years ago.

Clay Cooper has since retired to obscurity, but one day his old mate Golden Gabe comes a-calling. Gabe’s daughter is in trouble; an entire city is surrounded by a vast legion of the worst monsters and beasts ever seen, and Rose—Gabe’s daughter— and her band are within. His old friend needs Clay, and the band to help. He means to reform Kings of the Wyld, save his daughter, and (maybe) the world.

What could possibly go wrong?

From these humble beginnings, a intensely imaginative and entertaining story commences, set in an immersive world. While not as vivid or highly detailed as some of the creations from the kings of fantasy, The Band’s world is rather an interesting place. It is well thought out and I had no problem picturing it. While the entire world as a whole is well done, the lynch-pin of it is the Wyld. This gigantic forest is plagued by monsters of all imagining, and some fallen immortals cast aside and forgotten by time. While I was dreading KotW would be one of those books where we didn’t even get to the core in the first volume, or we simply glossed over it—I was sadly mistaken. I won’t spoil when or how the erstwhile heroes cross said forest, just that they are here and Rose is over yonder and the Wyld is in-between, so… Y’know.

And if you’re thinking, “how the hell did you think they were gonna get there without entering the Wyld, you idiot”, that’s a fair point. Maybe they could’ve fast-traveled, or something. Anyhow, the world is good, and the Wyld brings it all together.

The characters are widespread and likable. They’re a bit forlorn, rough around the edges, fresh off a career of being washed-up and miserable—but they perform well as a unit. There are enough serious moments bound by comic relief that the story rolls out pretty well. And Clay Cooper is a pretty good narrator to tell it. He reminds me most of Logen Ninefingers or wossname Craw from Joe Abercrombie. Of a fighter, a killer, but more than a hand to swing the blade.

Epic names and epic deeds are accomplished with epic weapons and armor, and in this KotW is no different. Named blades, invincible armor, impossible-doing impossible-acting things made from impossible-substances. Kinda like a randomly generated dungeon full of loot. The weapons are inventive and interesting, just like the characters. And just like the monsters.

It was a good read, but not the best that can come from Nicholas Eames. At times the story struggled, and Cooper’s narrative had to endure impossible feats to see it through. It’s difficult to tell a complete tale at the front of the line—if only because the death rate is so high. Some situations were escaped as if by “magic”. As I said, it wasn’t the most descriptive or vivid world—one where you could see pretty well around the narrator and his friends, but as you moved outwards the color started to run and the lines began to blur—but it was successful at what it was designed as. And that was a engrossing narrative. An easy to read book about a band of rockstars. Which it is. ...more

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