“Never have I forgotten the day the Empire’s legions swarmed our land like ants,” the dragon said. “Their chains bind me, and I have tried to pass my imprisonment in slumber. But sleep only brings dreams, and in dreams, I watch again and again as the king, riding on my back into battle, is slain. Perhaps you suffer as I do.”

A world ruled by machinery of the Empire, a land completely obliterated, a race oppressed and persecuted. This is a story where underdogs rise and the fires of rebellion ignite. Loran has made a pact with a legendary dragon to avenge the execution of her husband and daughter, Cain is investigating the murder of his friend and unwittingly becomes entangled with the Empire’s Ministry, and Arienne is on the run after escaping the Imperial Academy for sorcerers but a voice inside her mind leads her on a dangerous path. 

Blood of the Old Kings by Sung-Il Kim and translated by Anton Hur is a thrilling Korean epic fantasy novel with an inventive magic system and filled with reluctant but compelling heroes. 

At first our three main protagonists appear to be on their separate journeys with very little connection to one another but as we read on and look a little deeper we discover their journeys intertwine. From the onset we learn that all three are from Arland bearing the tattoos of their heritage and that their race is under oppression by the hands of the Empire. Subsequently all three seek freedom from tyranny. Now whenever I read a book with multiple POV’s, I’m always drawn to some and not others yet surprisingly this wasn’t the case here as I really liked all of our main players equally and felt hooked by each of their journeys. I think that’s because each character bought in a different sub genre of fantasy creating a great blend of epic, political and murder mystery fantasy with a touch of dark academia. Part of my attachment to the characters also lies with Kim’s writing style and Anton Hur’s translation which reads so smoothly. Through descriptive prose  we are given plenty of backstory with a rounded view of how our characters have suffered but survived, making each of them distinct and memorable. 

Loran is the first character we meet and in the opening scene we see her confront and make her pact with the fabled fire-dragon who has been chained and bound. This scene is thrilling, filled with tension and peril and setting my expectations high as I knew this would lead Loran on her journey to becoming a powerful warrior. I appreciated that it was always made clear that Loran is not instantly a highly skilled swordswoman, her skills are average at best and she may also not have what it takes to be the princess of Arland she has proclaimed herself to be. Deep down she doubts if she will ever live up to such a standard, yet she grows into this role, she gains followers and slowly becomes the heroic figure that her race needs and seeing this side of her flourish despite her fears was gripping. Furthermore Loran had a magical connection with the dragon and a magically forged sword which oh my, I can only describe this as cool to see in use! 

In fact I found Kim’s magic system nothing short of impressive. I was utterly fascinated by the concept of dead sorcerers’ minds being used to fuel Power generators to aid and run the Empire. For example Power generators could light street lamps or power the sewage system, but they were also the sole source of power for the machinery that the Empire used to withstand the gods and dragons of old. The more we read on the more this developed and the true extent of how the Empire relied upon this to wage and win their war was revealed. For sorcerers such as Arienne, their fate is bleak, their destiny is to become a tool for the Empire even in death and so I rooted for her escape all the way. Although Arienne does not initially have an extensive amount of magical abilities, and the entity she has inside her head promises to teach her more, she does have a rather cool (yes I know I’ve used that word again but it is!) power involving her mind which again was another great addition that Kim incorporated within his construction of the magic. 

Thrown into the mix between the magic system was also a fair bit of political intrigue, which we see developing through Caine’s character. As Cain resided in the Capital there was also a Victorian era feel present, with horse drawn carriages and lamplights illuminating the streets which I haven’t come across much specifically in an epic fantasy but felt it worked so well here to show the luxuries of the Empire compared to those living further afield. As Cain investigates the many connections to his murdered friend Fienna he becomes involved with The Ministry of Intelligence which leads him to uncovering dangerous rebellion plots within the Capital itself and beyond. At first a lot of the politics confused me as there seemed to be a divide between the prefects, the Senate and the Ministry but soon enough I realised that there is no one evil villain to hate within this story, it is more that certain agents of the Empire are the ones to be fought against. One aspect of Caine‘s character which I appreciated the most was that his goal was never to only help his own race and to oppress another, he just wanted to help the people that he cared for and save those who were important to him, which we see clearly at the end. 

“I am not saying we should not fight. Only that today, even if we should win, the Empire also has its tomorrow. That is what you need to prepare for. If we only take up arms and fight, we shall always lose.”

Kim’s Blood of the Old Kings was gripping from start to finish and I can only hope it will pave the way for more international fantasy books to be translated and published. 

ARC provided by Nazia at Orbit Books in exchange for an honest review—thank you for the copy!

Blood of the Old Kings is available now – you can order your copy on Bookshop.org