Author: K.D. Edwards
Publication Date: June 12th, 2018
Synopsis:
Rune Saint John, last
child of the fallen Sun Court, is hired to search for Lady Judgment's
missing son, Addam, on New Atlantis, the island city where the
Atlanteans moved after ordinary humans destroyed their original home.
With his companion and bodyguard, Brand, he questions Addam's relatives and business contacts through the highest ranks of the nobles of New Atlantis. But as they investigate, they uncover more than a missing man: a legendary creature connected to the secret of the massacre of Rune's Court. In looking for Addam, can Rune find the truth behind his family's death and the torments of his past?
With his companion and bodyguard, Brand, he questions Addam's relatives and business contacts through the highest ranks of the nobles of New Atlantis. But as they investigate, they uncover more than a missing man: a legendary creature connected to the secret of the massacre of Rune's Court. In looking for Addam, can Rune find the truth behind his family's death and the torments of his past?
I received a free eARC of this book via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
The Last Sun was the first novel I got approved for on Edelweiss, which means it's somehow special to me. The facts that it is an lgbtq urban fantasy, a debut novel and the author based its whole world on the Tarot deck made me want to pick it up as fast as I could. The reading experience was pleasant on the whole, however the book would have required a bit more polishing here and there in my opinion.
The plot was pretty well thought out, it started with an abduction and widened into a power game that sucked in a few scions of important New Atlantean families. I appreciated the mystery that surrounded the enemy because that meant Rune and Brand, our main duo, had to do some detective work to get to the bottom of things, not to mention they had to battle a creature that was part zombie part wizard (I'm gonna call it a zombizard, haha) without having any idea what it was capable of...
The book was very action-packed, and when I say very, I mean extremely, very, very, exceptionally, incredibly... TOO action-packed. I've never thought I'd consider it a disadvantage in a book but it is here. There are so many detailed fighting scenes in The Last Sun, I lost count by the end of the novel and the action seems to have taken the space and time away from the character and world building.
Interestingly enough, the side-characters are way better shaped than the main character. Brand – Rune's bodyguard – got the most attention, other than him, Quinn the seer and Max, the orphaned teenager they have to keep safe, are the ones that got some depth by the end. We see them through Rune's eyes, we receive information about them and see how much Rune cares for them, but Rune himself is somehow forgotten or so shrouded in mystery (perhaps intentionally?) that not even the reader can figure him out. I also kinda felt he was described and defined mostly by what happened to him when his father's court was destroyed and I felt it was a disservice to the character.
The humour in the book is excellent, it really is! I laughed out loud so much. It was something purely good and admirable about The Last Sun. Whenever there was a funny line I forgot about all the minor flaws and let me tell you, it happened often. All the bickering between Rune and Brand is priceless.
Even though the world building could have been a bit more organized, I liked how colourful the world itself was. There were a myriad of different creatures, like zombies, fairies, gargoyles, ghouls and so on. The places the characters visited were interesting and everything was filled with magic.
The magic system was very straightforward; the characters used sigils – objects filled with magic – to fight and defend themselves. I was glad this aspect was very easy to follow and there was logic to it (let's just say there are fantasy novels where the way magic works is not explained well enough).
As you can see I had some pros and some cons as well concerning this book but I'd say if you are a person who enjoys long fighting scenes and humorous pieces, give it a try!
