Review: The Goblin King

Posted September 30, 2011 by Jen in 3 stars, Paranormal Romance, Rating B, Reviews Tags: , ,

The Goblin King
Author: Shona Husk
Release Date: October 1, 2011
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Shadowlands Trilogy #1
ISBN: #978-1402259852
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Format(s): Paperback (319 pgs), e-book
Book Source: Publisher
About the book:

      Cursed by a Druid a millennia ago, Roan lives a bleak existence in the Shadowlands, desperately trying to retain his soul and not succumb to the goblin horde.When a beautiful human summons him to grant a wish, he sees a glimmer of hope. But will she ever agree to be his queen?

What G & U are talking about:
      The Goblin King is the first full-length novel in a new paranormal trilogy by Shona Husk.  There seems to be a free ebook prequel entitled, The Summons, which is the backstory to when Eliza first called the Goblin King, Roan.  The story is referenced and summarized in this novel.  Gikany and Una did not read it (we discovered it when putting together this review), and we did not feel as if we missed anything.  However, it might be fun to read as an extended teaser if you are interested in trying the series on before purchasing this book.
      Gikany and Una specifically requested this book from Twimom.  We were intrigued by the synopsis and thought it might be a new and fascinating world.  Long story short, we felt a little let down by the novel.  The Goblin King did not live up to our expectations, however we did enjoy it.  Overall, we think the author could have done more with the characters and the world, but didn’t.  What follows are the few issues we found with the novel.
      The main bad guy, the Druid, had no back-story or character development.  Simply put, the Druid is evil, he is the reason Roan and his men were cursed and that’s that.  You cannot reason with him, he hates Roan, and waits to be able to destroy him for being a King who would turn his back on his people and sell them out to the Romans.  We feel that there could have been more to the Druid and this plot point.  It adds to a story if a main character was evil and was guilty and redeems himself (one of Una’s favorite plot devices is the element of redemption) or if the main character is innocent all along (see…we will NOT spoil you!) and can plead his case or work with the evil.  But that didn’t happen.  The conflict between the Druid and Roan was concrete and, to us, lacking depth.
      Gikany and Una loved Roan’s brother, Dai.  He was a fascinating character with an intriguing intelligence and wonderful wit.  We feel he also lacked character development.  We would have like to have learned more about him including what he discovered through his studies.  However, since there will be two more novels in this world and the next novel is entitled Kiss of the Goblin Prince (due out in May of 2012) we may be getting more of Dai and his back-story as well.  Mind you we are assuming that Dai (as brother to the Goblin King) is the one this book will focus on.  Currently there is no information on the author’s website to confirm or deny this.
      One last issue, that affected Una more than Gikany, was a feeling of “bad editing.”  What I mean is, think of when you watch a movie: in one camera angle the person is holding a glass of tea in a highball glass, then they switch to the other camera angle and she/he is holding a tea cup.  This is what I mean by bad editing.  There are numerous moments where I had to go back and reread because as the novel was unfolding in my head…I had a, wait, was she standing behind him…or was she in front?  It was these little moments that interrupted what was a nice and easy flow to the writing.
      By the end of the novel, we both realize that this was not going to be the dark, deep, gritty and sexy novel we expected.  However, for a more “fluffy” read, it is quite enjoyable.  Lighthearted is not the right word as there are some dark elements to the novel, but it is a fairly quick read.  The Goblin King is entertaining with a very interesting world and mythology.  We are interested in seeing where the author goes in the next novel.
Their Rating:
Liked it, but I had some issues – recommend (B)
 
 
 
 

6 responses to “Review: The Goblin King”

  1. Mama Kitty

    My first thought at seeing a book called “The Goblin King” was of David Bowie’s character in The Labyrinth. I can’t help it. I grew up watching it multiple times a day (I’m in no way kidding) so when I saw this review sitting in my inbox, I pulled up “Magic Dance” on YouTube and sang in the shower. Then I pulled up the review once I was all dressed & stuff (cause I check my email before I get in the shower and read reviews before I go to school)

    I’m still intrigued just because I’ve never read a romance involving a Goblin that didn’t involve said Goblin being the villain. Since this is part of a series and there’s a free eBook prequel, I’ll give that one a shot before I grab this one.

    Thanks for the review!!

  2. Una

    @MamaKitty – I’m so with you girl! I thought the same thing which is what help to prompt Gikany and I to request this. Don’t get me wrong, it is entertaining, but…we expected it to be darker and gritty…this was more a fluff novel…if that makes sense.

    Hope you enjoy!

  3. Emily

    I forgot this is coming out tomorrow. A Saturday release day seems odd but maybe it’s just me. Also…I haven’t seen The Labyrinth. I know, I know.