The Justice of Kings

By: Richard Swan

Narrated by: Lucy Paterson

Action, intrigue, and magic collide in this epic fantasy following Sir Konrad Vonvalt, an Emperor's Justice, who is a detective, judge, and executioner all in one—but with rebellion and unrest building, these are dangerous times to be a Justice . . .

The Empire of the Wolf simmers with unrest. Rebels, heretics, and powerful patricians all challenge the power of the Imperial throne.

Only the Order of Justices stands in the way of chaos. Sir Konrad Vonvalt is the most feared Justice of all, upholding the law by way of his sharp mind, arcane powers, and skill as a swordsman. At his side stands Helena Sedanka, his talented protégé, orphaned by the wars that forged the Empire.

When the pair investigates the murder of a provincial aristocrat, they unearth a conspiracy that stretches to the very top of Imperial society. As the stakes rise and become ever more personal, Vonvalt and Helena must make a choice: Will they abandon the laws they’ve sworn to uphold, in order to protect the Empire?

"Richard Swan's sophisticated take on the fantasy genre will leave readers hungry for more." – Sebastien de Castell, author of Spellslinger

“A fantastic debut.” – Peter McLean, author of Priest of Bones

©2022 Richard Swan (P)2022 Orbit

Critic reviews

"A stunning piece of modern fantasy writing." (RJ Barker, author of The Bone Ships)

"A marvelously detailed world with an engrossing adventure from a unique perspective." (K. S. Villoso, author of The Wolf of Oren-Yaro)

Wonderful fantasy

The finely drawn characters and philosophical bent of this fantasy helps to overcome the usual unoriginal Sword and Mail, European medieval setting.

The narrator was wonderful as well.

Great debut novel and well worth a credit. I’m looking forward to the next novel in this series.

Give it a try. Doubtful you'll regret it.

There was a lot to enjoy about this book. The pacing was a slow build, but done really well. The choice of using the clerk as narrator gave a good twist to the styling of the story. The magic system applied is well thought out, well used, and maintains a decent balance as to not become an overpowering factor in the story. Small applications of magic go a long way in making a good story into a great story.

We only touch on a portion of the world being built in this story, but the narrative has given us a glimpse at something with a lot of potential. As a reader, the learning style is more of a show than tell which is also a plus in my opinion. The voice of the story isn't treated like she just came out of a coma and knows nothing of what's going on in the world.

It may take a bit to invest yourself into the characters, but there will be a point when it does happen and the story will be that much better for it.

The narrator is on point with her voicing. She does a great job at keeping characters distinct from one another and really gives the story life.

Cold, Deliberate, Brutal

The beginning of this trilogy unfolds carefully, revealing the true nature of its story and characters in a well-paced story full of mystery, violence, and the question of justice.

loved it

absolutely loved everything about this book. only down side os the series is only starting so long wait for next fix.

Excellent world building

The author came up with a great legal system and engaging world. The characters were believable. The narrator did a phenomenal job of capturing the low fantasy world. There is very little magic in this book but when it is used, it is highly effective and creepy.

The most enthusiastic 5-star i've given in years.

Swan, with this book, becomes a must read author for me. I wasn't prepared for how much i enjoyed this story. So glad book 2 is out already.

Great story, though the worldbuilding is lacking

The plot was interesting an engaging, and I liked the characters. The climax of the book was one of the most exciting ones I've read. The worldbuilding was lacking, taking place in a European medieval sort of setting, but the rest of the book made up for it! Looking forward to the sequel.

Misleading summary

From the summary "Action, intrigue, and magic collide in this epic fantasy following Sir Konrad Vonvalt..."

Firstly, it's a low-magic setting. Nothing magical actually happens until the 2nd half of the book and the 1st half spends it's time dismissing said magic as rumors.

Secondly, we're not following "Sir Konrad Vonvalt," we're following "Helena Sedanka," a 19yo law clerk who's apprenticed to "Sir Konrad Vonvalt." Helena doesn't get mentioned in the summary until the tail end of the 3rd paragraph. It's as if the author is ashamed to have a female lead?

What I expected was the story of a medieval-esque magical Judge Dredd passing judgement while uncovering a dastardly plot. What I got was the story of a love-sick teenager discovering she has strange feelings about her mentor, the mentor's friend, and a young guard in town. O, there's laws and judgements, and courtrooms (the climax of the plot is basically an episode of Law and Order) but it seems secondary to young Helena and her feelings towards the men in her life. The story is also told by Helena as a memoir when she's "an old woman" (which we're informed of frequently) so any sense of danger to the speaker is effectively muted.

It's not a bad book; if someone were to ask me for a recommendation for a book set in a medieval-esque world with a well written female lead I'd certainly recommend this along with some Sanderson works. But the cover, the listed genre, and the summary suggested a vastly different story than what's actually contained.

Great performance by the reader/recorder. Were this an actual book I likely would have put it down a while back.

Best Fantasy Novel I’ve Read in Years

Characters, world building, writing and plot were excellent. It kept me engaged throughout to the end.

Justice Of Kings

What I liked: this book is well written and the story compelling and intriguing. The female POV takes a lot to get used to. Sir Conrad is very hard to root for. He’s just a egotistical asshole for starters. I almost wanted the antagonists to succeed because he’s very unlikable. Like I said, the story grabs your interest enough to read on despite not having a strong hero to relate to.