The King's Man

The Zero Enigma, Book 7

By: Christopher G. Nuttall

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

The City of Shallot is on the verge of revolution. The Great Houses are mustering their forces, readying themselves for a shift in the balance of power.

The poor have found a new leader and are - finally - demanding their rights. Shadowy figures and old ghosts are prowling the streets. It is only a matter of time before the unease and unrest explodes into violence, as the wealthy and powerful seek to secure themselves in a changing world. And dark forces are laying plans to take advantage of the chaos.

A newly graduated student, the son of a proudly independent merchant, Adam Mortimer is recruited into the Kingsmen and charged with helping to track down the anarchists and terrorists before they trigger an explosion. But, as he delves into the mystery, he finds himself caught between the scars of his childhood and his hopes for the future, loyalties tested as he finds himself caught between old friends and new.

And, as infernal devices begin to terrorize the city, Adam must risk everything to save the people he loves.

©2020 Christopher G. Nuttall (P)2020 Podium Audio

Intense as Shallot begins to tear it

Adam Mortimer was born a commoner and his father has always told him to remain free of any entanglements to the Aristocrats, so that he can stay his own man. Whilst for the large part, this is great advice, Adam has found that has he has moved through his schooling at Jude’s, he has suffered as he has not been able to create the friendships that others have. Over his time at Jude’s, Adam grew somewhat resentful of the Aristocrat’s and their priviledge, their excess, and their blatant abuse of power. As a result, when the time came to undertake the Wizarding Challenge, he took it all on his own, much to the chagrin of other participants.
It is therefore somewhat of a surprise when at the end of his schooling, that Adam, forlorn and worried that he has absolutely no prospects for a future (There are none unless you are willing to sell your soul to the Aristocrat’s!!), finds himself in the presence of a King’s Man. Sir Gareth offers tells him he is actually impressed by his integrity, something that is rare these days, and offers him a position to train as a Kingsman.
Adam joins 5 other candidates, known as ‘Princelings’ on their journey to becoming ‘Squires’ before they will become fullyfledged Kingsman if they pass everything. Here Adam meets Caroline, a beautiful, charismatic, highly intelligent woman, one who outshines most of the other Princelings in just about every aspect of their training. Caroline and Adam have an affinity together, working very well with each other, and find themselves paired on a lot of challenges together, growing as friends and comrades. The training is brutal, intense (And I should note that this is a step up from previous books, there is some pretty graphic violence in this story, not for really young readers without parental supervision), and it is obvious that they have been paired so that can not only learn with, but from each other, as well as lean on each other from the psychological stress of the training. Nuttall has done a brilliant job of creating this gritty and realistic training environment, one in which you can really feel the fierce intensity of the scenarios that they are put under, the stress they have to endure. Whilst this is just a fantasy story, and obviously there is the magical element, Nuttall has really captured the human and psychological aspect of their training so you can really empathise with them. It is very well done.
This is a story that is divided into multiple sections, with the start being Adam’s initial history, from his time at school, to his training, and ultimately, being selected by the very gruff and intense, but fair, Sir Griffon, as a Squire. He and Caroline are chosen to return to Shallot, to help Sir Griffon with the ongoing troubles there, as the city is beginning to tear itself apart. The lower classes have had enough, sick of their lot in life at the hands of the Great Houses and the Aristocracy, they have found a new voice, someone who is educated and intelligent and able to articulate their troubles, pull them together and rally them under a single, powerful cause. This of course has sent a ripple of fear through the Great Houses, and the quickly pull together their own vast forces and power to retaliate.
What follows is nothing short of gruesome and intense. Again, this is one book that is not for younger readers.
This is a fascinating book in this series, as it brings together so many elements of the existing series. Adam was a student at Jude’s, and therefore knows all of the major characters we have come across in the previous stories (from House’s Ruben, Aguirre, Bolingbroke, even those in Water Shallot. This book ties together each of the previous 6 books in unique ways, whilst bringing to light the intriguing political situation that is underlying the three sections of the city, North, South and Water Shallot, separated by the great river. Nuttall has not only crafted this exceptional story, but the world building that ties them all together is nothing short of masterful.
The Character work in this book is outstanding. From the main characters of Adam and Caroline, who are both fascinating as the two prospective Kingsman Candidates, to the Kingsman themselves, and then so many other characters we have come across from other books. The wonderful thing about this book though, is that the characters are all out of their ‘comfort’ zones, we get to see them in new ways, and it is intriguing seeing them in new ways, especially some of them several years on.
This is easily one of the best books in the series, for many reasons, the clever and intriguing mystery of the story as the Kingsman (Squires!), must rush to find what is happening in the city before thousands are killed. There is the underlying story of Adam, as well as Caroline, which is wonderful to watch their story unfold. There are so many characters that come into this story from all aspects of both Upper Houses and Lower classes, that are just wonderful to read about and see engage, it is brilliant from both the characters, and the storylines. Overall though, is just the brutal, powerful and at times intense, (but at all times, utterly captivating), storyline, that you just can’t put down. I went through this one in less than a day as I couldn’t put it down. Absolutely stunning!!!
Saskia Maarleveld has such a beautiful voice, you can listen to it endlessly without tiring of it, it is just so easy to listen to. She does a stunning range of both Male and Female voices, and within each of the genders, she is able to create a range of character voices so that you can clearly tell who is talking without having to be told.
On top of this Maarleveld captures the emotional state of her characters with perfection, so that you can clearly understand how the characters feel at the time they are speaking, whether than be angry, sad, happy, elated, shocked, frightened, etc. Maarleveld really uses this to bring the story to life, adding a whole extra dimension to her storytelling.
Saskia Maarleveld is one of the truly exceptional Narrators, and she is just a pleasure to listen to, this is an absolute must listen to as it is so good as an audiobook!!

Good listen

I think I have every book Nuthall has written, I recommend them as his writing is both well written and entertaining

Wonderful installment in a compelling series

A wonderful series, and an excellent installment. The art of detection is key to this book, and very well done (not surprisingly, as Christopher Nuttall is a superb plotter). I continue to favor this series above all others by the calendar. The main character is so well done, as is his partner and their "trainer/guide". World-building continues to be superb, and multifaceted as the author gives us different viewpoints with most of the books.

Saskia Maaleveld narrates superbly. She does male and female voices both, to perfection. She really added a lot to the story, drawing me in completely.

Just want to say how much I dislike slapping and an important character expresses anger with fierce slapping in more than one book...really can't find a way to deeply empathize with this character.

ties in well

this book, like the family shame, leaves a reader looking for the next installment. i hope it comes soon.