Review: The Return of the Knights

The Return of the Knights by Gregory Kontaxis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I think describing this book as 'Game of Thrones meets Greek mythology' is far too generous, but it was still a decent read.

The story begins with Elliot, a kid from a village who seems to have been tasked with saving the world from a tyrant. Said tyrant, Walter, is travelling the place sacking cities, murdering, raping and pillaging as he goes. Elliot rushes to the aid of Sophie, a new queen whose forces are much diminished after all the fighting. Elliot has a plan to save them all.

Firstly, I hated Elliot. He's just some random kid from the 'burbs who shows up and starts ordering everyone around. And when they don't go along with him, he gets all smarmy and like, 'yes good call it is just as it should be even though you should believe me' which just irritated me to no end. I wanted to know him as a person with flaws and feelings, but he's bossy and angsty and not much else. I couldn't see him as a hero at all.

Somehow he becomes the leader of a little band of misfits who love and adore him and I just was not buying it one bit. I LOVE a good group of misfits but I wanted MORE from these characters. I wanted to know them better and share adventures with them. But it's just always about Elliot and what he thinks and does and how these people relate to him. They never got the chance to show their own personalities. For example, I was ready to fall in love with Long Arm but was never given the proper opportunity to.

Added to that, there is SO MUCH WAR TALK. I know some people will LOVE this aspect of it - those interested in military history and the wars of the ages will enjoy the strategy sessions and planning etc but I went into this expecting a fantasy adventure so it really took the fun out of the story for me.

Fantasy levels are minimal and there's also very little adventuring. I was curious about the lore and history and myths etc but there was so much of it that I got a little lost and found it hard to follow. I could tell there was a substantial story, but I felt too distanced from it to become invested in the world. The fantasy elements that were included felt cliché and unoriginal; it was easy to predict things and there wasn't nearly enough done with it to stand out.

On the surface, it's an entertaining story. The writing is decent enough that I was never really bored by it, but it does feel very much like the depth is missing. There's variety in the characters and some colourful scenes, with some great moments. However I felt the disconnect and was never able to truly immerse myself in this world.

I'd say this will definitely appeal more to those more interested in politics and war strategy. Fantasy lovers may be a little disappointed like I was, but it does seem there's potential for things to really open up in the sequel.


With thanks to the author for a copy

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Review: Breasts and Eggs

Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Quirky and somewhat pointless, yet somehow intriguing from start to finish.

The story is broken into two parts, with the second containing two-thirds of the novel. The first part discusses the breast enhancement surgery Natsu's sister is considering, and is honestly kind of a mess. It's more about the relationship between Natsu's sister, Makiko and Makiko's daughter, Midoriko, which is fraught with tension. Midoriko's stopped speaking, so we get her journal entries instead and it actually took me way too long to realise it was Midoriko's journal and not that of a younger Natsu. I was very confused.

Part two is about Natsu's contemplation of single parenthood and the artificial methods involved. I found the moral questions quite interesting, though it was hard to tell where Natsu stood.

It wasn't until about 100 pages from the end that I realised what my major issue with - Natsu's complete lack of personality. It took her actually getting fired up about something for me to realise that she's so complacent and dull throughout the entire novel. It's hard to get any sense of personality from her, and being told in first person really didn't help her case.

There are a lot of feminist issues here, which I found quite captivating, but there's also that insight into Japanese culture to give it an angle I don't experience often. The role of caregiving is much more prominent in Japanese culture, so it was interesting to read this with that in mind.

There's no real plot to drive it, and there are a lot of ramblings and nonsensical moments that shouldn't have worked but somehow still did. I can't tell you WHY I kept reading, only that I did; almost compulsively as the novel drew towards its conclusion.

I think those more inclined to take their time with books and mull over the themes will receive this quite well. There's a merit to the writing style that it could entertain me with a story I otherwise would have found quite dull, so those intrigued by this kind of story should be happily entertained.


With thanks to Macmillan Aus for a copy

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