Kings of the Wyld

Kings of the Wyld is the first book in the Nicholas Eames's fantasy trilogy The Band. The book is about a retired band of mercenaries that come out of retirement to save one of the member's daughter.

Kings of the Wyld
AuthorNicholas Eames
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish
SeriesThe Band
GenresFantasy
PublishedFebruary 21, 2017
PublisherOrbit
Pages422
Awards
  • 2018 David Gemmell Morningstar Award
  • 2017 r/Fantasy Stabby Award for "Best Debut Novel of 2017"
ISBN0-356-50902-8
OCLC1028458680
Followed byBloody Rose 
Websitenicholaseames.com

Background

The book is Nicholas Eames's debut novel and the first of three book in The Band trilogy.[1] The series includes Kings of the Wyld, Bloody Rose, and Outlaw Empire.[2][3] The artwork for the books was done by Richard Anderson and cover design was done by Lisa Marie Pompilio.[4][5]

Plot

The story follows the band of mercenaries called Saga.[6] The characters are likened to rock stars.[7] The group includes Clay Cooper, Gabe, Ganaleon, Matrick, and Moog the Wizard.[6] The characters have all grown old and out-of-shape after decades of living in retirement.[7] They emerge from retirement to save Gabe's daughter, Rose, who is trapped in a city under siege.[8]

Characters
  • Gabriel 'Golden Gabe'
  • Clay "Slowhand" Cooper
  • Arcandius Moog
  • Matrick Skulldrummer
  • Ganelon the axeman[9]

Reception

The book has been compared to a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, such as Forgotten Realms, with its characters filling similar roles to that of the typical character classes selected in the role-playing game.[10][11] The book has also been compared to the Bethesda video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which contains similar fantasy themes and adventurous mercenaries.[8] Abdallah Mbajja wrote in The Observer that "Kings of the Wyld feels like an online RPG come to life."[6]

Samuel Ruth wrote in Tufts Now that the "book is an engaging, funny work that somehow both inhabits and subverts many of the traditional fantasy tropes."[12] The Publishers Weekly review praised the book saying that "the plot is emotionally rewarding, original, and hilarious."[13]

In an article on Out of This World Reviews, Scott Marlowe criticized the book, saying that "the frequency of pop culture references ... [is] like a bad Andy Weir novel, the childish antics of our group of heroes and the predicaments they somehow get themselves into are tiring."[14] While Niki Hawkes praised the book for a similar reason in The Southern Utah Independent saying that "All of the characters were individualized and funny in their own way[,] ... [a]dd to that a ton of nerdy references and you have one hella fun book!"[15]

Awards
Award Date Category Result Ref.
The David Gemmell Awards 2018 The Morningstar Award for Best Fantasy Newcomer Won [16][17][18]
r/Fantasy Stabby Award 2017 Best Debut Novel Won [19]

Adaption

On November 12, 2019, Eames said on Twitter that the film rights to The Band had been sold to an anonymous entity, but whether or not being optioned would actually lead to a film being made was still uncertain.[20] The artwork included in the pitch was done by artist Pierre Santamaria.[21]

References
  1. Simpson, Carter (September 9, 2021). "Book Review: 'Kings of the Wyld' by Nicholas Eames". Tiger Times. Elsinore High School. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  2. Tabler, Elizabeth (September 23, 2021). "The Music of The Band by Nicholas Eames". Grimdark Magazine. Acid Media. Archived from the original on October 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  3. McIvor, Katie (December 22, 2021). Wilson, Aidan (ed.). "Interview with Nicholas Eames". Etherea Magazine. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  4. "The Boys Are Back in Town". Orbit Books. Hachette. October 19, 2016. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  5. "'Kings of the Wyld' - 2018 Gemmell Award Nominations". Orbit Books. Hachette. April 20, 2018. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  6. Mbajja, Abdallah (October 17, 2018). "Kings of the Wyld Is Fantasy at Its Best". The Observer. Observer Media. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  7. Hill, Nicole (March 17, 2020). "20 Must-Read Feel-Good Fantasy Books". Book Riot. Riot New Media Group. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  8. Avery, Jessica (February 28, 2020). "15 Books Like Skyrim for Bold Adventurers". Book Riot. Riot New Media Group. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  9. Evans, Mike Everest (September 14, 2017). "Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames". The Fantasy Hive. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  10. Cropley, Matthew (February 7, 2018). "Review: Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames". Grimdark Magazine. Acid Media. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  11. Wilson, Jason (December 20, 2018). "Jason's Gloriously Geeky Guide for Post-Xmas Gifts for Yourself". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  12. Ruth, Samuel (December 5, 2017). "Books for Long Winter Nights - Kings of the Wyld". Tufts Now. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  13. "Fiction Book Review: Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames". Publishers Weekly. PWxyz. January 23, 2017. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  14. Marlowe, Scott (July 28, 2021). "Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames". Out of this World Reviews. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  15. Hawkes, Niki (August 11, 2017). "The Obsessive Bookseller Reviews: "Kings of the Wyld" by Nicholas Eames". The Independent (Southern Utah). Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  16. "2018 Gemmell Awards Winners". Locus Online. July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  17. Horst, Shellie. "News: The David Gemmell Awards 2018". SFFWorld. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  18. "Morningstar Award 2018". The David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  19. "Announcing the 2017 Best of r/Fantasy Stabby Award Winners!". Reddit. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  20. Liptak, Andrew (November 13, 2019). "Two Grimdark Fantasy Series Might be Headed to Television". Tor.com. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  21. "Feast Your Eyes Upon the Official Kings of the Wyld TV/Film Pitch Artwork". Tor.com. Macmillan Publishers. July 2, 2020. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.