King’s Property: A little bit too much luck

King’s Property by Morgan Howell

King’s Property is the first book in the Queen of the Orcs series, and Morgan Howell’s first novel. For a story in which the author does such a good job of depicting the harsh realities of the setting, he sure lets the main character, Dar, skate out of bad situation after bad situation to a point where it’s just a bit too much. The explanations for each magic escape work, but it needs to change to a point where Dar takes fewer risks, or she gets in hot water by having her gambles miss now and then.

Now, I will give the author a ton of credit. King’s Property is just chock full of realism and harsh stuff. Dar comes from a horrible abusive background and when conscripted/sold into the army, it truly seems like things can’t get worse. Finding unlikely allies in Orcs and her ability to avoid the many pitfalls and almost unavoidable problems of being a woman in a depraved, male dominated environment make this story what it is.

I think that this series is going to be worth reading because there is a lot that is yet to develop. I am excited to see how Dar grows into her role as an Orc Mother. I also really like the fact that Morgan Howell gave us a male character who was not a rapist/child molestor. I was beginning to think that there was an agenda that included painting men as all being the same (I found out later that Morgan Howell is a man!).

Good book, interesting characters… now let’s see if it keeps going.

Queen of the Orcs — (2007-2013) Publisher: Born into hardship, Dar learns to rely on herself alone. When her family betrays her, Dar is conscripted into King Kregant’s army and its brutal campaign to conquer a neighboring country. Now she is bound as a slave to a dreaded regiment of orcs, creatures legendary for their savagery and battle prowess. Rather than cower, Dar rises to the challenge. She learns the unique culture and language of the orcs, survives treachery from both allies and enemies, and struggles to understand a mystical gift that brings her dark, prophetic visions. As the war escalates–amid nightmarish combat and shattering loss–Dar must seize a single chance at freedom.

John Hulet

JOHN HULET is a member of the Utah Army National Guard. John’s experiences have often left a great void that has been filled by countless hours spent between the pages of a book lost in the words and images of the authors he admires. During a 12 month tour of Iraq, he spent well over $1000 on books and found sanity in the process. John lives in Utah and works slavishly to prepare soldiers to serve their country with the honor and distinction that Sturm Brightblade or Arithon s’Ffalenn would be proud of. John retired from FanLit in March 2015 after being with us for nearly 8 years. We still hear from him every once in a while.
View all posts