I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Killing Fog
by Jeff Wheeler
Series: Grave Kingdom #1
Series Rating:
Published by 47North on March 1, 2020
Genres: YA Fantasy
Pages: 412
Format: Paperback
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon, Book Depository
The Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Kingfountain series conjures an epic, adventurous world of ancient myth and magic as a young woman’s battle with infinite evil begins.
Survivor of a combat school, the orphaned Bingmei belongs to a band of mercenaries employed by a local ruler. Now the nobleman, and collector of rare artifacts, has entrusted Bingmei and the skilled team with a treacherous assignment: brave the wilderness’s dangers to retrieve the treasures of a lost palace buried in a glacier valley. But upsetting its tombs has a price.
Echion, emperor of the Grave Kingdom, ruler of darkness, Dragon of Night, has long been entombed. Now Bingmei has unwittingly awakened him and is answerable to a legendary prophecy. Destroying the dark lord before he reclaims the kingdoms of the living is her inherited mission. Killing Bingmei before she fulfills it is Echion’s.
Thrust unprepared into the role of savior, urged on by a renegade prince, and possessing a magic that is her destiny, Bingmei knows what she must do. But what must she risk to honor her ancestors? Bingmei’s fateful choice is one that neither her friends nor her enemies can foretell, as Echion’s dark war for control unfolds.
The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler is a magnificent journey through an ancient time with magic, lessons, death, and respect.
Will Bingmei become the savior by life or death?
Bingmei
Bingmei has lost her family to cruelty and revenge; she is saved by another group of mercenaries, Bingmei is now part of the group and bound to the leader. She is different from the other people, not just in looks but also in her gift. Bingmei can tell if someone is truthful, what their intentions may be, and what emotions they are feeling.
The mercenaries come upon a group with a sword that has the power to bring the Killing Fog. They retreat to fight another day, but once they are safe, their leader realizes that they need to retrieve the sword before it falls into another bad person’s hands. Bingmei is tasked with getting the sword. She is drawn to the power of the sword, yet she almost doesn’t make it back.
Bingmei is chosen by the sword to start a process that will change the world as she knows it. She will also lose more of the ones that she loves. Bingmei has a great deal to learn, and some she will do now.
I really like Bingmei; she is more durable than she seems. The group that surrounds her are loyal, and yet they would need to be as she can tell if they aren’t. The gifts that she has been given aren’t always considered good to the person that beholds them, but they are nonetheless hers to bear, and she learns that in stride.
The Quest
Bingmei has awakened the Dragon of Night, Echion, but then before he regains his full power, she and her friends escape. Now, as they try to save their world, he comes after her. He wants her, no, more of needs her. Echion will do whatever is necessary to get Bingmei back in his grasp. The Dragon of Night is taking over the land fast. How will Bingmei keep herself and her friends safe? Will she figure out what a way to defeat the Dragon of Night?
Five Stars
OMG! What an epic tale. I was immediately sucked into the story, and everything was so vivid. Bingmei and Kunmia Suun are my favorite characters so far. However, all of the other characters are wonderfully realistic, with faults and specialties. And Echion is indeed the incarnation of evil. My rating for The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler is five stars. I highly recommend this to all fantasy readers out there.
I can’t wait for the next two books in the series to come out.
Other Books in the Series…coming in June and September
Giveaway
Prize: (1) Paperback of The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler (U.S. Only)
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler.
Until the next time,
This Guest Review is for Baroness’ Book Trove.
About Jeff Wheeler
Jeff Wheeler took early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to write full-time. He is a husband, father of five, and a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Jeff lives in the Rocky Mountains. His books have been on the Wall Street Journal Bestseller list 5 times (for The Thief’s Daughter, The King’s Traitor, The Hollow Crown, The Silent Shield, and Prism Cloud) and have sold more than 4 million copies. His novels have also been published or will be published in many languages: Italian, Chinese, Hungarian, Turkish, Polish, Spanish, Russian, and German.
He is also the founder of Deep Magic: the E-zine of Clean Fantasy and Science Fiction (www.deepmagic.co), a quarterly e-zine featuring amazing short stories, novellas, and sample chapters.
You can usually find Jeff at Emerald City Comic Con, New York Comic Con or at writers conferences.
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