Wednesday 12 May 2010

URBAN FANTASY REVIEW: King Maker - Maurice Broaddus

BOOK BLURB:

From the drug gangs of downtown Indianapolis, the one true king will arise. The King Arthur myth gets dramatically retold through the eyes of street hustler King, as he tries to unite the crack dealers, gangbangers and the monsters lurking within them to do the right thing. From the drug gangs of downtown Indianapolis, the one true king will arise. The King Arthur myth gets dramatically retold through the eyes of street hustler King, as he tries to unite the crack dealers, gangbangers and the monsters lurking within them to do the right thing. Broaddus' debut is a stunning, edgy work, genuinely unlike anything you've ever read.


REVIEW:

To be blunt this really isn’t my type of book. I did enjoy the concept, I thought the modernisation was pretty nifty but my major problem was characters that I just couldn’t get a hook into. I didn’t like them, I wouldn’t want to associate with them but above all their dialogue felt more than forced almost as if it were trying to put too much modern parlance into people for whom it just didn’t work, either they speak street or they speak English. Part of that I think was due to trying to keep it accessible to the average reader but for me it left them feeling flat and unrealistic. Overall, this could perhaps work for a number of readers but for me personally it’s a novel that was a real struggle to finish.

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