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King Maker Maurice Broaddus Books

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King Maker Maurice Broaddus Books

I enjoy well done remixes and extensions of classic tales, and with only a few exceptions, Maurice Broaddus has done that with the Arthur legends.

I started this book believing it to be a retelling of the story in a new setting. I quickly realized that wasn't the case after all. The events we all know from Mallory, White and others are referenced here and there in the narrative. They happened. Instead, King Maker posits are cyclic story that arises repeatedly as the conditions are right.

In the first chapter alone we see old friends' new forms - Luther White (Uther), (The) Green (Knight), Morgana (la Fey), Merle (Merlin), etc. White, a powerful street lord, has a son, King. He also has a tryst with Morgana and fathers another, before he's killed by Green and by treachery.

Some time passes, and we learn than the situation has changed. Green remains a lieutenant to a man called Night (Gwyn ap Nudd, maybe?). They are opposed by Luther's unacknowledged son, Dred. King, after a flirtation with thuggishness in his youth has stepped out of it, spending his time more with Wayne, a social worker and general do-gooder who's come up out of the same neighborhood.

The book's plot deals mostly with machinations between Dred and Night, though they have consequences for King, Wayne, and other characters. It's not until close to the end of the book that circumstances, fate, and crazy ol' Merle have convinced King that he needs to step up and protect Breton Court from the two gang lords.

The only real downside to the book for me was the writing, which was inconsistent. In many ways it was excellent; Broaddus uses different authorial voices depending on the POV characters, bringing them even more to life. At the same time, there were instances of pointlessly complex sentences, missing verbs, and other poor construction.

Still, those issues were infrequent enough to avoid making the book unpleasant. Broaddus' deft intermingling of straight and gang life, magic, and the fey made for a compelling read. The Arthurian underpinnings provided a strong foundation. Deviations from the story and the addition of crime and horror elements prevented it from feeling stale or rehashed.

I look forward to reading the second book in the series.


Tags : Amazon.com: King Maker (9780007343317): Maurice Broaddus: Books,Maurice Broaddus,King Maker,Angry Robot,0007343310,African American - Urban Life,Fantasy - Urban Life,Fiction - Fantasy

King Maker Maurice Broaddus Books Reviews

Well done.

(Note this is NOT PG-13)

A very active, very engaging tale. Great imagery. Set in Indianapolis. Enjoyed it. Probably won't let the kiddos near it.
I really enjoyed this novel, and would heartily recommend it. If you like urban fantasy with a realistic edge, this is a great series. It did feel like the author was trying to juggle a few too many plot threads. That wasn't botched, but I suspect later works will be even better.
KING MAKER The Kights of Brenton Court Vol. 1 by Maurice Broaddus opens by introducing us to Luther, gang leader and father of King James White, who lives in the ghetto or slums, if you will, of Indianapolis. We soon witness the betrayal and fall of Luther. There are many "side" characters (I lost count), whose stories I found at times hard to read. Living in the hood does that, as there are many stories that can be told. One in particular was of a gangster who mutilates a witness when he felt he was about to be snitched on. In addition there are graphic details of bloody conflicts, zombies and twins who are cannibalistic enforcers that had me flipping the pages as a way to hurry and get past that scene and others.

This is Volume 1, so I suspect we will learn more about King James, as I didn't get the connection of him to most of the characters. King was the side character in place of the main character in my view. If he had even narrated the story, in place of popping up now and then, it would have made more sense to me.

For fans of urban fantasy, Mr. Broaddus delivers.

Reviewed by Linda Chavis
for The RAWSISTAZ(TM) Reviewers
Always a sucker for Arthur Mythos - can't believe it's taken this long to get to the top of my read pile.

This book is gorgeous, in a dark and horrible way. It reads like a nightmare that is lush and decadent, while being set in squats and under bridges. Even those characters at the *top* of the hierarchy, live in conditions that most people wouldn't consider a basic standard of living.

I highly recommend this as a read that will shake you up a little and maybe pull you out of any comfort soon you might be in regarding Urban Fantasy.

I have some issues with the culture of the book and the relationship with women portrayed - It's hard out there for a ho... but it's not an issue with the writer - it's written beautifully - it's just that hard attitude and world view of the slice that is being written about really couldn't be portrayed any other way. Not and work or be realistic - but it is sort of depressing.

I have a lot of love for King, Lady G, Merle, Wayne - and a host of side characters that have relevant roles in the unfolding of the tale. Sometimes scenes jumped in a way that I had to figure out where I was - but I'm not sure if that was the formatting issue mentioned below or an authorial issue (or even just a me issue.)

Still gets a Bravo! from me as even with any *figurin* I might have had to do - still worth it. Can't wait to read Book 2.

Nit Picks

The kindle edition I bought had some formatting problems that have been reported - so hopefully those get fixed - nothing major - some spacing issues that caused paragraphs with dialogue and end and beginning to get thrown together.
I enjoy well done remixes and extensions of classic tales, and with only a few exceptions, Maurice Broaddus has done that with the Arthur legends.

I started this book believing it to be a retelling of the story in a new setting. I quickly realized that wasn't the case after all. The events we all know from Mallory, White and others are referenced here and there in the narrative. They happened. Instead, King Maker posits are cyclic story that arises repeatedly as the conditions are right.

In the first chapter alone we see old friends' new forms - Luther White (Uther), (The) Green (Knight), Morgana (la Fey), Merle (Merlin), etc. White, a powerful street lord, has a son, King. He also has a tryst with Morgana and fathers another, before he's killed by Green and by treachery.

Some time passes, and we learn than the situation has changed. Green remains a lieutenant to a man called Night (Gwyn ap Nudd, maybe?). They are opposed by Luther's unacknowledged son, Dred. King, after a flirtation with thuggishness in his youth has stepped out of it, spending his time more with Wayne, a social worker and general do-gooder who's come up out of the same neighborhood.

The book's plot deals mostly with machinations between Dred and Night, though they have consequences for King, Wayne, and other characters. It's not until close to the end of the book that circumstances, fate, and crazy ol' Merle have convinced King that he needs to step up and protect Breton Court from the two gang lords.

The only real downside to the book for me was the writing, which was inconsistent. In many ways it was excellent; Broaddus uses different authorial voices depending on the POV characters, bringing them even more to life. At the same time, there were instances of pointlessly complex sentences, missing verbs, and other poor construction.

Still, those issues were infrequent enough to avoid making the book unpleasant. Broaddus' deft intermingling of straight and gang life, magic, and the fey made for a compelling read. The Arthurian underpinnings provided a strong foundation. Deviations from the story and the addition of crime and horror elements prevented it from feeling stale or rehashed.

I look forward to reading the second book in the series.