Paladin Unbound by Jeffrey Speight
I’ve heard a lot of talk of this book online, so I actually signed up for Kindle Unlimited just to read it. This is the author’s (Jeff Speight) first book and he has put out a solid first effort.
The story tells of Umhra, a half-orc mercenary who is taking his small band of fellow half-orcs (the Bloodbound) to score a big contract that could solve some of their monetary concerns. The problem is, non-humans are generally frowned upon, and Umhra and Co have to venture deep into human lands to score the gig. Turns out the issuer of the contract, with a little help from a local priest, gives the Bloodbound the gig. They venture to a mysterious keep where many locals have been going missing and find more than they bargained for. The Bloodbound are wiped out, (obviously) except Umhra and our intrepid hero is cast into a far bigger problem than previously advertised. This isn’t really a spoiler, so I’ll just drop it in here. Umhra is a paladin, a great hero from times passed, but no paladin has been seen for 800 years, and they are feared and frowned upon these days. The plot of the novel involves the reincarnation of a dead god and Umhra’s is apparently on a collision course with.
So, what’s it all about?
I’ll level with you. This book starts a bit slow. The opening chapter involves the imprisoning of the awful god that everyone seems to want to resurrect, and is told in “ye olde tongue” vibe. The mission of the Bloodbound is a bit lacklustre as we never really get to know them before they fall foul of the mysterious keep, and the only conflict between them and Umhra is they’re questioning the trip to earn the contract as they are frowned upon by humans. I guess it’s not a big stretch for us to accept humans as disliking other species, but it’s also just thrown out there without any real explanation. Was there a war? Some kind of inter-species rivalry? Who knows. Another thing that bugged me was there were occasions where explanations were quickly dealt with but to no real satisfaction. For example, when the Bloodbound were exploring the keep, I was wondering how they were finding their way around when it suddenly mentioned that one of them had a map. Where did this map suddenly appear from? Maybe I was being fussy because things were a bit slow?
Is it any good?
Okay enough with the whining. While Umhra is getting beaten up at the keep, we start to meet Shadow, a member of the mysterious Barrows Pact who join up with our hero later, returning to the keep to help him get the bodies of his friends. Oh, and pick up a big stinking wad of treasure. Aha! Are they actual as noble as our beloved Umhra or do they have an alternative motive? This “who the hell are they?” motif carries through the rest of the story. While they seem good and noble, one can never quite discard the fact that their motivations are very suspect. Or maybe I’m just cynical. Shadow, in particular, offers no delusions to his love of treasure and causing trouble, and he is absolutely the most interesting of all the characters. Laudin is the leader of the Barrows Pact and seems to have a backstory, while the brothers Nicholas and Nathan, who also join the Pact with Umhra, are suspect. The only person who really seems to be taken at face value is our half-orc, and his sheer power and noble nature seem to be a great tool for those of questionable nature to take advantage of. The worldbuilding is great, an interesting world that is slowly being revealed, like an onion (thanks, Shrek). It’s well-written if a little dry, aside from the odd thing I mentioned earlier and it’s quite a pacy read. I got through it in a few days despite being one of the world’s slowest readers. If you like epic fantasy or D&D style plots, this is definitely for you.
Verdict
Worth a read for the epic fantasy mob.
- Format: E-book
- Obtained from: Kindle Unlimited
- Print length: 334 pages
- Publisher: Literary Wanderlust
- ISBN: 9781942856764 (pb)
