The Hunter’s Gambit
Ratings3
Average rating3.5
From the award nominated author of Bluebird comes a riveting, spicy fantasy, featuring malevolent vampires and a locked-room escape adventure, perfect for fans of Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff. The city of Mavazem is plagued by aristocratic vampires who terrorise the human citizens. But Kazan Korvic refuses to cower. As an expert blacksmith with a sharp grifter’s eye, her specialty lies in crafting, and using, weapons designed to kill the vicious creatures. But, turns out, sword skills aren’t quite enough when a whole group of vampires attack her and steal her magical weapon. Kazan is captured and forced to attend the Vampire Court where she is forced to act as their ‘Queen’. For three days she will waited and doted upon, until the lavish party where her reign will end in extravagant feast… and Kazan as the main course! Kazan plans to find her sword and get out, except with no allies in the castle, Kazan can feel the walls closing in. But she soon realises that she is not just trapped with these bloodthirsty bastards, they’re trapped with her too. And they’re not prepared for just how far she’s willing to go to survive.
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I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. (via Netgalley)
I was intrigued by the premise of this and enjoyed the beginning but the second half was kind of flat to me. I didn't feel there was a ton of character development as the story went on.
I’d like to thank both Net Galley and Angry Robot Books, from whom I received an ARC of The Hunter’s Gambit. These opinions are my own.
I love the concept of The Hunter’s Gambit. The vampires are exactly as I imagine vampires would be. They live a life of opulence and they are truly vicious. Their annual mock coronation highlights their cruelty and disregard for human life and that aspect of the story is well-done and very effectively conveys the vampires’ callous nature.
I liked Kazan and was invested in her character, but I wish we had a better understanding of why she lies. I wanted to understand her better and I think the book could have benefited from a deeper exploration of her relationship with lying. At one point, she agrees to something, then changes her mind and apologizes for lying. But that wasn’t a deliberate attempt to deceive and I’d like to understand why she saw it as a lie. Otherwise, I loved how tenacious Kazan was and her defiance of the vampires and will to live in the face of incredible danger was admirable.
Adrius has a compelling backstory and his status among the vampires adds depth to his character, but I feel Reya could have been a little more developed, though I loved that she was a bit morally gray.
There was a spice scene that was several pages long but wasn’t as explicit as I thought it would be (because vampires are known for their debauchery) and personally, I liked that. It really worked for the story though and one of my favorite parts was that there was a question of consent/preferences before things got too hot and heavy.
Despite a couple personal issues I had the book, there are still aspects that resonated with me and made the story enjoyable, and I think complex world-building really makes The Hunter’s Gambit stand out.
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