King's Dragon (Crown of Stars, Vol. 1) [Hardcover]

Kate Elliott (Author)

Book Description

Series: Crown of Stars, Vol. 1 | Publication Date: February 1, 1997

Set in an alternate Europe where bloody conflicts and sorcery hold sway, Alain, a young man seeking his promised destiny, and Liath, a woman with the power to alter the course of history, find the fate of the world in their hands.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The first volume of Crown of Stars, another complex fantasy saga of political and magical intrigue, bodes extremely well. The Kingdom of Wendar is beset by civil war between brother and sister for the throne, by two hostile nonhuman races, by ghosts roaming the streets, and by enough other plots and counterplots to fuel the average Balkan war. Key to successfully resolving the overly fraught situation are Alain, a young prophet who needs to learn his parentage before he can act safely, and Liath, a lifelong fugitive sheltered by her father from worldly knowledge that she must acquire before she can act. The saga's world is exceedingly well built (including a working economy, for instance), its pacing is brisk enough to keep the pages fluttering, and its characters are, at this stage, at least archetypes who may develop into more. This certainly could become one of the best multivolume fantasies--fans, take note! Roland Green

From Kirkus Reviews

From the author of The Golden Key (with Melanie Rawn and Jennifer Roberson, p. 1108), the first entry in a projected fantasy series. In a Europe-flavored fantasy world, King Henry of Wendar is beset by two powerful enemies: the invading nonhuman Eika and their huge, terrible dogs; and by his half-sister Sabella of Varre, who denies Henry's right to name as his heir his bastard son Sanglant. Young, parentless Alain, seemingly destined for the church, is granted a vision of the Lady of Battles and eventually attaches himself to Count Lavastine--who also keeps large, vicious dogs that, other than the Count himself, only Alain can control. At this point, however, Lavastine, a neutral in the struggle for power, is ensorcelled by Sabella's allies and marches to war against Henry. Meanwhile, Liath, having spent most of her young life with her beloved Da fleeing unknown enemies, is enslaved by churchman Hugh when Da is murdered, leaving Liath unable to pay his debuts. Hugh hopes to grab the book of magic that Da left Liath, but just in time she's recruited by Wolfhere of the King's Eagles. Wolfhere knew Da and suspects Liath has magic abilities; both Alain and Liath will play important parts in the showdown between Sabella and Henry. A creditably self-contained and appealing, modestly engrossing opener, though without much originality or bite. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 544 pages
• Publisher: DAW Hardcover; Book Club edition (February 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0886777275
• ISBN-13: 978-0886777272
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (94 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,090,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kate Elliott lives in Hawaii, USA. In addition to the Crossroads series and the Crown of Stars series, she is co-author of THE GOLDEN KEY.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A strong start to an outstanding series, August 24, 2002

By 

M. Smith "cenmad" (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: King's Dragon (Crown of Stars, Vol. 1) (Paperback)

I picked up this book on a whim at the library, and ploughed through it and the next three of the series within two weeks. Elliott has developed an intricate, compelling storyline that rewards the attentive reader. Each chapter uncovers some new layer to the onion -- or suggests that one will be uncovered later. This is a story of sweeping scope, with more than seven distinct "main" protagonists, whose individual stories intertwine and separate, then intertwine again. Most of the main pro- and antagonists are fairly clearly good or evil, but there are several important characters hovering somewhere in the middle. This dynamic makes for an engaging plot that doesn't suffer from predictability.

This first book is the slowest of the lot, so far. It does delve heavily into background and history, but it does so for a VERY good reason. Everything you learn in this book is important for the later books, and I found myself in book IV wishing I'd paid better attention back in book II to some chance story a minor character told in passing. The intrigues and hidden manipulations only comes to light slowly, as the protagonists themselves learn the truth. A story of this scope can't be done justice by being told quickly.

As I see it, the books seem to fit the following pattern: book I is foundation, suggesting some greater plot is driving the action; book II shows there is more than one greater plot, and introduces several mysteries; book III slowly unravels a couple of mysteries, but mostly establishes a few new ones and moves the story closer to conclusion; book IV drives clearly toward the series climax and explains several of the mysteries, but leaves more than enough to make you wish book V had been published already.

One note: This first book contains a central plotline of domestic violence and rape. Some readers may find this very disturbing, especially as there's no skipping over those sections without missing too much to continue.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Epic, September 30, 1999

By 

EquesNiger (Prague, Czech Republic) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: King's Dragon (Crown of Stars, Vol. 1) (Paperback)

The Kingdom of Wendar is in turmoil. King Henry still holds the crown, but his reign has long been contested by his sister Sabella. There are many eager to flock to her banner, whether from belief in her cause or the hope of personal gain. Internal conflict weakens Wendar's defenses, drawing raiders, human and inhuman, across its borders. Terrifying portents abound and dark spirits walk the land in broad daylight. Two innocents are to be thrust into the midst of the conflict - Alain, a young man granted a vision granted by the Lady of Battles, and Liath, a young woman with the power to change the course of history. Both must discover the truth about themselves before they can accept their fate. For in a war where sorcery, not swords, may determine the final outcome, the price of failure may be more than their own lives.

It has been quite a while since I read a series and thought "damn, it's over!" at the end. The author has built a vast number of interesting characters but, despite the number, one is able to know and relate to each. Each of the characters has their own remarkable flaws and imperfections, and you actaully have opportunities to sympathize with each throughout the series (even the remarkably "evil" ones you think you would never agree with). Unlike the Robert Jordan WoT series which seems to go on and on and on without resolution, Elliot has squeezed a sweeping epic into a (mere) 7 books, and I found myself disappointed when I finished the last of the third book. Fortunately, there are enough open issues, unanswered questions and unresolved conflicts in the end that Elliot could forseeably write another series to "fill in the blanks". I, for one, sincerely hope to see more from this author in the very near future.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Kingly Read, March 2, 2006

By 

Samuel Negron "Sam Negron" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: King's Dragon (Crown of Stars, Vol. 1) (Paperback)

I would normally give King's Dragon four stars, or even 4.5 stars, but I'm giving it five because I think the ultimate Amazon rating is an unfair reflection of Kate Elliott's first novel.

King's Dragon is your typical long fantasy book. Kate Elliott uses a lot of familiar fantasy tropes: bastard princes, magic, people rising from obscurity to the nobility, etc. However, since it's nearly impossible to find a fantasy novel without those tropes, they didn't really get in the way of my enjoyment of the story.

As you'll probably read below and above this review, Kate Elliott has taken many familiar historical events from our world and changed them into something... well... fanciful. Again, using our world as a springing board into an unfamiliar world is another recognizable trope used by fantasy authors. Most authors don't acknowledge their use of our own history in their story, and most people don't criticize them because the average person doesn't notice the historical and legendary references. Kate Elliott does acknowledge that she has used history in her book, and now everyone has chosen to criticize her for it. I hope you, random reader, are not such a person.

King's Dragon opens up with a PoV from a being who isn't human; her race, purpose, and physical appearance are kept a mystery; some of her anonymity is uncovered over the course of the novel. She is leaving Henry with the child she made with him. This child is what makes Henry the next King, because-while not birthed legitimately-proves that he can produce an heir. The baby, whose name is Sanglant, is the King's Dragon. Sanglant is the captain of the Dragons. The Dragons are the paramount Cavalry soldiers of the King, who most often ride in the vanguard of the King's army. Prince Sanglant, however, is not the main character of King's Dragon, but one can easily gather this from the book jacket description.

There are two main characters: Liath and Alain.

Liath is a girl whose birth is shrouded in mystery. We get the idea she can use magic, but her father is protecting her from an unnamed evil. When her father dies, she is bought by Hugh in an auction of her father's things; she is-what would be called in ancient times-a debtor. Hugh is a Frater, or Father, who has an unhealthy interest in Liath. Under his care, she suffers many abuses. Hugh beats her and smothers her mind in an effort to get "The Book of Secrets" from Liath; the book of Secrets stays mostly a mystery in this novel. Liath is definitely the focus of this first installment.

Alain also has a mysterious birthing. During a raid from the inhuman Eika, Alain sees a vision from the Lady of Battles. Alain swears an oath to her, and this sets his feet on a path to war and the revelation of an even greater mystery.

Both characters are swept up in forces far greater than they are. Both have destinies we the reader cannot yet fathom. Both are uniquely differentiated characters we can empathize with and become attached to.

I haven't read the second book yet, but I am eagerly awaiting its arrival in the mail. The tone of the novel is that of a writer who normally feels at home in an SF setting, but is working with an idea that is more fanciful than scientific. I've often liked such books; The Cold Fire Trilogy, Memory Sorrow and Thorn, and Azazel; those stories seem to all have a more literary cast to them-King's Dragon is no different. Kate Elliott's second book in this series, Prince of Dogs, actually was a finalist for the Nebula award; neither Robert Jordan, nor Terry Goodkind can boast being a finalist for any award.