King's Property (Queen of the Orcs #1) [Mass Market Paperback]

Morgan Howell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 31, 2007

Born into hardship, Dar learns to rely on herself alone. When her family betrays her, Dar is conscripted into King Kregant’s army and its brutal campaign to conquer a neighboring country. Now she is bound as a slave to a dreaded regiment of orcs, creatures legendary for their savagery and battle prowess.
Rather than cower, Dar rises to the challenge. She learns the unique culture and language of the orcs, survives treachery from both allies and enemies, and struggles to understand a mystical gift that brings her dark, prophetic visions. As the war escalates–amid nightmarish combat and shattering loss–Dar must seize a single chance at freedom.

“Original and vivid. I was captivated.”
–Nancy Kress, author of Beggars in Spain

Look for Books II and III in the Queen of the Orcs trilogy,

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Conscripted into King Kregant's army, Dar is branded to make running away difficult. Assigned to serve food to the orc regiment, she discovers that they worship Muth la, the mother of everything, and can take food only when served by a female as well as with a ceremonial phrase indicating that it comes from Muth la. When Dar realizes that one of the orc soldiers' human leaders has it in for her, she turns to the orc Kovok-mah for protection and attempts to learn his language, which makes her an outcast from the other women in the army, many of whom service the soldiers in return for sharing the plunder. When young Twea is conscripted, Dar takes her under her wing, and Twea enchants Kovok-mah. Using logic and chutzpah, Dar keeps herself and Twea safe, however, by sleeping in the orcs' enclosure. While huge and strong, the orcs are straightforward and honorable, and their language reflects their lack of guile. They are fighting because their queen requires it. Howell has created a fascinating, believable world and a compassionate, kick-ass heroine who helps the weak and uses wit and agility to survive and triumph. Tixier Herald, Diana

About the Author

A graduate of Oberlin College and the Rochester Institute of Technology, Morgan Howell is a full-time writer who lives in upstate New York.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey (July 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345496507
• ISBN-13: 978-0345496508
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (65 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,020,710 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Writing fantasy is as fun as reading it. It's a heady business crafting worlds and filling them with complicated characters. But there's a serious side, too. The supernatural evokes what's primal. Destiny, the afterlife, and faith are all matters that fall outside the sphere of science yet are core to the human experience. My goal is to create compelling stories that leave readers with something to ponder.

I've written two fantasy trilogies, QUEEN OF THE ORCS and THE SHADOWED PATH. Women figure prominently in both because throughout history they have been at a disadvantage, possessing few rights and considered inferior to men. A heroine has more to overcome than a hero, and that makes her struggle more interesting. Neither do I write about privileged women. As one of my characters states, "princesses incline toward vanity and indolence." My heroines triumph the hard way, through their intelligence and courage.

Go to morganhowell.com to learn more about my books and me.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First in the Queen of the Orcs trilogy!, August 2, 2007

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: King's Property (Queen of the Orcs #1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Dar knew her step-mother hated her, but Dar never expected her father to conscript her into King Kregant's army! The king is on a brutal campaign to conquer a neighboring king's land. Women are needed to cook and serve for not only the human army, but also the orc warriors. Thus Dar is branded on her forehead and immediately put to work. The brand upon the forehead is stronger than any shackle could possibly have been. Any female with the brand that is found away from her unit is decapitated; her head turned in for a bounty. The women do not live long in servitude either. Something or someone is always killing them off, forcing the king's army to recruit more female slaves.

Dar always thought that orcs were nothing more than killers. However, Dar begins to learn the Orc language and soon learns that orcs respect females (a.k.a. "Mothers") highly. The other female slaves do not know this and would not believe Dar had she informed them. As Dar struggles to survive her army life, she also begins to befriend the orcs. This causes major strife between Dar and the other women, as well as, between Dar and the human men. To make matters worse, Dar has a growing gift for dark prophecy and she foresees awful events for her friends among the orcs and herself. Problem is that orcs have honor and do not understand the concept of lies and betrayals, so Dar's warnings go unheeded.

***** This is the first of the THE QUEEN OF THE ORCS trilogy. Author Morgan Howell has created an outstanding foundation for the next two books to build upon. The story grabbed me quickly and held onto me tighter than Super Glue until the very end. Thank heavens the next book will be released within the next month. Otherwise, waiting would be sheer torture for me! Be warned, you will NOT want to put down this story, so make sure you have LOTS of time before you even open the front cover. BRAVO! I want more! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Absorbing and interesting... a good read, but with reservations, September 6, 2007

By 

Professor J (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: King's Property (Queen of the Orcs #1) (Mass Market Paperback)

I happened on this book completely by accident, and didn't expect to like it. The first few chapters set up a been-there, done-that tale in which the men were evil, the women were catty (except the protagonist), and the orcs were all Noble Savages. But as I continued to read the story, I found that I liked it despite these flaws -- and the flaws gradually faded. A good male character appeared; some of the women were good; one of the orcs wasn't noble; and the protagonist made some painful mistakes. That was enough to keep me reading.

One thing I particularly liked about the tale is its take on orcs -- they're still the brutish-looking, scary monsters of Tolkienesque fantasy, but here they're also depicted as intelligent, honorable, and the victims of a serious PR problem. It's nice to see the scary monsters treated as the heroes for a change.

I'm still a little wary about this story, though, in large part because the protagonist is just a little too good. She's intelligent, resourceful, pretty, and well-spoken; she's the only one among the group of female slaves who resists prostituting herself for food and clothing; she's able to master the orc language in a very short time; she's able to understand both humans and orcs with stunning psychological clarity; she even sees visions of the future (apparently) sent by the orc goddess. Given the title of this series, I can see she's being set up as some kind of orcish messiah, and that smacks of Mary Sue-ism and a thousand cliches in which the good white hero joins the poor downtrodden natives and leads them in a rebellion against his own kind, etc. But thus far the story is well-written enough that this element doesn't turn me off... yet, anyway. I'm waiting to see how book 2 goes.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Disturbing and Fascinating Book, August 7, 2007

By 

loonigrrl (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: King's Property (Queen of the Orcs #1) (Mass Market Paperback)

I absolutely loved this book. The main character, Dar, has lived an extremely hard and tragic life, but that's nothing compared to what lies ahead the day she is given up by her own family to become a slave in the lowest dregs of the King's army, the Orc regiments. Once there, her strength and determination quickly makes her enemies with just about every man and woman in the army, and every day is a battle simply to remain alive.

Morgan Howell has created a fascinating world where monsters are not always what they appear, and inhumanity and treachery know no limits. From the very first page, I was entranced by Dar's story and her relationship with the Orcs, but also appalled and horrified by some of the atrocities that were depicted. For that reason, it's not an easy read, but I highly recommend it, and I simply cannot wait to read the next book.