The Reluctant King [Mass Market Paperback]

Decamp (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1996

Laws of Xylar decreed that each king shall be beheaded upon the end of their five-year reign. So with the help of a wizard, King Jorian escaped. Unfortunately, his wife had been left behind. In order to pull off a rescue, Jorian would have to locate a trove of ancient spells, deal with an enemy wizard, steal an item from a 500-year-old princess, and then some. Republication.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 688 pages
• Publisher: Baen (September 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671877461
• ISBN-13: 978-0671877460
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,608,474 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Trilogy Set In Novaria, February 17, 2001

By 

Joe (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Reluctant King (Mass Market Paperback)

The Reluctant King is a trilogy set in de Camps's fantasy milileu of Novaria, combining "The Goblin Tower" "The Clocks of Iraz", and "The Unbeheaded King." It follows the adventurs of Jorian, a fellow beset by the problem of really not being good at any one skill which he can make a living at. By accident he wanders into Xylar City proper and catches the head of the previous king (the Lot of Imbal by which the next reigning king is chosen). The books begin 5 years later when he escapes the end-of-rein beheading that would be used to choose the next king. His next task is to recover his love from the kingdom. Don't think you know the plot just by those words - de Camp doesn't write the same ole kill-the-monster-save-the-princess rag as most people do.

These three books revolve around Jorian's one gift, his ability to tell tales. Like the Arabian Nights series, he uses this ability to forestall doom multiple times but in different settings. And in the process wanders through a number of epics disecting various government forms, winding up with the concept that governments are based on people, and people tend to err.

Novaria is a dense setting: it's well set out. Several time's I've tried to work up a "Land of Novaria" compedium but while reading the various books I get stumped because every page contains a reference to something different. Which can make for heavy reading. But if you like realistics settings it can please you.

I myself wish there were three times as many books set in Novaria...

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is amazing!, November 29, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Reluctant King (Mass Market Paperback)

An extraodinary tale of the adventures of a warm-hearted barbarian in a magical land where a strange custom exists -- the king is elected for a short period of time after which he is beheaded... The book is written in a very lively style. The author has once again proven himself worthy of the title "Mister Fantasy".

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The complete story of the Unbeheaded King, October 20, 2002

By 

Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Reluctant King (Mass Market Paperback)

The Reluctant King assembles in one volume L. Sprague de Camp's three thrilling novels (The Goblin Tower, The Clocks of Iraz, and The Unbeheaded King) detailing the wild and humorous adventures of Jorian of Kortoli and the constantly amusing wizard Karadur. While passing through Xylar, Jorian instinctively catches a decapitated head out of the air and finds himself proclaimed the new king of the land, one whose own head will be forcibly removed from his body after a traditional five-year reign. With the help of Karadur, Jorian escapes, but his life is constantly threatened by Xylarian soldiers seeking their unbeheaded king. Our heroic odd couple roam the lands of the realm, encountering all manner of men and dangers, numerous gods, dangerous ape-men, lustful, dangerous women, rogue barbarians, slow-witted demons, avaricious sorcerers, witches, enchantresses, etc. Jorian employs all manner of physical objects (including a giant golden bathtub) and sometimes less than dependable magic from Karadur to keep himself alive and healthy so that he can attempt to recover his beloved wife Estrildis from the walled confines of Xylar City. The action is nonstop and the humor rich and abundant, making the Reluctant King trilogy one of the best works of fantasy I have ever read.

Wanting no more than to settle down with the chosen wife he left behind in Xylar and live the simple, quiet life of a craftsman, Jorian is seemingly cut out to be either an adventurer or a king. Possessed of a noble heart, underrated combat skills, and a great deal of ingenuity and common sense, his greatest skill is actually his storytelling ability, and many of his escapes come about as a direct result of his storytelling prowess. This makes him an uncommonly interesting and very human hero. The ultimate conclusion, I was happy to discover, is by no means a foregone one ... Jorian does make a cameo appearance in de Camp's novel The Honorable Barbarian, but this 3-in-1 volume basically contains all of the exploits of this famous unbeheaded king. No fantasy fan should deny himself/herself the joy of reading de Camp's fiction, and this account of Jorian's life and times is a wonderful way for you to introduce yourself to one of the genre's greatest and most legendary writers.