Pirate treasure
The action of the second volume of the Book of the Whole takes place in a completely different place than the Northern Border . Instead of the border between Szernia and Alere, we move south – where there are islands and Bezmiary. The events take place mainly in and around the sea. King of the Bezmiarów is basically a pirate adventure story in which we find fast-paced action and a lot of secrets.
However, it is worth remembering that this book is not an idyll where everything has to end well. Pirates are not a distant threat, but the main characters of the piece. While many of them are easy to like, it’s hard to call them positive characters. From the ethical point of view, the behavior of most of the people presented leaves much to be desired. The world created by Kres is definitely not candy. This should be read as a plus – it makes the whole thing more convincing. Pirates – well, they raid and murder for wealth. The author, however, shows that they also have something human – they face various problems, they can love (and hate!).
As in every pirate novel, the treasure must have appeared here. Of course, more than one person depends on hidden valuables and weapons. However, whether the heroes will be able to find and use this wealth, you will have to find out while reading.
Book of the Whole
Król Bezmiarów is the second volume of the Book of the Whole – one of the most recognized Polish fantasy series. Nonetheless, those who count on a straightforward continuation of the Northern Border may feel disappointed. The novel does not seem to be connected with the story described in the first installment of the series. Of course, it takes place in the same world, so the background is somewhat similar. Apart from that, however, it is difficult to find similarity. Both the characters and the nature of the story are completely different. On the other hand, it is possible that in the next volumes there will be threads that will connect everything.
Interestingly, the Book of the Whole is not only the title of the series, but also an element of the presented world. Received, those who study Szerń, create and analyze it. We learn a bit about this in the King of the Bezmiarów . However, there is not much of it. Importantly, we also get to know Szerń a bit better. Further, the author cannot be said to explain to the readers how exactly the world created by him works, but at least we get more pieces of the puzzle – and there are many more of them than in the first volume.
A fascinating story
The plot of the King of the Breadths goes at its own pace. It has a lot of action and suspenseful events, but there are also some slower fragments. However, basically the reader is fascinated by the story from the very beginning. It’s hard to break away from reading. It is worth noting here that the story presented in this volume consists of three very closely related stories. The whole thing takes a good few years, but most of that time has remained indescribable. Unfortunately, the endgame itself plays out a bit too fast, but that is forgivable.
On the other hand, the novels Could use some slimming. Some fragments, while interesting, could be shortened or even removed. Speaking of working for an editor, you can see in the book that it was written in the 90s. It would be good to slightly change some of the motifs so that they do not sting the eyes of the modern reader. This is especially true of sexist scenes emerging here and there.
Despite some disadvantages, it is definitely worth getting acquainted with the King of the Blands . Feliks W. Kres tells readers with great skill a story that you want to follow from the very beginning.
