It was hard for me to rate this book. Right now I am giving it 2.5 stars out of 5. I loved the first book (The Hedgewitch Queen) which is written from the perspective of Vianne. This book is written from the perspective of Tristan d'Arcanne, her husband, and captain of the guard, but after the shocking reveal that he actually was involved in the coup and killed the king. I liked Tristan in the first book but I really hated him in this book. He goes through hell and he does something totally unforgiveable to Vianne. I really could not empathize with him but I read the book to see what happens to Vianne. We really don't know what she is thinking because she is not with her husband for most of the story. She is busy leading an army to defeat the bad guys. Tristan is mainly stewing in his own juices when he is not healing from the many violent attacks he has to suffer. He tries to justify his actions with his love of Vianne, but is it love of obsession he feels? I felt sad after reading this book and disappointed that it did not follow the stereotypical happy ending - maybe there could not be a happy ending to this story. All of Lilith Saintcrow's writing strengths are present in this fantasy novel, beautiful, lush writing, complex, rich characters, and a twisting, engaging plot. While in the past, her heroines have dominated her stories, Tristam takes center stage in this series. Tristam is not a good man. He is a murderer, liar, and thief, among many other things. His love for the hedgewitch queen is obsessive and dark. As the hedgewitch queen fights to save her country from an usurper and his horde of foreign allies, she waits for betrayal at the hands of her consort.
What do You think about The Bandit King (2012)?
Halfway through I would have given this book a 2 but I feel like it turned around for me .
—erikac14
