Monette manages to makes the stakes clear for even the most trivial decision. If this sounds boring to you… well, it’s possible this book might not be your cup of tea, but let me explain why it worked for me. Who is his steward? What will he do with his hated guardian? Who will his bodyguards be? What the heck is the Lord Chancellor up to? What will he have for luncheon? The first half of the book is nearly an hour-by-hour recounting of Maia’s (the title character’s) first days as Emperor of the Elflands.
Don’t expect a three-act structure, or cliffhangers, or action that flies off the page. I’ve heard negative reviews that complain that nothing really happens and… well, it’s kind of true. It is entirely composed of intense conversations in small rooms with subtle body language - and that is the beauty of it. Since then, it has reached critical fan mass in my circle of writerly friends, and I finally decided that I needed to get in on the lovefest. I first heard about this book due to Scott Lynch’s blog, where he raved about it. All the while, he is alone, and trying to find even a single friend… and hoping for the possibility of romance, yet also vigilant against the unseen enemies that threaten him, lest he lose his throne – or his life. Amid the swirl of plots to depose him, offers of arranged marriages, and the specter of the unknown conspirators who lurk in the shadows, he must quickly adjust to life as the Goblin Emperor. Surrounded by sycophants eager to curry favor with the naïve new emperor, and overwhelmed by the burdens of his new life, he can trust nobody.
But when his father and three sons in line for the throne are killed in an “accident,” he has no choice but to take his place as the only surviving rightful heir.Įntirely unschooled in the art of court politics, he has no friends, no advisors, and the sure knowledge that whoever assassinated his father and brothers could make an attempt on his life at any moment. The youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that suffuses it.
The Goblin Emperor is a 2014 fantasy of manners by Katherine Addison, who you may know better as Sarah Monette. Or: I wish I could go back in time and read this book again for the first time.Īhem. Or: I bought this book twice and I don’t even care. Or: this book should win the Best Novel Hugo.
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