The Poet King

by Ilana C. Myer

Overview

Prophecies unfold, legends turn real, and a war of mythical proportions endangers the realm in Ilana C. Myer’s epic fantasy The Poet King, the follow-up to her critically-acclaimed Fire Dance, continuing The Harp and Ring Sequence.

After a surprising upheaval, the nation of Tamryllin has a new ruler: Elissan Diar, who proclaims himself the first Poet King. Not all in court is happy with this regime change, as Rianna secretly schemes against him while she investigates a mysterious weapon he hides in the bowels of the palace.

Meanwhile, a civil war rages in a distant land, and former Court Poet Lin Amaristoth gathers allies old and new to return to Tamryllin in time to stop the coronation. For the Poet King’s ascension is connected with a darker, more sinister prophecy which threatens to unleash a battle out of legend unless Lin and her friends can stop it.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780765378347
Publisher:	Tom Doherty Associates
Publication date:	03/24/2020
Series:	The Harp and Ring Sequence , #3
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	784,394
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.40(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

ILANA C. MYER was a freelance journalist based in Jerusalem and cultural critic for various publications. As Ilana Teitelbum she has written book reviews and critical essays for The Globe and Mail, the Los Angeles Review of Books, Salon, and Huffington Post. Her series, The Harp and Ring Sequence, includes Last Song Before Night, Fire Dance, and The Poet King. A native New Yorker and longtime Jerusalem resident, she now resides in the mountains of Pennsylvania.

Editorial Reviews

12/02/2019

Myer concludes the Harp and Ring Sequence (after Fire Dance) with this opulent, ambitious fantasy. Political upheaval in Kahishi leads to Elissan Diar declaring himself the land’s first Poet King, capable of weaving magic into his odes. Embittered Lady Rianna Gelvan plots to kill Elissan before he takes the throne. Lin Amaristoth, who was Rianna’s mentor before becoming the former King’s Court Poet and whisking Rianna’s husband into a political whirlwind that ended with his disappearance and presumed treason, also works toward Elissan’s downfall, believing that no king should be able to wield the magic power of poetry. Myer’s intricately braided plot strands culminate in a clash of supernatural Otherworld powers. Those new to the series will have no trouble connecting with the well-drawn protagonists but may struggle to untangle the history of this rich universe which draws from a welter of world mythologies. Still, readers will be blown away by the lush, lyrical prose and epic scale of this novel. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

02/01/2020

The nation of Tamryllin has a new ruler: Ellisan Diar, who has enchanted his way into power as Poet King while claiming the support of the people. Not everyone is happy with the change, including Lady Rianna Gelvan, who plots to kill Ellisan before his coronation. Rianna is still struggling with the betrayal of her husband Ned, who left with the former king's court poet Lin Amaristoth during a political scheme that led to his disappearance. Rianna uses her position in the court to gain Ellisan's favor and trust, and Lin brings allies into the picture to end Ellisan's reign before it begins. But there's more at stake than the crown—the coronation is linked with a sinister prophecy that threatens to take the civil war to devastating extremes. Intriguing characters, diverse relationships, and political intrigue course through this lyrical, winding final volume in the trilogy (after Fire Dance). VERDICT Myer's lush prose and imagery amplifies a layered plot filled with magic, prophecy, and power.—Kristi Chadwick, Massachusetts Lib. Syst., Northampton

Library Journal

★ 2020-01-13
The common thread of Myer's previous two books—don't bargain with dangerous extradimensional magical beings—expresses itself in new and surprising ways in this conclusion to a trilogy melding music, enchantment, and dark ambition.

Having employed such bargains to take over the Poets' Academy and foment civil war in the distant land of Kahishi (Fire Dance, 2017, etc.), Archmaster Elissan Diar now uses his power to take the throne of Eivar. But his magics have opened a portal for the White Queen, an icy, bloody being who has her own ideas about what Diar is entitled to. Peace and stability in both Kahishi and Eivar depend on former Court Poet Lin Amaristoth; Syme Oleir, a young man possessed and driven insane by an Ifreet; and two previously ignored and despised Academy students: Julien Imara, a shy young woman unexpectedly gifted with prophetic magic, and Dorn Arrin, whose unwilling part in a sacrificial ritual could mean his doom. And somewhere in the mix there is Etherell Lyr, a beautiful man of uncertain loyalties and Dorn's decidedly unrequited love, whose tortured past as a sexual abuse victim has left him mercurial, vengeful, and sociopathic. These fully drawn characters negotiate complicated choices in a world that intriguingly intermingles Middle Eastern and Celtic folklore as well as a fantasy equivalent of the Jewish Diaspora. Myer delicately threads a steady path through a complex, ever shifting plot while maintaining a consistent throughline of theme that condemns the heedless and selfish choices of the powerful and pointedly underscores the folly of ignoring the quiet, seemingly insignificant people whose unexplored depths and considerable strengths might be poised to strike against those very same people at the top.

A fitting end to a gorgeous experiment in art, worldbuilding, and character, growing in strength from book to book.

Kirkus Reviews

A book of old, wild magic—nothing is what it seems.” —Seth Dickinson, author of The Monster Baru Cormorant

“A fitting end to a gorgeous experiment in art, worldbuilding, and character, growing in strength from book to book.” —Kirkus, starred review

“Opulent, ambitious fantasy....Readers will be blown away by the lush, lyrical prose and epic scale of this novel.” —Publishers Weekly

“Myer's lush prose and imagery amplifies a layered plot filled with magic, prophecy, and power.” —Library Journal

“This riveting series conclusion is hard to set down and will leave readers hoping that Myer returns to this fantastic fantasy setting someday.” —Booklist

For Ilana C. Myer

“Gorgeous. Fans of fantasy intrigue will like this one.” —The Washington Post

“Intricate, enthralling, and devastating.” —Yoon Ha Lee, author of Ninefox Gambit

“A wondrous world matched in beauty only by the prose in which it is sung. Ilana Myer is incredible.” —Ken Liu, author of The Grace of Kings

“A brilliantly imagined page-turner...uses lush, lyrical prose to propel the reader through the machinations of a wildly original fantasy world. Highly recommended.” —Scott Hawkins, author of The Library at Mount Char

“With its lush bouquet of elegance, intrigue, and passion, Fire Dance is Myer at her most intoxicating.” —Mishell Baker, author of Borderline

“[Myer's] world opens like a flower, revealing fresh landscapes both beautiful and dreadful...Worth waiting for.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“With detailed worldbuilding and vivid characters...this lush and luminous story combines exquisite splendor and fathomless cruelty as it champions the power of art and the resilience of the human spirit.” —RT Book Reviews

“Court intrigue and shadowy power spread through a richly described world, with strong characters and intricate prose to construct this absorbing plot…Myer’s sequel to Last Song Before Night is as powerful as its predecessor.” —Library Journal

“Forbidden enchantments and hidden machinations fill this well-plotted dark fantasy.” —Publishers Weekly

“Beautiful imagery abounds.... Full of lyrical, thoughtful writing packed with so much resonant emotion that it begs to be experienced.” —Tor.com

“A triumph. A masterwork of character and prose that wind through your soul like the final trembling notes of a song.” —Pages Below The Vaulted Sky

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