Anji Kills A King: A Review

Anji Kills A King is an adult fantasy novel that centers on a girl named Anji, who as the title suggests, kills a king. This action is the catalyst for the story. While he wasn’t a beloved king, he was powerful and so a very substantial bounty is soon placed on Anji’s head. However, when Anji escapes, she forgets to run far and is soon apprehended by a famous bounty hunter named Hawk.

The trouble is, Hawk has to get Anji back to the capital while avoiding everyone who wants to take her bounty from her. Hawk may be old, but she’s a professional who will stop at nothing to bring Anji back and collect her bounty.

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I received an ARC of Anji Kills A King in exchange for an honest review.

Stars: 3/5

What I like about this book is that the author, Evan Leikam, does a magnificent job with description. The setting is poignant, the various disasters and issues that the protagonist come across illuminated well enough that any reader can easily picture them in their minds. Also, there is forever a sense of Otherness that I like. Anji is not a likable character. In fact, she is so annoying that she reminds me of a fantasy version of Holden Caulfield, capricious, thinking the world owes her something, refuses to shut up and listen. I actually felt bad for the hawk for the first half of the book because she had to put up with Anji.

I also loved the characterization of the side characters. The Menagerie, the group of masked bounty hunters that the Hawk is a part of, are all insane and Leikam does a magnificent job of showcasing their respective misdeeds and cruelty. While at the same time, the author knows how to throw in a funny line or lighthearted moment. The story would be perfect without Anji, haha. Another aspect I liked was really the last quarter of the book. We see vulnerability, battles, breaking, and most importantly change. As Anji steels herself, she is no longer the laundress who does the occasional recreational drug. She has been beaten, tortured, starved…and we get a glimpse of who she is to become toward the end of the novel.

Is this a book I would read again? No. And while I am not sure it is one I would recommend, I can appreciate the author’s work.