“Rarely does the one who is most deserving of kingship wear the crown.”

That quote from A Pack of Wolves is essentially the question readers come back to time and again in PL Stuart’s extraordinary Drowned Kingdom Saga. After reading King Othrun’s story for four whole books and following the revelations in A Lion’s Pride I wondered what was in store for Othrun in this fifth instalment.

This is a long, in-depth review, so for those of you who are pressed for time the message is simple. If you like thoughtful epic fantasy on a grand scale with a historical feel and standout characters, this is the series for you. If you haven’t already, go out and buy A Drowned Kingdom right now and see what all the fuss is about. If you’re an existing fan of the series and haven’t read the latest instalment then go and buy this book! In my opinion, A Pack of Wolves is the best thing PL Stuart has written and it sets up the rest of the series perfectly.

The early chapters (and indeed the whole of Part I) are not told from Othrun’s perspective, which adds a new dimension to Stuart’s writing. Up until now the saga has been almost exclusively written from Othrun’s point of view, although there have been occasional departures from that approach to allow Stuart to tell certain aspects of his story and those changes are always interesting.

Set three years after the events of A Lion’s Pride, Stuart’s novel opens with a dramatic plot to kill a princess. Yet hunter turns hunted as Princess Hiris, daughter of Othrun’s great friend and liege lord King Hert of Carthlughe, pursues Sanaavian Queen Rupaa, making the opening a tense, dramatic and action-packed affair. As we saw from the conclusion of A Lion’s Pride, the Sanaavians are poised to strike at the Eltnian kingdoms and now they make their move, led by Rupaa and her husband, Othrun’s estranged elder brother Laathre.

Following those opening chapters the rest of Part I switches to the perspective of Othrun the Younger, First Prince of Eastrealm and King Othrun’s cherished eldest son, the only child of his beloved late first wife Aliaz. I found this change in storytelling approach really absorbing. King Othrun is still a powerful presence in the story but seeing him through the eyes of his son was revealing. As Othrun the Younger assumes the responsibilities befitting his station we find a man who couldn’t be more different from his father. Othrun the Younger aspires to be worthy of kingship, always putting his duties and future kingdom first. He is in a loveless marriage to Candalove, since his heart belongs to Athen, son of his father’s cousin and stalwart advisor Glathan. As a result King Othrun has separated the pair but now events bring them together once more.

As we reach the fifth volume of this saga the unfolding plot and its myriad cast of characters, with their intricate alliances, allegiances and ambitions, is hugely complex. Stuart is to be credited because by using Othrun the Younger’s perspective the necessary recap here is done really well and feels very natural. With all the pieces in play, it’s not long before King Othrun and his family face the ultimate challenge, as an allied Sanaavian army twice the size of the Eltnian force marches upon them. Rather worryingly following the events in A Lion’s Pride, Queen Lysi of Nyrimia remains of undeclared intent, thus holding the power to save or crush King Othrun.

The scene is set for action and excitement, and there is plenty of that in this book. However, I don’t think I’ve ever read a work of fantasy that is so multi-layered and so ambitious in its sense of history and scale. On the face of it this is a book about two mighty armies at war with two brothers on opposing sides of the conflict. These are the tropes of classic epic fantasy. However, Stuart always uses his books to explore weighty moral questions, using King Othrun’s often blinkered opinions to shine an uncomfortable light on our own prejudices and views. Stuart also excels in his plotting and in this instalment I understood for the first time why this saga needs seven books. Throughout this series Stuart has been carefully establishing some slow burn story arcs running alongside the narrative. Those strands now start to become increasingly important, adding so much more depth to the story.

None of this is easy to pull off. Whilst I had a concern with A Lion’s Pride that the story was having to take a back seat due to the complexity of the plot, A Pack of Wolves is perfectly balanced. Stuart’s writing is always full of rich description and he weaves in plenty of historical details which make this tale feel real. Stuart also has a poetic side to his writing and uses this well too, especially since this novel draws more clearly on Norse mythology and delves further into the fantastical. I particularly enjoyed the blending here of Christian theology with the Norse religion to explore themes of religious intolerance and superiority. Stuart always handles religious questions expertly and A Pack of Wolves is no exception in this regard.

The plot is also full of surprises. Some longstanding questions are finally answered in this novel, whilst others are clearly awaiting resolution in books six and seven. Some of these revelations turn previous events on their head – a feat I thought would be impossible after A Lion’s Pride, which is testament to Stuart’s imagination as a writer.

As you can probably tell by now, I am a huge fan of this book. I think the reason it worked so well for me is it reminded me of all my favourite parts of the first four books in the saga, taking the best from each of them. Part I reminded me of the first part of A Drowned Kingdom, almost like an extensive prologue that paints the world in vivid colours, whilst also underlining the moral challenges of ruling a kingdom, so ably explored in Lord and King. Part II has echoes of King Othrun’s daring in The Last of the Atalanteans, as he undertakes a covert secret mission. Part III makes every battle in the series thus far seem insignificant by comparison, even though A Lion’s Pride’s campaign of war was huge in scope. And against that backdrop as war looms there’s a sense of tragedy here at the circumstances which have set two brothers against one another. The resolution and aftermath is truly shocking.

I simply could not put this book down, racing through the 600 or so pages as quickly as I could, with many late-night reading sessions to squeeze in just one more chapter. Yet as I approached the end I didn’t want it to finish. All of a sudden there were lots of important chores to be done, thus staving off reading those final chapters for as long as possible. When the book was done I was tempted to turn back to page one and start all over again.

Put another way, I need more of this series and I want it now. Thank the writing gods, there will be more in 2026 with the sixth book, A Black Dragon on Red. I understand Stuart is currently on track to complete the seventh and final book as well, which is slated for release in 2027. This series is a must for fans of modern epic fantasy and is shaping up to be a masterpiece.

I was kindly sent an advance copy by the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.