Published: July 15, 2010
Words: 129,503 (approximate)
Language: English
ISBN: 9781452387895

Short description

A mysterious stone tablet, five magical gems, and an ancient letter haunt Gavin Kinshield, a warrant knight destined to become king... unless he can find a replacement before the sins of a long dead ancestor bring him face-to-face with his own nightmares.

Extended description

Book 1 of The Kinshield Saga

A mysterious stone tablet with five magical gems has sat abandoned in a cave for two hundred years. The kingdom is in ruins, with only warrant knights to keep the peace. But then, the gems in the tablet, one by one, disappear.

Warrant knight Gavin Kinshield is a man of many secrets. He's the one deciphering the runes in the tablet. Unless he can find a suitable replacement, he'll be Thendylath's next king. All he really wants is the letter written by his ancestor Ronor Kinshield, the last man to see King Arek alive... a letter he must earn by tracking down a common thief. (Read more) Book 1 of The Kinshield Saga

A mysterious stone tablet with five magical gems has sat abandoned in a cave for two hundred years. The kingdom is in ruins, with only warrant knights to keep the peace. But then, the gems in the tablet, one by one, disappear.

Warrant knight Gavin Kinshield is a man of many secrets. He's the one deciphering the runes in the tablet. Unless he can find a suitable replacement, he'll be Thendylath's next king. All he really wants is the letter written by his ancestor Ronor Kinshield, the last man to see King Arek alive... a letter he must earn by tracking down a common thief.

But when Gavin saves a woman's life, what should have been a simple task draws him face-to-face with his nightmarish past... and the truth of King Arek's demise.
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Named a top 4 read of 2010 by reviewer/blogger Grace Krispy

"The Kinshield Legacy is a rousing good fantasy tale, with nice characterization and some ferocious action. These days I read primarily for business rather than pleasure, but I found myself eager to return to this novel."
~ Piers Anthony, best-selling author of the Xanth novels

"From the very first page, The Kinshield Legacy grabs you by the throat and propels you into a world of magic, sorcery, jeweled-eyed gargoyles and a sisterhood of female warriors. A world where beyonders savage unsuspecting travelers; where a dark, yet charismatic, wizard covets the king's throne for his own and will let no one get in his way-including the rightful ruler. He who claims the King's Bloodstone shall reign as king. Enter Gavin Kinshield, warrant knight and rune solver, a man haunted by his past, and a hero like no other. A rousing debut from K. C. May, an author worth watching."
~ Carol Davis Luce, Author of Night Passage

"One of my favorite passages describes the blacksmithing process by which an enchanted sword is hammered into being for Gavin's use. The details of the smithing process, and of the sword itself as it unfolds, are described wonderfully. Through May's literary stylings, the sword is born and becomes a character in its own right. And, as a reader, I felt honored to watch it happen."
~ Steven L. Hawk, Author of Peace Warrior

Wulfstan, an Amazon Top-500 reviewer, wrote, "This book was one of the best First Books by a new author I have been privileged to read and review."
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Tags

destiny, fantasy, magic, sword and sorcery, wizards, epic fantasy, sorcery, heroic fantasy, swordsman, fantasy adventure, swordfighting, strong female character, wizard, fantasy fiction, fantasy adventure swords sorcery, sorcerers, sorcerer, strong women, sword play, swordsmen, female warrior, swords and sorcery, fantasy adult, sword fights, fantasy novel, strong female, magic and wizards, swordfights, swordswoman, strong females, women warriors

Available ebook reading formats

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Reviews

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Review by: Ivan Turner on March 23, 2011 :
I very much enjoyed the Kinshield Legacy. The characters are well developed and easy to follow. As with The Venom of Vipers, I found KC May's style extremely smooth. It's kind of like eating ice cream; you never get your fill. The ending was kind of abrupt, opening the door for a sequel, which I'll be sure to pick up as soon as it's available.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

Review by: Connie Dash on March 11, 2011 :
Only complaint I have is that the book didnt go on forever!! Loved it, and will be reading more from this author!
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

Review by: M L Sawyer on March 06, 2011 :
I really like this story and would love to read more about Gavin and the challenges that lie ahead.

K C May weaves a wonderful tail with complex characters that drew me into the story, not being able to put it down until I got to the end.

Will definatly be looking for more from this writer. One for the watch lists!
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

Review by: Bookblogger on Jan. 18, 2011 :
The Kinshield Legacy follow the story of Gavin a warrant knight (kind of like a bounty hunter) who is destined to be king. I found Gavin to be a very well developed character with a strong supporting cast. There are characters that are extremely likable (the blacksmith) and I personally despised the villain and spent the whole book waiting for terrible things to happen to him. The book moves along at a great speed and will keep you trying to finish just one more chapter.


The story is completed at the end, but it leaved things wide open for a sequel (first half of 2011 according to her website) which I will get for sure. If you have a kindle download the sample, if you enjoy fantasy you will most likely be hooked and end up buying the whole book. This book was a great find and I hope that K.C. May continues to write so I can continue to enjoy her wonderful stories.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

Review by: James Wilde on Nov. 30, 2010 :
I agree with GraceKrispy about the new language, but as Grace says, one quickly becomes used to this.

I enjoyed the book. Fantasy is a marginal genre for me, but I will be looking out for the sequel. Good, believable characters, definitely not black and white, but several shades of grey, at least for the goodies, but the ultimate baddie was absolutely bad.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

Review by: frostschutz on Oct. 31, 2010 :
From page one, you know who will be king, and the grande finale is skipped altogether. Usually this would make for a dull story that ends in complete failure, however The Kinshield Legacy easily deserves five stars.

This story thrives on its characters; they act and misunderstand things in a way that makes them human and entirely believable, including the bad guy. This is one of the few stories where I'm willing to believe that things actually really happened this way.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

Review by: GraceKrispy on Sep. 19, 2010 :
Wow. I was hooked in the first chapter and had trouble putting the book down to sleep last night. Each of the first few chapters introduces new people, people whose lives and stories become inextricably tied together as the story continues. One of the things that sometimes turns me off about the fantasy genre is the whole new language one must learn to understand what is going on. There are new names for objects, actions, types of people... it's like taking a confusing crash course in a foreign language. That's a lot of work when all I want to do is enjoy. Although K.C. May introduces new creatures and unfamiliar items with unusual names, the book is very readable, and there was no confusion. I didn't have to work to enjoy; this fantastical world is seamlessly woven into terms to which we can all relate.

The writing style is such that it was very easy to become engaged in the story. When I read some stories, I find myself constantly thinking of how I would have written certain lines or paragraphs differently. That tells me that the writing is not to my standards, and it distracts me from the story the author is trying to tell. When reading this story, however, I found myself enthralled and fully immersed in the adventure. The pacing of the chapters and introduction of new characters was ideal for maintaining interest and moving the story along without drawing anything out unnecessarily. Sometimes bad things happen to great characters, and I mourned the unavoidable losses along the way, even as I celebrated the small victories. I cringed, I delighted, I was completely and utterly engaged.

The ending is very satisfying in and of itself, but it does open the door for a sequel. I, for one, am eager to read more from this talented author.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

Review by: David d_djurberg@yahoo.se on Aug. 24, 2010 :
I'm not an experienced fantasy reader, with only a couple of books behind me, but for me this was the best fantasy I've read so far.

I feel with the characters and want to know more as the book progresses. The story is captivating from page 1 all the way to the last page.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

Review by: Zyzomys on Aug. 09, 2010 :
This book is great and I highly recommend it to anyone that enjoys fantasy novels.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

Review by: Jonathan Saville on Aug. 05, 2010 :
I throughly enjoyed this book! It is a good fantasy adventure with a variety of interesting characters.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

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