The Killing Fog (The Grave Kingdom #1) by Jeff Wheeler

The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler is an Adult Fantasy story set in an Asian-inspired world!

“The Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Kingfountain series conjures an epic, adventurous world of ancient myth and magic as a young woman’s battle with infinite evil begins.

Survivor of a combat school, the orphaned Bingmei belongs to a band of mercenaries employed by a local ruler. Now the nobleman, and collector of rare artifacts, has entrusted Bingmei and the skilled team with a treacherous assignment: brave the wilderness’s dangers to retrieve the treasures of a lost palace buried in a glacier valley. But upsetting its tombs has a price.

Echion, emperor of the Grave Kingdom, ruler of darkness, Dragon of Night, has long been entombed. Now Bingmei has unwittingly awakened him and is answerable to a legendary prophecy. Destroying the dark lord before he reclaims the kingdoms of the living is her inherited mission. Killing Bingmei before she fulfills it is Echion’s.

Thrust unprepared into the role of savior, urged on by a renegade prince, and possessing a magic that is her destiny, Bingmei knows what she must do. But what must she risk to honor her ancestors? Bingmei’s fateful choice is one that neither her friends nor her enemies can foretell, as Echion’s dark war for control unfolds.”

This book pleasantly surprised me.

Right off the bat we are introduced to a world full of magic, revenge, and intensity that perfectly clashed an Asian-inspired culture and fantasy worldbulding. It’s one of those stories that takes a matter of a chapter to become fully invested in and turns into a rather interesting read as you keep flipping through.

I didn’t know much going into this one, so I didn’t have any expectations for where this story was going to go. I will say that even though this has absolutely nothing to do with Mulan in any way, shape, or form, I couldn’t help but imagine all the characters diversified into this book.

Where that idea came from, I have no clue, but it happened.

Now when it comes to the genre, I personally feel like it read more of a YA novel than an Adult title, so if this interests you, I highly suggest most ages to pick this one up. It is a cleaner story (no sex, hard language, graphic scenes) even though it does include fighting between the main character’s group and the enemies.

There is a moderate amount of action along with an intense revenge story and a hint of suspense when it comes to a certain magical fog.

Overall, I really enjoyed getting into this book. A high 4 out of 5 stars from me, and like I said, if any of these tropes interest you, I highly recommend picking this one up!

Published: 1 March 2020

Publisher: 47 North

Genre: Adult Fantasy

Pages: 412

How I Read It: ARC from Publisher

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. All of my reviews contain my honest opinions only and are not influenced in any way.*

Interested in reading this book for yourself??