Review of Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

This being the review for the fourth book in a space opera series, I think I can skip the preamble and get right to the heart of matters: does this book carry forward the momentum of previous books by keeping things consistent yet fresh? Yes. If that's all you wanted to know, you can safely go to your friendly local bookstore and buy a copy. For those who want more, here it is.

Kingdoms of Death (2022) picks up the main storyline a century after Demon in White. Marlowe has been sent to the front to fight the increasingly larger and more dangerous hordes of Cielcin. The swarm grows as their mission to eliminate humanity from the universe comes closer to fruition. Marlowe and his desperate band find themselves in a firefight, but live to tell the tale. Manpower running low, Marlowe is asked by the Emperor himself in the aftermath of the battle to go an isolated human group, the Lotherians, and request help in battling the Cielcin. Marlowe accepts, and little does he know how drastically the mission will alter his life's course.

Aside from the bookends of plot, the book takes place in essentially two locations, both of which qualify for “kingdoms of death”. One human and the other alien, Ruocchio gives readers further views into his universe and what makes it tick. For readers looking for fresh views, the book delivers without disrupting the tone and direction of the books to date.

Before closing the review, I would like to make a side comment. It's starting to look like Ruocchio is making a Christ analogy of Marlowe. It's not clear yet what precisely the analog is, but there seem too many parallels and hints to think differently. For this reader, it's worrying. Gene Wolfe was a Catholic not afraid to tackle religious and mythical themes in his writing, and his book The Wizard Knight likewise offered analogies to Christ. Wolfe took his main character in the direction of being a moral example to others, thankfully. But for Ruocchio it's still unknown. There remains space to look to the Catholic Church as a worthwhile institution and practice—something I personally am less keen on supporting. Anyway, it remains for the final book (books?) to complete, or not, the analogy.

In the end, Kingdoms of Death should be praised for keeping the overall book series fresh and new. While the first +/-75 pages revisit familiar scenes of fighting Cielcins, what follows takes the Sun Eater to new places and new experiences unlike the series has seen to date. There are giant set pieces that Ruocchio delivers upon. (There is one moment, however, that is reasonably well foreshadowed but still feels a bit deus ex machina...) In short, Ruocchio has yet to give readers who enjoy space opera a reason not to start and/or continue the series.