Conqueror

by Conn Iggulden

Reviewed by Coral

After Ogedai’s death the Mongol nation enters a period of instability. The first to rise is a weak Khan, followed by one determined to return to the roots of the nation with an iron fist. But from this confusion, one man will rise above it to become the greatest Khan: Kublai Khan.

I didn’t enjoy this book and really feel like there was a better way to end this series.

For one, I would have enjoyed a book set during the thirty plus years of Kublai Khan’s reign, but the book ended with him taking control of the Mongol Nation. Personally, the story we got wasn’t the one I was interested in.

I was also disappointed by how Guyuk was handled by the author. Last book, I kind of got the hint that Guyuk was gay and thought it would be an interesting story to read. But in this book, I kind of got the feeling that, for the author, it was just another mark against Guyuk and why he was a bad Khan. It was even what got him killed in the end.

It’s odd that the family tree at the beginning of the book completely excludes one of Kublai’s brothers, especially considering the importance that brother plays later on.

In the end, I probably would have graded the book a C, because it was a decent book overall, but there were just some parts of it (mainly how the author treated Guyuk) that earned it a lower grade.

 Grade: D