The 7 Hungers: Rise of the Crimson King by Morgan Quaid
Independently Published (April 14, 2022)
313 pages; $2.99 eBook
Reviewed by Joshua Gage
Morgan Quaid is a writer of speculative fiction, specializing in comics, graphic novels, short stories and fast-paced, first person novels. Quaid’s writing tends to blend concision and fast-moving plots with epic sci-fi/fantasy themes, creating stories that often have more in common with film rather than traditional novels. His key works include Whiplash, Rust Chronicles, Shadow’s Daughter, Idle Thuggery, Enmity, and The Blood Below. His newest novel is The 7 Hungers: Rise of the Crimson King.
The 7 Hungers: Rise of the Crimson King focuses on Ambrose Drake, who is living in England as part of a punishment by The Crown. He is a sorcerer who makes his living cleansing the world of magical entities that threaten humanity, but because he’s being punished, his magic is cut off and he’s struggling to survive. When a bookish young man named Janus offers Drake a job from The Crown with the promise to restore his powers to full, Drake gets suspicious. When this job forces him to relocate to Brisbane, Australia, and work with his ex, Karen Winter, things go from bad to worse for Drake. Hopefully, he’ll have what it takes to save humanity from the eldritch curse to which he’s been assigned.
Quaid has constructed a very interesting world in The 7 Hungers and crafted some very intriguing characters. The idea of a secret society of magicians working to stop the world’s evils is nothing new, to be sure, but Quaid’s interpretation of that trope has enough novelty and nuance so as not to bore readers. Furthermore, instead of focusing on a typical hero within that system, Quaid instead focuses on the sarcastic outcast who has to earn his way back in. This blending of genres really works in a modern urban fantasy setting, and the hybrid makes for an interesting and unique read.
Furthermore, Quaid has developed a whole team of characters which play off of Drake’s strengths and weaknesses. Rook, his body guard, is a mute character who communicates though sign language. This idea takes a known trope — the strong, silent bodyguard — but subverts it into something fun and unique. The Janus character, the Crown appointed observer and bodyguard, is also very unique and takes the buddy cop formula to interesting and fantastic places. Quaid is clearly playing within some classic tropes and plots, but is doing his best to merge those tropes into new and unique combinations, all of which really works in this novel.
The Seven Hungers: Rise of the Crimson King is a really fun amalgam of genres. It’s a clever urban fantasy mixed with mystery blended with violent action and monster horror then synthesized around a character who is edgy and sarcastic in all the fun sorts of ways. Not only is Ambrose Drake a likable character, but Quaid has surrounded him with unique and interesting accomplices, all of whom add nuance to the world and plot. Strongly recommended for any reader interested in urban fantasy and monster horror tales.
