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Who Are The Main Characters In The Ruin Of Kings?

Getting confused by the shifting POVs and unreliable narrators in Jenn Lyons' 'A Chorus of Dragons' debut. Who are the actual key players driving the plot?
2025-11-11 10:47:35
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8 Answers

Best Answer
pickleshenry
pickleshenry
We follow a former slave, Kihrin, who finds out that he is the illegitimate son of the Emperor and a strange immortal shapeshifter named Talon who acts as a sort of guide for Kihrin, often not being entirely benevolent. His relationship with Talon is central to the book, and much of the information about the world is doled out to the reader in the form of long, nested stories that Talon tells Kihrin. If you like power politics, then you might also want to read The Two Kings and the Lost Elder. In this book, two Kings are forced into an uneasy alliance by the legacy of a forgotten adviser, who is lost to them. Together they must battle to prevent the collapse of their kingdoms.
2026-08-02
Cadence
Cadence
This is a character driven story. We first meet Kihrin as a thief, but soon he’s off on some big adventure. But it’s the side characters that really make this book come alive. Senera, the sharp witted sarcastic mage is great. And Janel, with his fire spirit and tragic past is wonderful too. Doc, the grim but lovable healer is also great.

Lyons delivers his characters in all their dimensions through great dialogue, whether they’re mutually insulting each other, or trying to figure out prophecies. The relationships between all of the characters are complex and, at times, even a little messy. But Lyons does such great work here that you can find yourself really rooting for people who have done some pretty awful things – not because they’re good, just because they’re brilliant and messy and full of life.
2025-11-13
Felicity
Felicity
The characters in The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons are so fascinating and there are a lot of them. The central character of The Ruin of Kings is Kihrin Valtek, a young thief from the streets with a huge destiny before him. We first meet him as a street-smart little urchin, but there is a lot more to him than that. As the story unfolds we learn that he is tied to very old prophecies and also to a lot of royal blood. I also really love Talon, a shape-shifter. She is an assassin, and it is very hard to tell whose side she is on at any time. Thurvishar is a nice scholar with a dark past. Galen (a prince) also plays an unexpected role in Kihrin’s life.

What I like most about The Ruin of Kings is how Lyons uses different perspectives to tell the story. It’s mostly a first-person narrative that’s been told by Kihrin to a demon as the story is recounted to us. It’s very realistic, it makes the characters seem more alive because you can even hear them arguing about what really happened. Add in the typical role of the gods in this kind of story and you have a huge cast of morally ambiguous characters in very complex and realistic relationships. It’s a treat for someone like me.
2025-11-14
Fiona
Fiona
The main character Kihrin is the heart of the book 'The Ruin of Kings'. However, Kihrin is not the typical ‘chosen one’. He is often thrown into situations where he struggles to survive. There is also the very evil villain Darzin. Darzin is a great villain because he is so arrogant and cruel, you almost want to like him because he is so funny. But there is more to him than that. His motivation for power is not clearly laid out for the reader and that is great.

Teraeth was another favorite of mine. The deadly assassin had little humor but was deeply, hard-earned loyal. His relationship with Kihrin changed so often throughout the book, sometimes even within chapters. It was kind of hard to tell whether he was Kihrin’s friend or not. Queen Miya was similarly awesome as the ruthless but mostly intimidating ruler who could tear a man’s entrails from his body while still smiling at him. Despite an enormous cast, each character felt fully realized and served a purpose within the story. Their choices seemed to have unintended consequences on the rest of the plot and kept me guessing at every turn.
2025-11-17
Andrea Tyler
Andrea Tyler
Appreciate Talon for the weird thing she is. A mimic that learns by eating other creatures, their bodies and memories. So much pathos and horror in that one character. She is not evil, she is just different from others. I would even go as far as to say that she is comparable to Kihrin in his search for identity, just from a completely different, even alien perspective. She might even be the most original character in modern epic fantasy.
2026-08-01

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