The Lost Throne by Chris Kuzneski

The whole time I was reading this book I felt like I was missing something. The characters were introduced with an air of familiarity that I just wasn't feeling and then I realized that this is part of a series and I had missed that point entirely and started in the middle. Duh. No wonder I felt like I had walked into a stranger's house in the middle of dinner... After that discovery, I had a difficult time deciding if I didn't love the story because it was a little convoluted and difficult to follow or if I didn't love the story because I started 4 books in. Either way I was not compelled enough to fill in the blanks by going back to number 1. I liked the characters. I enjoyed the banter and was interested in the mystery but as the plot got further and further out there I enjoyed it less and less. By the end, things had gotten too weird for me and I moved on without hesitation.

You will find an official plot line description at:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4312852-the-lost-throne.