The cover text for Acacia: The War with Mein promised the regular fare, royals in distress, nation in peril, assassins and magic.
Durham writes beautifully without being too ornate. He has written historical novels and Acacia feels like one too. The author builds up a complex and deep world with believable background.
Description is this novels strength but also the weakness. The story flows through the landscapes and events and there are real gems, stunning pieces of narrative. But while there's plenty of that, dialog is scarce, leaving some characters rather flat.
The story turned out to be more than the cover lead me to expect, well constructed and skillfully written fantasy novel, promising an interesting sequel.