Short Review:

An epic fantasy that is showing signs of runaway plot-threads.  Secondary characters are given full rein while the central characters and story of Arlen and Jardir are side-lined once again.  Also hints of unnecessary complexity added to an already full story at the expense of the core, magical story.  Despite this, it is an interesting and enjoyable fantasy that further expands the world and the broader narrative canvas.

Longer Review:

If you are reading this I am assuming that you have already read the first three books in the series (The Warded Man/The Painted Man, The Desert Spear, and The Daylight War).  If you haven’t, this book won’t make much sense to you at all.  As it is, even after having read the first three, there isn’t much of a continuation of the main story and this reads as overly complicated, needless filler or as a side narrative that sits as a companion to the main story.  Don’t get me wrong, it was entertaining and I enjoyed reading it, but I just didn’t care about a lot of the secondary characters who had suddenly leapt into prominence.  And I was one of those people that really liked The Daylight War.  But, before I go on about the aspects of the novel that I didn’t like, let me first say that it was a good book. It was readable.  There were some genuinely engaging aspects and more than one event that I didn’t see coming.  It was good enough that I will be buying the next one.

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