I finally finished this one. Yall I LOVE me some Amy Harmon but for some reason this duo was just so heavy for me. I know it's because I'm not a huge fantasy fan. BUT with that said Amy is such an amazing story teller! If fantasy is your thing you will likely adore this duo! Just be sure you read book one first!

I thought this was okay. Loved the beginning. I just think the middle was somewhat dragging for me.
Amy does have a way with words on how she tells the story. I'm glad of the different setting this was set in. Look forward to the next one!

The audiobook is good though, Rob Shapiro was great with the different characters.

I received this book at my request and have voluntarily left this unbiased review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

In this concurrent timeline, a curse preventing the birth of daughters continues to plague the island of Saylok. As many citizens become desperate and regional factions are fighting, the fate of these people rests with destiny.

"We can only see what can be seen.”

Spanning over twenty years, this story is wonderfully crafted with distinct characters and intriguing mythological elements. Focusing on Hod and Ghisla, their connection is quite unique. Though Hod seems as though he is at a disadvantage, he uses his strengths to overcome. I liked how Ghisla trusted Hod and also followed her instincts during difficult times.

The Second Blind Son is an epic mythological journey with themes of sacrifice, integrity, friendship, and ultimately love.

What can I possibly say about The Second Blind Son to convince you to read it? The words fall short because Amy Harmon used every good one left for this book. I absolutely LOVED The First Girl Child... I LOVE The Second Blind Son even more.

I wondered if this story would feel just like The First Girl Child as it essentially takes place during the same timeline, but is an entirely different perspective. It does not have the same feel at all. It is a completely unique story that ties in beautifully with the first. This book has characters that will have you begging for more. The longing in this book. It is decidedly more romantic than the first; however, it is still so much more than just romance. It checked every single box I have for a fantasy genre. It is captivating. It is interesting. It is strong and epic. It contains heroes and heroines undoubtedly fighting for the greater good. Embracing a huge social change.

Amy Harmon has captivated me for life. I will forever read anything she writes because she has yet to disappoint me. In fact, she impresses me more and more every time she writes something new. The Second Blind Son is no exception. I could not put it down as it became just as necessary to read this book as it was to breathe. I can't thank Amy Harmon enough for giving me that reprieve.

When you finish The Second Blind Son--well, I should rephrase that. You never quite finish this book because it lingers with you after you turn the last page. The ideas that the blind see us better than we see ourselves will make you think, as will the difference between connecting with another person and knowing that person through the depths of our soul.

Hod and Ghisla are drawn to each other's loneliness and pain. They see pieces of themselves in each other; or, in Hod's case, sense it. Hod senses much of what goes on around him, far more than people can sense with their vision. He hears individual heartbeats and knows, based on those sounds, the person's intent and even their feelings--fear, desire, anger.

Despite the power of their feelings, though, Hod and Ghisla are torn asunder, and you fear they will ever reunite. And if they do, will they still love each other? They strain to maintain contact, risking themselves but not caring all that much. They need each other, and for two people unaccustomed to such need, they struggle at times with adapting to it.

You will reunite with characters you met in The First Girl Child, and you will see some of that book's events through different eyes. The Second Blind Son has the same rising tension, same nail-biting conflict as its predecessor, but this book is more passionate. Hod and Ghisla meet as children, and their feelings for each other mature as the characters do. Life in their world is fraught with danger, so when you find someone you can love and how loves you in return, you don't squander that.

It isn't so much that love is blind for Hod and Ghisla as love can see. Ghisla's love for Hod lets him see her when they are together, and his for her lets her "see" him when they are separated. Their love lets them experience each other fully and completely, almost desperately at times. They don't love in a vacuum; they love in the middle of chaos, yet that love helps them find stillness.

A beautiful story that only Amy Harmon could write, this is a must-read.

I'm just convinced at this point that Amy Harmon can do no wrong when it comes to storytelling. This series is one of my absolute favorites. The First Girl Child hooked me and The Second Blind Son reeled me in. If we could have stories of Saylok forever I would never get tired of them.

Awed and amazed is how I feel every time I finish a book from this author and I can't wait for the next story.

Un second tome palpitant où on ne devine jamais où l'auteure emmène ses personnages. Ghisla et Hod sont aussi attachant que Alba et Bayr. L'intrigue est parfaitement ficelée , la magie opère encore une fois et cet univers fantasy nous ensorcèle. On se régale et on quitte ces personnages et cet univers avec une pointe de nostalgie mais ravi !
An exciting second volume where we never guess where the author is taking her characters. Ghisla and Hod are as endearing as Alba and Bayr. The plot is perfectly tied up, the magic operates once again and this fantasy universe bewitches us. We enjoy it and we leave these characters and this universe with a touch of nostalgia but delighted!

The Second Blind Son's predecessor, The First Girl Child, is one of my favorite Amy Harmon books to date. So to say that I was excited to read another book in the same world is a huge understatement. I couldn't download it fast enough when I spotted it on Netgalley. It saddens me to say that the follow up didn't quite meet my high expectations. I wanted to love this one so bad but the honest truth is that I became bored about halfway in. It felt like I was endlessly waiting for something to happen that would trigger me to get fully immersed in what was going on.

This book is told on the same timeline as TFGC, and focuses heavily on the main female protagonist Ghisla's experiences getting acclimated to life inside the temple. We learn more about the Daughters of Freya: how they meet, their relationships with one another, and how they grow and mature together. While this does delve much deeper into these things than book one, strangely I never felt a close attachment to any of these characters. There was no urgency or emotion over the friendships, and perhaps an even deeper detachment for the couple in the book, Ghisla and Hod. I remember feeling such an overwhelming rush of tenderness while watching Bayr and Dragmar's relationship unfold in TFGC. I teared up at Ghost and Dragmar's forbidden love. And I yearned so acutely for Bayr and Alba to be together, feeling the love that they had for one another down to my bones. I wanted that back. Instead, I left the book feeling somewhat indifferent and moderately relieved.

Ghisla washes up on Hod's shoreline broken in spirit and body. She has traveled far after a devastating plague destroyed everyone and everything she once knew. Bitter over being the sole surviver and left to fend for herself, she seems almost indifferent over where her life will take her next. Then she meets a blind boy who nurses her back to health and shows her the care and compassion she desperately needs. Hod is an orphan who is being raised in a cave by a keeper named Arwin. Unlike the touching relationship between Dragmar and Bayr, Arwin and Hod's felt irritating. Arwin treats Hod horribly, especially when it came to his instant attachment to Ghisla. He's insensitive, harsh, and shrewish towards Ghisla when he discovered what her singing did to Hod. I honestly didn't understand Hod's loyalty to him all those years, and it annoyed me a little that he didn't rebel and find a way to seek freedom from his situation sooner.

I guess you could say that this book verged on depressing a lot of the time as well as very slow moving-which is not the best combination. Both Ghisla and Hod spend years upon years (over a decade) feeling lonely, unhappy, and completely powerless over their own lives.

Ghisla becomes increasingly more sad as the years go by and as her separation from Hod stretches on, that sadness eventually turns into anger. She isolates herself at the temple as a form of self preservation, but that gives her a coldness that I could never really warm up to. Yes, there were times where her vulnerable side peeked out, but she never fully reached my heart. Some of the early reviewers are saying that the romance was stronger here than in the previous book, but I felt the complete opposite. They spent too much of the book apart from each other and their communication was few and far in between. That was frustrating. I knew how the political conflict would end, so there was no suspense from that aspect, and the romance felt so incredibly slow moving.

I still loved seeing my favorite characters from TFGC from a different perspective, and spending a little more time with them could never be wasted time. So in the end, I'm glad that I finished the book. The writing is as lyrical and exquisite as I've come to expect from this author as a long time reader of her work, so for that alone this is worth the read.

I wasn't able to fall in love with this story as I had hoped, but I'm okay with that. Hopefully the next time around I will feel that special Amy Harmon magic once again.

Oh my heart. First off; Amy has written a book that is so profound it had me staring at the wall again after I was done. It’s become a thing after finishing an Amy Harmon book, I’m at such a loss for words I have to collect my thoughts to even begin to leave the worlds she creates.
Ghisla and Hod were pure magic. I read The First Girl Child and fell in love with this world. I always wondered about the other daughters and once I realized who this book was about it all came together.
There’s not much more that I love than song lyrics interwoven into books, but the fact that it came from Amy’s brain really takes things to another level for me.
As soon as Hod rescued Ghisla from the water, their fates were interwoven together. Nothing could break their bond. I love the beautiful love story between these two, it made my heart soar.
If you haven’t read Amy Harmon, what are you waiting For?!

I cannot praise this book enough! It was great to be back in the land of Saylok and see all of the wonderful characters from The First Girl Child again through different eyes. The bond between Hod and Ghisla is everything - the longing, the hope, the strength. "I will not give up today" - every time Ghisla made this promise I felt myself making it right alongside her. This story wraps itself around you and doesn't let go - I was enthralled from the first page and I cannot wait to get more!

I was so excited to read this book. I loved TFGC and was hoping for more books based on Saylok. I was not disappointed. The story was phenomenal! I really enjoyed Hod and Ghisla’s story. The writing is just magical and all the characters are unique in their own ways. I look forward to more stories in this intricate and magical world Amy Harmon has created.

"You are color. You are sound. You are the song on the wind and the hope in my heart."

What can I say but there’s no book like an Amy Harmon book. The way she composes the story and the journey she takes us on. The characters and the way they develop and change through the story.
The poetic nature of the intertwined words and the world they create. All perfection. And The Second Blind Son is no different.

I've said this before, but I'm not a huge fantasy reader. But when it comes to an Amy Harmon book, I will ALWAYS make an exception. Her stories are pure magic and make me feel a part of these peoples' lives and the stories she creates for them. If you've read The First Girl Child, you will recognize some of the characters in this book. But it is not 100% necessary to read it before this one. It will just make your reading experience that much more rich having the knowledge of the Saylok world.

From the first moment our two main characters Ghisla and Hod meet, you know there is something special forming between the two. Ghisla has the power of song and Hod is a blind boy that is powerful in every other sense. And their connection is all consuming. They don't even know the power they hold when they work together. Since he does not have sight, every other sense is deeply heightened and it brings a sense of awe to the story. The way he knows each person around him and can tell what they are thinking without having his sight will astound you and it will seem like it is highly likely with the way Ms Harmon writes his story. And oh, what a story it is. It's a slow burn of a love story and it's told over a period of time. Ghisla and Hod may have that connection from the beginning, but they will have to work for it over time and distance.

But this isn't just Hod's and Ghisla's love story. It's the story of Ghisla and the daughters of Saylok. It's the story of Hod and his family. It's the story of overthrowing a king that is not worthy. It is a story of family and trust and power. And it is done to perfection. Amy Harmon will take you on a magical journey filled with mythology and song and love and will bring the story full circle.
Trust the process and trust the journey. It is well worth it.
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Take me back to the land of Saylock.....yes, please.

The Second Blind Son is a wonderful blend of Norse mythology and Ms. Harmon's vivid imagination. I absolutely love the world she's created and was thrilled to revisit it yet again. Hod and Ghisla stole my heart. They were fabulously written characters that felt as if they could leap off the page. Their hopes, fears, love, insecurities, joys and sacrifices were all so vividly described that the reader could easily identify with them. In addition, the description of the setting is detailed and I could almost picture the temple and woods.

Hod and Ghisla both know what it's like to not be trusted or to feel as if they don't know their exact place in the world. Yet when they are together, everything makes sense. Unfortunately, the events in Saylock are chaotic and things need to change for them to be able to be together safely. In order to make Saylock safe, Hod has to put himself at risk.

I highly recommend this imaginative fantasy.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

Oh my heart ❤️❤️❤️

This was one of those beautifully told stories that had me remembering just why I read.

This book explores love, affection, longing and so much more. It’s painful at times, but soooo worth the pain. I definitely needed tissues.

Hod and Ghisla were such special characters I know I will remember them forever.

If you’re looking for a fantasy read that’s romantic and heartfelt I definitely recommend.

My first Amy Harmon book was The Bird and the Sword, and I just instantly fell in love with her writing. This book is no different.

The Second Blind Son is a sort of continuation of The First Girl Child, though I feel that it can be read as a standalone. As with the first book, the characters were very well-developed, providing the readers with enough back story of the characters. The way the imagery was described during Hod's parts allows the reader to experience the book as if one is also a blind person. What I loved most about Amy Harmon's books is how she is able to write in such a way that the book makes you "feel" without it being too overly descriptive. And this is also evident in this second installment.

OBSESSSSED does not even begin to describe my love for this book.

I am completely obsessed with Amy, her writing, her vivid story telling and her magical fingers that craft the most delightful stories every single time I pick them up.

I’m just obsessed. This book was nothing short of amazing.

This is the 2nd book in a series, and will most likely be less satisfying if you haven't read the first one. This story evolves over the same timeline as the first, and is very closely tied, so many of the events that happen are experienced again but from a different viewpoint, which was interesting. Also a little annoying, to encounter entire dialogues that seemed to be literally copy/pasted from the first book This story, like the first, has a fairy tale feel to it, but not quite as ill-fated as a fairy tale usually is. A long distance romance develops, but the two lovers stay apart even as their circumstances evolve to the point where they could just run away together, which I continuously felt like they should have done. Ghisla is not close to anyone at the temple where she lives as a token female in a country with no female births. Hod, the blind monk boy living in a remote cave is her only friend and confidant. Hod initially is under the care of another monk in their isolated cave, but as years pass becomes quite independent despite being blind. They sort of just go along with the events as they unfold, and are manipulated by the stories of the other characters. It's a well told, engaging story though, and I did enjoy it.

Ahhh , #thesecondblindson 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤It left my heart filled with joy and love in that unique Amy Harmon’s way.
She took me back to Saylok to discover a unique story inspired by Hod, one of the lesser known Viking gods.
When I realized that this story followed the same timeline as the events in #thefirstgirlchild, I was afraid my heart would be wrenched again. I was also afraid to just see the same events from another point of view. But Amy gives us another original story. Her version of Hod. She dwells on these characters lives and how they sometimes connect with those we already read about in #thefirstgirl. She took characters that could be invisible to the inattentive eye in book 1 and made them the heroes of this story. She just showed us how the Small Hands* of one story are the heroes of another.
As with all Amy’s books I’ve read so far, you could see where she was taking you, yet you still are surprised by her craftsmanship and the way she sews seamlessly the events unfolding. Even knowing that there will be a HEA, you will be there turning the pages, dreading, holding your breath and breathing again when you actually see how everything ends up well in a cruel world.

🎼ODE to HOD🎼

I loved every aspect of Hod.

I loved Hod the blind and his ability to read people’s hearts. He is the one who sees the unseen. He is the one who sees best despite his blindness.

I loved Hod the mother who took care of young Ghisla and let her go to better protect her even if it meant losing her to the Temple.

I loved Hod the brother who would die to protect his little brother.

I loved Hod the warrior whose skills always surprise his adversaries.

I loved Hod the man who loves with no boundaries.

I loved Hod the lover who makes you feel in the best ways possible what he cannot see.

🎼ODE to HOD🎼

I loved the first in this series, The First Girl Child, and when I saw Amy Harmon was continuing the story with another book, I tell you I screamed out loud! I was surprised and thrilled, ahem, to say the least (I mean, I screamed like I was a teenager again and going to an NSYNC concert). I was a little bit afraid that it might be a let down because I was so hyped about it, but I am happy to report that was not the case at all for me. In fact, I may have enjoyed this one even more than the first. Maybe? I don't know. Both books are now inseparable to me.

I will say your appreciation for this one I think will be stronger if you read The First Girl Child first. I am not sure this works as a standalone and I don't think it is meant to. The first book brings an added layer and depth to this story that would be lost if you had not read the previous book I think. Having read both, I can confidently say that is a rich series that has all the characterization and depth I want in a story and fantasy series.

I am a little surprised at how quickly I finished this one, but I could not put it down. From the very first couple of pages I cared about our duo, Ghisla and Hod. I was invested and very little could tear me away from the book. Is there going to be another book in this series? I mean you can bet your bottom dollar, I am going to read that one too if there is.

I really loved The First Girl Child and I was excited to continue the series with The Second Blind Son. The way that Amy Harmon has connected the two books together by writing about characters that have been another book but give so much more different insight into the characters. I loved reading about Hod and Ghisla and how important their connection is to each other. Seeing how Hod to learn to navigate and be a strong person while being blind was incredible. Learning more about Ghisla and Hod’s story and backgrounds was great. I cant wait to see where the series go next.