Ignore how long it took me to read this book as I sadly lost my dog during this time and hit a reading slump. However, this book distracted me for short periods of time as I became completely immersed in the author's incredibly rich world-building. I love every imaginative aspect of this world and was gripped by every new bit of information.

It's the characters that shone for me though. The push-and-pull relationship between siblings Gyre and Maya was beautifully portrayed and it's rare to enjoy each POV chapter just as much as the other. The side characters are brilliant and I'd love to read a book simply about Varo's many misfortunes.

The ending is a huge cliffhanger but it's one I won't soon forget. If only I could summon the third book into my hands though!

Blood of the Chosen is a very solid sequel to Ashes of the Sun, a book which I highly enjoyed reading last year. Following the ending of that one, this book starts to let the world breathe just a little more, expands it, and leaves you desperate for the final book (2023 cannot come soon enough).

The story continues from just a few days after the events of Ashes of the Sun. Gyre is making his way back to the ghouls, looking for allies in his fight against the Order, while Maya is back with said Order, about to be sent on another quest.

Unlike the first book, the second opens up with a somewhat slower paced beginning. This makes sense—at the start, the characters are still processing the fallout of the first book’s ending. And, while it’s a slower pace, it doesn’t read any slower. I got through it quickly, and into the action. I also quite liked that it took the time to slow down here, and expand the world within which it all takes place. There were hints of it in the previous book, but it gets more pagetime here.

This slowness is also combined with the fact that it’s busy building up to an ending that will blow everything right open. There are questions raised—and not (yet) answered—and mistakes made (looking at you, Maya). All of it gets drawn together towards the end, with the aforementioned mistake.

Speaking of which, I think it would be safe to say I found Maya’s POV up to that point quite frustrating. Yes, her actions made sense in the context of her characterisation—she’s naive and trusting, particularly of the Order, because they’ve never given her reason not to trust them. Compare this with Gyre, who’s all but wired not to trust, and you can see why Maya makes a mistake that Gyre, in a similar position in book one, didn’t. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t frustrating to read Maya’s POV, partly because you do have Gyre’s POV. What I found was that I sided more with Gyre than I did with Maya and because I didn’t trust the Order, I was a little annoyed with Maya for doing so. But as I said, this is completely consistent characterisation for me, and I’m looking forward to seeing the fallout for it all in the final book.

So, if you’ve been looking for a new high fantasy series to pick up, then let me point you in the direction of this one. It’s fast-paced, action-packed, and with characters that you can easily root for. And, in general, a whole lot of fun to read.