I once again thoroughly enjoyed a book from "The Magic of Recluse," my favorite series ever. Saelora and Alyiakal are great characters who truly shine as individuals. You can tell that they simply want the best for themselves and those around them, and they do what they can to keep people safe. For Alyiakal, **this can be difficult during wartime, but he does his best.

The path of this book differs from the others, I really enjoyed the new additional character Saryalth. I'm looking forward to seeing her in the next book and how she** interacts with Saelora and Alyiakal.

As usual, Alyiakal exceeds his superiors' expectations ending up in Cyad—another part I'm eagerly anticipating in the next book. While this story seems to be setting up a lot for the sequel, it remains very entertaining and definitely leaves you yearning for more.

I appreciated that when Alyiakal encountered his old nemesis from his training days, we didn't see a repeat of the problems from a previous Magic of Recluse book. However, I suspect he's still out there and might appear in the next installment. There's much happening in Cyad, with many questions left unanswered for now, and I'm eagerly waiting to discover the rest of the story.

I am very grateful to Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group for the advanced copy of **Sub-Majer's Challenge. All thoughts here are my own.**

Sub-Majer’s Challenge by L.E. Modesitt, Jr.
Once again, Alyiakal, succeeds when carefully maneuvered into situations that are designed to see that he fails. An ethics-driven officer in a country led by a consortium of unethical leaders, Alyiakal’s successes are startling to all of his foes and accepted as normal by his consort, Saelora.
In a male-dominated society where misogyny is accepted as normal, Alyiakal, supports Saelora in her decidedly non-feminine pursuits in trade. This support leads to a bond that transcends normality, especially when Saelora and Alyiakal discover secrets from Alyiakal’s past.
Modesitt crafts a detailed and believable world in all his series. The Saga of Recluce comprises twenty-five volumes, spanning from 1991 to the present. It is well worth your time to read all of Modesitt’s work.
I highly recommend this book.