Hello everyone!
And let me tell you, MAN, it's getting hot in here!
I've reviewed every single one of the books in the series thus far on this blog and I don't see myself stopping now at the end, because why would I?
The end is going to be the very best part after all!
The third book is literally just around the corner at this moment in time, but thankfully we get a little short tale in between two and three to tide us over, like we did with the short story back between one and two as well.
All of it rounds to five lovely, LOVELY stories, and if you aren't hooked on a grumpy talking cat yet (who's actually a biped that was cursed into a cat for a hundred years) then I really don't know what to tell you.
So without further ado, let's put our sunnies on and wear that SPF, because Night of Ash brings the heat!
Links to previous related works can be found at the bottom of the page, as per usual, and because this IS a series, it's best if you read them in order, otherwise you probably won't really know what's going on.
To recap though: Odriel's Heirs introduced us to the land where a trio of people walk with gifts from their deity Odriel, and the OGs of this trio defeated Idriel, the Dark Entity Extraordinaire, and locked him away way back when.
The first big battle to stop him from rising again is fought in this book, in case you're wondering, and then we move to Idriel's Children, where we learn hey - there's some nutsos out there who are actively TRYING to raise him again and bring him back!
So now, our heroes from the second book - Aza, Shadow Heir-in-waiting, Zephyr, Dragon Heir-in-waiting, Hoku and Makeo, their Maldibor companions (think bear-like beast with wolfish snout for the man, another curse happily bestowed by a dark magi, and a curse-carriers for the woman), find themselves with the magi Dorinar, who's been expecting them.
See, they kinda ... lost, or partly lost a battle at the end of the second book, wherein the forest prison (and home of the Maldibor, though not THEIR prison as you'll see) was basically razed and now the Maldibor are retreating to the Heirs' fortress, but they're all kind of nervous because, Idriel might be close to rising.
How will they know if he's actually risen?
The sun won't rise.
Yup, IT GETS DARK.
Anyway, Dorinar reaches out to the dark magi Ivanora, and they have a bit of back and forth which seems fruitless, but they all hear just enough in the background of her conversation to deduce that she and the necromancer with her are in the capital city.
Our foursome hurry south to try and prevent Idriel from rising, while Dorinar and Shadmundar (the grumpy talking cat I mentioned earlier) hightail it north to the adult, current Heirs.
Unfortunately, our intrepid heroes come too late, because their plan has some serious flaws, aka Ivanora can sense the magic they wield, so Aza can't really sneak up on her to kill her, which takes away her only advantage (invisibility), and what initially starts as a mission to prevent Idriel from rising comes a desperate gamble to get the people of the capital out.
Oh and, as for Idriel, well, he KINDA rose, and kinda didn't, because he got stuck into an imperfect body of a demon the Heirs-in-waiting killed in the previous book, and let's say the body has NOT been zombified enough for this.
Aza manages to hold off against enemy forces long enough for her brother to get most of the people to the docks, and despite twists and turns, all four of our heroes end up on the ship sailing away, now hastening north to the gap where they might be able to make a stand before Idriel's armies overrun the whole continent.
Also, Zephyr and Hoku are a THING, and Aza and Makeo declare their love for one another (which, if you've been reading this far, you'll know is a thing too, duh).
The sun still rises, but it's got a shadow on it, indicating Idriel's sort of here and not here, but it DOES rise, and the Heirs-in-waiting, along with their allies, now prepare to look for the lost Time's Orphan with the healing hands - and prepare for the last battle to end all battles.
DUN DUN DUN!
LISTEN this is something you NEED to be a part of if you aren't already. The story is brilliantly woven and the Heirs (and Heirs-in-waiting) all have their own special attributes that help them in a fight, making them unique and forcing them to work together with the others so as to utilize it all to the maximum.
We still spend most of the time with Aza, which is the same as in the second book, and I have to say I've yet to warm to her completely as a protagonist, a problem I had before already because she just seems to always pick the absolute most suicidal missions regardless of what everyone else seems to be advising around her, and then beats herself up for it once they go south (as they generally do, but they'd go south anyway as this is a fantasy book).
However, at least she finds a measure of peace in this one, as well as determination, and once the trifecta is complete with the Time Heir, I think the last battle will be EPIC.
Plus we now have the whole, Maldibor and Heirs issue, with the Maldibor curse that could literally wreak havoc on the Heir bloodlines, so they have an added incentive to get rid of the curse, too, while they're at it.
And in all of this, Everard - the grumpy magi who cursed Shadmundar - is missing, kind of like Gandalf in Fellowship of the Ring, and no one can reach him or find him, so it's like ... dude, quit smoking yourself to death in some random hole in the countryside AND COME HELP WILL YOU?!?
Overall though, this is a nice little tide-over story that pushes us closer to the main event, and if you haven't picked this series up yet I HIGHLY recommend.
It's easy to follow along, rich in detail, history and lore, and Hayley Reese Chow has done a fantastic job with her characters, so I can't wait to see how this all concludes.
It's bound to be epic!
xx
*image not mine
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