Synopsis:
Ashok Vadal was once a member of the highest caste in all of Lok. As a Protector, he devoted his life to upholding the Law, rooting out those who still practiced the old ways and delivering swift justice with his ancestor blade Angruvadal. None was more merciless than he in stamping out the lingering belief in gods and demons among the casteless. His brutality was legendary and celebrated.

But soon Ashok learned that his life to that point had been a lie. He himself, senior member of the Protector Order, was casteless. He had been nothing more than an unwitting pawn in a political game. His world turned upside down and finding himself on the wrong side of the Law, he began a campaign of rebellion, war, and destruction unlike any Lok had ever seen.

Thera had been first daughter of Vane. A member of the Warrior Order, she had spent her life training for combat. Until a strange sight in the heavens appeared one day. Thera was struck by lighting and from that day forward she heard the Voice. A reluctant prophet with the power to see into the future, she fought alongside Ashok Vadal and his company of men known as the Sons of the Black Sword until a shapeshifting wizard with designs on her powers of precognition spirited her away. He holds her prisoner in the House of Assassins.

Ashok Vadal and the Sons of the Black Sword march to rescue Thera. With his sword Angruvadal, Ashok was unstoppable. But Angruvadal is gone, shattered to pieces on the demon possessed husk of a warrior. Now, Ashok must fight without the aid of the magic blade for the first time. Thera’s life depends on it.

But there is much more at risk in the continent of Lok. Strange forces are working behind the scenes. Ashok Vadal and the Sons of the Black Sword are caught up in a game they do not fully understand, with powerful forces allied against them.

Ashok no longer knows what to believe. He is beginning to think perhaps the gods really do exist.

If so, he’s warned them to stay out of his way.

They would do well to listen.

Review:
This book is amazing. There is so much depth of the various character’s backstories, and we get to understand more of how they came to be the characters we know from the first story. Not everyone is born to privilege, but everyone is shaped by the different events in their life and their chosen reactions, and that is especially true to our ragtag bunch of Sons of the Blacksword.

I certainly found myself rooting more for Thera, and understanding her plight more the deeper into this book that I got. Ashok’s resignation to helping with anything against the law is still in full force, but we see him begin to think and act more of his own accord and conscious. I am quite enjoying how the various groups believe there is nothing tying them together, yet there seems to be bits and pieces that meld from group to group. While some villains may have slight redeeming qualities, there are still plenty of surprises to be had, and I can’t say I’m too upset about anything I read, but I’m also quite glad that we already have book 3 for me to start soon.



Star Rating: ✯✯✯✯✯