Waiting on Wednesday – Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

On September 8, 2021September 8, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Science Fiction, Waiting on Wednesday4 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy. I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. For this latest Waiting on Wednesday I check out an impressive sounding upcoming space opera that is bound to be one of my favourite books of 2022, Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio.

Kingdoms of Death Cover

Over the last few years, one of the absolute best science fiction series I have had the pleasure of reading was the epic Sun Eater Sequence by Christopher Ruocchio. This series started in 2018 with Ruochhio’s debut novel, Empire of Silence, an outstanding novel that followed compelling protagonist Hadrian Marlo. Set in a gothic far future, Hadrian is a man doomed to universal infamy after ordering the destruction of a sun to commit an unforgivable act of genocide. Told as a chronicle written by an older Hadrian, Empire of Silence detailed his earlier adventures and served as an amazing introduction to the characters and the setting. I had an awesome time reading Empire of Silence, and it ended up being one of my favourite books of 2018. Ruocchio has since written two excellent sequels, Howling Dark (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2019) and Demon in White (one of my favourite books of 2020). All three novels have been five-star reads, and I have deeply enjoyed the complex and captivating narrative that Ruocchio has set up. So, you can imagine my excitement when I saw that the series will continue early next year with a fourth book, Kingdoms of Death.

Kingdoms of Death, which is currently set for release in March 2022, will continue to follow Hadrian as his legend and reputation grows to new heights. This novel will be set around a century after the events of Demon in White (the characters are very long lived, especially as they spend a lot of time in cryogenic sleep while travelling between planets) and will initially detail the consequences of the events that saw Hadrian use unusual reality-bending powers to cheat death.

Synopsis:

The fourth novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path that can only end in fire.

Hadrian Marlowe is trapped.

For nearly a century, he has been a guest of the Emperor, forced into the role of advisor, a prisoner of his own legend. But the war is changing. Mankind is losing.

The Cielcin are spilling into human space from the fringes, picking their targets with cunning precision. The Great Prince Syriani Dorayaica is uniting their clans, forging them into an army and threat the likes of which mankind has never seen.

And the Empire stands alone.

Now the Emperor has no choice but to give Hadrian Marlowe—once his favorite knight—one more impossible task: journey across the galaxy to the Lothrian Commonwealth and convince them to join the war. But not all is as it seems, and Hadrian’s journey will take him far beyond the Empire, beyond the Commonwealth, impossibly deep behind enemy lines.

I am really excited about this upcoming novel, and it sounds like Ruocchio has a pretty awesome and compelling story in store for us. The above synopsis has a lot of cool details, such as the fact that Hadrian will start the novel a prisoner, which isn’t too surprising as the third novel ended with an entire planet praising him and declaring him a god, right in front of the jealous son of a galactic emperor. This will no doubt continue to play into the political and religious intrigue angles that were so fascinating in Demon in White, and I look forward to seeing how the universe has changed over the last century. The fact that the Emperor gets desperate enough to unleash Hadrian once again is pretty telling, and it sounds like we are getting closer and closer to the final showdown between humans and the alien Cielcin, which will result in Hadrian’s ultimate act of destruction. I cannot wait to see what devastating events result in the usually good-natured and merciful Hadrian to commit to such a terrible course of action, and it should result in some exceptional storytelling.

Another part of the above plot that I am quite excited about is the fact that Hadrian will be visiting another human civilisation in the Lothrian Commonwealth. The Lothrian Commonwealth has been mentioned multiple times throughout the first three novels, but it will be really fascinating to see the protagonist and his companions visit it. Ruocchio is particularly good at universe building, and he will paint a detailed and captivating picture of this new society, which should serve as a distinctive alternative to the dark, repressive, and anti-technological Empire the series has primarily been set in. It should also provide opportunities for additional political intrigue and espionage as Hadrian needs to convince them to join in the war against the Cielcin. I also like the hint at the characters heading behind enemy lines, and it should prove very thrilling and compelling to see Hadrian once again come into conflict with the very dangerous Cielcin, especially if the series big bad once again shows up to face him.

I think at this point it is obvious that I am extremely keen for the next exciting entry in the Sun Eater Sequence. This series has already been incredible, and the fourth entry, Kingdoms of Death, has an immense amount of potential. Based on how outstanding the series has already been and on Christopher Ruocchio’s amazing writing ability, I am extremely confident that I am going to love this new novel and I have no doubts what-so-ever that it will be one of the top books of the year.

Kingdom of Death Cover 2

The Enemy Within by Tim Ayliffe

On September 8, 2021April 10, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Thriller16 Comments

The Enemy Within Cover

Publisher: Simon & Schuster (Trade Paperback – 28 July 2021)

Series: John Bailey – Book Three

Length: 353 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

One of Australia’s fastest rising crime fiction authors, Tim Ayliffe, returns with another impressive and brilliantly relevant novel, The Enemy Within.

Ayliffe is a great author whose work I have been really enjoying over the last couple of years as he sets some fantastic stories around contemporary Australian subjects. Debuting in 2018, this journalist wrote a compelling and intriguing first novel with The Greater Good, which looked at political corruption and the growing influence of China in Australia. He followed it up in 2019 with State of Fear, which looked at Islamic terrorism and featured a dramatic and impactful story. Now Ayliffe checks out the complete opposite end of the political spectrum in The Enemy Within, which features a look at growing right-wing radicals.

As the smoke from devastating January 2020 bushfires covers Sydney, investigative reporter John Bailey is covering a far more dangerous threat in the suburbs. Barely recovered from the traumatic events that took the love of his life from him, Bailey is now working for a news magazine. His first story will cover the re-emergence of right-wing nationalists and white supremacist groups in Australia. Attending one of their meetings, where a controversial American social media star whose entrance into the country has gained much political opposition and protest, Bailey attempts to gain the pulse of this movement, only to face violence and an anti-media mentality from the crowd.

Working on his story, Bailey has no idea of the chaos that is about to rain down on his life. After he meets with an old contact and informant, Bailey’s house is raided by the Australian Federal Police. The police are investigating him for a story he ran back while he was a war correspondent that highlighted the alleged war crimes Australian soldiers committed in the Middle East. Armed with a warrant granting them access to his phone, computer and all his files, the police tear through Bailey’s life and throw him in gaol for attempting to impede their search.

With the entire nation’s media covering his plight, Bailey is released from prison and soon discovers that someone orchestrated the police raid to delete evidence from the rally. Attempting to investigate further, Bailey is shocked when his contact ends up dead in mysterious circumstances and the police fail to investigate. With Sydney on the verge of a race war, Bailey continues his investigation and soon uncovers proof about a dangerous conspiracy that aims to shake the very foundations of Australian life. With only his old friend CIA agent Ronnie Johnson as backup, Bailey attempts to stop this plot before it is too late. But with a seemingly untouchable enemy targeting him from the shadows, has Bailey finally met an opponent even more determined than he is?

This was an awesome and captivating novel from Ayliffe who once again produces an intense, character-driven narrative. Set around some very relevant and controversial topics, The Enemy Within is a powerful and exciting novel that takes the reader on a compelling ride. I had a fantastic time reading this clever book and I loved the fascinating examinations of one of the more insidious threats facing Australia.

Set in the blistering, smoke covered streets of early 2020 Sydney, this story starts with protagonist John Bailey engaged in a controversial story about the rising far-right wing. After a predictably violent confrontation, the narrative takes off like a shot, with the protagonist investigating a series of concerning events, including several murders, racial attacks, and a re-opened investigation into an old story of his that sees the AFP raid his house. Each of these separate investigative threads are drawn together as the book progresses, and the reader is treated to an impressive and deadly conspiracy with several clever allusions to real-world issues and events. This was a very exciting and captivating novel to get through, and I found myself reading it extremely quickly, nearly finishing it off in a day. The story leads up to an awesome and intense conclusion, where Bailey uncovers the entire scope of the plot and races to stop it. While the identity of some of the participants is very clear since the character’s introductions, their full plan, methods, and reach are more hidden and it was great to see the protagonist uncover them all, especially as several were cleverly hidden in innocuous moments earlier in the novel. There is even an excellent twist towards the end of the book that reveals a well-hidden antagonist, which I particularly enjoyed as it was so skilfully inserted into the story. I ended having an excellent time getting through this amazing narrative, and this might be one of the best stories that Ayliffe has so far written.

One of the things that I have always enjoyed about the John Bailey novels is the way in which so much of the amazing story was tied to how extremely damaged the titular protagonist is. John Bailey is a veteran reporter whose previous life as a war correspondent has left him extremely broken, especially after being tortured by a dangerous terrorist leader. This eventually led to him becoming an alcoholic, which ruined his career and separated him from his family. However, since the start of the series, Bailey has shown some real character growth, although this is usually accompanied by some traumatic events or tragic moments. In The Enemy Within, as Bailey is still recovering from the loss of his lover at the end of State of Fear. Despite making some strides to recover, Bailey is still reeling from the loss, and this becomes a major aspect of his character in this latest book. This is especially true as Ayliffe does an outstanding job of highlighting the grieving process and showing Bailey’s feelings of despair. It was really moving to see Bailey in this novel, and I was glad to see him continue to recover from all the bad events of his life, including stopping drinking and getting a dog. However, Bailey still has an unerring knack to annoy the subjects of his stories, and he ends up getting into all sorts of danger. It was great to see him getting to the root of this story by any means necessary, and I continued to appreciate his impressive development.

I also love the way that the each of Ayliffe’s novels feature some fascinating contemporary issues facing Australia or the wider world. In The Enemy Within, the main issue is the rise of Australian right-wing and white supremacist groups in recent years. Like in the rest of the world, these groups have been becoming a bit more prominent recently in Australia, and Ayliffe does an excellent job analysing this issue throughout his novel. The author does a deep examination of the movement as the story progresses, and the reader is given a good insight into their concerns, motivations, and the reasons why the movement has been gaining progress in recent years. There are some clever parallels between the events or people portrayed in the novel and real life, which was interesting to see. Examples of this include the government allowing controversial right-wing figures into the country despite protests, and the reactions of certain right-wing media groups. I liked how Ayliffe once again featured the character of Keith Roberts, a right-wing commentator who is a pastiche of several Australian radio personalities. It was also quite fascinating to see how the concerns and motivations of the right-wing groups were extremely like some of the Islamic terrorists featured in State of Fear, with both groups feeling disconnected from and attacked by mainstream Australian society. Not only is this extremely fascinating and thought-provoking but it also serves as an amazing basis for Ayliffe’s narrative. The author does a fantastic job of wrapping his thrilling story around some of these elements, and it makes the overall narrative extremely relevant.

I also must highlight another significant contemporary inclusion that was featured in The Enemy Within, and that was the Australian Federal Police’s raids on Bailey’s house. This police raid is a direct reference to a series of controversial raids that occurred on several media organisations, including ABC News (who Ayliffe works for), in relation to articles they published. Ayliffe uses these real-life examples to really punch up what happens within The Enemy Within, and he produces some realistic scenes that were comparable to this. The subject of the articles that prompt the raids are also very similar and feature another topic that is quite controversial in Australia in the moment, that of alleged war-crimes by Australian soldiers fighting in the Middle East. Just like with the other divisive topics featured in this novel, Ayliffe did a fantastic job re-imagining these events in his novel, and it produces some excellent inclusions that will particularly resonate with an Australian audience. I deeply appreciated the way in which he was able to work these events into his story, and I think that it made The Enemy Within a much more compelling and distinctive read.

I have to say that I also really loved the author’s use of setting in The Enemy Within. This latest book is set in early 2020, when Sydney was surrounded by some of the worst bushfires in Australian history and the entire city was covered in smoke for months. Ayliffe does an excellent job portraying these terrible conditions, no doubt drawn from his own personal experiences, and the reader gets a good idea of how difficult life was under those conditions (it certainly brought me back to that time, although we didn’t have it quite as bad down in Canberra). Ayliffe uses this unique setting to full effect throughout the book and it provides some fitting atmosphere for the narrative, especially as the landscape reflects the simmering tensions flaring up within the city. This was one of the more distinctive features of The Enemy Within, and I really appreciated the way the author used it to enhance his great story. I also quite enjoyed the throwaway references to COVID-19, with none of the characters particularly concerned about it considering everything else that was happening, and I have no doubt that Ayliffe’s next novel will make great use of the pandemic in some way.

With his latest novel, The Enemy Within, Tim Ayliffe continues to showcase why he is one of the best new writers of Australian crime fiction. The Enemy Within had an awesome and incredible story that perfectly brings in amazing contemporary Australian issues and settings, which are expertly worked into a thrilling novel. I had an outstanding time reading this fantastic read and it comes highly recommended.

Amazon

Top Ten Tuesday – Books on my Spring 2021 TBR

On September 7, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn List6 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official Top Ten Tuesday topic for this week was Books Guaranteed to put a Smile on Your Face. While this was a pretty interesting topic (although my list probably would have primarily been a collection of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels), I thought I might instead bring forward my quarterly post about the best upcoming books to be read (TBR) for the following three months. This is a regular post I do at the start of each season, and as this is the first week of Spring, this is the ideal time to put this up.

For this list I have come up with 10 of the best novels that are coming out between 1 September 2021 and 30 November 2021. There was a pretty substantial pool of cool upcoming novels that I am excited for, which I was eventually able to whittle down into a great Top Ten list (with a few honourable mentions). I have primarily used the Australian publication dates to reflect when I will be able to get these awesome novels, and these might be somewhat different to the rest of the world. I have previously discussed a number of these books before in prior Top Ten Tuesdays and Waiting on Wednesday articles and I think all of them will turn out to be some really impressive and enjoyable reads. I am incredibly excited for the next three months as there are some incredible novels coming out, several of which I already know are going to be amongst the best books of 2021.

Honourable Mentions:

Enemy at the Gates by Kyle Mills and Vince Flynn – 14 September 2021

Firefly: Carnival by Una McCormack – 2 November 2021

Aurora’s End by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff – 9 November 2021

Leviathan Falls by James S. A. Corey – 16 November 2021

Top Ten List:

The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie – 16 September 2021

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman – 16 September 2021

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik – 28 September 2021

The Bone Ship’s Wake by R. J. Barker – 28 September 2021

The Dark Hours by Michael Connelly – 9 November 2021

Never by Ken Follett – 9 November 2021

The Honour of Rome by Simon Scarrow – 9 November 2021

Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil by Timothy Zahn – 16 November 2021

Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters by Charles Soule, Luke Ross and Neeraj Menon – 23 November 2021

Cytonic by Brandon Sanderson – 30 November 2021

Well that is the end of my Top Ten list. I think it turned out pretty well and it does a good job of capturing all my most anticipated books for the next three months. Each of the above should be pretty epic, and I cannot wait to read each of them soon. Let me know which of the above you are most excited for and stay tuned for reviews of them in the next few months. In the meantime, it looks like I have quite a few books to get through soon and they should all be pretty awesome.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Out of the Shadows by Justina Ireland

On September 5, 2021August 19, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, LGBT+, Science Fiction, Star Wars, Tie-in Novel, Young Adult8 Comments

Publisher: Disney Lucasfilm Press (Audiobook – 27 July 2021)

Series: Star Wars – The High Republic

Length: 10 hours and 50 minutes

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Amazon Book Depository

The marvels and terrors of the High Republic era of Star Wars history continues with the latest fantastic and exciting young adult tie-in novel, Star Wars: Out of the Shadows by Justina Ireland.

The High Republic is an interconnected collection of novels, comics, audio dramas and other pieces of media produced by top Star Wars authors, set hundreds of years before the films. Starting in January 2021, this compelling multimedia project features several great pieces of fiction, including the awesome introductory novel Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule, the impressive The Rising Storm by Cavan Scott, and the entertaining young adult novel Into the Dark by Claudia Gray. The latest High Republic novel, Out of the Shadows, is another compelling young adult novel that continues several key storylines from previous High Republic novels. This was the second Star Wars book from author Justina Ireland, who previously wrote the High Republic junior novel, A Test of Courage.

Death, destruction, pirates, and plant monsters! The Republic may be at the height of its culture and influence, but it is in some major trouble. Following the devastation that occurred during the Republic Fair at Valo, the Republic are at war with the marauders known as the Nihil, with the Jedi leading the efforts to hunt them down. But in the far corners of space, the Nihil are planning something new, something that could change the very fabric of the galaxy.

Sylvestri Yarrow is a young pilot and captain of a dilapidated ship, who is doing the best she can to keep her crew above water after the death of her mother. However, when her ship is suddenly pulled out of hyperspace in a remote area of space with a boarding party of Nihil raiders waiting for her, she has no choice but to abandon her home. Determined to get some form of justice, Sylvestri heads to Coruscant to convince someone of the dangers, but no one is willing to listen to a teenage pilot from the frontier until the unscrupulous and ultra-wealthy Xylan Graf appears and makes her an offer she cannot refuse.

In exchange for a new ship and a substantial number of credits, Sylvestri will accompany Xylan to the area of space where she lost her ship to help him disprove rumours of a dangerous Nihil weapon and to convince a senator into giving his family access to valuable hyperspace lanes. Despite her misgivings about the plan, and the trustworthiness of Xylan, Sylvestri agrees to accompany him. However, the Senator has a caveat: Xylan must take along some unimpeachable observers of her choosing, Jedi. Now accompanied by young Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh, her Padawan Imri Cantaros, Master Cohmac Vitus, his apprentice Reath Silas, and, awkwardly, Sylvestri’s ex-girlfriend Jordanna Sparkburn, the team heads out to the wilds of space. But the Nihil are always watching and waiting from the shadows, and their plans could spell doom for everyone. Can Sylvestri and her new Jedi friends survive the dangers ahead of them, or will terrible secrets from her past threaten to overwhelm everyone once they are dragged out of the shadows.

Out of the Shadows proved to be a fun and compelling entry in this great new Star Wars series that I had a fantastic time listening to. Featuring a great story and some excellent characters, this novel continues several key storylines from the previous High Republic novels and presents a strong and action-packed adventure.

Ireland has come up with a pretty good story for Out of the Shadows, resulting in a very exciting read. Set around a year after Ireland’s last novel, A Test of Courage, and a short period after the events of the last major High Republic novel The Rising Storm, Out of the Shadows ties together several intriguing story threads set around some compelling characters. The book starts out quick, with each major characters introduced in short order through a series of separate point-of-view chapters. These early introductions do a good job of establishing the characters’ histories, personalities and motivations, and sending them on their various story paths. The first third of the novel moves quickly, with each character getting some compelling moments, such as Sylvestri getting involved with unscrupulous businessman Xylan Graf, while Jedi Vernestra and her friends get a taste of the dangerous frontier life on their way to Coruscant. This results in a fun mixture of plot inclusions, from some captivating political intrigue in Sylvestri’s storyline to some more action in Vernestra’s story combined with some interesting examinations of the Jedi and the Force.

These storylines combine around halfway through the book, with the key characters (except for one point-of-view antagonist) coming together and working as a team. While it did have some good moments, I felt the middle part of the novel dragged a little, and there was not a great deal of excitement there. However, it did set up the conclusion nicely, with Sylvestri and the Jedi coming face to face with the Nihil in less-than-ideal circumstances. After a short confrontation, the story goes into overdrive, with the characters racing through several events all the way up to the end, including one event that might have some major ramifications for the High Republic storylines. Strangely enough, while the second act was a little slow, the final part of the novel was way too quick, with a lot happening in a very short amount of time. Still there were some great moments in these end scenes, including a couple of good twists, and it also sets up some further adventures extremely well. All the key characters get gratifying conclusions to their various storylines, and readers are left feeling pretty satisfied with how events turned out. Ireland makes sure to layer her story with some great action sequences, and there are some entertaining moments spread throughout the book. I had a wonderful time reading this cool story, and it ended up being a rather good Star Wars book.

This latest Star Wars novel is marketed towards a young adult audience, and I felt that it was a particularly good read for teenagers. Not only does it feature several teenage characters kicking ass, including a girl who became a Jedi Knight at age 15, but it also contains a clever and enjoyable story that does not pander to the younger age group or shy away from violence or controversial topics. Ireland did a great job diving into the teenage mindset, and I felt that the various teenage characters featured in this novel were well portrayed as competent and complex figures. I also liked the strong LGBT+ elements that Ireland featured throughout the novel, especially between Sylvestri and Jordanna Sparkburn, and it is cool that it is being shown so prominently in these novels. Like many young adult Star Wars novels, this book is can be easily enjoyed by older Star Wars fans, who will appreciate the intriguing story and fascinating developments to the wider High Republic universe. Younger readers will also probably have a good time with this novel, especially as Ireland does not go too over the top with the violence and romance, and as such I felt that this was an accessible novel to fans of all ages.

Out of the Shadows’ narrative is a continuation of several previous High Republic novels, which readers may need a bit of pre-knowledge about to fully enjoy. Not only does this novel continue to expand the High Republic series and make frequent references to characters and events primarily featured in Light of the Jedi or The Rising Storm; it also serves as a direct continuation of two previous books. This includes Ireland’s first Star Wars novel, A Test of Courage, as well as earlier 2021 release, Into the Dark, with key characters and storylines continued in Out of the Shadows. Readers unfamiliar with these previous novels might also have a hard time following what is happening in Out of the Shadows, although I did think Ireland had a good go at making this novel accessible to readers, no matter their knowledge base. Some key events of previous novels are explored in some detail, and I had no trouble following what was happening or who the characters were, even though I haven’t read A Test of Courage. Ireland also blended the various existing storylines together extremely well, and this helped to turn Out of the Shadow into a key entry in the overall High Republic series, especially as it continues to show the galactic machinations of the Nihil. It also looks like several storylines, mainly surrounding Ireland’s primary protagonist Vernestra Rwoh, will be continued in some future novels and I will have to try to read Ireland’s next novel, Mission of Disaster, even though I have avoided the junior High Republic novels in the past.

One of the things that particularly impressed me about Out of the Shadows was the excellent collection of characters that Ireland fit into her narrative. There is a substantial central cast in this book, including some new additions and some characters who have appeared in previous High Republic novels. The author does a good job of introducing and exploring these key characters throughout the novel, and you get some interesting and intense character development occurring, which really adds to the narrative.

These characters include Sylvestri Yarrow, a young pilot who finds herself dragged into the middle of this adventure. Sylvestri is a tough frontier girl with a big independent streak and a massive chip on her shoulder when it comes to both the Nihil and the Jedi, and she goes through a lot in this novel. Serving as one of the main point-of-view characters, Sylvestri offers a very interesting view on the events occurring and has some deep connections to the Nihil plot without even realising it. She also forms an intense and fantastic relationship with Jordanna Sparkburn, her ex-girlfriend, who suddenly re-enters her life. Jordanna is a frontier deputy responsible for defending her planet from Nihil raiders, which has seen her fight in quite a few battles. Brought into the story after the Jedi help her to defend her home, Jordanna accompanies them to Coruscant and then gets wrapped up the main story. Mainly introduced as the tough girl still interested in Sylvestri, Jordanna gains a lot of depth as a character as the story progresses, especially as she has experienced a lot of trauma after being forced into multiple battles. A lot of this comes out when Sylvestri is in trouble, and Jordanna goes on a bit of a killing spree with a unique Nihil weapon she has obtained. This scene really adds a lot to how the reader sees her, and it proves to be quite fascinating. I was also a big fan of Jordanna’s giant alien cat, Remy, a dangerous creature who is just a big kitten at heart, especially when she bonds with some of the other characters.

I also enjoyed the great Jedi characters featured in Out of the Shadows. These include Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh and her Padawan Imri Cantaros, who were the main characters of A Test of Courage and are now Ireland’s go-to Star Wars protagonists. These two Jedi make for a unique pairing, as Vernestra is a brilliant Jedi prodigy, becoming a Knight at a very young age, while Imri is only slightly younger and has a unique ability to perceive emotions. Vern is a particularly striking character, particularly with her lightwhip (a lightsaber modified to also be used as a whip) and I enjoyed seeing the challenges that a very young Knight would face. Her unique connection to the force also connects her to another interesting character in the High Republic canon, and it sets her up for some big storylines in the future. The other major Jedi characters are Jedi Master Cohmac Vitus and his apprentice Reath Silas. Cohmac and Reath were previously heavily featured in a previous young adult novel, Into the Dark, and it was great to see them again. Despite being the apprentice, Reath is the more prominent character, with several point-of-view chapters to himself. While it was great to see more of Reath and Cohmac, they are a little underutilised, and I would have liked to see more about them, especially with Reath’s unique connection to one of the antagonists.

The other two characters who were a lot of fun in this book are Nan and Xylan Graf, two complex figures who are playing their own games. Nan is a young Nihil spy and infiltrator who previously encountered Reath while the two were trapped on a space station together. Serving as one of Marchion Ro’s most loyal soldiers, Nan is entrusted with an important treasure and is subsequently forced to navigate the Nihil’s internal feuding and plotting to survive. Nan provides a fantastic alternate perspective for much of the events of the novel as she is used to show what is happening in the Nihil camp. I liked her use in this book, and while I would have enjoyed a much more intense confrontation with Reath when they are inevitably reunited, I did enjoy how Nan’s story arc dramatically changed towards the end of the novel, which should be interesting for future High Republic novels. The other character is Xylan Graf, the ultimate rich-kid master manipulator. Xylan is the scion to the exceedingly powerful and rich Graf family, who organises the entire expedition, seemingly to gain rights to a valuable sector of space. Xylan is an extremely flashy and stylish figure, and it is quite entertaining to see the other characters react to his eccentricities. He is also quite a sly operator, cooking up plans and spinning tales to keep everyone happy. He is so slippery that you honestly don’t know what he is planning for most of the novel, and I felt that he was a very compelling and fun addition to the cast. All of the above characters were really fun and I hope they reappear in some of the future High Republic entries.

I made sure to grab a copy of Out of the Shadows’ audiobook format, which proved to be an interesting experience. While I tend to really enjoy Star Wars audiobooks due to the cool production inclusions they usually feature, I ended up being a little disappointed with Out of the Shadow’s audiobook. This was mainly because it lacked the iconic Star Wars musical score or background sound effects that all the other Star Wars audiobooks have, which made for a more subdued listening experience. While this didn’t make Out of the Shadows impossible to enjoy, it was a very noticeable departure from the typical fun I have with Star Wars audiobooks, and several scenes could have benefited from being enhanced by some emotional music. Still, I enjoyed the production, mainly because narrator Keylor Leigh does a really good job telling the story. Leigh, who previously narrated Ireland’s A Test of Courage, has a great voice for teenage characters. I felt that Leigh gave each of the key protagonists a unique and fitting voice, and she also ensured that the narrative moved along at a quick and exciting pace. In addition, with a runtime of just under 11 hours, this is a relatively quick listen, which dedicated listeners can power through in no time at all. As a result, this is a good format to enjoy Out of the Shadows on, although I really do wish that it had featured the usual strong Star Wars production values.

Star Wars: Out of the Shadows by Justina Ireland is an awesome and captivating High Republic tie-in novel, which continues to explore this unique period in Star Wars history. Containing a fun story and some great characters, this novel serves as a key entry in the High Republic series, following several fascinating plot threads from some previous novels. Readers are in for an excellent time with this novel, and Out of the Shadows proves to be an exciting and compelling experience.

Amazon Book Depository

Waiting on Wednesday – Upcoming Sequels

On September 2, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Science Fiction, Waiting on Wednesday10 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy. I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. For this week’s Waiting on Wednesday, I am going to highlight three upcoming novels that I think will be awesome follow ups to some excellent debut novels I’ve recently read.

Over the last year there have been some truly amazing debut novels coming out across the various genres. This is particularly true in 2021, and I have already enjoyed some really great books written by talented first-time authors, with several other fantastic sounding ones set for release later in the year. However, I am also particularly excited to see that some of these fantastic debuts are already producing some cool sounding sequels, which will be released over the next few months. Considering how much fun I had reading the first books from these amazing writers, I am very excited for these sequels, especially as they are all continuing the compelling storylines from the initial books.

The first book I want to highlight is The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart, the second book in The Drowning Empire series and the cool sounding follow up to the 2020 fantasy debut, The Bone Shard Daughter. The Bone Shard Daughter was a very impressive fantasy debuts and it instantly got a massive following of fans, especially as multiple reviewers quickly started raving about it. I read it a few months after it came out and I really enjoyed its captivating story and clever setting, and it ended up being one of my favourite debuts of 2020.

The Bone Shard Emperor Cover

The Drowning Empire novels are set within a tyrannical empire of multiple islands, ruled over by a family of magicians who use shards of bone, harvested from their subjects to power dangerous constructs. The first novel followed a great range of characters, including a smuggler, the Emperor’s rebellious daughter and several rebels, and resulted in an awesome read with a great conclusion. I am pretty excited to check out the sequel, currently set for release on 11 November 2021, which will continue right after the events of the first book and feature a dangerous new enemy emerging to challenge the protagonists. The Bone Shard Emperor sounds like a really good read and I cannot wait to see how Stewart’s second novel turns out.

Synopsis:

The Bone Shard Emperor is the unmissable sequel to The Bone Shard Daughter, one of the biggest fantasy debuts of 2020 – a captivating tale of magic, revolution and mystery, where a young woman’s sense of identity will make or break an empire.

The Emperor is Dead. Long live the Emperor.

Lin Sukai finally sits on the throne she won at so much cost, but her struggles are only just beginning. Her people don’t trust her. Her political alliances are weak. And in the northeast of the Empire, a rebel army of constructs is gathering, its leader determined to take the throne by force.

Yet an even greater threat is on the horizon, for the Alanga – the powerful magicians of legend – have returned to the Empire. They claim they come in peace, and Lin needs their help to defeat the rebels and restore order.

But can she trust them?

The next novel I want to highlight in this post is The Liar’s Knot by M. A. Carrick, the second book in the exciting Rook & Rose series. The Liar’s Knot, which will be released in early December 2021, is the sequel to the excellent The Mask of Mirrors, which came out earlier this year. The Mask of Mirrors is the first book from author M. A. Carrick, the joint pen name of Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms, two established fantasy authors, although I am counting this book as a debut as it was the first time that they wrote together.

The Liar's Knot Cover

The Mask of Mirrors, which was one of my favourite audiobooks of the first half of 2021, followed a great group of protagonists as they engage in a game of deceit and lies in an amazing fantasy setting. Set in the troubled city of Nadežra, the book primarily followed a former street kid turned con artist as she attempts to trick her way into the ranks of a wealthy family by rescuing them from poverty. However, her ploy sets her against a range of dangerous adversaries, including a notorious crime lord, a mysterious vigilante, and an insidious magical threat from her childhood. This results in an awesome and compelling fantasy adventure, and I really enjoyed how the story progressed. The next book in this series, The Liar’s Knot, will continue the impressive story with the three central protagonists coming into conflict with each other, and the other sinister forces infesting the city.

Synopsis:

Trust is the thread that binds us . . . and the rope that hangs us.

In Nadezra, peace is as tenuous as a single thread. The ruthless House Indestor has been destroyed, but darkness still weaves through the city’s filthy back alleys and jewel-bright gardens, seen by those who know where to look.

Derossi Vargo has always known. He has sacrificed more than anyone imagines to carve himself a position of power among the nobility, hiding a will of steel behind a velvet smile. He’ll be damned if he lets anyone threaten what he’s built.

Grey Serrado knows all too well. Bent under the yoke of too many burdens, he fights to protect the city’s most vulnerable. Sooner or later, that fight will demand more than he can give.

And Ren, daughter of no clan, knows best of all. Caught in a knot of lies, torn between her heritage and her aristocratic masquerade, she relies on her gift for reading pattern to survive. And it shows her the web of corruption that traps her city.

But all three have yet to discover just how far that web stretches. And in the end, it will take more than knives to cut themselves free…

The final book in this post is the really cool sounding science fiction thriller, Outcast, by Louise Carey. Carey is a talented author who, after writing several books with her family, produced her first solo novel earlier this year, Inscape. Inscape was a captivating and intriguing read that featured a fantastic cyberpunk storyline in a dystopian future. Inscape was one of the better debut novels I have read so far this year, and I was very excited to see that Carey already has a sequel on the way with Outcast.

Outcast Cover

Outcast, which is currently set for release on 25 January 2022, will continue to follow corporation security officer and spy, Tanta, as she attempts to unravel the various conspiracies dominating the futuristic society that she lives in, and which is threatening the corporation that raised her. The first novel had a great story to it, which finished on a fantastic note, and I really enjoyed getting through this cool first book. I am also very excited to see how this story continues, especially as the synopsis suggests that even more secrets and lies about Tanta’s past and her employers will be revealed in this latest outing.

Synopsis:

TRUTH. LIES. IT CAN BE HARD TO TELL THEM APART.

When a bomb goes off at InTech HQ, everything changes for Tanta’s corporation. Order becomes disorder. Safety becomes danger. Calm becomes chaos.

Tanta is tasked with getting to the bottom of the attack before violence and unrest overtake the city. But even though the evidence points towards rival corporation Thoughtfront, Tanta can’t shake the feeling that she’s missing something.

There’s a dark secret at the heart of the case, one that will reveal more about her own corporation than Tanta would like. And the closer Tanta gets to the mystery, the more she comes to realise something terrible:

Sometimes facing the truth can be the hardest thing of all.

As you can see from the above, there are some outstanding sequel novels coming out in the next few months, and I have to say that I am extremely excited for all of them. All three of these fantastic upcoming books are following on from some amazing debuts, and I have very high hopes that these great authors will continue their excellent writing with these sequels.