The Words of Making

The Osserian Saga #2

by David Forbes

"I saw the dream. I saw your face." The words of a lone shipwrecked survivor chill the blood of Gerin Atreyano, Crown Prince of Khedesh, for they warn of an approaching armada. The savage, unconquered and unconquerable Havalqa are coming, driven by visions of a power beyond comprehension. Whosoever controls the Words of Making can own the world—and the brutal, single-minded invaders will destroy anything that stands between them and the one man who possesses the secret to this awesome the Amber Wizard, Gerin Atreyano. But the Words are as much a mystery to Gerin as they are to the fearsome enemy who would make him their prisoner. And unless he can unravel the ancient magic—and defeat a relentless awakening terror—his home and his future will be ashes.

Genres: Fantasy, Magic, Fiction

496 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

David Forbes lives near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with his wife and two children, a very talkative cat named Pumpkin, and a not-very-bright ferret named Hip-Hop who has yet to realize that you do not poop in room corners. He spends his days as a credit union marketing executive and dons his not-very-secret alternate persona of novelist during whatever little spare time he has left in the evenings, on weekends, vacations, and the occasional holiday.

Forbes (this is me writing in the third person. For those of you who’ve always wondered who writes the author’s bios for books, the secret is now out of the bag) is the author of the bestselling epic fantasy series THE OSSERIAN SAGA, published by HarperCollins, as well as the mainstream novel LIFE LINE.

He is currently working on a young adult trilogy called THE LOST GARDEN, about a teenage girl named Abbey Howard who finds herself pursued by an immortal empress who believes Abbey is a threat to her immortality. Abbey finds protection in the arms of the new kid in school, hunky Caleb Powell. He and his family are secretly witches who protect ordinary people from the very real monsters that go bump in the night. The individual titles of each book are THE SAPPHIRE EYE, THE BLACK FLAME, and THE WHITE ROSE. He’s also preparing an urban fantasy novel called THE RUTHLESS DEAD, about a half-angel security consultant who’s marked for possession by an ancient Greek vampire.

More information about all of these titles can be found at the author’s website, www.davidforbes.net.

Reviews

[Ruth Kevghas · Rating 5 out of 5]

As good as the first and now anticipating the 3rd one!

[Teresa Fay · Rating 3 out of 5]

The difference between the The Amber Wizard (book 1) and The Words of Making (book 2 of the Osserian Trilogy) was a welcome surprise. I didn’t have my hopes up when I cracked open this book based on how the first left me feeling. I’m not sure what David Forbes did between The two novels but I enjoyed this read so much more. The action, the characters, the dialogue - this one had everything I’d hope for in a fun book. I was turning pages with anticipation instead of boredom.

THE CHARACTERS.
4 OUT OF 5 STARS
The main characters Gerin, Balan, Hollin and Therain have gone from mostly 2D dimensional bores to well-rounded multilayered people. I could relate to and sympathize with them more than the cardboard cutout type characters of the first novel. Although, I’m still having trouble attaching myself to Gerin. Every thing he attempts, thinks, or hypothesizes comes out right. There is zero risk any time he tries a spell or issues a command because it always works out for the best. It takes away from times that should have been more climatic. Some of the things that still irk me with him probably have more to do with me. For instance, he still seems stunned and shocked excessively. Apparently any other type of reaction or emotion is alien to him. By far the best thing about The Words of Making were the other characters that populate it.

The secondary characters were more appealing to me than Gerin. I particularly enjoyed getting to know more about Balandrick and Therain. Therain has everything you’d want in a hero and the personality to match. He’s been a lot of fun to read about in this one.

THE WORLD BUILDING.
3.5 OUT OF 5 STARS
The world-building was much less cumbersome than book one. The scenes set by the author tended to be mostly short and sweet getting straight to the point. Even having a whole new people and culture introduced was done so at a great pace.

THE PLOT.
3 OUT OF 5 STARS
The plot of this book was set at a better pace without any real dead spots. This, by itself, made the book a vast improvement from the first. From the literal first page of the prologue the plot became a real page turner. New characters were introduced and fleshed out nicely helping to draw the reader in, in a more natural way than before. The point of view alternated chapter to chapter showing different characters and their inner thoughts. I personally like that type of storytelling style. Almost every chapter ended in a cliffhanger making it hard to put the book down which isn’t a bad thing by any means.

CONCLUSION.
Overall I enjoyed this one. While I’m still not a Gerin fan, he’s been slowly growing on me kind of the way an itch builds. The new characters introduced were intriguing. Some of the previous secondary ones who gained a bigger role really made this worth the read. Therain is my favorite by far and I hope we explore more of the world through his eyes in book three. I’m curious to see how the new antagonists (both that seem to have come up from nowhere) and the first book’s villians line up down the road.

I’d recommended this one and The Amber Wizard if someone was looking for a comfort read. This book doesn’t dredge up a lot of emotions for me. It’s the kind of book you can put down for a few weeks and forget about but then get pulled back into with relative ease.

Stay nerdy my friends!

[Zayion Zami · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Words of Making is an exhilarating continuation of the Osserian Saga, blending high-stakes fantasy with intricate world-building. The relentless tension of the Havalqa’s invasion and Gerin Atreyano’s desperate quest to unravel the ancient magic makes this a thrilling, page-turning epic. Fans of action, magic, and political intrigue will be captivated by every twist and revelation.

[Fietspomp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than average rating

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to say i liked this book better than The Amber Wizard, but unfortunately, that doesnt mean much.
Review: http://fantasybookreviewer.blogspot.c...

[Grimread · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was easier to read than the first, Amber Wizard, as I got the hang of skipping sentences and paragraphs that should have been omitted in the first place since they are there only for the book to have more than 400 pages rather than to actually have any meaning or importance.

[Lbd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading this sequel. Looking forward to book three.