Caina Amalas is a nightfighter of the Ghosts, the spies and assassins of the Emperor of Nighmar, and through cunning and valor she has cast down both proud lords and mighty sorcerers. But a power darker than any she has ever faced is awakening. When a mad assassin armed with a sorcerous blade rampages through the Emperor's capital, Caina must track the weapon to its origin, a ruined city blighted by the folly of sorcerers, a city that holds weapons far more potent than mere blades. Weapons that can resurrect an ancient empire of dark sorcery to enslave the world anew... ABOUT THE AUTHOR Standing over six feet tall, Jonathan Moeller has the piercing blue eyes of a Conan of Cimmeria, the bronze-colored hair of a Visigothic warrior-king, and the stern visage of a captain of men, none of which are useful in his career as a computer repairman, alas. He has written the DEMONSOULED series of sword-and-sorcery novels, and continues to write THE GHOSTS sequence about assassin and spy Caina Amalas, the COMPUTER BEGINNER'S GUIDE series of computer books, and numerous other works.
Standing over six feet tall, USA Today bestselling author Jonathan Moeller has the piercing blue eyes of a Conan of Cimmeria, the bronze-colored hair of a Visigothic warrior-king, and the stern visage of a captain of men, none of which are useful in his career as a computer repairman, alas.
He has written the DEMONSOULED series of sword-and-sorcery novels, and continues to write THE GHOSTS sequence about assassin and spy Caina Amalas, the COMPUTER BEGINNER'S GUIDE series of computer books, and numerous other works. His books have sold over one million copies worldwide.
A wonderful read! All the major players make an appearance on this thrilling adventure...
In the cursed barren plains of Caer Magia, where undead creatures tread, and malevolent shades prowl, the ultimate tool of destruction awaits... Waiting, longing for a master to claim it, and unleash all its unholy terror. An ancient sorcerer priest, undying and wicked arises from the long dead kingdom of Maat - the great necromancer, Rhames seeks to reshape the world, after two thousand years, in the image of Maat. But his greatest for, the Moraica stands in his path and seeks the power for herself. Once more, the fate of the world hangs in the balance... Caina, Covarlis, Kylon, Talekhris and Claudia make a temporal alliance with the Moroaica, Sicarion and Ranarius. Will the world burn? Will Kylon lose his love? Or can the Balarigar prevail?
Deception abounds; plans with layers unfold; hidden agendas manifest... What happens next?
Up until the epilogue I thought this was one of the best of the Ghost books. There is a lot of action, but also I thought there was some interesting character development.
The problem is the author obviously wants to keep his main group of villains, but he does this in such an unbelievable way. In fact the ending to this book is not just unbelievable, it so ridiculous it’s insulting to the reader.
Without the ending I was considering giving 4 or 5 stars.
Caina is attending an official Magesterium event at their chapterhouse -- in her guise as the flighty mistress of the city's coffeehouse's owner -- and thus is there where an expelled wizard appears with a magical knife capable of raising lethal wraiths.
She and Corvalis get dispatched to the only city where the knife could have come from. With the slight complication that you can't actually get into the city for more than seven hundred and seventy-seven beats of your heart, or you will die.
Meanwhile another such attack occurs in New Kyre, and Kylon's fiancee is struck down -- marvelously, not killed. He heads to this city, too.
It includes necromancers who can shift bodies when they die, and one consequence of that; a governor in de facto exile; Claudia living as a physician's assistant and advocating for telling the truth; a deal between Caina and Kylon; and more.
Caina takes her posse to the remote town of Calvarium, which neighbors the dead city of Caer Magia. Her mission is to prevent anyone from obtaining the city's secrets. She quickly learns the stakes are even higher than imagined as enemies and allies gather. She must decide on the lesser of two evils when winning still means losing.
The main storyline draws nearer to its conclusion. We see a whole host of characters come together in this book. I especially liked enemies fighting together in the face of a common foe.
Dear Jonathan, yet another entertaining and wonderful story in the continuing adult series of Ghost. Caina continues to prevail as a masterful spy with the unbelievable luck of the Irish. This story was wonderful to read and the characters are outstanding. I highly recommend reading this book to any adult interested in reading a great story. Thanks for the entertainment and exciting action.
Once again it seems unlikely that the object sought has remained unmolested for thousands of years. Suddenly two characters are able to break the warding spell(s) at the same time. As in a previous volume, Caina is forced to corroborate with Jadriga. Claudia also adds to the mix.
This story has a twist at the end. Some of these sorcerers just refuse to die.
This series keeps getting better and better. The characters and story are very strong and you'll fall for them. The story telling by this author is great and you'll keep turning the pages. Great Reading Everyone!
Again the heroine battles the dark forces of magic . The plot goes along at a steady pace introducing old and new characters, it is well worth the read.
I thought this series would either fizzle out or go the way many of its ilk do - with the main character becoming so overpowered its no fun to read any more.
Thats been avoided - without giving up on character development. If anything the books have gotten much beter over the last 3 - with the start of a multi book plot arc.
The main charcter is very well done and the series is an excellent addition to anyones bookshelf.
I really enjoyed this book, especially learning more about the history of the magi, Jadriga & Caer Magia. It's a shame there isn't a Wiki to accompany the Ghosts series as it would be really interesting to learn more about other places in the Ghosts-verse too. I suspect it won't all be happy endings in the next book though....
I would recommend this book who enjoys a decent good versus evil plot. I have become very attached to Caina Amalas through the course of the series, although sometimes it irritates me that she is so perfect even to the point of humbly denying credit for her heroism. As always, a great climax and interesting new twists through the book.