When the Crimson Keep abandoned her in the wilds of Aqshy over a century ago, Nyssa Volari should have died. Instead, she forged a kingdom and claimed a throne. Now, she is a queen.
READ IT BECAUSE
Nyssa Volari, the star of The Last Volari, returns and is struggling to deal with the pressures of ruling a kingdom. This classic tale of intrigue features vampiric politics, diplomacy, and lashings of extreme violence. Can Nyssa hold on to the throne she has worked so hard to claim?
THE STORY
Amidst the triumphs of Nyssa Volari, an army of beasts rampages across the Broken Plains, seeking a totem of necromantic power. As this mysterious force corrupts her empire, threatening allegiances and exposing mortal enemies, Nyssa soon discovers that the Rose Throne is ever uncertain.
To prove her sovereignty once and for all, she must confront the long-lost ghosts of her past to acquire a new power, one that will enable her to claim dominion over both the living and the dead.
Wow, Gary Kloster is one hell of an author. His writing was phenomenal. Culan's story definitely caught my attention immediately. Nyssa grew on me quickly but it took several chapters. Both Nyssa's politics and Culan's torture were pretty well balanced overall. The necromantic power that they were searching for was immensely interesting and had me wanting more information on its existence. I was unaware this was a sequel of another book but I wasn't confused at all. Nyssa's character growth was about as good as a book with almost 300 pages could muster. Especially when half the book isn't even following her. Culan's was much stronger and much more interesting as many things in the story overwhelmed and abused him. The action in this book was very entertaining. Vampires, gheists, humans, undead creatures, and Beast Men are all involved in the carnage. The use of Nyssa's speed in combat made it feel as if I were following a speedster from DC. It was a very nice touch. My only complaint is that I sometimes forget that we were in the realm of Aqshy. The setting wasn't used too much. I cannot say if this is a good sequel, as I accidentally skipped the prequel. But I can say that the ending felt a bit dull. No grand ending but it did keep the plot moving forward. We'll most likely be seeing more of this storyline and if it's anything like this quality, I'll definitely be reading it :)
Nyssa Volari has become an unexpected favourite of mine: while I'm still somewhat ambivalent about the Age of Sigmar setting, the vampires of Warhammer remain favourites of mine, and since I never expected the previous book, The Last Volari, to get a sequel, this was a book I was desperate to read...
Picking up where the previous book left off, just as Nyssa Volari has secured her power and crushed her enemies, the Crimson Keep, the ancestral home of the Kastelai vampires, cursed to teleport from battle to battle whether or not all its warriors are within its walls, has returned. Torn between her desire to rule and the oaths to her ancestral home and bloodline, Nyssa must decide where her loyalties lie, even as an army of monsters seeking a cursed artefact threatens to lay waste to all Nyssa has strived to build for a century...
It was good to see the familiar faces like Nyssa, Shadas, Vasara, and the new characters like Leta were great additions as well: having Beastmen, one of my favourite Warhammer elements as the main threat was a nice touch, and the Nighthaunt were finally made interesting in the form of Culan (seeing him get even with his abusive mentor was a highlight): was tragic to lose Rend, but Nyssa definitely got an upgrade for undead animal companion... I definitely hope Gary Kloster has more planned for this series (and that Games Workshop gives us a model for Nyssa Volari soon)...
Nice and easy to read book. Its a great continuation of the first book in the series. The book shines extra light on the Broken plains and its inhabitants. While also adding plenty of Warhammer undead staples into the story. The characters are fun, i cannot think of characters that i don't like in these books. The recurring characters from the first book are great and there are plenty of new characters who fit well into the story. Just like the first book, the Kastelai duels are well written and a great reason for reading the books. I Would recommend this book series if you are interested in an aspect of the Warhammer age of sigmar vampires, and all the undead extras that come with it.
Mr. Kloster can write! This book is another example of how fun the Age of Sigmar novels are. The characters are really interesting, there is great action, the plot is easy to understand and moves very quickly; there are cinematic stand-up-and-cheer moments. I could easily read 500 pages of this. I sincerely hope that this series continues to run for as long as possible and that these characters meet other Age of Sigmar characters. I also hope that our Queen and her retinue get their own miniatures and rules.
"I believed it would be futile in the end. Like a mortal's last spasm before their heart finally falters to a stop. But I fought anyway, because I am Kastelai, and that is what we do. We fight until the end."
Past catches up to a young vampire queen in a desert kingdom of her own making. The main character Nyssa and her band of companions are faced with a surprising threat that is objectively beyond their ability, and as the plot of the novel continues, it builds anticipation to what solution she will use to deal with it. There is also a secondary plot about a young shaman falling victim to an enslaving artifact that neatly ties into the main story.
This is the first AoS novel that I've read, and I really liked how it handled vampires in its setting (Soulblight Gravelords). The plot is fairly interesting and so are the characters, especially the secondary main character who goes through a literal transformation throughout his story. The ending sets up a fairly interesting possibility for a sequel, and it has appropriate tension and a satisfying conclusion. Unfortunately, besides the two main characters, the rest seemed pretty flat and uninteresting.
Overall, it was a pleasant read, not particularly captivating but entertaining enough for me to enjoy it and look forward to delving deeper into the AoS library of products.
I love a strong female lead. This is the second 40K book that I have read and it was so much better than the first. ( the first one was about ogres). This book had me hooked from the first page. It was a little repetitive with the “ I am Kastelai” but it was a fun read overall
Didn’t expect to like this as much as I did. I’d just finished a few of the Realm Gate Wars books which I’ve found to be solidly fine fun. But this was so appreciably beyond that. The POV characters (two of them) I found to be equally engaging and I kept wanting to know what happened next.