Treason Keep

Hythrun Chronicles: Demon Child #2

by Jennifer Fallon

According to legend, the last king of the Harshini sired a half-human child, known as the Demon Child, born to destroy a god . . . 


BestFantasyBooks.com lists the first book of the Demon Child Trilogy Medalon in the world's top 30 best political fantasy books along with New York Times Best Seller, Game of Thrones
 
Don't miss the next exciting installment! 
 
Treason Keep  is the second book in the epic Demon Child trilogy, part of the 10 adventure-filled, action-packed books of the Hythrun Chronicles , from international bestselling author, Jennifer Fallon. With the epic scope of the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings , the humor of David Eddings in his heyday, the drama of Diana Gabaldon and the action, epic worldbuilding and political scheming of George R R Martin, and you'll have some idea of the fabulous worlds and the intriguing characters awaiting you in the Demon Child Trilogy .

R'shiel is on the brink of death, her destiny unfulfilled. To save her, the renegade Harshini Brak reluctantly makes a terrible bargain, as survival of the hidden Harshini race hangs in the balance.

Political turmoil spreads across Medalon and its neighbouring countries as the gods vie for power, using humans as pawns in a deadly battle for supremacy. On Medalon's northern border, Tarja and the Defenders are far too few to stand against the invaders from Karien. The only thing that can save them is an alliance with Hythria. But can Tarja trust his former enemy, Damin Wolflblade, warlord and heir to the throne of Hytrhia?

Meanwhile, King Hablet of Fardohnya weds his eldest daughter, Princess Adrina, to the Karien Heir. hoping to place his grandchild on the Karien throne. But the wayward and rebellious Adrina has her own plans, and the fate of three nations dangle upon her whim.


To avert bloodshed on a massive scale, three warring kingdoms must unite to diffuse the threat of Karien, a nation led by possessed priests and fanatics. Only the demon child - half human and half Harshini - has the power to compel obedience, but will she master her new talents in time to stop a divine war ...
 
Featuring a heady blend of political intrigue, war, and one of the great love-hate relationships in fantasy fiction,  Treason Keep  is sure to please the many fans of epic fantasy.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Dragons, Magic, Science Fiction Fantasy

536 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 24, 2001

About the author

Fallon is the author of 17 full-length bestselling novels and a number of published short stories in genres ranging from horror to science fiction.

In addition to 4 complete fantasy series - The Demon Child trilogy, The Hythrun Chronicles, the Second Sons Trilogy,The Tide Lords Quadrilogy and the Rift Runners series - Fallon has written both a tie-novel and short fiction for the TV series, Stargate SG1, an official Zorro story, a novella for the Legends of Australian Fantasy Anthology and has a superhero - The Violet Valet (CHICKS IN CAPES).

Fallon has a Masters Degree from the Creative Arts faculty of QUT. A computer trainer and application specialist, Fallon currently works in the IT industry and spends at least a month each year working at Scott Base in Antarctica.

Reviews

[✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 4.5 stars. And a half.

“She had been fed politics for breakfast, manipulation for lunch and treachery for dinner.”

Now that's what I call a proper education diet! Forget about all that keto, paleo, vegan and human flesh Dukan nonsense! Good old overlording, scheming and backstabbing really is the dietary regime of champions!



See? Even Fleet Admiral DaShrimp agrees with me on that one.

Well this was a Slightly Very Good (SVG™) conclusion to this Slightly Very Good (SVG™) trilogy. Okay, so the demeaning bit about the ocean dragons was quite uncalled for and most outrageous indeed—I'm thinking of unleashing my murderous children on Jennifer Fallon for voicing such despicable views on those scrumptious marine creatures (I'm somewhat protective of all things aquatic, in case you didn't know)—but apart from that, yeah, this wasn't too bad. And now let's dance and stuff.



👋 To be continued and stuff.

📚 The Hythrun Chronicles reading order:
(Each series can be read independently.)
· Demon Child Trilogy, Book 1: Medalon ★★★★
· Demon Child Trilogy, Book 2: Treason Keep ★★★★
· Demon Child Trilogy, Book 3: Harshini ★★★★
· Wolfblade Trilogy, Book 1: Wolfblade ★★★★★
· Wolfblade Trilogy, Book 2: Warrior ★★★★★
· Wolfblade Trilogy, Book 3: Warlord ★★★★★
· Standalone novella: First Kill ★★★
· War of the Gods, Book 1: The Lyre Thief ★★★★★
· War of the Gods, Book 2: Retribution ★★★★★
· War of the Gods, Book 3: Covenant · to be published. Maybe.

[Aleshanee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mein Fazit: WOW! Einfach nur grandios! Warum hab ich diese Reihe nicht früher entdeckt und warum wird sie nicht häufiger empfohlen? Band 1 fand ich ja schon klasse und obwohl der Mittelband ja öfter mal nachlässt bei Trilogien, ist das hier defnitiv nicht der Fall!

Eher im Gegenteil, denn die ganzen Verwicklungen, die sich im ersten Teil schon angebahnt haben, nehmen immer größere Formen an: Dunkle Magie, ein Gott der die Herrschaft anstrebt, ein Krieg der sich kaum mehr aufhalten lässt und mega grandiose Figuren in einem Machtkampf, den scheinbar das Schicksal lenkt.

Nachdem ja erstmal vor allem das Land Medalon und seine wichtigen Charaktere im Vordergrund standen, weitet es sich jetzt über die Grenzen aus. Ein kampferprobter Rebell aus Hythria, eine eigensinnige Prinzessin aus Fardohnja und der Thronerbe aus Karien müssen sich zwischen den Ränken der Götter beweisen.

Der englische Titel "Treason Keep" ist hier absolut passend, denn Dreh- und Angelpunkt ist hauptsächlich das Verräter Kastell im Norden von Medalon, an dem sich das Hüter Heer sammelt. Auch wenn einige Gefährten reisen und man auch andere Flecken der Welt kennenlernt, zieht sich alles hier zu einer Entscheidung zusammen.

Geschrieben ist es unglaublich spannend, nicht unbedingt mit großem Tempo oder viel Action, sondern einfach durch die Entwicklungen die sich im großen und kleinen ergeben. Mit Überraschungen wird nicht gespart und ich bin von Anfang bis Ende an den Seiten geklebt. Ich bin absolut begeistert!

[Erica Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book of the Hythrun Chronicles and I definitely recommend that you read the books in order, starting with Medalon. Although I completely enjoyed Medalon, I think Treason Keep is even better. Fallon further develops the strong characters that she introduced in the first book while keeping the pace fast and furious. If you like romance with your fantasy, watch out because dreamy warlord Damin Wolfblade meets his match. The interactions between him and a spoilt southern princess are worth the price of the book.

One of the things I like about this book is the complex religious beliefs that color the action and the characters' behaviors. While it won't appeal to all readers, Fallon's well-conceived belief systems make this a stand-out fantasy that I can't recommend highly enough.

[Kat Hooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.

Treason Keep, the sequel to Medalon, is more of the same: a fast pace and fun characters overshadow the not-so-tight plot.

Jennifer Fallon keeps things interesting by expertly developing a couple of characters who were briefly introduced in her first book: Damin Wolfblade, an intelligent barbarian warlord (always a good thing, in my opinion), and Adrina, a spoiled princess whose daddy wants to marry her off because he's tired of paying for her escapades -- she just demolished the city's wharf while trying to dock a nobleman's yacht while she was drunk (the yacht sank). I was impressed with how Ms Fallon gave us very short but meaningful glimpses of Damin and Adrina in the first novel -- their personalities in Treason Keep were completely consistent with what we had previously learned about them, and it was clear that Ms Fallon had consciously prepared that. I noticed this sort of preparation for the future in this novel, too. For example, at one point, Tarja tells Damin that he'll owe him a big favor, and I'm sure we'll be seeing a reminder of this in a later installment.

So Damin and Adrina join Tarja and R'shiel, the established main characters who we already know and love, and several other old and new characters, making this novel both familiar and fresh. Fallon effectively uses different characters' points of view to tell the story (Adrina's point of view is particularly entertaining) and there is enough humor and romance to counterbalance some of the disturbing and violent events.

There were a few things that just didn't make sense to me, however. For example, Joyhinia is now out of commission and a large group of the Defenders have broken off from the Sisterhood and gone north to defend Medalon from the Kariens without permission of the Sisters. There is a lot of fretting about how to trick the quorum into making Mahina First Sister so that she can sanction their plans and send more Defenders. An elaborate and unreliable scheme is contrived when it seems safer, and more likely to work, to just go to the quorum and tell them the truth: "Hey sisters, look at Joyhinia. She's lost her mind and there's a bunch of our enemies massed at the border. Could we appoint a new leader and send some troops to defend the country?"

Also, the religious and magical systems seem arbitrary and convenient. It's not quite clear what gods and demons can do (and when), why R'shiel can call them to help her sometimes but not other times, what kinds of powers she has, and how the magic works. And why does she wear Harshini dragon rider leathers but never rides a dragon?

The plot of Treason Keep is not drum-tight, but the characterization and pleasant writing style make this an enjoyable read nonetheless.
Read more Jennifer Fallon book reviews at Fantasy Literature .

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this rather difficult to put down. While it didn't quite grab me as hard as the first book, it was still incredibly engaging and interesting. Some of the plot twists were a little cruel to some of the characters, but hey, the author is supposed to make the characters lives difficult, or the story would likely lose something. The climax was incredibly delicious, and something I've been waiting for since about the fourth chapter, but then petered off a little, which was a little disappointing. Can't wait to start the final book.

[Sable · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read for the Women of Genre Fiction Reading Challenge and the High Fantasy Reading Challenge.

Okay, this book was definitely not my favourite. Mostly I found it frustrating. I found myself skimming through the last half of it to see if it improved and to find out how particular events turned out, but in general I found myself just annoyed.

If you've read my review of the first book in this series, Medalon, you'll find I had some significant critiques. All of those critiques still stand, and indeed, in many cases have worsened. Fallon's politics make little sense and her understanding of war is, not to put too fine a point on it, abysmal. Why in the name of all that is stupid would an army try to defend an almost indefensible plain with no settlements on it save an old ruin whose existence makes little sense in the first place, just because it's the northern border of the country? If there were farms there I could understand it, but there weren't. This was the strategy of the most highly-trained and highly-disciplined army in the known world? Nobody has ever been this stupid.

Now, I could forgive a complete lack of common sense when it comes to the art of war if the relationships and characters were absorbing. Mercedes Lackey often has this flaw, which is why she often skips the battle scenes, but that's okay because her characters are interesting and it's often as much about how the characters act and react as it is about the events as they unfold. There's nothing wrong with that. But even here, Fallon fails, in my opinion, to deliver.

First of all, I hate her characters. I think every single one of them is annoying and utterly unlikable, except possibly Tarja, who is mostly wooden. She even introduced new characters - scions of the royal families of the two nearby polytheist nations that are peripherally involved in the struggle between atheist Medalon and monotheist Karien - and if anything, I liked them less than the original protagonists. They're stock characters from bad romance novels. He's the rude jerk warlord barbarian type and she's the spoiled brat princess harridan. I would be delighted if they both were murdered in their sleep so I don't have to hear about either one of them anymore. If you're going to write bad romance novels, please at least write us some interesting sex scenes so we have something to entertain ourselves with. But no; all sex scenes faded to black as they got started, though, unfortunately, the torture and rape scenes didn't. I don't eschew violence in a story if that's where the story needs to go, and I won't turn my face from it when it happens, but in my opinion, this continual cycle fails to add anything at all to the plot.

Second, her monotheists were unrelievedly bad. There's not a single likable one among them, except maybe the little boy who was raised in their ways who has a change of heart by the end of the book, and even his self-righteousness is annoying; you just have pity for it because he's a little boy. Their religion is every Pagan stereotype of Christianity you've ever heard; it's oppressive, especially to women; self-righteous; sexually repressive; arrogant; ruled by arrogant jerk high priests who set themselves above everybody else; and even the clothing worn by its adherents are drab and boring. I cannot imagine why anyone would follow this faith, and its existence is supposed to be relatively new. How did such a bunch of a**holes win an entire nation of converts?

But perhaps the answer to that is that the only decent god among the gods portrayed as characters appears to be the God of Thieves. The Goddess of Love is just annoying and I sincerely hope that after the crap he's put her through, R'shiel murders the God of War in a great deal of pain.

Not to mention that it doesn't seem to matter what the characters do at all. Events are just going to play out the way that Fate wants them to, regardless of how smart or how stupid their plans are. If I had a Dungeon Master like this, I would quit the game, because why even bother trying? The only relevant factor appears to be how much pain R'shiel can endure without turning into a raging psychopath. I suppose Fallon thinks this is "edgy," but you know, things even go well for the Starks in Game of Thrones every once in a while, and what they choose to do has an effect of some kind on the outcome of events, for good or ill.

And on top of it all, while I do see that part of what she's trying to accomplish as a writer is to show that one's personal narrative of an event can colour what you see in a way that is not accurate (and, to be fair, that's actually well done when looking through the eyes of the boy and when comparing some of the different beliefs of the major characters,) I am getting really tired of everyone in the book telling me how manipulative and calculating, how clever and dangerous, R'shiel is, when I see absolutely no sign of any of that. Since she keeps blustering on into impossible situations that just get her repeatedly captured, then rescued by whatever man of the hour or deus ex machina Fallon decides on this week, I see her mostly as a stubborn, if brave, idiot. And if she really were conniving and manipulative, wouldn't everyone think she was wonderful, instead of hating her but trying to save her for their own purposes anyway? The only one who actually gives a damn about her at all is Tarja, and he was point blank enspelled into falling in love with her thanks to the heavy hand of the Goddess of Love (and the author). People who are good at being manipulative make you believe that they're wonderful people, don't they? Isn't that why they're dangerous? R'shiel seems to have no ability to make even a housecat like her.

I kept hoping it would improve, or that some of the random bullpucky that she throws in there - like this random ruined keep in the middle of an indefensible plain - would be explained; but no. And because I don't like the characters and nothing they do seems to affect the outcome, I no longer give a fig what happens to them or how the story ends. I won't be looking for the third book in the trilogy and I'll be taking the first two back to the bookstore to trade in. I have lost all suspension of disbelief and I feel like my time has been wasted. And it's sad, because I thought the premise was awesome and I really, really wanted to like it.

But if you're going to write romance novels that are full of romance novel tropes, first of all, don't pretend they are fantasy - paranormal romance is a perfectly legitimate genre and one of my guilty pleasures. Also, if you're going to do that, write more sex and less abuse, please.

[☽ cyberpink ☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Proper review pending.

My feelings on the second installment in the series is similar to the first: When Fallon writes about the politics and the drama of the world, I really love this series. I can even get past the cringe-worthy incestuous relationship between Tarja and R'Shiel (which I still wish was never included because this story would be a lot stronger if they had a PLATONIC sibling bond but whatever, that ship has sailed so I might as well get over it.) When the attention shifts to Divine intervention is where the story drags and bores me. God, what I would give for this to just be a historical fantasy with little to no magical elements.. It's so weird, because I am a big fan of all things magic... but seriously. This series would be so much stronger without all of the "chosen one, Super Saiyan demon child" nonsense. I guess that's why the Wolfblade Chronicles holds a special place in my heart-- Fallon kept the focus where it belongs, on the character driven narrative and the political scheming, not the Harshini and the squabbles between the childish Gods.

Whatever. Even with all of this complaining I'm still going to finish this series. Fallon got her hooks into me, and I can't help but feel attached to the characters I got to know in the Wolfblade Chronicles. I'm still holding my breath in hopes that Marla makes an appearance ^_^

[Karen ⚜Mess⚜ · Rating 4 out of 5]

MacHalo Buddy Read

The little thief still has my heart



In Treason Keep we are introduced to a new main character, Adrina. This story is mostly Adrina and Damin Wolfblade's 💗 story.

Once again, a wonderful story and great characters. As with the first book, there's a bit too much and most of the story is skim worthy. I read a review by someone who read the Wolfblade stories first and compared it to the Demon Child stories. The Demon Child falls short and is a bit "messy". I haven't read the Wolfblade stores yet, but I think I know what the reviewer means by "messy". Also, I can't wait to read Wolfblade now!

Normally, I would give this 5 stars because I couldn't put it down and really enjoyed it. But for the overflow of words AGAIN (could have made this a 300 page book instead of 500+) I'm going to bump this down a star.

[Dominique "Eerie" Sobieska · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading the Wolfblade Chronicles first instead of Demon Child, I can see the difference and the evolution Jennifer Fallon went through.

Although a good story, Demon Child fails to captivate me, as I find it messy at best, and the lack of characters and multiple harmonious plots compared to the intricate universe in it's prequel (written a few years later) makes me hunger for so much (so many characters were left at the end of Warlord, as complexe network surrounding the Wolfblades) and yet most are silent if not even existing...

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe it was partially due to me working more hours and not being able to read for long periods at a time, but this book was extremely sluggish until the last like 10%. Events took longer to unfold and there was a lot of explaining and reexplaining to various characters, but I don’t think the book would have made sense other wise

*SPOILER ALERT*

But seriously, the author used the opposites attract thing again? First Tarja and R’Shiel, now Wolfblade and Adrina? That was easy to spot ten leagues away due to the redundancy.

[A.R. Hellbender · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is amazing, and definitely a step up from the first one. It has an amazing new female character who is so much fun to read about, an epic love story, and villains who are incredibly vile.
The only reason it didn't get the full 5 stars was because the main character, R'shiel, is very bland, and for the first half of the book, I didn't enjoy the chapters that were about her.

[Connie53 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Weer zo'n heerlijk deel (nummer 5), waardoor ik steeds meer ga afvragen waarom deze serie niet verder is vertaald. Het leest heerlijk en er zit ook nog wat humor in. Damin is echt een schatje

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

The political intrigue continues and deepens in this second installment of the Demon Child trilogy. Of course there is also plenty of action & battle, along with a new romantic twist & female protagonist for all you fellow readers who didn't really click with R'shiel the first time around. Just a few new characters & twist, adding just a little more flavor to an already great bowl of awesome.... soup??

As far as new characters go,
I like the character of Adrina. At first I couldn't bring myself to read this. I felt like I was betraying R'shiel, letting another female in - possibly taking her place! I mean, I'd been hoping R'shiel and Damien would.... but then I read Adrina & Damien together & they were perfect. There was no going back after that.

Craytn was great. He was the perfect blend of spoilt brat & weak pious prince. I didn't like him or anything but he was a good villain. Easy to hate. Cheered for his death, it was that kind of character love.

And of course we are treated to the comical antics of my favorite Klepto god, Dace & a few other Primal Gods who are not shy of a little divine intervention...

I love this series so very much. Though Fallon's stories have more of a political feel to them, the storyline is still enjoyable. You don't need to be a lawyer or running for Senate to follow what's going on & there is just enough magic & intrigue to keep me interested.... plus ya know, we get LOTS MORE of my delicious man candy, Brak!

[Marlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't laughed that much while reading a book for a long time. Since the story was not as centered around Tarja and R'shiel as in the first book of the series (Medalon), Treason Keep was even more enjoyable. Fallon's witty dialogue - especially between Adrina and Damin - was very amusing. I look forward to reading the next book (Harshini the Hythrun Chronicles).

[Cecile · Rating 4 out of 5]

This second part of the Demon Child Trilogy is more about loyalties and alliances, while the war against the Kariens is taking place. It's also about the clash of personalities, particularly between Adrina and Damin, two very strong-minded characters, who both have big misconceptions about each over.

But this wouldn't be the Demon Child Trilogy without the demon child, R'shiel. After discovering who she really is, she still has a hard time coming to terms with her destiny. Thanks to her great strength of character, and a bit of help from Brak who never leaves her side, she grows from a girl full of anger to a powerful woman. Beware Xaphista!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I sat down to start this book on Monday, I thought dang...over 650 pages! That's going to take me forever to finish. Fast forward to just 6 days later and I was done. Averaging like over 100 pages a day. So I guess you can say I liked it.

And I did. In fact I liked it a lot more than the first one. I found Rshiel a bit annoying at times in the first one. But here she was much more of a mature woman instead of a spoiled child.

Plus I loved Adrina's character. Tough and powerful in a different way, I can't wait to see how she shakes out.

Now I just need to get my hands on the 3rd book...

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was fun to read. I really enjoyed being back in this world and visiting with R'Shiel, Tarja, and Brak again. The plot was very fast paced, full of action, and political intrigue. The writing kept me enticed the whole time and was easy to read.

I really enjoyed where the story went and it took some turns I was and wasn't expecting. I liked how our characters developed and how their relationships changed.

Overall, this was fun and I will definitely be reading the next book!

[T.J. Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some improvements in how Jennifer Fallon works her plot, so that was a nice surprise. Also, one of the best love stories ever starts to unfold here. I love Damin and Adrina! This might be the best book of the series as I have started #3 and it seems to be going downhill a bit. One thing that annoyed me was how many times the author calls her female protagonists "spoilt" or how surprised everyone is that they are intelligent.

[Niah · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25/5. This series is so fun! I was hooked in the beginning with all the different pov and new characters introduced. The political and religious beliefs are really highlighted in this book , with those who believe in the gods following so blindly, and the atheists being forced to come to terms that the gods exist, and often have to turn to them for help. Great world building, I like most of the characters (Mikel grew on me, still hate Lochan ) but I’m very excited to read the final book!

[Kathleen Pool · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another amazing fantasy series. I recently realized I only had the middle book of both trilogy’s. Well, that was a mistake I fixed and re-read the books as a reward for filling out my shelves. Loved it when I read them as a young adult and love them more now. So much depth and character development, an interesting magic system and political power struggles. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a book they can’t put down.

[JoReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book definitely does not suffer from second book syndrome, loved this more than the first. The new characters is a reason why I love this book so much Damin's comments, and the introduction of Adrina. Reading these books again remains me why I love Jennifer Fallons writing. I often find it hard to reread books. But with these books it's easy... Can't wait to read the last book again.

[Renee Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series so much. The only issue I have - which I believe is in this book (I read them all at once so discerning between them can be difficult) - is the kind-of-but-not-really incest that happens. Yes I know they're not technically related, but they thought they were for a long time. And only one of them was under a spell so... Yeah. That's the only part that gets iffy for me.

[Amanda Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was a good follow up to the first one. It had much less, 'lets wander into trouble for troubles sake', which made me like it more.

I hate the characters I'm supposed to hate, liking the ones I'm supposed to and over all it's okay.

[Amelia Hofstetter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best of the demon child trilogy. There is a laugh-out-loud funny line nearly every chapter. The rest of the series is engrossing but somewhat run-of-the-mill fantasy. This book stands out for its memorable comedic moments.

[Mike Amos · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic series full of great characters and interesting twists and turns. Throughly enjoyed from start to finish. There are some parts where the story drags a bit, and I wish there was more time with dace, but that is just personal preference. I would highligh recommend this gripping trilogy.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much better than book #2! I read 200 pages in one sitting in the bathtub. I didn't even mind how lukewarm the water got.

[Felicity Borders · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has aged pretty well on a reread

[Hillary Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even better than the first book in the series! Great read, excited for the next one!

[Monalisa Sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is another remarkable book in the series. I liked all the characters and everything about the book. It is a magical experience, it doesn't disappoint at all.

[Hannah Etherton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this, think I got on better than with the first one, perhaps because I knew the characters more or plots were more to my taste. Good fantasy with a different theme.