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Vattu #2
Vattu: The Sword & the Sacrament
The Sword & the Sacrament is the second book in the story of Vattu, in which she must find her way through a new world of zealous conquerors and mysterious chemist-priestesses.
This e-book contains the entire second book of Vattu as originally published online, and extra material.
This e-book contains the entire second book of Vattu as originally published online, and extra material.
312 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2016
2 people are currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
Evan Dahm
36 books90 followersEvan Dahm is an artist who is currently living in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
December 25, 2018
This one was better than the first! The story gets more interesting and I like the new characters (Junti) that were introduced. I love the friendship between Vattu and the War-Man chief. The politics are interesting! and the ending :'( I need the third book! And I really really like this art style.
October 9, 2019
Vattu is a complete visual and mental feast. The story is compelling, the world and its inhabitants are all vivid and fleshed out, and its just beautiful.
We get to see different aspects of the world through multiple POVs, all dealing with their various, seemingly disconnected struggles. The characters are all balanced nicely, and we never stay on one too long, which keeps the pacing flowing nicely. The jump between characters is compelling and will keep a reader enthralled long past the time they've finished the book. The structure reminds me of A Song of Ice and Fire, but feels a bit more personable than that. Probably because there's a bigger focus on their day-to-day struggles, and how that fits into the overall scheme of things.
There's nothing quite like it. If you want a good representation of what a graphic novel can be, then you really should check it out. It is available online as a webcomic, so you can go read it right now, but I personally prefer getting the physical books when they come out and diving into it over a few days.
We get to see different aspects of the world through multiple POVs, all dealing with their various, seemingly disconnected struggles. The characters are all balanced nicely, and we never stay on one too long, which keeps the pacing flowing nicely. The jump between characters is compelling and will keep a reader enthralled long past the time they've finished the book. The structure reminds me of A Song of Ice and Fire, but feels a bit more personable than that. Probably because there's a bigger focus on their day-to-day struggles, and how that fits into the overall scheme of things.
There's nothing quite like it. If you want a good representation of what a graphic novel can be, then you really should check it out. It is available online as a webcomic, so you can go read it right now, but I personally prefer getting the physical books when they come out and diving into it over a few days.
October 13, 2024
Tagging "death" but not "murder" since one is an execution (legally distinct from murder) and the other isn't premeditated. Probably not a huge distinction for some folks, but I feel like they're different enough for my shelves. Also "drug abuse" even though I don't know that it's as such a "drug"? Certainly substance abuse for SOME definition of "substance."
My "desperate need" went unfulfilled for almost a year, until I finally sat down with it today. I guess I've thwarted desperation with a slap upside the head of the SHEER VOLUME of titles I come across just on even one book outing to anywhere with a slightly varied selection.
Anyway, I fully admit that I'd completely forgotten what happened in book 1, but while it's not "fine"—there is obviously some required backstory necessary to be able to follow the series—it does feel like it's easy *enough* to follow that a complete newcomer could probably do just fine reading from here. That said, it reminds me quite a bit of Amulet in a number of respects: "young adult"-focused (both character and target audience age), action/adventure genre, serious tone with the occasional lightheartedness, following several interconnected plots at the same time, "magic-tech" (technology/science that's somewhat magical)... about the main difference is Amulet is still mostly human/humanoid focused with the occasional talking animal person (though ), while Vattu's world has no humans at all.
It's still a lovely series, and I'm definitely interested in seeing how this all pans out, even if one of the three plot threads (Marria's) still feels disconnected from the other two (Vattu's and Junti's). It will probably take me another two years to finish, given my picking them up directly from the author at a convention, haha. (Always a treat!)
My "desperate need" went unfulfilled for almost a year, until I finally sat down with it today. I guess I've thwarted desperation with a slap upside the head of the SHEER VOLUME of titles I come across just on even one book outing to anywhere with a slightly varied selection.
Anyway, I fully admit that I'd completely forgotten what happened in book 1, but while it's not "fine"—there is obviously some required backstory necessary to be able to follow the series—it does feel like it's easy *enough* to follow that a complete newcomer could probably do just fine reading from here. That said, it reminds me quite a bit of Amulet in a number of respects: "young adult"-focused (both character and target audience age), action/adventure genre, serious tone with the occasional lightheartedness, following several interconnected plots at the same time, "magic-tech" (technology/science that's somewhat magical)... about the main difference is Amulet is still mostly human/humanoid focused with the occasional talking animal person (though ), while Vattu's world has no humans at all.
It's still a lovely series, and I'm definitely interested in seeing how this all pans out, even if one of the three plot threads (Marria's) still feels disconnected from the other two (Vattu's and Junti's). It will probably take me another two years to finish, given my picking them up directly from the author at a convention, haha. (Always a treat!)
March 17, 2024
I remember some of reading Vattu over a decade ago after Order of Tales had finished, and while it fell off my radar, I read all four books in one go. Unbelievably ambitious, gorgeously inked and colored, I'm ready to re-read it. The world, like all of Dahm's books, is solidly built and full of rich detail but Vattu herself grounds the fantastic world. I want to give little away - the story unfolds best on its own, but zeros in on colonial violence as it happens to the smallest and most vulnerable people. Crumbling empires stretched to their edges, histories that serve the living but not the truth, alienation of oneself in hand with the desire to understand the other - these books are bigger than you might assume. What a pleasure to read it all at once, and again a week later, when it was published page by page a decade ago. I can't recommend it enough.
January 14, 2018
Series only gets better! HIGHLY recommended! The world builds itself, and only becomes more real as time passes. Loving the new characters, and loving watching old characters change and grow.
July 27, 2023
"As all mortal things wither before the infinite."
Book 2 of the story of Vattu continues to be interesting. The art is beautiful and crisp.
It's time to look for Book 3...
Book 2 of the story of Vattu continues to be interesting. The art is beautiful and crisp.
It's time to look for Book 3...
December 3, 2025
The stakes are higher in book 2! Really curious as to how the next book will progress.
January 10, 2026
Riveting series. Moving on to book three.
March 27, 2017
really great story, a lot of mided threads and conflics of intrest in this deepset story.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews