What do you think?
Rate this book
RE: Monarch #2
Forgotten Sanctum
Cairn has finally gained access to the Sanctum…
… the birthplace of the infernal’s mystic abilities and proving ground for their adolescents, a place filled to the brim with magic and mystery.
The power he needs to solidify a major alliance is close at hand. All he needs to do is settle in, hone his skill, and prove himself with the help of old friends and new.
Simple enough. Or it would be, if Cairn wasn’t the only outsider to breach the Sanctum. When he arrives, he discovers an old enemy has sealed the Sanctum from the inside, jeopardizing it and holding it ransom.
Her demands are simple: “Bring me the head of the usurper.”
… the birthplace of the infernal’s mystic abilities and proving ground for their adolescents, a place filled to the brim with magic and mystery.
The power he needs to solidify a major alliance is close at hand. All he needs to do is settle in, hone his skill, and prove himself with the help of old friends and new.
Simple enough. Or it would be, if Cairn wasn’t the only outsider to breach the Sanctum. When he arrives, he discovers an old enemy has sealed the Sanctum from the inside, jeopardizing it and holding it ransom.
Her demands are simple: “Bring me the head of the usurper.”
562 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 12, 2022
284 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
August 5, 2024
I felt afloat for much of this book. Things kept happening, seemingly for no reason. There was no clear plot direction. At one point I simply lost all desire to continue reading... my curiosity eventually drew me back.
I wish the central conflict was not deliberately masked. It's like your girlfriend punishing you for something but not telling you what she thinks you did. I've never liked the "I refuse to explain" trope. It smacks of someone who is afraid they can't justify their actions.
However, I have a nagging suspicion that I was in a bad mood while reading this book, so your experience might be better.
I wish the central conflict was not deliberately masked. It's like your girlfriend punishing you for something but not telling you what she thinks you did. I've never liked the "I refuse to explain" trope. It smacks of someone who is afraid they can't justify their actions.
However, I have a nagging suspicion that I was in a bad mood while reading this book, so your experience might be better.
January 27, 2023
Wanders a little too much
Compared to the first one, there are way too many flashbacks as almost every character gives exposition.
Sadly the exposition adds very little to thr narrative, contributing only emotional context
But none of the characters are that emotionally compelling, so it's hard to care
I feel like the story could have been done in about half the pages without losing much at all
Compared to the first one, there are way too many flashbacks as almost every character gives exposition.
Sadly the exposition adds very little to thr narrative, contributing only emotional context
But none of the characters are that emotionally compelling, so it's hard to care
I feel like the story could have been done in about half the pages without losing much at all
July 31, 2023
This story starts off strong but soon loses itself in a journey that meanders a bit too much, repetitive and perhaps excessive self reflection and drama, odd plot choices that feel punishing or confusing and a rather unsatisfactory ending. Definitely a step down from the previous installation though not terrible. I’m still hopeful the sequel to this is an improvement as this author seems to excel in more of a political thriller setting (which the sequel to this seems to be set in) and a new location might also help in general but judging by the depressing ending to this book I’m somewhat unsure on the future direction of this story.
September 1, 2023
4.75/5 book for me!
I officially think this series should be considered one of the greats of this sub genre. It has everything I could want. I left a glowing review for book 1 so I’ll try not to rehash stuff I already said but I want to point out the elements I enjoyed the most.
The time Loops:
This might be weird to say but I love how the Time loops aspect is handled in this series and in this book in particular. I touched on this in my first review but I normally don’t like time loop stories. Mother of learning, A Blade through time, and Menocht Loop all didn’t really work for me cause I feel like the time loops are used as a crutch and takes tension out of the story. Now each of these have different ways to deal with that inherent problem but I think Re:monarch does it masterfully.
In this whole book our protagonist only went through one round of loops. It was for a battle to save his friends that barely worked and because of that he spent the rest of the book refusing to reset because he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to reproduce the same results. This heightened the tension for the rest of the book cause we knew there were real consequences and stakes, He couldn’t just “try again” if he failed. He had to deal with the ramifications and adjust and do better from there. It let him solve problems without having to reset a 100 times to figure out what to do, it allowed us to see the fall out of his actions with his friends and his enemies. Not to mention if he had just fell back to trying to get everything exactly right until it was perfect it would have felt stale and repetitive from the first book. Everything just really worked in all the ways that time loops stories usually don’t for me. The end especially hinted that he has an even firmer grasp on how it works. The author is setting things up to find even more creative ways to utilize the mechanic in the story without it getting stale.
The Antagonist:
Thoth is endlessly fascinating. This book really went all in on exploring her character and motivation while still leaving mysterious to be solved. I havn’t seen this level of depth put into a antogonist since Mureuam(HxH), Johan(Monster), and Askeladd(Vinland saga). You truly get the sense she’s evil and crazy yet there is a well of sadness, passion, frustration, and hope in her as well. She’s not as cold and heartless as she portrays. But she won’t hesitate to kill and then laugh at the suffering. It’s hard to explain but I love when she’s on the screen and completely enamored with her portrayal.
Her background is so fascinating too. Where she came from and her relationship with Cairn that was so heavily hinted at will litterally keep me up at night wondering. I can’t wait to get her full story. I want to know how long exactly she has been in the loop? Why does she hate Cairn? Is she truly still fighting against ragnorok? If so why does she feels this method is the way to go? Just what the hell is going on with her in general???
The Plot:
The plot in this book worked for me even more then the first book. I love the action adventure route this book took. There was way more action in this book(which I hope by now everyone knows I’m a action junky) that was dynamic, multifaceted, tense and full of all the progression and magic gear upgrades that I love in my progression fantasy. The sanctum itself felt like the dungeon mechanic that I love in this types of story and all the different creatures and demons were fun to see.
If I had to say, my favorite parts were the stuff with the man in the Cowl, The trials by Infaris(for all the characters) and the battle of Orza against Thoth and her demon.
The characters are all fully fleshed out and feel distinct with their own thoughts and emotions. I love the dialogue between any 2 characters in this book, I always come away from it with a new insight, understanding and a new avenue of engagement that I didn’t have before. Cairn in particular is awesome. I can’t wait to see where he goes from here and where he’s been in all the past loops. I want to see what kind of man he was when Thoth first knew him.
There are only a few negatives I can think of for this book and they are all just personal nitpicks:
* I do think the book was a tad too long, only by about 50 pages but I think that after we got the confrontation with Thoth and her arch demon everything after (the battle between demon groups) felt underwelmeing and my attention started to drift up until the last few pages.
* Both books seem to end with these depressing endings. I get it but I do prefer happy endings sometimes.
* I still don’t think I completely understand why people can’t leave the sanctum and why do you have to be a certain age to leave
I officially think this series should be considered one of the greats of this sub genre. It has everything I could want. I left a glowing review for book 1 so I’ll try not to rehash stuff I already said but I want to point out the elements I enjoyed the most.
The time Loops:
This might be weird to say but I love how the Time loops aspect is handled in this series and in this book in particular. I touched on this in my first review but I normally don’t like time loop stories. Mother of learning, A Blade through time, and Menocht Loop all didn’t really work for me cause I feel like the time loops are used as a crutch and takes tension out of the story. Now each of these have different ways to deal with that inherent problem but I think Re:monarch does it masterfully.
In this whole book our protagonist only went through one round of loops. It was for a battle to save his friends that barely worked and because of that he spent the rest of the book refusing to reset because he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to reproduce the same results. This heightened the tension for the rest of the book cause we knew there were real consequences and stakes, He couldn’t just “try again” if he failed. He had to deal with the ramifications and adjust and do better from there. It let him solve problems without having to reset a 100 times to figure out what to do, it allowed us to see the fall out of his actions with his friends and his enemies. Not to mention if he had just fell back to trying to get everything exactly right until it was perfect it would have felt stale and repetitive from the first book. Everything just really worked in all the ways that time loops stories usually don’t for me. The end especially hinted that he has an even firmer grasp on how it works. The author is setting things up to find even more creative ways to utilize the mechanic in the story without it getting stale.
The Antagonist:
Thoth is endlessly fascinating. This book really went all in on exploring her character and motivation while still leaving mysterious to be solved. I havn’t seen this level of depth put into a antogonist since Mureuam(HxH), Johan(Monster), and Askeladd(Vinland saga). You truly get the sense she’s evil and crazy yet there is a well of sadness, passion, frustration, and hope in her as well. She’s not as cold and heartless as she portrays. But she won’t hesitate to kill and then laugh at the suffering. It’s hard to explain but I love when she’s on the screen and completely enamored with her portrayal.
Her background is so fascinating too. Where she came from and her relationship with Cairn that was so heavily hinted at will litterally keep me up at night wondering. I can’t wait to get her full story. I want to know how long exactly she has been in the loop? Why does she hate Cairn? Is she truly still fighting against ragnorok? If so why does she feels this method is the way to go? Just what the hell is going on with her in general???
The Plot:
The plot in this book worked for me even more then the first book. I love the action adventure route this book took. There was way more action in this book(which I hope by now everyone knows I’m a action junky) that was dynamic, multifaceted, tense and full of all the progression and magic gear upgrades that I love in my progression fantasy. The sanctum itself felt like the dungeon mechanic that I love in this types of story and all the different creatures and demons were fun to see.
If I had to say, my favorite parts were the stuff with the man in the Cowl, The trials by Infaris(for all the characters) and the battle of Orza against Thoth and her demon.
The characters are all fully fleshed out and feel distinct with their own thoughts and emotions. I love the dialogue between any 2 characters in this book, I always come away from it with a new insight, understanding and a new avenue of engagement that I didn’t have before. Cairn in particular is awesome. I can’t wait to see where he goes from here and where he’s been in all the past loops. I want to see what kind of man he was when Thoth first knew him.
There are only a few negatives I can think of for this book and they are all just personal nitpicks:
* I do think the book was a tad too long, only by about 50 pages but I think that after we got the confrontation with Thoth and her arch demon everything after (the battle between demon groups) felt underwelmeing and my attention started to drift up until the last few pages.
* Both books seem to end with these depressing endings. I get it but I do prefer happy endings sometimes.
* I still don’t think I completely understand why people can’t leave the sanctum and why do you have to be a certain age to leave
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 29, 2022
it's a pretty frustrating read.
1) please try not too rewriting a char personality traits every few chapters. (this writeing style is supposed to blend in with classical styles with out the reader noticing)
2) your brian is not your soul (broken brain, black beast, idc souls throughout idea of samsara do not remeber, only "GodHeads" and you should explain if they are one, which is a term know in the east but not so much the west)
3) i feel that you are write the same thing over and over again in different ways and different context so that your can ref the context and the wordding changes later on to confuse the reader (if you want to write this style then write a guide line for your self and always follow it and i suggest you try publishing it becausr this writing style changes from author to author)
4) book 1 every time he mention the birth thing he gets a soul attack, in book 2 i dont know why he doesnt just kill the person who try to steal his soul by continuiously telling everyone, you did actually use the phrase "i have no soul" which is way different from the original " i damnded my soul after my final death" i know about morthurs but he is not always present
5) but there was some soul voodoo shizz in there just not really explained so we just say soul voodoo ahizz and dont try to go any further you will have too many questions but wait what are romen numerals ... wait what about time passagr, ohhh dang just time shizzz you know like soul voodoo shizz try not to think to much about is f'n am i my own grandpa ... awww i said try not to think to much about time and soul voodooo shizz ... like i said i wish authors would publish there own guide lines and i also love the word shizz ... SHIZZ ... sh ... i ... zz, to many eolipses gets confusing to much time passing and well guide line
6)ts obvious he going to get some like elven made nature soul in the name book or something that soul orb thingy magic elven stuff from book 1
anyway frustra
1) please try not too rewriting a char personality traits every few chapters. (this writeing style is supposed to blend in with classical styles with out the reader noticing)
2) your brian is not your soul (broken brain, black beast, idc souls throughout idea of samsara do not remeber, only "GodHeads" and you should explain if they are one, which is a term know in the east but not so much the west)
3) i feel that you are write the same thing over and over again in different ways and different context so that your can ref the context and the wordding changes later on to confuse the reader (if you want to write this style then write a guide line for your self and always follow it and i suggest you try publishing it becausr this writing style changes from author to author)
4) book 1 every time he mention the birth thing he gets a soul attack, in book 2 i dont know why he doesnt just kill the person who try to steal his soul by continuiously telling everyone, you did actually use the phrase "i have no soul" which is way different from the original " i damnded my soul after my final death" i know about morthurs but he is not always present
5) but there was some soul voodoo shizz in there just not really explained so we just say soul voodoo ahizz and dont try to go any further you will have too many questions but wait what are romen numerals ... wait what about time passagr, ohhh dang just time shizzz you know like soul voodoo shizz try not to think to much about is f'n am i my own grandpa ... awww i said try not to think to much about time and soul voodooo shizz ... like i said i wish authors would publish there own guide lines and i also love the word shizz ... SHIZZ ... sh ... i ... zz, to many eolipses gets confusing to much time passing and well guide line
6)ts obvious he going to get some like elven made nature soul in the name book or something that soul orb thingy magic elven stuff from book 1
anyway frustra
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2024
DNF ..... The first book was amazing, it held my attention to the point i stayed up until early hours of the morning. This book however had the opposite effect, it was boring, flash backs that for me had no relevance to what was happening in the now, he still came across as weak and complaining (this was ok in the first book because it was setting him up) there was no real direction .. i started losing my connection with the side characters getting lost in the lack of drive or something ... finally half way through the book i lost interest....... SMALL SPOILER AHEAD ... at the end of the last book he takes a strong demon and in the 2nd book you think he will advance quite a lot now because of this ... no this is not the case. im sure there is a possibility that maybe by the end the story might have improved but for me i lost interest.
May 29, 2023
I really liked both the books that are released so far. Usually progression fantasies are able to provide intriguing settings and concepts but lack in terms of character depth and having an a larger (actually engaging) overarching plot. I have a feeling this series is going to have a place as one of the best of its genre like Cradle once it’s done.
You won’t regret picking this series up. The action is great. Characters feel complex, interesting and not just simplified plot devices for the lead. You really feel the progression of the lead and will find yourself invested in each of his challenges as nothing comes easy. Can’t wait for the next book.
You won’t regret picking this series up. The action is great. Characters feel complex, interesting and not just simplified plot devices for the lead. You really feel the progression of the lead and will find yourself invested in each of his challenges as nothing comes easy. Can’t wait for the next book.
November 1, 2022
Top ten series for 2022
In my humble opinion there is a fine balance between too much dark fantasy without a light at the end of the tunnel and keeping momentum with the audience by showing character development. The second book does not disappoint. There are dark aspects, but it's finely balanced with moments of levity and emotional development to balance these darker aspects. That is a skill this author teeters upon so we'll.
Keep up the great work and I look forward to the next in this series.
In my humble opinion there is a fine balance between too much dark fantasy without a light at the end of the tunnel and keeping momentum with the audience by showing character development. The second book does not disappoint. There are dark aspects, but it's finely balanced with moments of levity and emotional development to balance these darker aspects. That is a skill this author teeters upon so we'll.
Keep up the great work and I look forward to the next in this series.
August 6, 2022
Masterpiece
I don't leave long reviews because I am not good at articulating my thoughts and feels but if had to sum up the book it would be a damn masterpiece. I fell in love with this story and I'm pissed that I have to wait lord knows how long for the third book. I would pay the author extra just for them to hurry it up. I need the third book like I need air
I don't leave long reviews because I am not good at articulating my thoughts and feels but if had to sum up the book it would be a damn masterpiece. I fell in love with this story and I'm pissed that I have to wait lord knows how long for the third book. I would pay the author extra just for them to hurry it up. I need the third book like I need air
August 7, 2022
disappointing
I really liked the first book in this series. This book was a slog. The author made things needless complex. The MC spends the whole book overthinking things and and scheming. He barely develops his powers. Tye book is trying to hard to be clever. The main villain is too overpowered so it makes all of the MC’s efforts seem pointless.
I really liked the first book in this series. This book was a slog. The author made things needless complex. The MC spends the whole book overthinking things and and scheming. He barely develops his powers. Tye book is trying to hard to be clever. The main villain is too overpowered so it makes all of the MC’s efforts seem pointless.
February 25, 2023
Good 3+
I loved the first of this series. However, this book (2nd) was very slow and involved much much "soul-searching". I'm generally OK with this, but it was over the top. 3/4 of the book is introspection, relationships, and finding yourself. I ended up skipping several pages...
I loved the first of this series. However, this book (2nd) was very slow and involved much much "soul-searching". I'm generally OK with this, but it was over the top. 3/4 of the book is introspection, relationships, and finding yourself. I ended up skipping several pages...
June 22, 2024
Good book, quality fantasy, tinted with YA and initiation games. Continues well the story from the first book with a change of style and a toned down approach to angst.
The first third of the book is boring, dull, and lackluster, after that it rolls out fast and gets back on track to the level of the first and even beyond, with eye rolling sweetheart slow burn love story.
The first third of the book is boring, dull, and lackluster, after that it rolls out fast and gets back on track to the level of the first and even beyond, with eye rolling sweetheart slow burn love story.
August 5, 2022
Really good book.
I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series. Also to people that do not know the author is now distributing chapters back on their Pateon website for monarch.
I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series. Also to people that do not know the author is now distributing chapters back on their Pateon website for monarch.
August 16, 2023
Great Read
Look, I really like this story. If you enjoyed the first one, ride on through. If you're on the fence after the first one? Well fair warning, it's a barrel full of bummer, even more than the first one. Get ready to get depressed.
Look, I really like this story. If you enjoyed the first one, ride on through. If you're on the fence after the first one? Well fair warning, it's a barrel full of bummer, even more than the first one. Get ready to get depressed.
August 8, 2022
Great second book
This was a long book, which was great because the pace started fast and didn’t let up. Really enjoyed the read and looking forward to the next in the series.
This was a long book, which was great because the pace started fast and didn’t let up. Really enjoyed the read and looking forward to the next in the series.
August 17, 2022
It's fine. MC is a bit dull, saved by the supporting characters.
November 1, 2022
It wasn't bad, but I got kinda bored. Read another book between starting and finishing this one. This one felt very slow from lack of loops.
January 9, 2023
If this goes on as it were, this might become one of my favorites.
Read
July 17, 2024dnf see book 1 review
August 17, 2024
So good from start to finish. This book was epic!
And the ending with Bell hurt my heart.
And the ending with Bell hurt my heart.
September 8, 2024
Not as good as the first but I can see how it was necessary to setup the finale.
March 9, 2025
Author will never give a happy ending ever bruh
September 15, 2025
Book was solid except for the awful ending
March 5, 2025
At this point, I'm only about 25% of the way through the audiobook for this one, but I felt the need to come here and make an observation. I keep noticing that it is being implied that the MC in this character was some kind of "BBEG" in the future, and this story starts with someone going back in time to kill him before he rises to power. He, of course, has no idea why anyone would want to kill him when he hasn't yet done anything evil, but the very fact that he is being persecuted now is making him into a 'better person.' This will then result in him being the 'good guy' while defeating the person who was driven to madness by his time as the 'Big Bad Evil Guy.' This could go on and on, as he might eventually decide that the only way to beat her is to go back to before she was powerful and kill her then. Rinse and repeat in a never-ending cycle. I suppose we shall see as the story progresses.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 24, 2022
Will not be continuing this series.
August 6, 2023
The author has completely discarded/forgotten the framing device of the first book (that the main character is relating this story to someone else).
That aside, it's hard to express why I find this story so unsatisfying now. I loved the first half of the first book.
But ever since Enclave it's just been a slog. I think a good chunk is because I don't find the "victory at any cost" Cairn to be engaging. It's bit of a dead end in terms of character development. You can't really go anywhere from there except tragedy.
The story seems to think it's been presenting Cairn in a light that makes that more interesting. But dithering over actions only matters if he ever takes the one that isn't him just becoming a miniature version of his father.
Also, it's become clear that story is going to go down the path of a heist thriller format.
Not really what I'm looking for.
That aside, it's hard to express why I find this story so unsatisfying now. I loved the first half of the first book.
But ever since Enclave it's just been a slog. I think a good chunk is because I don't find the "victory at any cost" Cairn to be engaging. It's bit of a dead end in terms of character development. You can't really go anywhere from there except tragedy.
The story seems to think it's been presenting Cairn in a light that makes that more interesting. But dithering over actions only matters if he ever takes the one that isn't him just becoming a miniature version of his father.
Also, it's become clear that story is going to go down the path of a heist thriller format.
Not really what I'm looking for.
April 7, 2024
It took me quite a while to pick up the second book I ended up forgetting a lot of the story, characters and events. After reading a couple of chapters and things started to come back I really got into it! It felt long but it was a fun read, the ending totally worth it. Picked the second book right after.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews