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'How, can you let things fade so far? I had a reason. I had cause, I was limited. You - you hide in your lakes playing games. This world crumbles, the last refuge north of the Everstorm is Mynyw and you have let it fall into jeopardy.'



The new King of Terrania may no longer hunt for Old Ones, but the world is far from safe. As the crew of Black Hind continues to search out the Old Ones and return them to their rightful homelands, the reach of a dead consort haunts the new king from beyond the grave.



In distant Mynyw a loyal guardian discovers the unravelling of an ancient pact. As Black Hind sails into his territory, he has a decision to make. Can he overcome his prejudice and ask for help from the strangers before the last refuge falls?


456 pages, Hardcover

First published August 29, 2022

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J E Hannaford

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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Profile Image for Julia Sarene.
1,737 reviews216 followers
January 18, 2023
I was lucky enough to get a very early ARC version of The Pact, and I'm so glad I did!

She trembled like a poked jellyfish, shaking her head in panic.

I loved revisiting old friends and explore ever more of the world. There's a whole new layer of mysteries and complications, and our crew has to dash and suffer a lot to deal with all the things life throws at them.

The characters grew and stretched, both individually and into a tighter family than before. There's a whole new set of them as well, along with a new POV, which made me breeze through the story. I just wish more books had such a strong bond of friends and family!

Yearning filled her voice. 'He is beautiful. Show me a woman who wouldn't be under his spell.

I pointed at myself and sighed. 'Any woman with a brain!


I especially enjoy the melding of our world and different sorts of mythology, and a bleak future that has magic again and a change to recoup.
I wouldn't have thought this would mix of alternative future, a world almost destroyed by humankind, some almost list technology would blend so well with magic and all sorts of creatures, but Hannaford manages to somehow pull this off amazingly well.

The Pact has quite some dark moments, some really gut wrenching, while others had me snort with a dose of nice dark humour. It definitely isn't a fluffy and easy read. There's always hope at the core of the story, but there's dark patches as well as the light.
Profile Image for P.L. Stuart.
Author 7 books582 followers
May 11, 2024
An incredible conclusion to this duology!

Hannaford has become one of my must-buy authors. I absolutely love her writing.

Watch my interview with J.E. on my YouTube Channel @thedrownedkingdomsaga7847 for thoughts on her work!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evK_g...
Profile Image for S. Bavey.
Author 11 books73 followers
March 30, 2023
In The Pact, which is the sequel to The Skin, we find ourselves back on The Black Hind with Georgie the selkie, Zora the sea witch, Theo and Rialta, who are also not quite exactly as they seem at first glance.

The equilibrium of the world has been held precariously by a pact agreed between humans and different branches of the Old Ones. A group of guardians has been set to watch out for signs that the pact is failing, and the diligent Maddoc has noticed that his particular sign is changing over time. He rushes to inform his mother, the Lady of the Lake and embarks on an adventure which throws him together with Georgie and the other Old Ones as they try to rescue a dragon egg, defeat a misguided queen and basically save the world as they know it.

I loved Maddoc, a calm and easily pleased chap who wanted nothing more than to eat cheese sandwiches and guard his yew tree. He found himself thrown into all kinds of scary situations by his mother, and bravely took them all in his stride, despite devastating injury and likelihood of death. His addition as a POV character added further magical layers to the story and made it all the richer.

Theo was also one of my favourite characters, along with Georgie and Zora. He is harbouring a secret that not even he is aware of and it made for an exciting reveal in the middle of the story.

The world has expanded extensively in The Pact and its world building was sharp and easy to visualize. Even the invisible locations!

I enjoyed the tension of the final battle but felt that it was all over a little too quickly. We had been building up to this face-off for the majority of the novel and then it seemed that the bad guys were too easily defeated by our heroes.

Throughout the story we encounter many creatures from Welsh folklore. I found these highly intriguing and would have loved an appendix giving more information about each of them and a guide for how to pronounce their names. Maybe a field guide to the creatures of The Black Hind’s Wake could be a future publication? I would certainly read one!

I am sad to leave these characters who I have become so fond of - they really are a heartwarming band of unusual found family members and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time spent in their company!
Profile Image for John.
110 reviews8 followers
August 10, 2022
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this book. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series and also really enjoyed this.

The series are set in the near future and are primarily nautical based. This is a unique concept and makes these books stand out from others.

‘The Pact has indeed been broken…’ I was pulled in from the start with this book.

The book begins with the main POV character from the first book Tellin the selkie and I enjoyed the growth of her character throughout the book.

The author is brilliant at conveying emotion, although sometimes this is tinged with sadness, such as meeting Eden’s mother in one of the scenes.

Zora and Theo’s homes were interesting to visit and they provided additional depth and back story to the series and I could really picture the land and the cliffs that are on the edge of the land.

I loved the introduction of the Tylwyth Teg and a new POV character called Maddoc. The introduction of other additional mythical creatures was interesting. I also loved meeting more Selkies during the story.

Meeting the Lord Flame and his abode was another great scene and I could vividly picture this.

The author also introduced an additional element known as the path. I could really picture this and thought this addition was really engaging.

This is well worth a read for any fantasy lovers, especially as it’s a unique concept. I also found this similar to Among Thieves regarding how engaged I felt with the principle characters and cared what happened to them and this world.

I only hope there will be more books in this world as I would love to read more.
Profile Image for Tabitha  Tomala.
907 reviews122 followers
June 8, 2023
This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: The Pact

A magical pact ensures peace between humans and old ones in the land of Mynyw. But unrest threatens to nullify the ancient agreement and promises war if it breaks. Maddoc, son of The Lady of the Lake, must find out who seeks to break the pact and stop them from succeeding. Meanwhile, Black Hind sails for Mynyw on a mission for the new king of Terrania. Rumors say a young queen is amassing an army to take back Terraina and start the hunt for Old Ones once more. When Maddoc and the Black Hind crew cross paths, they find that their goals may not be so different.

As promised at the end of book one, The Pact opens the world for readers to explore alongside Black Hind. A host of new lore will greet readers as they navigate the tumultuous fey paths and encounter new mythical communities. Similar to The Skin, the folklore presented in The Pact was entirely new to me. I love when authors focus on lore from various cultures and incorporate elements I’ve never read about. Add to that the ability JE Hannaford has to create heartfelt characters the readers can’t help but feel a connection to.

Still reeling from loss, Selkie and the crew of Black Hind are emotionally spent. Grief is never easy to overcome, especially with the constant reminders aboard Black Hind. Yet they still have old ones to return to their homes. J.E. Hannaford does a brilliant job showing how characters can have conflicts with one another, and though they may not see eye to eye, find ways to work alongside each other because of a common goal. The dynamics between characters are stunning and show how complex relationships can become.

But the crew of Black Hind aren’t the only characters who have complexities in their journey. Maddoc, half human half fey, must tread carefully with any interaction he has with his kin. And as Maddoc’s journey becomes entangled with Black Hind, readers will see how different the fey and old ones can be. Each has their own set of beliefs and values, adding to the richness of the lore. Despite some characters only having a small amount of time on the page, they make a big impact on the reader with their reactions to the pact growing ever closer to breaking.

And as both parties do everything they can to save the pact and accomplish their goals, the reader is ever aware of time ticking down. The foreboding atmosphere hanging above every action and mistake makes the character’s choices all the more important. And just when the reader thinks nothing else could go wrong, another wrench will be thrown into the characters’ plans.

With an exceptional cast of characters and a wonderful theme of found family, The Pact was a rewarding finale to the Black Hind duology. I am sad to see both the characters and the world come to a close. Fantasy readers who enjoy folklore and seafaring adventures need to pick up this duology.
Profile Image for André.
249 reviews21 followers
September 18, 2022
Just "Wow"! For this book and the duology as a whole.

I really enjoyed the first book The Skin - it was just so different from most fantasy books I have read so far, a bleak nautical-heavy (is that a word?) alternative future with lots of mythology in the mix. It has a very diverse group of main-characters and was my first book featuring a selkie. The world-building was perfect, the characters strong.

J.E. Hannaford managed to top that seemingly without effort with The Pact. Whereas I was somewhat torn in my rating of the first book between 4 and 5 stars, this was no question a 5 star-read, leaning towards more. The story pretty much picks up where we left at the end of The Skin. At least, one story does. Because we get a new point of view with a new character - one that I also instantly liked and that is a great addition. But the cast in general grows, there are new and interesting additions to the crew but we also learn more about the characters we already know, they become so much deeper and I really care about all of them, Hannaford really let them shine here. And I especially enjoy that 'Selkie'/Tellin is not just written as a human who sometimes looks different, but thinks and acts different than human, too. Really convincing.
There are also more mythical creatures, a lot of which I didn't know anything or very little about. I really enjoy expanding my knowledge about mythology and this book helps a lot - and it's also great to not read about the same creatures all the time.
The world(-building) in general shows more layers and therefore feels even more realistic. The different places we travel to, they are all different, but they all feel...right. And Hannaford's writing really brought me there and made me see them.
The story is again very character-driven, but there is more action here than in the first book. I flew through the book, there was not a boring moment, not a word too much. It's just a perfect fit!

I really really hope that at some point I can meet with at least some of the characters again and explore the world a little more. Oh, and of course I cannot wait to have the matching hardcover at some point here, because the cover-art - again - is exceptionally.
Profile Image for FantasyBookNerd.
544 reviews94 followers
March 27, 2023
The Pact by J.E. Hannaford's follow up to the highly enjoyable The Skin.

At the end of the first book, J.E. Hannaford promised to open up the story that she had set up in the first book, and with the Pact she surely delivers.

The Pact revolves around the crew of The Black Hind as they attempt to keep the mysterious item that they receive at the end of The Skin safe as it could have ramifications. However, things are not as they seem. King Arnad enlists the crew of Barge to find out about a mysterious queen that seems to be amassing an army and could possibly be a threat to King Arnad's new reign.

In addition to that, a new character Maddox is introduced. Maddoc is a guardian of The Pact, which is an agreement between the different Fae folk and the humans.

We soon learn that there is a problem. The Pact is failing. Something is causing the agreement to fail. This could have a catastrophic effect on the remainder of the world.

The Pact surprised me. I really enjoyed The Skin and it was a good introduction to The Selkie and the world she inhabits. We learn more about the Selkie, including her real name, and whilst she still parades around under her other guises of Georgie and Lady Gina, her actual character develops as we learn more about her. Not only that, there is plenty of character development in the other characters too.

With the introduction of Maddox, we learn more about the magical creatures that inhabit the world.

I really enjoyed the inclusion of both Arthurian myth and Welsh Folklore in this book which massively enriches the story. I loved reading about Coblynaus and the Tylwyth Teg.

Whilst I thoroughly enjoyed The Skin and thought it was excellent, The Pact improves on the original story with the inclusion of the various elements of folklore and magical creatures
Profile Image for Anya Josephs.
Author 10 books135 followers
September 22, 2022
The Pact was maybe my most hotly anticipated sequel of the summer (well, okay, I had a lot of hotly anticipated sequels, but this was up there!) and it did not disappoint.

Absolutely my favorite aspect of this book was the worldbuilding. The worldbuilding in the first volume was really good, but there is so much more here! We see parts of the world we never traveled to in The Skin, and explore whole new civilizations. I was particularly impressed with the way that so many different world mythologies were seamlessly incorporated into the worldbuilding. I picked out Celtic myths as a particular influence, but I'm sure there were many more, and they wove together to create a world that felt dynamic and realistic at once.

I also really loved the characters. Jena was probably my favorite (and not just because that's also the name of my own book's protaganist), but lots of them are unforgettable--and better yet is the dynamic of the crew together. There's just something about "finding family on a boat" that is unbeatable. This book seamlessly introduces old myths and tropes while making them feel fresh, familiar, and deeply imbued with meaning. Highly recommended--if you haven't snapped up this duology yet, you should!
390 reviews10 followers
September 3, 2022
“When old clothes fit that well, it is always worth checking that their seams are still holding” I think that might be one of the major themes of this book. Check for the seams that they’re still holding and not… gaping or torn.. and if it’s the latter, perhaps they can be mended.

This book certainly does not gape! Switching perspectives as did the last, there’s magic, mystery, dragons, promises and pacts, and more. It was nice to see characters from the first book – even if only briefly seen there – and new ones. We’re back with the crew of the Black Hind and we get to see Maddoc’s view as well. (He’s a new character with an entirely new thread in this book). I love the glimpses of other cultures and races and really enjoyed how Author Hannaford describes them.

The storyline and pacing are wonderful and the descriptions are lyrical in this world where humans have done their worst and the world, they, and the magicals are trying to recover.
Profile Image for Damien Larkin.
Author 8 books50 followers
September 1, 2022
The Pact is an amazing follow up to the authors debut (The Skin). I absolutely enjoyed the first book, but this one surpassed my expectations.

Once again, we join the crew of the Black Hind as they continue their quest to liberate the Old Ones and restore order to a decaying world. A rising evil threatens newly won stability and forces unlikely allies to band together and stave off utter destruction.

Like the first book, this was well written with some excellent examples of finely crafted world building. The addition of a new POV character, Maddoc, really added to the pacing and hooked me in, but of course, it's the Selkie who ties it all together.

There's equal parts joy and heartbreak in this story. I highly recommend it for anyone interested dark fantasy with some nautical and post-apocalyptic themes.
Profile Image for Caroline.
1,023 reviews7 followers
May 22, 2024
Didn't get sucked into this one as much as the first one and got a little lost with some of the extra characters
649 reviews14 followers
July 14, 2023
This book really expands the world of the Black Hind with more creatures, lands, mythologies, and peoples. It’s beautifully written in lovely, lyrical language and every metaphor, every description is pitch perfect and adds to the overall world building. I think I read the entire book in a day - I couldn’t put it down!

There are two point of view characters - Tellin and Maddoc. At first I was more invested in Tellin since she was also the pov from the first book, but Maddoc really grew on me and I enjoyed seeing the growth in both of them as they met new challenges and survived setbacks. The other characters in Tellin's found family are equally wonderful and I loved seeing each of them show their strength.

The stakes in this book are even higher than in the last and the crew races from adventure to adventure to try to repair the pact that keeps the peace between races and to avert a destructive war.
I read this as an ebook, but I also have the audiobook and I know I’ll enjoy rereading it on audio in the future.
Profile Image for Eryn McConnell.
246 reviews32 followers
December 30, 2022
I've been looking forward to reading this one as I enjoyed Book 1 immensely. This is darker, a little more complex, but no less good for it. A great story!

Merged review:

I've been looking forward to reading this one as I enjoyed Book 1 immensely. This is darker, a little more complex, but no less good for it. A great story!
Profile Image for Joshua.
253 reviews6 followers
January 16, 2023
7.5/10* a very good read. I love the world he has created.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews