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The Demon's Apprentice #2
Page of Swords
From the back cover:
Being a normal teenager is hard. For Chance Fortunato, former demon’s apprentice and reforming warlock, it’s almost impossible. On the outs with Shade, his alpha werewolf girlfriend, behind on his magickal studies and still hunted by the Conclave, Chance thinks his life can’t get any worse. But when an empath named Dani asks him to find her missing girlfriend, Chance’s life suddenly spirals out of his control.
Caught by the Conclave, he finds himself facing a Trial by Ordeal. To save himself and his new mentor Dr. Corwyn, Chance must find the stolen Maxilla Asini, a powerful sword that can change the balance of power between the magi and the forces of the Nine Hells. As he searches for the Maxilla and continues his search for the missing girl, he discovers a sinister link between Dani’s abducted girlfriend, the disappearances of other teens in New Essex, and the politics of the local vampire coven. Caught between multiple forces, Chance soon discovers that his only hope may be the missing Maxilla.
With the forces of both good and evil aligned against him, will a bad attitude, the help of his friends and a little faith be enough to help Chance beat the biggest challenge of his life?
Being a normal teenager is hard. For Chance Fortunato, former demon’s apprentice and reforming warlock, it’s almost impossible. On the outs with Shade, his alpha werewolf girlfriend, behind on his magickal studies and still hunted by the Conclave, Chance thinks his life can’t get any worse. But when an empath named Dani asks him to find her missing girlfriend, Chance’s life suddenly spirals out of his control.
Caught by the Conclave, he finds himself facing a Trial by Ordeal. To save himself and his new mentor Dr. Corwyn, Chance must find the stolen Maxilla Asini, a powerful sword that can change the balance of power between the magi and the forces of the Nine Hells. As he searches for the Maxilla and continues his search for the missing girl, he discovers a sinister link between Dani’s abducted girlfriend, the disappearances of other teens in New Essex, and the politics of the local vampire coven. Caught between multiple forces, Chance soon discovers that his only hope may be the missing Maxilla.
With the forces of both good and evil aligned against him, will a bad attitude, the help of his friends and a little faith be enough to help Chance beat the biggest challenge of his life?
1 pages, Audio CD
First published October 18, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
February 24, 2015
Great multidimensional characters. Intriguing storyline. Masterfully written. 15 year-old hero abused and with a bad attitude and temper and magic skills. You gotta love him!
March 19, 2019
Nachdem mich "The Demon's Apprentice", der 1. Band der Reihe, völlig in seinen Bann gezogen hat, musste ich natürlich sofort mit Band 2 anfangen. Kennt ihr das Gefühl, wenn der Autor einen Roman "nur für euch" geschrieben hat? Genauso geht es mir mit dieser Fantasyreihe - sie ist genau mein Ding. Hauptfigur ist der Jugendliche Chance. Nachdem er sich von seinem dämonischen Meister befreit hat und im 1. Band den Mörder seines neuen Lehrers finden musste, ist aber nicht alles Friede-Freude-Eierkuchen. Seine neue Freundin Shade hat sich bereits von ihm getrennt und sein neuer magischer Lehrmeister Dr. Corwin kann auch nicht verhindert, dass das Konklave der Magier ihn als ehemaligen Dämonenlehrling verdammt und auf eine lebensgefährliche Suche nach einem mächtigen magischen Schwert schickt. Doch als Jugendliche vermisst werden und ein Hexer sein Unwesen treibt, hat Chance plötzlich noch ganz andere Probleme ...
Ich liebe Chance! Ich mag einfach Charaktere, die viel durchmachen mussten, sich dadurch aber nicht unterkriegen lassen, sondern nur noch stärker geworden sind. Trotz seiner jahrelangen Gefangenschaft beim Dämon ist Chance ein guter Junge, der seine Familie liebt, gerne zur Schule geht, für seine Freunde einsteht und das Richtige tut. Er ist ein Typ, mit dem man Pferden stehlen kann und den jeder gerne zum Freund hätten. Und so leiden und fiebern wir Leser natürlich auch prompt wieder mit, als Chance sein neues, gefährliches Abenteuer bestehen muss. :-) Verdammt, wann erscheint endlich Band 3?
Ich liebe Chance! Ich mag einfach Charaktere, die viel durchmachen mussten, sich dadurch aber nicht unterkriegen lassen, sondern nur noch stärker geworden sind. Trotz seiner jahrelangen Gefangenschaft beim Dämon ist Chance ein guter Junge, der seine Familie liebt, gerne zur Schule geht, für seine Freunde einsteht und das Richtige tut. Er ist ein Typ, mit dem man Pferden stehlen kann und den jeder gerne zum Freund hätten. Und so leiden und fiebern wir Leser natürlich auch prompt wieder mit, als Chance sein neues, gefährliches Abenteuer bestehen muss. :-) Verdammt, wann erscheint endlich Band 3?
June 17, 2018
*Reallyour stars and a bit, maybe?
I read the first novel in this series some time ago, but I’ve only gotten around to buying the sequels recently. This was a mistake, because if the rest of the series is anything as good as this novel I want to read them as soon as possible. The potential hinted at in The Demon’s Apprentice is delivered on.
YA novels are often criticised for their characterisation and formulaic nature. While this series seems to follow a formula (Chance is given a challenge or mystery to solve by the end), unlike most series, the author uses the material in a good way. The central romance is surprisingly well-handled and very believable. The teenage characters are very believable (often my biggest gripe with YA is that the characters are sometimes adults in smaller bodies. Most of the teenage characters never feel like this. Chance himself maybe the exception, but, given his experiences, this makes sense.) Chance is also much better developed than many YA protagonists.
The Conclave, which was mentioned in The Demon’s Apprentice, becomes much more important in this novel. They’re a mixed bunch, with both good and bad characters, but the group predominately serves as stuffy counterparts to Chance and company. I’ve seen reviews that criticise the series for being too similar to The Dresden Files. While the influence of Butcher is clear, I think this is unfair. Despite the similarities, this series doesn’t feel derivative at all.
Page of Swords stands well on its own and as part of the series. The central plot is related to that of the previous novel (which made me want to read it again. So glad I have the next one), but new characters and threats are introduced seamlessly into the universe. There are quite a lot of pop culture references. I know some people don’t like them, but it’s always nice to know that authors are fans. Those sections are delivered with such glee you know the author is really enjoying it.
I considered giving this five stars, but I reserve that for books that completely knock me off my feet. That said, a flat four stars wouldn’t do Page of Swords justice. While it doesn’t do anything new, it does what it does well and I think that’s sometimes undervalued. I look forward to reading Vision Quest (sometime next week, hopefully).
I read the first novel in this series some time ago, but I’ve only gotten around to buying the sequels recently. This was a mistake, because if the rest of the series is anything as good as this novel I want to read them as soon as possible. The potential hinted at in The Demon’s Apprentice is delivered on.
YA novels are often criticised for their characterisation and formulaic nature. While this series seems to follow a formula (Chance is given a challenge or mystery to solve by the end), unlike most series, the author uses the material in a good way. The central romance is surprisingly well-handled and very believable. The teenage characters are very believable (often my biggest gripe with YA is that the characters are sometimes adults in smaller bodies. Most of the teenage characters never feel like this. Chance himself maybe the exception, but, given his experiences, this makes sense.) Chance is also much better developed than many YA protagonists.
The Conclave, which was mentioned in The Demon’s Apprentice, becomes much more important in this novel. They’re a mixed bunch, with both good and bad characters, but the group predominately serves as stuffy counterparts to Chance and company. I’ve seen reviews that criticise the series for being too similar to The Dresden Files. While the influence of Butcher is clear, I think this is unfair. Despite the similarities, this series doesn’t feel derivative at all.
Page of Swords stands well on its own and as part of the series. The central plot is related to that of the previous novel (which made me want to read it again. So glad I have the next one), but new characters and threats are introduced seamlessly into the universe. There are quite a lot of pop culture references. I know some people don’t like them, but it’s always nice to know that authors are fans. Those sections are delivered with such glee you know the author is really enjoying it.
I considered giving this five stars, but I reserve that for books that completely knock me off my feet. That said, a flat four stars wouldn’t do Page of Swords justice. While it doesn’t do anything new, it does what it does well and I think that’s sometimes undervalued. I look forward to reading Vision Quest (sometime next week, hopefully).
January 12, 2020
Rating 5.0 stars
Re-read January 2020 Initial review below:
This is a really good series so far. There are quite a few times that I got choked up. One of the best kinds of books are the ones that make you feel something. I feel outrage for the way the conclave treats Chance. I feel inspired by someone who has been through so much, just trying to do the right thing. I feel sad for the little things that Chance wants, that he has never had, that we take for granted
Chance is discovered by the conclave in this book and they require that he perform a task for them to prove that he isn't the dangerous warlock that everyone thinks he is. Not an easy task either. He is having some problems with Shade mainly because of her being a werewolf. Then there was the whole thing with his mom
There are a couple of little things that I don't think make much sense. How sexual Shade is especially since because of what she went through. I thought she was only 15 or 16? She has been raped since she was in 8th grade by her alpha. It seems a little wrong to sexualize her still.
A second thing that felt a little bit disingenuous was all the Star Wars references. Don't get me wrong, I love them but I don't think kids born in the 90s/2000's care that much about Star Wars as I did growing up.
Finally, the secrecy. Wizards, warlocks, vampires, werewolves, and magic are supposed to be this big secret. It keeps getting mentioned that the secret needs to be kept. And yet, so many people know. There are all the kids that come up to chance and ask him for help. He even has a reputation at school for knowing magic. Then the police get him to help with magic and occult stuff. Chance also uses magic in the open, in front of other people a lot. So which is it? Is it a huge secret nobody can know about, or is it one of those ... wink, wink.... of course magic is fake secrets?
Those are only little quorks though, it didn't lessen my enjoyment of the book. On to the next one. It seems the next one will have a little different location though. I wonder how that will change the story.
Re-read January 2020 Initial review below:
This is a really good series so far. There are quite a few times that I got choked up. One of the best kinds of books are the ones that make you feel something. I feel outrage for the way the conclave treats Chance. I feel inspired by someone who has been through so much, just trying to do the right thing. I feel sad for the little things that Chance wants, that he has never had, that we take for granted
Chance is discovered by the conclave in this book and they require that he perform a task for them to prove that he isn't the dangerous warlock that everyone thinks he is. Not an easy task either. He is having some problems with Shade mainly because of her being a werewolf. Then there was the whole thing with his mom
There are a couple of little things that I don't think make much sense. How sexual Shade is especially since because of what she went through. I thought she was only 15 or 16? She has been raped since she was in 8th grade by her alpha. It seems a little wrong to sexualize her still.
A second thing that felt a little bit disingenuous was all the Star Wars references. Don't get me wrong, I love them but I don't think kids born in the 90s/2000's care that much about Star Wars as I did growing up.
Finally, the secrecy. Wizards, warlocks, vampires, werewolves, and magic are supposed to be this big secret. It keeps getting mentioned that the secret needs to be kept. And yet, so many people know. There are all the kids that come up to chance and ask him for help. He even has a reputation at school for knowing magic. Then the police get him to help with magic and occult stuff. Chance also uses magic in the open, in front of other people a lot. So which is it? Is it a huge secret nobody can know about, or is it one of those ... wink, wink.... of course magic is fake secrets?
Those are only little quorks though, it didn't lessen my enjoyment of the book. On to the next one. It seems the next one will have a little different location though. I wonder how that will change the story.
February 24, 2015
With page of swords Ben Reeder has given us an excellent follow up to the demon’s apprentice. This takes place 6 months after the end of the first book and Chance is now a somewhat secret apprentice wizard. He’s still in hiding from the wizards council who would kill him as a warlock if they found him so he’s reluctant to make himself stand out. When asked to help find a missing girl who has been put under a spell he has no idea about the world of trouble he’s about to land his friends and himself in.
These books are a little bit predictable in the sense that Chance is a teenage wizard who is still at school learning magic. Having said that though Chance’s dark and tragic background have aged him in many ways beyond his years and make him a character with depth. Book three in this series looks like its heading into Harry Potter territory, but despite that I’ll pick book 3 up as soon as it is available. Despite the slightly clichéd youngster-gets-magic-and-goes-to-school story lines these books are both well written and very enjoyable and the emphasis is on action and character development not lessons in class. Highly recommended.
These books are a little bit predictable in the sense that Chance is a teenage wizard who is still at school learning magic. Having said that though Chance’s dark and tragic background have aged him in many ways beyond his years and make him a character with depth. Book three in this series looks like its heading into Harry Potter territory, but despite that I’ll pick book 3 up as soon as it is available. Despite the slightly clichéd youngster-gets-magic-and-goes-to-school story lines these books are both well written and very enjoyable and the emphasis is on action and character development not lessons in class. Highly recommended.
August 30, 2016
This is now becoming a favourite series, certainly a favourite character. Chance Fortunado (whose background I think is Greek and Romany but the surname suggests Italian??) is a boy whose childhood has been filled with abuse and he is finally out of it and with his mother and sister. After an adventurous first book he thinks he is finally settling down when he is put under the radar of the overseeing body of Wizards who issue him a challenge that if he doesn't find the missing sword (queue Arthurian fangirl sitting up and paying attention) then he will be executed. Pretty harsh, but most of the YA I have read has been similar so I thought this fitted the category. What follows is a lot of adventure and Chance constantly being underestimated by his enemies, and he gets beat up a lot. In the end this was quite satisfactory and I downloaded the next one straight away.
June 18, 2019
very much a Teen Dresden feel.
December 19, 2022
This series was better than I expected it to be. First, I'm not usually fond of spending time in a teen's head, so a "well written" teen character is not enjoyable for me. I usually don't mind if I can forget the person's age which tends to mean they don't read like a teen. This series jumps over all those problems with the MC's backstory. So he doesn't read like a teen and that's believable, but he's still in real world teen situations and still often has the internal reactions of a teen even if his history gives him an unusual amount of chill in a crisis behaviorally. It's a bit like getting the best of both worlds.
This is a good series that I was sorry to see the end of and hope the author decides to return to it.
This is a good series that I was sorry to see the end of and hope the author decides to return to it.
May 13, 2025
Chance Fortunato wants to be a normal teenager, but how can someone who is among the enlightened be merely normal? Chance is the epitome of the bad boy turned dirty paladin - he keeps sabotaging his efforts to be normal by trying to fix supernatural problems by jumping in feet first. This series is hopeful without being mushy or overly optimistic. I'm thinking that my nephews (who do not appreciate noblebright novels) might enjoy this series. I certainly recommend it to fans of Steve McHugh's Hellequin Chronicles who want something intended for a young adult audience.
May 7, 2018
Well done
What many would dismiss as a YA novel is much more. The Demon's Apprentice series of books effortlessly fulfills my requirement of capturing my interest from the beginning. The dialogue fits the characters and helps define the authors view of them as well as fleshing them out for the reader. Like Terry Pratchett's or Jim Butchers books, this may become one of those series I go back and re-read again and again.
What many would dismiss as a YA novel is much more. The Demon's Apprentice series of books effortlessly fulfills my requirement of capturing my interest from the beginning. The dialogue fits the characters and helps define the authors view of them as well as fleshing them out for the reader. Like Terry Pratchett's or Jim Butchers books, this may become one of those series I go back and re-read again and again.
June 4, 2025
Great world building, hate the romance
I love the plot & the world building and all, but I find the romance part just so predictable. I find myself skipping all the parts where romance was involved. I must be getting old, but it would have been a better read without it. This is from someone who loved the romance bits of Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series. Nevertheless, I will continue to read the series since I do like it. I'll just continue skipping the romance.
I love the plot & the world building and all, but I find the romance part just so predictable. I find myself skipping all the parts where romance was involved. I must be getting old, but it would have been a better read without it. This is from someone who loved the romance bits of Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series. Nevertheless, I will continue to read the series since I do like it. I'll just continue skipping the romance.
September 21, 2017
Continued Excellence
The second book continues and expands on the excellent characters, world, actions, and snark that the first book did. If you like the first book, you'll love the second book. Very Highly Recommended.
The second book continues and expands on the excellent characters, world, actions, and snark that the first book did. If you like the first book, you'll love the second book. Very Highly Recommended.
December 22, 2020
Fantastic read!
I loved this second book as much as the first. I wish it were available on audible like the first book. I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series.
I loved this second book as much as the first. I wish it were available on audible like the first book. I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series.
November 14, 2021
Okay, the book is good except some parts are outright depressing to read. Talk about the perfect woman. She's asking the MC to make her his, to be rough with her, to sexualize her... and this guy lost.
October 21, 2018
Adore this series. Got to keep going!
November 11, 2018
Jeez.... The council are pricks.... At least Chance has a good teacher who is cool and actually gives a damn about him.
March 4, 2021
Outstanding! He tells a tale that is bewitching! It is an excellent sequel and I’m totally bummed that the next isn’t coming until next month! GET THIS BOOK!!!
January 3, 2022
Still kids playing at being adults, but MUCH better in that sense than Book 1. At least in this book the MC’s mom starts acting like one and there are more than zero other adults standing up for him and his stolen childhood.
February 16, 2022
The story is pretty good but I'm not a fan of the children being sexualized through out nor making sexual tension part of the story plots for 15-16 year olds.
November 6, 2022
Merlin and Authur would be proud.
November 30, 2022
If we continue the 'adventures of young Dresden' idea, this is the book where he first meets Michael Carpenter and Amoracchius. I liked it.
December 26, 2024
I was so confident I knew where the sword was but I was wrong. It was nice to not be able to predict it.
August 8, 2015
Gutter trash compared to the first book. Words like "milked franchise" and "shameless" come to mind while reading this sequel. The first book had some flaws, but the story was emotional as hell. This one had none of that.
In fact, it had some of the cheesiest action scenes I'd ever read. Imagine you've got a distracted vampire in front of you and you can kill it, but if it notices you it can use its speed to dodge you easily. In this book Chance will warn vampires to get them to turn around in such situations, then give them cheesy one-liners before killing them... Not a lone occurence either. Another scene where Chance forgot to cock his gun when attacking a vampire who was charging at him, the vampire looked down and stopped to give Chance time to launch an alternate attack. Horrible action scenes...
The Drama was the main selling point of the first book and it was completely absent in this book. In this book, he's turned into a completely standard action series protagonist with a generic save the world plot line. Think buffy the vampire slayer.
The names in this book have also gotten completely out of hand. Steve Donovan is a prominent character, and at first the book refers to him as Donovan, then in the last half of the book, they start calling him Steve to confuse the hell out of you...
In the first book, I never felt oppressed by the religious overtones in the series, I started to feel that here. Like it was just a little, trying to shove god down my throat. I'm talking about the multitude of times the book tried to say things like "I acted as a hammer of justice for god and his blessings are what you saw here." Not those words, but over-the-top crap like that was all over this book.
In the first book, the author implemented a lot of really hard to write things correctly, but in this book it feels like he rushed it. Take how they handle saving the world in this book, he's treated like a king after he saves the world, exactly how you should dream the world would react to such a thing. In writing though you're never supposed to over-glorify your character in the world around him. It makes him impossible to relate to. You're supposed to let him save the world, but make everyone think he's a horrible person for doing it. It makes him relatable and makes you think "I could do that too" or "I understand how that feels."
In fact, it had some of the cheesiest action scenes I'd ever read. Imagine you've got a distracted vampire in front of you and you can kill it, but if it notices you it can use its speed to dodge you easily. In this book Chance will warn vampires to get them to turn around in such situations, then give them cheesy one-liners before killing them... Not a lone occurence either. Another scene where Chance forgot to cock his gun when attacking a vampire who was charging at him, the vampire looked down and stopped to give Chance time to launch an alternate attack. Horrible action scenes...
The Drama was the main selling point of the first book and it was completely absent in this book. In this book, he's turned into a completely standard action series protagonist with a generic save the world plot line. Think buffy the vampire slayer.
The names in this book have also gotten completely out of hand. Steve Donovan is a prominent character, and at first the book refers to him as Donovan, then in the last half of the book, they start calling him Steve to confuse the hell out of you...
In the first book, I never felt oppressed by the religious overtones in the series, I started to feel that here. Like it was just a little, trying to shove god down my throat. I'm talking about the multitude of times the book tried to say things like "I acted as a hammer of justice for god and his blessings are what you saw here." Not those words, but over-the-top crap like that was all over this book.
In the first book, the author implemented a lot of really hard to write things correctly, but in this book it feels like he rushed it. Take how they handle saving the world in this book, he's treated like a king after he saves the world, exactly how you should dream the world would react to such a thing. In writing though you're never supposed to over-glorify your character in the world around him. It makes him impossible to relate to. You're supposed to let him save the world, but make everyone think he's a horrible person for doing it. It makes him relatable and makes you think "I could do that too" or "I understand how that feels."
August 20, 2023
This book has the same problem as the previous one in that everything feels rushed. Because the author hasn't taken the time to truly ground us in these characters or this world, everything just feels underdeveloped and it doesn't have the impact it needed to drive a story like this.
The best example in this story is Chance and Shade and their relationship. Shade has not been given anywhere near enough room to develop a relationship with Chance to the point where it should be given the intensity and involvement that this story gives it. It drives so much of Chace's actions that we should have seen way more of a reason for them to be together than what we have seen so far. I would go so far as to say that shade isn't even a real character. She's more like a cardboard cut out with surface level character work. As a result it seems like the main character is only interested in her because of her looks and not for anything more substantial.
This same problem goes everywhere in the novel where we just haven't seen enough background to know why the characters are so invested in each other, why Chace acts as he does and so much more. It's just all under developed and as a result I'm probably not going to read further in this series. It's a nice concept but it just needs way more work.
The best example in this story is Chance and Shade and their relationship. Shade has not been given anywhere near enough room to develop a relationship with Chance to the point where it should be given the intensity and involvement that this story gives it. It drives so much of Chace's actions that we should have seen way more of a reason for them to be together than what we have seen so far. I would go so far as to say that shade isn't even a real character. She's more like a cardboard cut out with surface level character work. As a result it seems like the main character is only interested in her because of her looks and not for anything more substantial.
This same problem goes everywhere in the novel where we just haven't seen enough background to know why the characters are so invested in each other, why Chace acts as he does and so much more. It's just all under developed and as a result I'm probably not going to read further in this series. It's a nice concept but it just needs way more work.
March 15, 2017
I like it a lot.
It is a bit like harry potter meets alex verus meets chris gordon (john conroe).
It is a 4.5 star book.
It is a bit like harry potter meets alex verus meets chris gordon (john conroe).
It is a 4.5 star book.
March 3, 2015
Wow! This series just keeps getting better and better!
Although I am a prolific reader, the number of book reviews I write is few and far between. This series and this second book in particular in the series is an incredible read which I highly recommend to anyone who loves a dark (but humorous) urban fantasy.
If you ever wondered what a 15 year old Harry Dresden might have been like then look no further than Chance Fortunato.
Also, I'd like to call out the deep level of character development of Chance through these two books. I truly felt like I was with him every step of the way. I laughed at his snarky 15 year old thoughts and replies and was in literal tears along with him while reading one particular scene between him and his mother in this second book.
Thank you Mr. Reeder for sharing Chance's story with us, I look forward to reading as many books about Chance as you'll write for us!
These were some of the easiest Five Stars I've given to a book in a long time. :)
Although I am a prolific reader, the number of book reviews I write is few and far between. This series and this second book in particular in the series is an incredible read which I highly recommend to anyone who loves a dark (but humorous) urban fantasy.
If you ever wondered what a 15 year old Harry Dresden might have been like then look no further than Chance Fortunato.
Also, I'd like to call out the deep level of character development of Chance through these two books. I truly felt like I was with him every step of the way. I laughed at his snarky 15 year old thoughts and replies and was in literal tears along with him while reading one particular scene between him and his mother in this second book.
Thank you Mr. Reeder for sharing Chance's story with us, I look forward to reading as many books about Chance as you'll write for us!
These were some of the easiest Five Stars I've given to a book in a long time. :)
August 14, 2015
Wow, I am immensely happy I first saw THIS cover and not the other one... seriously.
That said, the book was good. I enjoyed reading it, but nothing more. Well, I liked the end and the vampires... and yeah, even the werewolves and especially the Hands of Death.
But it all felt like the author tried to many things within one book. I had hoped that he would expand on the after effects of being a demon apprentice, on the damage to his soul, on something. And in a way he did. Only, not really. The author seemed to want to try to show many things at the same time, from everything a bit and from nothing everything.
It would have been nice not only to see things happening for once, but to see the emotional impact on the characters. Yet more I read the less I found such a thing and the less I felt involved.
Still, a good book for commuting.
That said, the book was good. I enjoyed reading it, but nothing more. Well, I liked the end and the vampires... and yeah, even the werewolves and especially the Hands of Death.
But it all felt like the author tried to many things within one book. I had hoped that he would expand on the after effects of being a demon apprentice, on the damage to his soul, on something. And in a way he did. Only, not really. The author seemed to want to try to show many things at the same time, from everything a bit and from nothing everything.
It would have been nice not only to see things happening for once, but to see the emotional impact on the characters. Yet more I read the less I found such a thing and the less I felt involved.
Still, a good book for commuting.
March 1, 2015
Better than the first
The first one was ok, good enough to keep you interested in what happens next. This one was better in my opinion, not sure why really, you get to know the characters a little better, the story develops nicely, just a good continuation. Maybe after reading two books you just have more invested in the characters and storyline, either way I'm definitely interested and eager even to see how the story continues. I thought the first book in the series was pretty run of mill, entertaining but average really, this second installment was a notch above, wouldn't put it with my favorites but definitely worth reading, and worth reading a sequel or whatever comes next.
The first one was ok, good enough to keep you interested in what happens next. This one was better in my opinion, not sure why really, you get to know the characters a little better, the story develops nicely, just a good continuation. Maybe after reading two books you just have more invested in the characters and storyline, either way I'm definitely interested and eager even to see how the story continues. I thought the first book in the series was pretty run of mill, entertaining but average really, this second installment was a notch above, wouldn't put it with my favorites but definitely worth reading, and worth reading a sequel or whatever comes next.
March 9, 2015
Despite escaping from his demon master after 8 years...and rescuing a group of teenaged werewolves from the clutches of an evil alpha, the Conclave still views him as an evil warlock. The Conclave (a righteous groups of magical humans whose mission is to protect humanity from magi who consort with demons) are unmoved by Chance's unusual circumstances and want him dead. His only hope for redemption is to follow the path of his wyrd (fate) and find a powerful sword.
Chance's character displays judgment and emotional maturity far beyond his actual age. While the series may technically be YA fiction, it resonates with an older audience as well. Looking forward to the next installment.
Chance's character displays judgment and emotional maturity far beyond his actual age. While the series may technically be YA fiction, it resonates with an older audience as well. Looking forward to the next installment.
March 29, 2015
Great second book
The first book was great and this second one meets or exceeds it. Some the emotional scenes will even bring tears to your eyes, I will admit. The only problem I have is it is some times hard to pin down the decade this book takes place in as well as in the first. Some of the grammar can get a little repetitive as well but none of theses at all effect the experience and are probably me just being a little nit picky. Overall loved the book and can't wait to see the characters progress in the next.
The first book was great and this second one meets or exceeds it. Some the emotional scenes will even bring tears to your eyes, I will admit. The only problem I have is it is some times hard to pin down the decade this book takes place in as well as in the first. Some of the grammar can get a little repetitive as well but none of theses at all effect the experience and are probably me just being a little nit picky. Overall loved the book and can't wait to see the characters progress in the next.
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