Bound

Kria #2

by Megan Derr

Ingolf von Dirchs is all that remains of the royal house of Kria. The bastard son of the dead Kaiser, he barely escapes the winter palace before it is overtaken by the armies of Salhara, Kria's oldest and bitterest enemy. In a last desperate attempt to combat Salhara's deadly magic, Ingolf flees to the country of Illussor, there to steal the sword of a man who once betrayed Kria to side with Illussor. But stealing the sword gains him something he did not expect—the descendant of that long ago Betrayer, an intriguing man with the pale features of an Illussor but the fierce heart of a Krian...

Erich von Adolwulf is the proud descendant of the Holy General, a man who helped Illussor break free of the loathsome magic upon which they once so heavily relied... When the sword of the Holy General is stolen, Erich goes to reclaim it, and finds himself dragged into the country his ancestor once betrayed—and wanting to protect the new Kaiser of war-ravaged Kria, who stirs in him things he has not felt since the death of his lover...

Genres: Fantasy, M M Romance, Romance, Magic, LGBT, Military Fiction, M M Fantasy

420 pages, ebook

First published September 21, 2010

About the author

Megan is a long time resident of queer romance and keeps herself busy reading and writing it. She is often accused of fluff and nonsense. When she’s not involved in writing, she likes to cook, harass her wife and cats, or watch movies. She loves to hear from readers and can be found all over the internet.

meganderr.com
patreon.com/meganderr
meganderr.blogspot.com
facebook.com/meganaprilderr
meganaderr@gmail.com
@meganaderr

Reviews

[Justacat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been struggling with my feelings about this book. I found a large portion of it captivating, engaging, and thoroughly enjoyable. I finished it not loving it as much as I might have, or as much as I thought I would while I was reading, because the ending/culmination of the story didn't live up to the higher standard of what came before - but I still enjoyed it greatly and recommend it, and would probably give it a 4.5.

I normally don't bother to summarize plot, but in this case the blurb is woefully inadequate, so I'll offer a little more context. The fantasy world constructed by the author concerns three countries on an unnamed continent. Two of them, Kria and Salhara, are at war, and at the start of the book Salhara, which unlike Kria uses the arcen flower to give its soldiers (and citizens) magical powers in warfare, has decimated the royal house of Kria; only one member of that house (Ingolf of the blurb) remains alive. The third country, Illusor, isn't part of the war; it is no friend of Saharla, but because of an event that happened in their distant history, it is not sufficiently allied with Kria to become involved.

The story involves various characters who are, or who become, integral to the military and political happenings - their paths cross in serendipitous and coincidental ways, changing their lives, the fates of their countries, and ultimately the outcome of the war; part of the theme of the story is how seemingly minor things (like one's choice of outerwear) can drastically change the course of events. There are two primary couples (one of which is apart for much of the story), but the romance elements, while important, take some time to build and do not always predominate; the military/political plot is relatively complex and integral.

Let me start by saying I really like Megan Derr. There is something about her writing that draws me in. The narrative voices of her characters are strong and engaging; she uses POV effectively (in this book, she uses multiple third person POVs as the scenes shift, but within each POV she is consistent; there is no sloppy or haphazard shifting of POV). She has a great imagination, and I like her storytelling style. I also like her romance/relationship development - it won't be to everyone's taste, because her books are not full of hot sexxin' - the sex scenes are relatively understated, short and not particularly graphic or numerous (which I have to admit is for me a huge positive and something I love about her - I've had enough of endless repetitive indistinguishable sex scenes). But the relationships are interesting and have dimensions other than sex, and there is conflict and growth within them.

All of that is true in this book. The world-building is fairly typical fantasy with some interesting unique elements, like the four Lord Generals of Kria who are linked to the seasons, and the Salharan's use of the arcen flower to create magic. There are a lot of details omitted (e.g., regarding that same magic - while the arcen flower is explored in detail, the magic itself is vague and murky) - this isn't an example of world-building down to the last detail - but the author nonetheless creates a vivid and interesting world, with a distinct and interesting political structure, and inhabits it with many interesting and varied characters.

The book is quite long. Nonetheless, I found myself completely immersed in it and enjoying it greatly for most of the multi-hundred pages. I enjoyed the pace, the switching from location to location to follow the movements of various characters contributing to the story in different ways, some knowing of each other and some not, all moving pieces on the chessboard.

But when it came time for the author to begin bring these moving parts together, to tie up the many threads she'd spun, the writing began to change, as did my feelings about it. The author made an error that I think is the responsibility of a good content editor to fix: after hundreds of pages of detailed writing, setting up problems, she rushed through the last 15 percent or so, perhaps either because she decided the book was already too long or because she lost interest in writing it. She began skipping vitally important scenes (like the dangerous entry into the capital of the enemy country) that she never would have omitted earlier in the book, and the pace became jumpy and disjointed. The resolution of the political/military plot that she had been carefully developing for so long happened almost behind the scenes, much of it without explanation - many of the problems just disappeared.

And the climax of the final relationship issues similarly had far less impact than they should have had, because along the line she had already resolved all the issues between the couples (even the one that spent much of the book apart), eliminating all tension and anticipation from the ending - even from the long-awaited reunion of one couple (which again felt rushed and kind of superficial).

I found this deeply disappointing - the more so because until this last 15 percent of the book, I had been so happy with every aspect of it. Admittedly, part of the reason for my disappointment was the fact that the author had raised my expectations; it's unfortunate but true that that causes me to set a higher standard than I would for a more mediocre book.

However - I don't want to overstate the issue. It's hard when a book's weak link is its ending, because that's what you leave with. In this case, it's true that I didn't leave with quite the feeling I'd hoped to. But it's also true that I hugely enjoyed reading a large percentage of the book and was immersed for many happy hours; the ending didn't quite live up to that, but it didn't ruin it, either. I would certainly put this on my re-read list - and continue to read anything this author writes. As I said, I love her work (and I think if she had a really strong content editor she'd be an absolute star).

So despite some weak points, I strongly recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy mixed with m/m romance.

[Anna C · Rating 5 out of 5]

27 October 2017

Rereading Aden and Reinoehl's part only because I missed them.

23 May 2017

Another regret that I didn't start this book immediately after I had finished its predecessor one year ago, because....good gracious, this book is even better than the first book! XD

It's thicker than most of Derr's books, 420 pages, well, it's about one-year-long war between 3 nations, and of course there's romance too, so it's a really long journey to follow, exhausting but satisfying and I savored every bit of it from the start till the end even though I found it's too short for me, as I think Derr rushed a bit near the end, and some pivotal events were summarized even though it'll be better if she addressed it further in more details, but I agree that'll resulting a book with 600++ pages which I don't find it as a problem actually...I think the thicker the better, if the book is really great and amazing, just like Harry Potter series.

The characters that I love in this book are Vester and Aden, and nope, they are not an item, lol. I just love their characters. For the couple though, I love Aden x Reinoehl and Vester x Pancraz, but sadly the latter one's relationship didn't had the same spotlight as the other couples, because theirs had blossomed quite late in the book, and also I think it must be because Derr prefers to focused to the wars as there are so many problems to cover in this book, so regrettably Vester and Pancraz's episodes was omitted for the sake of the main plot, it'd be great if there's side short story about them. Meanwhile, another main couple in this book, Erich x Ingolf's situation is...complicated, and they spent most of the time far apart.

So, why did I give it 5 stars? Well, despite of some minor down sides that I said before, they are not really upsetting me, and to be honest those down sides didn't ruin the entire plot, and the main point for me is I had truly enjoyed this book for its plot and romance so much so that undoubtedly I would reread this book in the near future. :)

[M'rella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not going to go into editing issues much. Plenty of people have done it. Normally I don't mind an error/typo here and there, but in this case the amount of errors was massive.

The story was great and was worth 5 stars up until Aden and Reinhoel (how do you pronounce it? O.o) left the Eis (Ice) Fortress to join the rest of Kria's army.

From that moment on it was too predictable, too easy, too (weirdly) angst free.
Even though there was indeed some tension, I knew it was bound to solve itself in Kria's favour no matter what. 4 stars for that.

Last 60-70 pages was an agony to read. I skimmed through most of them. 2.75-3 stars.

Final rating - 3.75 stars.

[Valentina Heart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved revisiting the Prisoner world, and while the book touched those bits of past, it is still a very unique creation. The cross-overs between the stories of different characters ran smoothly and for once I really had no trouble following them. Every single man had so much to tell and the events never once lacked in intensity and intrigue.

In a lot of aspects I loved this book even more than I did first. The princes were very dear to me and their relationship something that kept me interested to the very last few pages. The General and the spy were just as intense and when I wasn't smiling at their banter or devouring the words of their passion, I more than enjoyed their battles and endless strategy.

If you have time and patience to immerse yourself in this wonderful world, I absolutely recommend this book.

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A 3-4 star read. Swapping will probably occur. I'm Libran. That is all.

This second book in the series captured my attention unlike the first. I enjoyed the mix of story lines and the characters, which I'll have more to say about in the joint review with Orannia. Maybe. Godamnedit.

*sigh*

Also, I was most annoyed when my iPad battery went dead and interrupted my reading. It's very lucky I had Lego to play with otherwise I would have thrown the fucker at the wall. The end.

[Natalie H · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with the first one, took a while to get into but I preferred the characters, Aden being my favorite. Felt sorry for Erich and Ingolf only having one night together. It was funny how Erich was forced to revive the scarlet army. Pancraz became second favorite. War, romance, magic and attempted assassinations. The ending was sweet and I liked that Erich got the happiness he deserved. Curious about the next one.

[PaperMoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I put it down to the almost 4 year gap between my reading of the first book and this one. Not that the plot here depends on the first ... events are hundreds of years apart between the installments. More because I had to dredge up recollections of the detailed world-building established previously - the differences between the three warring nations of Kria, Illusor and Salhara, the magical qualities, impact and ramification of the use of Arcen (or the banning thereof). Hence - it seemed quite a chore reading through the first quarter of this book.

The good news is that my attention/interest and emotional support for the characters (there's four MCs with a half dozen minor ones) improved significantly by the halfway mark; thank heavens for this since this is one long read! I'm a little perplexed with barely two female characters in the midst and one dying off page before the ending! Whilst acknowledging females aren't really necessary given the several M-M pairings that eventuated - surely they can be featured as bodyguards, trusted advisors, battle mages, healers, local heads of power and the like?

Pacing can be a bit glacial at the start (with events taking place by days) before a massive escalation in the final quarter (where city siege events span months/seasons); a lot happens to effect world-changing power-bases by the end. I can see the next book comes across as a little 'twee' compared to the previous two ... perhaps providing a 'breather' after all the turmoil. Note to self - do not wait four years to get round to reading it!

[Tünde Kasza tóth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this was the best epic fantasy I've read written by a female writer. The genres were clashing in it a bit though. Usually people who want to read romances are not interested in long military campaigns and battle scenes and who want to read epic fantasy ate not really into the gay sex scenes. I liked it very much, but I do have peculiar tastes.

Ulike in the first book, in this one character development was abundant. All of the main characters grew throughout their year long journey, learning to trust, to love, to accept, to move on. They all became if not better people, but more suited to be in relationships. But very much like in the first book the main couple wasn't really Erich and Ingolf. While at the beginning we saw their feelings grow for each other, after a while they were just pining after each other and their story was more of a personal journey and part of a bigger plot. At the same time we saw Aden and Reinoehl as they got together and grew together as a couple.

As for the plot, there was a twist that was surprising, but otherwise it was a very steady, easy to follow campaign against a common foe with nothing really new. But it was well written without plot holes, showing the horrendousness of war and the desperate situation of royalty trying to save their contries.

If you are a fan of epic fantasy and can't wait to see gay romance integrated into it, you will love this one.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give this two stars, but it is better than Prisoner and I felt I should take that into account.

The quotes at each part did not make me roll my eyes, this time round. They were, for a while, a sweetening touch that cast Prisoner in a very positive light. I had to remind myself it was bad. I think the main factor in this was that the quotes were connected to people, who had history and opinions and positions, as opposed to proverbs, which must very quickly sound clever or be swiftly dismissed as stupid. The first two quotes were a bit of a chuckle, but the third one seemed quite... Out of place. Put there to sound encouraging, and falling flat. Still, better than before.

Those settings from last time are expanded on, fleshing out the climates a bit more. Of course, it is then entirely ripped out and forged anew, so we actually need to start again... That's not a negative, though, just an observance through the plot.
The culture is shown a bit more, too, mostly by people arguing about the von Adolwulfs... That goes on far too much, and nobody seems to have any strong opinions about other historical events. I'm assuming that's because there is no planned history ("They forgot it" is a feeble excuse to me).
I did come to learn more about the sword-naming, however, which is perhaps the single cultural aspect that is done well. Judging by the swords referenced to in Bound, it is pet names that are most commonly used for them... Makes me wonder what I'd call my own weapon, considering my terrible naming talents. I still don't really get what happens when you fall out of love, but it's interesting that the author found a way around it.

There are better characters in this. Erich is a reckless, runaway royal who has been deep in mourning for five years, is descended from Dieter through adoption, and whom goes running after Bright. He gets captured by Ingolf, the bastard son of the Kaiser who, since the invasion by Salhara, is the sole heir to the throne, and decides to tag along to make sure things go well. Ingolf, at least, grows greatly throughout the book, and Erich can at least say he got from A to B.
Aden is a spymaster who specialises in the use of poisons, is Erich's friend, and is descended from Beraht. He was my favourite character, being resourceful, curious and reliable, but he lost much of that edge after his second appearance. Reinoehl is the Cobalt General, recently taking up the position due to his father's execution, and is your typical Krian. I suppose they have character development.
In the background, though, there is Pancraz and Vester. Pancraz is a friend to Ingolf, and Vester is the commander of the Cobalt Army... To say more would ruin the tension in the plot, but they don't get much attention despite the obvious character and relationship development.

The plot... Well, it wasn't what I had immediately expected, and there was genuine threat this time. It lacked the usual focus of putting the rightful king on the throne, instead making the war and the forging of the new empire its point. And the characters made decisions I wasn't expecting, based on what I had read before by this author. Still... After about halfway through, I really started to wish they had just condensed it all into less pages. It's not enough to fill a book like this. Most of it is waiting, hearing a lot of what we've already heard, and having progress spoken about that is not visible. It was interesting, but it needed more to it.

The romance... It will get you through, at least. Erich and Ingolf were mostly boring, and then they were torture once they did start picking up my attention. Aden made me hopeful to see a relationship blooming out of something other than "love at first sight", but... That darn second appearance! Pancraz and Vester are better, but you'll never hear their story properly. They're too minor.

The writing has improved a bit. We switch only between the viewpoints of the four main characters, which made a huge difference. There was definitely more tension because of it.
There were, however, a lot more spelling and grammar mistakes than in Prisoner, especially as the end drew nearer. The most obvious one I can remember is "Uou" in place of "You".
There are less big words, so the author has at last given up on spitting out fragments of the dictionary. She has for the most part, at least. There is still a point where the narrator, slipping through a reasonably well-flowing paragraph, abruptly describes a green outfit as "apropos". I thought it was slang at first, it seemed so incorrect. There is absolutely no reason why "appropriate" had to be passed up.
This writing style can't bear the strain of slow plots or many battles. Fights are methodical, along with love scenes, and are sped through like a particularly disliked list. When the plot stirred up a little, the writing didn't, and all joy is sapped as months in the book start to feel like months in real life.
Too much is made of the von Adolwulfs. Seeing their names around and hearing scraps of stories from their life after Prisoner is nice. Hearing their name in every single moment of importance, along with a recap of their entire lives and legacy, is the creation of a strong desire to punch someone.

All in all, this is better than Prisoner, but I'm not sad to put it down.

[Alopexin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can commend on the effort that had been made but it simply has not turned out well. This would be a little more agreeable if it had been shorter but it had to drag on for 500 pages, didn't it.

[Alissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars

[Ingrid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did a re-read of this one after rereading Prisoner for the nth time. It is like a warm bath, I love to return to this world and its inhabitants.
Now onto the free stories and it makes me want to read the (poly) pirate story that is hinted at in the epilogue. But alas, that has yet to be written.


I was so happy that I noticed the sequel was already out! I really loved the first book and I was happy to return to this world again. This time we follow two couples as they work their way through battles and intrigues to unite three countries. It was a very good read with a satisfactory amount of pages, over 400. Which is rare in the m/m world. This book reads more like a mainstream fantasy novel with a gay theme, although I must say that this book was more romantic (more m/m and less gay fiction) then the first one and I liked that.

[Mandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was totally engrossing from start to finish. It was great being in the 'Prisoner' world again (though many, many years after the original characters passed away). The only thing I'd love to have read was more of the characters interacting after the war. But really, that's a tiny little niggle. I loved everything in this book!

[Jan VL · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since i was used to the way Prisoner was written, I knew what to expect from this book and that made me enjoy it a lot more. I loved all the main characters of the book and enjoyed the story. It was great.

[Estarianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this author, but this book has issues. It is too simplistic to be a compelling fantasy, and too long to be romance. It needs editing badly- lots of redundancy. Overall not her best work.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 STARS
This series so far as in book 1 & 2 are set generations apart, although both stories were good t's not for me, I was looking for a fantasy series

[Walford · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those books I resented having had to finish. It's too long and it's badly paced, dragging in parts (padded) and then rushing through plot developments that deserved Way more attention. One of the pivotal moments Happens Offstage (!?) and is never described in any detail. Another is resolved in a slap-dash manner that is also completely unconvincing. There is a huge plot hole (the Salharans' use of magic; sometimes it's scary effective and others the allegedly powerful villains are vanquished with ease). But I was swept along by the story and the characters to the point I was mad at Derr for shortchanging them.
Everyone who doesn't care about editing can skip the following rant:
Where do I start? Words with missing letters. Words with extra letters. Umm, Spellcheck? Oh, and the Missing Words: I was constantly stumbling over sentences that made no sense until I stopped and figured out where the absent word needed to be and What it might be. Fun. And this wasn't even self-published (I can understand authors not being able to afford editors). Au Contraire: some fly-by-night publisher just rammed this through without touching it.
(rant over)
So you see where my resentment comes from. However, I will probably pick up the final book in the series because Derr is an excellent storyteller. If you don't care about the above issues you may enjoy these stories quite a bit.
But I will drop book #3 like a hot potato the minute it starts to irk me.
I hope her more recent books received better treatment.

[Maberan Potato · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is something. Very different from Prisoner. It's massive, for one, it the literal and figurative sense. Like, what happens in this just blows Prisoner out of the water. The characters seem a little eh at first, but after 600 pages with them they grow so much on you and aahhh. So wholesome.

So on one hand you got Erich and Ingolf and the other's Reinoelh and Aden. Erich is just this mellow annoyed guy without anything to do and it's pretty funny. Reinoelh (sorry if I'm spelling this wrong) is dutiful and sad and basically adorable. With their respective waifus they do things like murder and be sad. It's pretty good.

The story was just massive -did I say that?- like it starts ok and then just evolves into this massive scale Infinity War frendo. I love it.

My one issue would be the spelling errors -there shouldn't be any in a completed product- and the way the Ingolf/Erich thing turned out in the middle. THEY WEREN'T SAD ENOUGH OK

Sorry if this is so mellow but I've just been through years of war and death so ofc I'm tired. I've been with these characters for so long I don't even question them. It's been too long since I did this x_x Damn you Sigils and Spells it's all your fault.

[AllAboutThoseBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic

The first book in this series wasn't quite so sweeping. While there were plenty of politics and throat slitting and arguing, would-be lovers, it wasn't to the degree this one is.

Pros: The characters are easier to like. In book 1, a main character remained argumentative right to the end. In this one, the enemy was never one of the MCs.

The plot remains plausible all the way through. If you are unfamiliar with Derr's writing, she writes queer fiction, not strictly m/m, so if a m/f marriage in the middle if the book has you grasping your pearls, look elsewhere. There is no on-page shenanigans. It is not a love match. It is an important and pivotal match done for purposes of changing the tide of war.

This results in some epic pining, btw. But the MC in that marriage (which lasts less than a year in a book that covers about three plus seven more in the epilogue) is well established in the context of that marriage as a Good Man. He still gets his m/m HEA.

The book is full of magic, knives and swords, and battles and blood. Also tunics. So many tunics.

CONS: It's also full of typos and other annoying errors, although there are nice long stretches without them.

Recommend.

[Justyna Małgorzata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow this book was overwhelming - so hard to put down I hardly got any sleep last night. But that doesn't mean it was perfect. While it has an epic plot, solid characters, great world creation, it still lacks in the department of romance. Erich/Ingolf romance was promising - until they were separated by kidnappers and war. Then Ingolf got married to queen Reni and made her pregnant - and, hell, that didn't sit well with me. Duty or no duty, that shouldn't have happened. After that there is a lot of pining after each other from afar, and the time apart stretches so long I got a bit bored with them. They get their HEA, but the conclusion of the romance lacks the fire of its beginnings. Aden/Rein romance was a bit better, but too easy to happen, and that little bit of angst in the middle helps only a little. I would love to read something more about Pankraz/Vester relationship, but that, unfortunately, happened only in the background and we don't get to read the story from their POV. What I really did like was the way Erich got to be the Scarlet General - how suddenly and unexpectedly he got so many people's trust and love. So satisfying! Overall, not a full 4 stars but maybe 3.75?

[Rocken · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a long ass book, but too it's credit, up to 50% it is a breeze to read. It is a noticeable improvement over the first installment, both in the romance and action departments.

What has NOT improved however, is the female character. For different reasons, the female characters in both books invoked in me either annoyance or unease. Here, for example, the female character was no more than a plot device, with a story line so predictable I wasn't sure why it was even included.

By 55% the plot stalls somewhat and it becomes a bit of bore. The author isn't too keen on writing battle scenes, so it seems, as they are mostly glossed over. Instead the focus is on the characters' interactions in between the battles. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to hold my interest, especially since the main romantic couplings were already established in the first half.

Anyway powering through the second half wasn't that much of a chore, but instead of giving it a solid 4* as I was intending, I'll be settling on 3*. I do still recommend it to those MM readers that are into long, epic, sprawling adventures, with a fantasy angle.

[Kelsey Cohen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book always makes me smile because the characters are just sooo much fun. They start out in the worst possible places and the author brings them down, to the point of devastation. So seeing them be happy and form connections with each other is just so satisfying. The first time I read it through I fell in love with Pancraz and Erich's friendship because I love love love seeing two people who are unsure of each other becoming family. Aden and Reinoel's romance has that same satisfying feeling because of the mix of instant attraction and fear of betrayal.

I think that the reason I love this book so much is because the relationships between the characters were such of a focus. The background of an awful war doesn't ever overwhelm the importance of the relationships between the characters. But it also adds to it because of the high stress situations that each character is being put into because of the war.

Warning: There are a lot of typos in this book.

[Teeny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This took a hella lot of days for me to reach the end.

If I didn't Megan Derr and I didn't love the first and third book in the series I'm not sure I would have made it through and not DNF around 30% which in a 420paged book is a hella lot of later than I have given other books.

The major problem was, throughout the book, the lack of a good editor and a thorough proofreading. There were a lot of mistakes when it came to words that shouldn't be there or missing and mistakes like sigh instead of sight etc. Now to the lack of editing. This was a long story so the amount of pages is somewhat justified but I think it could have been 50 or so pages less IF an editor had wrangled the pieces that kept being on repetition to the point were they frustrated the reader and made them start lacking sympathy for the character.

Things thankfully after the 30% started picking up and the story gained momentum and became brilliant. Megan had me in tears with Aden's anguish, with Pancraz's suffering, with Erick's heartbreak.

So yeah no matter how frustrated at times because of the round and round musings of the characters, in the end I loved the story and this is a brilliant series.

[iam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this continuation of Prisoner. It plays several generations later, so a whole new cast of character and political situations and issues. The tone was a bit different too, focussed much more on the year(s) long war campaign that politics and singular fates.
I gotta say I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as the prequel, mostly for the fact that I didn't grow quite as closed to the characters. There were two in particular that I kept mixing up no matter how long I was reading for.

[MaelleMaud · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good to be in Krian/Salharan/Illussor territories again and at first I was reading quite greedily, finding similarities on the characters with the ones of Book One which really made an impression on me. Then I lost interest a while for no good reason just because I struggle to fit long reads in my reading time... It didn't help that my favorites characters got separated >_<
In the end, I enjoyed it overall and will probably read the next book of this serie!

[Ulaumes · Rating 4 out of 5]

It would be nice if the story was actually followed through on. The books are individual enjoyable but would help build them into a cohesive series.

For example here it sets up the ridding the world of pirates but having read the synopsis for the next book that isn't what the book is about. Or how this book was generations after the previous rather than following a contiguous series of stories.

[Lie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aden is my sunshine!! *hides him away from The Bad* Hisssssssssss
I liked Pancraz a lot too, wish there was more of him.
Enjoyed reading the whole military campaign starting from single mission to mission to controlling an entire army.
Hanna was sweet.
Can't say I was a fan of Erich and Ingolf's relationship, not a big one on huge separations, and wasn't a fan of the angst during that.

[Lee E Sills · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic series for anyone like me Who lovesM/M Fantasy romance


My only complaint with this particular book Is the horrible editing I usually don’t complain about things like that but this time I found it really distracting and it took away From the enjoyment of the book

[Shayla Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved but didn't like as much as the first one. still 99%

[Indira Rivera · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, this series is awesome.