The second book in the The Wendel Wright Chronicles.On his sixteenth birthday, Wendel is suddenly portaled away from his friends and engulfed in a cocoon of golden-orange light. Just as the ancient records foretold; the year one fusion ritual, with the Mescalahem sun, has begun. When he returns to Sarah, Deadra and Nathan, Wendel discovers the ritual has left him with new and enhanced powers. He … powers. He will need all of his new strength and powers, in the months ahead, to fight a new looming menace that is coming for Wendel and the Freedom Fighters.
The Ancient, evil one known as Culwhich, is a fearsome legend, who controls the terrible dark arts powers of ancient days. He is well aware of the millennium old prophecies regarding the young boy who will come. Culwhich knows of the powers Wendel will one day control. He is determined to destroy the boy before he can fulfill his destiny and become the man who will be called Arithor.
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This is a worthy continuation of the story begun with the first book. There are the typical tropes in any boy-saves-the-world tale, but Forkner’s take on them reads fresh and intriguing. The character dialogue is realistic, and the tension build up is fantastic. Everyone knows that prophecies are impossible to avoid… but you might derail them slightly! Add an epic quest and voila! A grand adventure. I like the touch of romance and the mind control.
Wendel turns sixteen, and the process of being He Who Would Come begins as he stands naked in the courtyard of a deserted church at sunrise on his birthday (and likely being very grateful his birthday didn’t fall in the middle of winter!). To complete the process, he will have to repeat this on each birthday until his twenty-first – if he lives that long.
Wendel’s powers increase dramatically, as does his control over them. Will his new-found powers be enough to stymie The Master as he tries to exert his dominance over all of Mescalahem?
The ancient wizard Culwhich is a wild card in The Master’s hand – one The Master does not really control. The Master doesn’t even realize how much, or how little, control he has over Culwhich.
Meanwhile, both Deandra and Sapphire are strongly interested in Wendel. He seems to be enjoying the attention, but we all know that can’t last, can it?
Finally, Culwhich pulls a wild card out of his own deck at the end that is going to really complicate the lives of Wendel and everyone around him in the not-too-distant future – like in the very next volume, I’d bet.
It was so nice to begin this story very close to where the last book left off. It’s endearing to see the playful banter between Wendel and Deadra throughout the book. While the overall story could have been dark and foreboding, the characters keep their heads on straight as they learn to face each new challenge as a team. The elements of magic are wonderfully woven into the storyline and the action just keeps on coming. Thankfully, there’s another book to keep reading in this series. Book three, here I come!
This the second book in the series that I’ve read. “He Who Would Come” continues the story of Wendel Wright in the alternate universe world. The plot thickens as the battle between good and evil increases its dangerous complexity. The positives are that Wendel has achieved the first or six levels needed for him to be at full strength and that his family is there with him. I can see that this series will probably take me through the years Wendel needs to complete his transformation. Great world building and imagination. I love the unexpected twists.
He Who Would Come by Larry Forkner is Book 2 of The Wendel Wright Chronicles and is every bit engaging as Book 1.
He Who Would Come continues the ongoing battle for Mescalahem and focuses on Wendel’s increasing powers since his 16th birthday, establishing him as the man who will become Arithor.
Like Book 1, He Who Would Come is highly engaging and hard to put down. This story had all the right elements for a strong fantasy book, from its intriguing beginning to its captivating characters, intelligent dialogue, vivid settings and well-paced scenes.
This is such a good fantasy series. I’m looking forward to reading the next book!
I loved the first book and this one did not disappoint. The author continued with well written characters and a captivating world. This was action packed and had a great ending. Wendell is still my favorite character. He is becoming quite the hero and I look forward to following his journey. I love that this series is fantasy with a side of romance.
Another interesting installment
I’ve read and loved the first book, and was happy to see the next book starting exactly where we left off. We follow Wendell as he progresses and explores his abilities. I admire the author’s fantasy world and is a strong point. Another positive point is the level of action going up! Still, there is still of lot of internal debates and descriptions, but is overall a great book!