The gods have been proven mortal and new heroes will arise as the battle continues in the sequel to Age of Myth—from the author of the Riyria Revelations and Riyria Chronicles series.In Age of Myth, fantasy master Michael J. Sullivan launched readers on an epic journey of magic and adventure, heroism and betrayal, love and loss. Now the thrilling saga continues as the human uprising is threatened … the human uprising is threatened by powerful enemies from without—and bitter rivalries from within.
Raithe, the God Killer, may have started the rebellion by killing a Fhrey, but long-standing enmities dividing the Rhunes make it all but impossible to unite against the common foe. And even if the clans can join forces, how will they defeat an enemy whose magical prowess renders them indistinguishable from gods?
The answer lies across the sea in a faraway land populated by a reclusive and dour race who feel nothing but disdain for both Fhrey and mankind. With time running out, Persephone leads the gifted young seer Suri, the Fhrey sorceress Arion, and a small band of misfits in a desperate search for aid—a quest that will take them into the darkest depths of Elan. There, an ancient adversary waits, as fearsome as it is deadly.
Magic, fantasy, and mythology collide in Michael J. Sullivan’s Legends of the First Empire series:
AGE OF MYTH • AGE OF SWORDS • AGE OF WAR
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Great series
I read this as a beta reader which required me to be objective and critical and I read it in increments which is not as enjoyable as delving into a story and reading without pause. Even knowing there would be changes, I knew as I critiqued that it was going to be a fantastic 2nd book to Michael J Sullivan’s The Legends of the First Empire series. Recently I was sent the ARC and I thought that after the beta, I might not enjoy the story as much as a new reading but even though I knew the story and characters I was enthralled.
If you have not read the first book in the series, Age of Myth, please do. It introduces the characters and the world and it is full of action bringing you to this sequel.
Description
Persephone has met the gods, now she prepares for war against them.
Having protected her people from conflicts both within and without, Persephone, new chieftain of Dahl Rhen, is learning that this is just the beginning. The death foretold by the Mystic is yet to come – until now, the anger of the gods has only been stirred.
Now she must fight to protect her people from this looming threat – an undefeatable foe, an indefensible people, and certain death. But not the death of just her people – the systematic slaughter of all humans.
Disclosure
I personally bought this book. There was no agreement with the author, publisher, or any third party that I would publish a review. The following review is unsolicited, unbiased, and all opinions are my own.
Review – Spoiler Free
The second in Sullivan’s The Legends of the First Empire series, Age of Swords works to further set the stage for the anticipated conflict of the series (read the review of book 1, Age of Myth on my blog).
Characters continue to develop, the situation is detailed more, and the first steps are taken to prepare for the conflict. There are story threads you can just begin to see, and ones that are already well developed continuing to flesh out. As always, Sullivan’s writing just sweeps me in and I raced through the last 1/3 in one sitting.
I love the characters, partly because they are complex and fun to read, also because they are so varied. One thing I loved that was highlighted in this book, was that both men and women were seen as strong in both ‘feminine’ strengths as well as ‘masculine’ strengths. There was respect and admiration given to a motherly healer, just a there was to a budding military strategist, and a crippled potter.
While it was great to see characters develop more, it did feel a little heavy with this in the beginning with a lot of long talking and delving into relationships. This definitely added to the story, and I was glad to have it all to learn the context of things more, but it also slowed down the book’s pace a little in the beginning.
Overall, this is another great book of Sullivan’s that does not disappoint. I would definitely recommend it, and I’m excited to move right into book #3, Age of War.
The second book in the series. it took me a little while to get into the book but once I was back in the world I had a wonderful time reading.
What I love about this book is that it features strong female characters and that the heroes of the stories aren’t the ones you expect. the pieces are starting to fall together in this book. And i loved the little snippets from The Book of Brin at the beginning of each chapter, that set the tone for the chapter.