“Everything epic fantasy should be: rich, cruel, gorgeous, brilliant, enthralling and deeply, deeply satisfying. I loved it.”–Lev Grossman on The Ruin of KingsYou can have everything you want if you sacrifice everything you believe. Kihrin D’Mon is a wanted man.Since he destroyed the Stone of Shackles and set demons free across Quur, he has been on the run from the wrath of an entire empire. His … Quur, he has been on the run from the wrath of an entire empire. His attempt to escape brings him into the path of Janel Theranon, a mysterious Joratese woman who claims to know Kihrin.
Janel’s plea for help pits Kihrin against all manner of dangers: a secret rebellion, a dragon capable of destroying an entire city, and Kihrin’s old enemy, the wizard Relos Var.
Janel believes that Relos Var possesses one of the most powerful artifacts in the world–the Cornerstone called the Name of All Things. And if Janel is right, then there may be nothing in the world that can stop Relos Var from getting what he wants.
And what he wants is Kihrin D’Mon.
Jenn Lyons continues the Chorus of Dragons series with The Name of All Things, the epic sequel to The Ruin of Kings
A Chorus of Dragons
1: The Ruin of Kings
2: The Name of All Things
more
When I read The Ruin of Kings back in March I called it the best epic fantasy I have read in ages, a complex story that was so much more than the sum of its parts. The only book to have challenged it (so far, at least) for year’s best is The Priory of the Orange Tree, but that’s a serious toss-up. My first thought upon finishing the final chapter is that The Name of All Things isn’t quite in the same category as either of those books, but it’s good . . . and as sequels go, it’s really good.
Narratively, the story structure is the same, a twinned bit of storytelling that opens near the end of one of those stories, slowly brings the two together, and which is annotated with footnotes from a third voice. Interestingly, that flashback story, the dominant focus of the book, is not Kihrin’s but a woman named Janel. In fact, he is merely a bystander for most of the story, an interested listener, but the ways in which their stories parallel one another . . . the ways in which they are connected through past and present lives . . . well, that connection is more than enough to draw the reader in.
Although Janel is a fantastic character, a more than worthy protagonist to stand proudly aside Kihrin – in fact, I would agree she’s an even better character – her story lacks some of the dramatic intensity that made The Ruin of Kings such a powerful read. It’s more slowly paced, told over the course of years, with a great deal of politics and mythology-building. As it turns out, her story is even more pivotal, her role even more significant, but it takes a long while before that becomes clear.
Once again, Jenn Lyons deftly mixes darkness, wonder, and humor in telling a story that often seems to be just another epic fantasy tale of resistance and rebellion, but which proves to have major, save-or-end-the-world consequences. There are more dragons this time out, more demons, more gods, and even bigger acts of magic and mayhem. Plots and betrayals abound, and at this point you really need a scorecard to keep track of motives and alliances. There’s a fine line between keeping the reader guessing and leaving them feeling completely lost, but Lyons walks that line with the kind of talented dexterity that leaves me in awe.
This book adds a lot in moving beyond Quur to explore Joratese culture, not the least of which is its exciting exploration of gender. This is a culture driven by horse-based gender roles of stallion, mare, gelding, and foal that have nothing to do with biology. It’s confusing at first, and perplexes people from other cultures, but I found it fascinating. Oh, and if the gender thing weren’t enough to intrigue you, the fact that their entire culture is horse-based, complete with knights, grand tournaments, and sentient horses known as firebloods.
The other thing that this books does better than most epic fantasies I’ve ever read is explore the boundaries of magic, the consequences of power, and the question of ends versus means. We see dark and dangerous works of magic, the fantasy equivalent of weapons of mass destruction, used by both sides. Where so many fantasies establish a clean delineation between good and evil, heroes and villains, Lyons refuses to make things that easy. This is a book that will leave you questioning motives, second-guessing yourself as well as the characters. When you’re talking about acts of genocide, the awesome factor of exterminating the enemy becomes a lot more uncomfortable when you find yourself questioning who the enemy is.
You know what? Forget what I said in my opening. Even with the pacing issues of Janel’s narrative, the bigger, deeper, more epic aspects of The Name of All Things make this a better all-around book. It’s a sequel that doesn’t just continue the story, but which adds to it in a number of ways, transforming expectations and setting up an even bigger story in The Memory of Souls.
After The Ruin of Kings I knew to expect something amazingly epic from this book, what I wasn’t certain of is how it would be structured.
It’s no secret that the first book does some really interesting things with structure and point of view. I’m both pleased and surprised to see that this one is both similarly structured and also largely occurs prior or simultaneous to the first book.
Once again, we have three separate narrators for the audiobook, which actually works really well with how the novel is structured. Each narrator is skilled with a strong assortment of distinct voices. They are all very good with vocal inflections and tempo changes.
I really only have two comments. First, none of the narrators do well with opposite-gender voices. The best of them is merely passable. Second, while I understand the reason for the choices made, with the structure of this novel I really feel that the audiobook would have been better served as a full-cast recording rather than merely shifting narrators with POV changes.
If anything, I honestly think this book might be even better than The Ruin of Kings was.
I love almost every character here. Kieran is an amazing character whose back story is just incredible. Janell is, if anything, even more interesting. And I’m not ashamed to admit that a part of me fell just a little bit in love with her.
The new culture (sorry, no clue how to spell it) is so amazing. The way it merges knighthood, honor, and horses into a coherent culture is both fascinating and incredible.
And let me just say that I find the fire bloods absolutely amazing! The whole idea of what they are is so fascinating.
On a side note (no pun intended), I found the footnotes in this book much more appropriate and entertaining (and less awkward and info-dumpy) than those in The Ruin of Kings.
I don’t recall if I fully processed this in The Ruin of Kings or not, but the basis for what gods and dragons are in this world is both amazing and surprisingly unique!
There are a few revelations herein that were truly staggering. If there’s anything that Jenn Lyons does better than anything else, it’s probably the twist. There are so many amazing twists in these books, each one completely reframing everything we thought we knew!
I think my biggest shock is that even after everything he’s done, I find myself identifying with Relos Varr and really liking him as a character.
But the Dragon! Oh, the Dragon! Maurios is such a fascinating dragon! Between his physical form, the nature of his special breath, his personality, and his weakness (to say nothing of his familial connections!), I am completely blown away. I think he is legitimately the most original, most unique, most creative dragon I’ve ever read about!
Now, criticisms…
Hmmm.
Do I even have any?
Just one. Although I understand the reason for it, I found the single short bout of present tense both jarring and awkward.
Now, the ending.
Although I would have liked to see a longer climax with a bit more wrapup afterward, I can’t deny that the ending comes together brilliantly, tying all the disparate threads together, and far exceeds any level of epicness that I might have expected or asked for.
I can’t imagine any reader not enjoying these books unless you are so dead set on standard structure or a particular POV style that you aren’t willing to consider anything different.
I, myself, am normally not at all fond of first person narratives. But this book, just like the first and a small handful of others, pulls off the first person parts so brilliantly and with such a compelling voice that I couldn’t help loving it.
This is a good book