Andie, Saeryn, and their friends and allies have won a great victory, but the war isn't over. Ashur has taken the Battalion out of Arvall to recover and plan a new attack. The Church of Sea and Stone is determined to recruit Andie--willingly or not--and make her their leader and tool to conquer Noelle. An old enemy of the dragonborn, an even older line of dragon-descended humans, who call themselves The Beautiful Dead, are determined to destroy the dragonborn and steal their magic.

All three of these enemy groups are joining as allies, at least temporarily cooperating to destroy the dragonborn and their allies in Arvall.

While they are fighting all these enemies, they have conflicts enough among themselves. Andie and Raesh have to work out their romantic issues. Andie and Saeryn have serious disagreements about how to lead their people, and while they both have valid points, they also both manage to be remarkably pig-headed about it. Someone long thought dead returns unexpectedly, and has a new friend that Andie has a hard tome accepting as an ally.

People on both sides keep pulling new tools and magic out of their hats.

It's fast-paced and enjoyable, with likable characters, but it also seems just a bit too simplified, as if the author were afraid to challenge young adult readers too much.

A good, quick read, but don't expect too much in the way of complexity, depth, or challenge.

I received a free electronic galley of this book from the author, and am reviewing it voluntarily.
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