"I don't want to be a monster anymore."

Nyx and the gang are back, along with some new characters to season their world. 'Infidel' continues Nyx's gruesome, painful story, bringing the reader back into the fray. ( )

Six years after the events in God’s War and Nyx is still making a living by taking notes, or killing. She has a new team, no magician this time round, and she’s doing okay. Not great, never great, but she’s getting by. She has enough to pay the bills most of the time and a couple of emergency caches if things go sour. But she is still an ex-Bel Dame. The loss of that title still rankles her, maybe more than she realises. She remembers her life having honour and purpose back then.

But those rogue sisters of her that caused so much trouble before are back at it again. A faction among the Bel Dames seem to be ready to launch a coup, to take out the queen and seize power.

So where does that leave Nyx?

On my first read of God’s War I loved its worldbuilding and the fact that it was so different from so much fantasy/science fiction, on my reread I loved the characters just as much as I hadn’t the first time I picked up the book. Reading Infidel was like my reread. I loved the worldbuilding, I loved the way the different societies had their different ideas and practices, their social taboos and customs, I loved the desert and the bugs and the magicians. And I loved the characters.

In a way Nyx reminds me a certain amount of Seanan McGuire’s October Daye character. Not that Toby is as quick to kill, not in the least, but she starts out sure she isn’t a hero and through the books begins to realise that she is that hero. Now, don’t get me wrong, the books are miles apart in tone and character and a whole heap of stuff. And Nyx is no hero. But I think she may be on the path. She’ll never be a Hollywood white-hat, she’s got far too much red in her ledger, but at least now she is questioning things a little.

Of course her world is a brutal one. It’s one where cancers are common, you simply get them scraped off, if of course you can afford that. It is a world that has been at war for so long that the whole fabric of society has altered. In Nasheen all the men go to the front, most never return, so the women dominate society. Most of the men of Chenja also go to the front, but not the wealthy land-owning first born sons, so there are men at the home front. Men who rule and marry multiple women so that they can all have wives. To the Chenjans the Nasheenian women are brutal, barbaric, and lacking in virtue. Mainly because they behave like men.

And the story just barrels along. Never too fast to make you scratch your head and wonder whats going on, despite all the alien-ness of the whole world. But it is action packed.

If you liked God’s War I’d say that you will enjoy this one too. I loved it, and am looking forward to starting book 3 Rapture in a few weeks. ( )

I come away from this novel with the same feeling I had from the first.

Oppressed.

Of course, that's the point. War, religious or otherwise, is hell. Being good at it does nothing to improve your relations with others, and Nyx is a shining example of the honor-bound disgraced warrior working to regain her good name and status as a Bel Dame elite.

And yet, for all the fighting, the tight plotting, the hopes, the fears, and the twists of everything, what I really feel is the oppression of deep heartache. It's wonderful to read a novel that sets out to tear us up and does a grand job of it.

It's even more wonderful to throw in some of the most dense worldbuilding for a SF novel out there, whether as a continuation of the first in the series or not. It's all very close to the cuff. The devil is in the details, and great god in heaven, we're dumped in it. Most of it is political and cultural, but the most striking aspects are of course the bugs. It might as well be magic, and of course the class of people who use the tech are called magicians, and of course there's also the shapeshifters, but don't be fooled into thinking this is some sort of UF.

It's hard SF, through and through.

The same warning I gave for the first novel, I continue for this one. It's rich, it's dense, and it requires patience. Things aren't easy for anyone in the book, especially Nyx, but then, it's not easy on ANYONE. Since I as a reader am getting into the story pretty deep, it is also not easy on me.

Don't read this if you want a light and easy read.

Definitely read it if you want deep immersion and a truly fascinating and well-fleshed world and characters. (Even if they lose their heads now and again.) ( )

Everything I hoped for in a sequel...

I felt this was every bit as good as 'God's War,' and I loved being transported back to Hurley's poisonous, bug-infested world.

However - I'd definitely recommend starting with the first book - this is one where you won't be lost, plot-wise, but it's going to be a richer experience if you've already 'gotten to know' the characters.

Mercenary assassin Nyx is down on her luck, taking 'babysitting' jobs as a bodyguard. But when she stumbles into a revolutionary plot involving warring governments, supposed third parties, and, of course, the organization of female assassins called bel dames who kicked Nyx out years ago... she jumps at the chance to get involved, and drags her team in behind her.

It's a violent, gritty, action-oriented book - but it also explores complex motivations and emotions, the interplay of cultures, and conflicting loyalties. Plus, it's chock-full of nasty, fascinating details...

Now... time to find the third in the series! ( )

I found the plot confusing and the regular bouts of violence seemed perfunctory - like a game where you have to have an action scene every x number of minutes. A lot less satisfying than the first one. ( )