Demon in White

Sun Eater is one of those series that is improving as it progresses. The scope and scale and shear epicness only increase with each entry, but each entry also manages to be self contained without leaving to many plot threads hanging. This is epic story telling in the vein of Rothfuss - telling the tale in a poetic way in a more retrospective look - it is the protagonist telling the story after the deed. The prose is rich and beautiful without being obtuse, and is very very readable.

In this, the third book, we are drawn closer to the center of power. Hadrian is now engaging with the Emperor and his close political advisors, getting caught up in a lot of the politicking inherent in a large empire. He is still the great hero - being sent out regularly to counter the Cielcin hordes. We see the fruits of the links that have been alluded to between the empires enemies and that provides a large driver for the first half of the novel.

Whilst the politics have got grander and more Machiavellian, so have the conflicts. There is a lot of huge scale fights. We have moved away from the intimate gladiatorial fighting that characterized the first novel and are mostly dealing with massive armies and space fleet battles - there is an edge of military Sci-Fi to the tale now. This is particularly so in the latter half of the novel.

We also delve further into the mythos that has driven Hadrian's story. Who are The Quiet? Some of these questions begin to be answered.

Not just a stepping stone like some middle books, this one is epic story telling in its own right!

The typical problem with reviewing the books of a series is that at least three or four stars can be attributed to the world the author has set up, and most of that is due to book 1 (in this case [b:Empire of Silence 36454667 Empire of Silence (Sun Eater, #1) Christopher Ruocchio https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1523897945l/36454667.SY75.jpg 58159105]). That's somewhat true here, but if that were the case, Demon in White would only get four stars. By book 3 some series have reached the “TV show” stage, where their characters are going on adventures that don't seem entirely related to the overall arc of the story or are just cool, fun things for them to do with new powers or technology. In that case a book could still get three stars if it's in a four-star universe.This certainly isn't the case with Demon in White. With each of [b:Howling Dark 41564599 Howling Dark (Sun Eater, #2) Christopher Ruocchio https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1554659319l/41564599.SY75.jpg 64859822] and Demon in White, Christopher Ruocchio has taken the galaxy set up in Empire of Silence to the next level, and he's done the same with the characters. I used to wonder why a story like Ben Hur or Star Wars had to be so tied to a character, why it couldn't be about how awesomely huge THE EMPIRE is. I think the reason I thought that (at the age of twelve, for crying out loud) was that the characters offered in such stories are often just an excuse to tell the story of how huge the empire is. Ruocchio solves this problem by offering us a character who is believably human, and interesting. He likes to draw, he's awkward with girls, he knows how to fight, but he tries to avoid it, and so on. He then takes that character on a crazy adventure through the galaxy, thereby showing the hugeness of it.Howling Dark takes that character to another level, and Demon in White makes him larger than life, so he matches the universe. I don't know how I could give this book less than four stars because it's finished and it doesn't suck. By that I mean it's an artistic accomplishment, and it is worth every one of its 746 pages (there's an appendix). There are no BOGSAT scenes, no filler of any kind. Just pure space opera awesome, so much that I was almost worn out by the end. This character is larger-than-life, and we get some idea of why in this book, but he is still overwhelmingly human, and that's why I'm eagerly awaiting the next book.

I genuinely cannot comprehend or even explain how good this book is. I rarely think something is a masterpiece or a perfect 10/10 but I cannot stress it enough I CANNOT think of any negative thing about not only this book but the book before this one (howling dark). From cover to cover I was fully FULLY enthralled by every page, every chapter, every section of this book. This book is multiple perfect books into one perfect set. I can't get this book/series out of my mind, I legitimately DREAM about the events that happen in this series,
I don't have the ability to properly articulate how amazing this book is
Other than it's perfect FOR ME
It's everything I love in fantasy/science fiction
10/10 without a shadow of a doubt

A Sci-fi/Space Opera masterpiece! This series gets better and better with each book. Christopher Ruocchio is most under rated author in the Scifi/Fantasy space today.
Grand, sweeping storyline, mixing in an epic quest, galactic politics, and a dynamic protaginist that will enthrall you.

Not going to say too much to avoid spoilers...but the plot is excellent, the prose is fantastic, and this universe is so easy to imagine in your mind because of it.

I look forward to reading the next 2 entries in the series in early 24 as await the release of book 6!

5 STARS!

Book 3 of The Sun Easter series.

Ruocchio continues with the hard hitting tale of Hadrian Marlowe. In Book 2 Hadrian was spoken to by some mystical being and given insight into what he'd been called to. Then he was hijacked to the Emperor's court.

In Book 3 he goes looking for the higher ones behind that previous prophetic voice but leaving the city of empire is not as straightforward as he hoped. When at last he's able to continue with his search it's under the pressure of a looming war with the enemies of people everywhere. The book closes with another revelation that Hadrian is more than he knows.

Ruocchio has total mastery of his craft in this series. His prose is tight and engaging, even as his vocabulary is enough to bedazzle the reader. It would be good to have an author's lexicon sitting beside you for this work. I read ebooks and it's not easy to swap between the text and the lexicography at the end of the book to check stuff on the fly. For the rest of the series I'm considering printing out the end notes to have as a reference as I read.

I'm giving this book my personal 2023 Book of the Year Award!

If you must rely on rank to command then you've already lost your people.”
“But they do serve you,” Alexander said. “They hang on your every word.”
“Because I have earned their respect. Rank only formalizes relationships between people, Alexander. It does not create them. One has rank because one deserves it, and if one does not deserve it, he will lose his rank.
Or his life. A man would do well to become worthy of his honors, else he will be deposed as a tyrant?”


So freaking good. The character development is at an all time high to the point where I finally connect with everyone. The battles scenes were epic in every sense of the word. But now there is serious political intrigue between the Hadrian and the Empire. He's become to dangerous and is constantly trying to be killed whether it's on unwinnable missions or an obvious murder attempt. Hadrian is stuck between saving himself from the people he's fighting for and fighting the Cielcin for all mankind.