We Cry for Blood

There is certain ebb and flow to Devin's books that I am beginning to notice. They often have fairly slow starts (and this third entry in the series is no exception on that front), but by the end they reach a crescendo of action that becomes quite unputdownable.

The Reborn Empire series is following the interactions of three peoples and their Imperial ambitions: the Kisians, the Levanti and the Chiltaen. To a certain extent this is looking at the Mongol empire as its inspiration. The Levanti in particular take on the aspect of horse riding ‘barbarians' and the Kisians have a distinctly Chinese feel in places (the Chiltaens feel a bit more European in their influence). The clash of cultures is a central theme, with xenophobia, bigotry and prejudice playing a central role in the events depicted. The conflict is visceral and on multiple levels and the play on some of the worst aspects of human psyche gives an immersive level of darkness to the whole affair. On top of this is the role of change, and whether change is positive or negative.

For me this third entry was a step back up in quality from the somewhat meandering second entry in the series. Yes there is some heavy politicking in the first half of the novel, but there at least seems some goal in mind with where things are heading. The mythology around Leo begins to start making more sense as the connections start to be drawn between the characters. Cassandra, who has previously been one of my favourite POVs was somewhat subdued throughout this one which was a shame, but being trapped in an infirm body limits her. Dishiva begins to make a bit more sense as a POV. Rah is still quite frustrating at times both with his bloody mindedness and inconsistent regard he is given by his people (which gets quite confusing - is he loved or hated?). This book really sees Miko come into her own and her POV is where most of the action on this book is based.

The ending is deeply frustrating, but deliberately so. I look forward to the final entry to hope that the ending's frustrating nature gets resolved!

With all the same perspectives as the previous books, we finally get to the crux of why the “storm” ever happened in the first place. The religion of the One True God has been spoken about constantly and run through the books until this point, but remained in the back seat until the latter half of book two. Now the curtain rises on Act Two and the religion of the One True God becomes a main point in the plot and focus of multiple perspectives.

But with the revelation about Leo, we also see the return of the Chiltaens to the fray – the force that initially enslaved the exiled Levanti and forced them to fight against Kisia – along with a Horse Whisperer of the Levanti who has been exiled for unknown reasons. There seems to be connections between these two and the One True God, both friendly and antagonistic.

The amount of smaller mentions in previous books that come back to be referenced makes the journey all-the-more satisfying, especially when we have been waiting for answers on much of it. A lot of what has happened in previous books is also re-contextualised with the knowledge we now have, adding extra depth and reflection to what we've already read.

While thus far focus has been more on individual characters and their movements with some touching on the war and politics, here we start to see the pieces move in the grand game this time around. Allegiances are thrown into question, armies are on the march and everyone is more fractured than they have ever been.

With one final book left in the series, we're provided with just as many new wrinkles as we are with answers and the state of the final book won't start on quite the landscape I expected, but brings promise of more good things to come (for the readers, at least).