I almost didn’t read it because of the ghastly cover. In a thumbnail, it is unreadable and looks like grade school stuff—especially the type. But I’m glad I did.

This is another of the offerings from Marcher Lord Press. They often have excellent books, but the graphic design and book formatting are commonly puzzling, at best.

This is the second book of the Follower of the Word series. I have not read the first book, and I probably won’t.

This is epic fantasy

However, the story is quite tight, small, and emotionally charged. The character count is quite low and the descriptions are unsatisfying. There is no real sense of epic adventure even though the tale is about that type of story. Solutions to crises are often painless and glossed over—they commonly come too easy.

God is relegated to an all-powerful being bailing out His people [often by surprise] at the last moment. His presence often seems painful rather than wonderful. He deals with the world through people who are more than prophets, but genetically equipped to handle His presence. It’s a strange mix spiritually.

However, the characters have deep faith, evil is clearly evil, the good guys are righteous—under duress. This steps pretty far out into some sort of alternate spiritual reality. It’s not really edifying. However, it is a world of faith and the triumph of good—though, as the second book, it leaves us in a pretty dark place.

But it is a fun read. I’m glad I read it. I’ll definitely get the final book or books in the series. This is a 3.5 star read for me, but I’ll give it a 4 because it was too good for a three.

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