By Dave Duncan
Tor, $27.99, 332 pages
Historical fiction can blend the lines between fantasy and regular fiction with the use of magic, witches, wizards and more. This book is the sequel of Speak to the Devil. It takes place with Anton and his brothers under siege at Anton’s new castle by two forces. Wulf, the youngest, is a new Saint, someone who can speak to voices who grant him magical abilities ranging from destroying ladders to blowing up gunpowder and traveling long distances through limbo. But Wulf is struggling since his powers have just awakened, the castle is under threat, and he is in love with Anton’s wife. The story in this volume centers around Wulf and his ability to get in and out of trouble, from doing jobs for Cardinals for papal remissions of sins to dealing with Saints that would like to see him dead. Wulf does not have time before it all comes crashing down.
This book moves at a blistering pace, and not always for the better. The events take place across a small handful of days. After Wulf leaves his brothers, we rarely hear from them again except towards the end and that is awkwardly brief. This is a hit and miss book.
Reviewed by Kevin Winter
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