Orcs: Legion of Thunder
This will be a shorter review, but the spoiler warning still stands. I don’t have as much to say on characters but I’ll try and focus more on character development. I’m writing this now because I just finished reading the book before writing and decided to get it all out before I forgot the plot. I won’t do a first impressions section because I think it isn’t really needed here as this is a second book not a first.
Characters: I said I wouldn’t talk about characters as such, but there is more on Adpar in this book. I think Adpar is interesting, as she seems so similar but so differnt to her sister Jennesta at the same time. She’s hellbent on conquering though bloodshed but doesn’t seem as derailed when controlling her army compared to Jennesta. I didn’t expect her to die so quickly though, I thought the tear at the end really showed she was very similar to her sister at heart. I am curious on how it didn’t seem that Adpar knew it was Jennesta. This makes me wonder whether Sanara is at risk too. But I was really hoping for a physical confrontation between all three sisters, but alas, I’m now hoping for a match between two out of three siblings. Speaking of siblings, Sanara seems almost the polar opposite of the other two sisters, and I do wonder what bigger role she plays in all of this. I’m hoping she’ll be the one to strike down Jennesta though.
Plot: I still don’t know what the instrumentalities are for or where the last one is. To see Jennesta more actively taking a role in this fight is interesting, as she doesn’t seem to be one to get involved in anything. To me this just screams desperation for the instrumentalities, meaning I’m nearly certain she knows how to use them and I’m sure it would destroy the land more than the humans already have. I also really don’t know what the storyteller, Sepharim is about, but I doubt that’s his real name. He’s not human and part of me wonders whether he is a guide of some sorts for Styke. Maybe to act as a guardian as Styke has noble intentions.
My thoughts on what will happen next: The centaurs will turn on the orcs when they return as they will possibly bring Jennesta with them. The dragon rider will turn rouge and go into hiding seperate from the Wolverines. I think Sanara has the last instrumentality. I would have said Sepharim could have it, but his comment to Styke that he could have taken them but they belong in another’s hands makes me feel less confident about that theory. I think the instrumentalities might be the key for Jennesta’s line’s downfall as her parents caused this mess in the first place. But I think it will cause magic to return to the land and the humans to be forced out of it. Or it will force out all other elder races and the orcs will have the land to themselves, just like in Styke’s visions.
