Marchio Dolor begins the invasion!
There’s a lot going on in the second volume of the Battle Mage . The heroes have finally completed their training and it is time for them to prove themselves in battle. In addition, Meredith continues to search for answers about the past. Unfortunately, the other magicians make every effort to prevent people from discovering the truth. Demons also do not wait idly and conquer more territories, and thus slowly approach the Clemoncé border. In addition, the Conqueror, a creature adapted to fight mages, begins its hunt. In addition, the author put more emphasis on the figure of the queen, who must choose between her people and personal happiness. In this volume, Falko will also begin the Assay ritual, after which he will become a full-fledged battle mage. However, reluctant magicians are prepared to do anything to prevent this from happening.
Falko, Malaki, Meredith, Bryna and the rest
Unfortunately, the heroes do not stand out in particular. The protagonist from the whipping boy in the first volume turned into the chosen one. Unfortunately, there was no surprise, and in addition, the descriptions of his feelings and emotions were sometimes irritating. I regret the most about the episodic characters, because they were not properly exposed, so even their tragic end was basically unable to move me.
Is this the end of the story?
The Battlemage consists of only two volumes and this is its greatest advantage, because compared to other cycles it is a short story and you don’t have to wait many years for it to end, as is the case with, for example, A Song of Ice and Fire . Battle mageit’s just a skilfully written, sometimes exciting fantasy story set in a quite interesting world. In general, I read this volume quickly and pleasantly, although after reading it, it is impossible not to notice that, after all, the novel has its drawbacks. The plot is not very revealing, and although the author is skilfully able to draw the reader into his story, it does not change the fact that he sticks to very safe patterns. I miss the air of originality here. Demons also did not gain character in the next volume. They are simply the worst type of villains to lose because they are not able to arouse even the slightest sympathy. My greatest regret is that there are virtually no shades of gray here, Battle Mageis a standard fantasy story dominated by black and white. It is known who is good and who is bad, as well as who can die and who will not die. I also do not like the plot of the queen, her conflict between personal happiness and the good of the country and all subsequent perturbations … it completely does not suit me here. I also have a feeling that some threads have not been finished, and so after reading a novel, for example, I wonder where Nathalie and her dragon have gone.
However, despite some shortcomings, I do think that Battlemage is a nice fantasy story that you can get hooked on and have a good time with. Although I missed a breath of fresh air, it is impossible not to see a lot of potential in this reading, and thus I must admit that I am curious what else will come from the pen of Peter Flannery.
Finally, let me just mention that the workmanship is just as solid as in the case of the previous volume, which means that I also encountered a few minor flaws in this volume.
