The review contains spoilers from the previous part
When the gods fall asleep, the demons wake up
As you probably guessed after this short introduction, in this book we are dealing with the further adventures of Draconis – the son of the god Viper. We start with the end of the previous section. Draco becomes a prince on Giecz and the Nest. But it is still not enough for him. He wants to forge a state in the Sklaven forests that will stand up to both the tribes from the east and the western followers of the crucified god. However, such whims cannot go unnoticed. Well, the rulers of the neighboring towns of Kalisia, Truso and Jomsborg look with great concern at the development of the once weak princely book. So will Draconis find a way to build his state? And if so, wouldn’t he pay for it with his head? You will find the answer to these and other questions in this book.
And the gods can be wrong
As in the case of the previous volume, here you can see how good Marcin Sindera has at his disposal. His world, set in the era of pre-Christian Poland, is literally alive. It is not empty or fine. Instead, it is dark, dense and overwhelming. Slavic in the author’s description is not colorful selves and merry settlements, but hunger in the pre-harvest season, cavernous forests full of animals and monsters, and various bands of robbers and slave hunters. It is a world where the strongest will survive, where there is no mercy for the weak, where the loner is doomed.
In addition to the phenomenal creation of the world, the author also incredibly wrote his heroes. Each of them is so realistic that sometimes it seems almost impossible. But these are the main characters. What about the people in the background? They also appear alive. It’s not that a settlement in the novel is empty. She is teeming with activity and you have the impression that someone will leave the hut soon and we will meet another phenomenal figure. It is rare to find an author who can write so well not only for the protagonists, but also for supporting characters. Hats off.
The dusk of the gods is coming
It was about the plot, it was about the workshop, now it’s time for the release. The book does not differ aesthetically from the previous volume. We have numerous drawings and maps inside, the lines of which are really great and fit into the atmosphere of the story. The only drawback is the cover, because it is soft, which makes it very easy to damage. I found no typos in the text, and the printing imps must have been eaten by a striga. In a word, the edition is almost flawless. The publishing house did it.
To sum up, Żmij is a very successful continuation. It has everything you need. Great story, easy to digest, but not light, language and atmosphere so that it can be cut with a machete. And heroes, so expressive that it is impossible to describe it. I can recommend this book to anyone with a clear conscience.
