This review contains spoilers for The Rage of Dragons the first book in The Burning series by Evan Winter.
It is one impressive feat for a writer to come out of the gate strong with an immersive, impressive debut novel. The writer can ascend a level above that when they deliver a second novel that is equally strong, and in some regards, stronger. This is the case with Evan Winter, whose Fires of Vengeance is the second installment of The Burning. The novel continues the saga of Tau, Queen’s Champion, in his quest for Vengeance and how that parallels his Queen’s goal of delaying an attack on the capital of her nation.
In order to reclaim her throne and save her people, an ousted queen must join forces with a young warrior in the second book of this ”relentlessly gripping, brilliant” epic fantasy series from a breakout author (James Islington).
Tau and his Queen, desperate to delay the impending attack on the capital by the indigenous people of Xidda, craft a dangerous plan. If Tau succeeds, the Queen will have the time she needs to assemble her forces and launch an all out assault on her own capital city, where her sister is being propped up as the ‘true’ Queen of the Omehi.
If the city can be taken, if Tsiora can reclaim her throne, and if she can reunite her people then the Omehi have a chance to survive the onslaught.
The Fires of Vengeance picks up almost immediately after the events of Rage of Dragons with two queens laying claim to the crown and Tau still trying to cope with the loss of Zuri, his love. Tsiora Omehia is one of those queens and the queen to whom Tau is pledged as Queen’s Champion. Naturally it is this side of the conflict between the two queens from which the majority of the story is told, with Tau being the primary POV character. This, of course, lends a great deal of empathy to Tau and his plight, especially as he’s dealing with that aforementioned loss. Thrusting the reader with such immediacy and back into the action of the over-arching story is both immersive and slightly daunting. Although he doesn’t include an official synopsis/recap for the previous volume, Winter does a really nice job of bringing readers up to speed through Tau’s conversations in the first chapter. Further ratcheting up the urgency is how quickly everything transpires in the novel, over the course of just a few days giving the characters little time to breathe or to heal from their wounds.
The plot is fairly straightforward – conflicting queens and revenge. What Evan Winter adds is a milieu that is magical and unique, a backstory based on myths of Africa rather than the standard European fare. There’s a demonic dimension that slowly drives the visitor out of their mind, Dragons are given the majesty and awe they deserve, and there’s an overall mythic resonance that is quite powerful. These elements, combined with the powerful characterization Winter has imbued into Tau, makes for a very resonant and moving story.
With the majority of the story from Tau’s point of view, his rage, anger, and headstrong nature are frustrating, but they also generate empathy largely because he is the POV character. He is forged as a weapon in a demonic dimension where he trains and character through the hardships he follows, both of which combine a highly charged forge that makes Tau an uncompromising weapon. Whereas he was an underdog and a soldier in the first novel through his trials, upon the start of Fires of Vengeance, he is Champion and looked upon as a leader of men, even if his personal history of a “Lesser” still has some people looking down upon him. Perhaps Robin Hobb is the only other writer who immediately comes to mind in terms of breaking down their characters only to build them up into something that is completely justifiable based on the extreme challenges they faced. The result of all of this makes Tau a character who can be frustrating, but also a character for whom it is difficult not to root.
Another element that adds to Tau’s growing stature is his relationship with Queen Tsiora. There’s something more than Queen and Knight (or Champion), there undoubtedly a great deal of respect and loyalty between the two, but Winter slowly brings these characters together in a way that is deeper and more emotional than that. It is in these shades of his character development where Tau’s fragile humanity is most potent, especially as a contrast to his mastery as a warrior.
The Burning is becoming a must-read Epic Fantasy saga. Winter’s skill and power of storytelling belie the fact that he has only two published novels to his name.
Highly Recommended
© 2021 Rob H. Bedford
Hardcover | 529 Pages
October 2020 | Orbit Books
Excerpt: https://www.orbitbooks.net/orbit-excerpts/the-fires-of-vengeance/ | http://evanwinter.com/
Review copy courtesy of the publisher Orbit Books
