The Sunforge

Stronach takes readers back to the futuristic fantasy realm of her Endsong series with this high-octane sequel to The Dawnhounds. The crew of the pirate ship Kopek—including Captain Sibbic; newest crew member Yat, a Weaver with magical powers; and Yat’s lover, fellow Weaver Kiada—wash up in the city of Radovan, which is on fire. They have no idea what landed them there, but it’s evident their ship has been attacked. With everything around them burning, they must identify the source of the attack and find a way out of the city. To do so, Kiada seeks assistance from her old friend, Ari, a local thief. Finding him, however, proves challenging as the guerrilla group Vuruhi and an errant god named Wehi, who hopes to capture and enslave Weavers, stand in the crew’s way. Stronach’s science fantasy worldbuilding continues to deliver both high technology and magic, though the role of the gods is no clearer here than it was in the first book. The narrative shifts between characters and timelines, which often creates page-turning tension, but in some moments leads to unnecessary confusion. Impressively, however, Stronach avoids the sophomore slump, moving her trilogy forward while still building to a satisfying payoff within this volume. This jam-packed adventure promises more good things to come. (Aug.)