Nightwatch Over Windscar

Unlikely allies embark on a dangerous mission to save their friends in the discombobulating second space opera in Eason’s The Weep series (after Nightwatch on the Hinterlands). Cantankerous Templar-Initiate Iari is promoted to captain after successfully leading a mission to save civilians from a lethal army of Confederation separatists, but things take a turn when she and her team discover that the separatists aren’t the only ones working to bring destruction to the Confederation. The separatists have allied with murderous cultists led by a mysterious arithmancer. Together, they’ve created mutilated, part-human, part-cyborg beings called One-Eyes in the name of their god, Axorchal One-Eye. Worse, the cult has created a portal that enables the One-Eyes to easily eradicate their enemies. The odds are not with Iari and her misfit friends as they infiltrate the cult to destroy this portal. Eason packs in cool action sequences, deeply complex characters, and an excess of specialized terminology and technically detailed worldbuilding. The result is that many readers—even those who’ve been following the series—will struggle to find their footing in the fray. This is best suited for Eason’s most devoted fans. Agent: Lisa Rodgers, JABberwocky Literary. (Oct.)