The Death of the Necromancer

Ile-Rien Series, Book 2

By: Martha Wells

Narrated by: Derek Perkins

Nicholas Valiarde is a passionate, embittered nobleman with an enigmatic past. Consumed by thoughts of vengeance, he is consoled only by thoughts of the beautiful, dangerous Madeline. He is also the greatest thief in all of Ile-Rien... On the gaslight streets of the city, Nicholas assumes the guise of a master criminal, stealing jewels from wealthy nobles to finance his quest for vengeance: The murder of Count Montesq. Montesq orchestrated the wrongful execution of Nicholas's beloved godfather on false charges of necromancy - the art of divination through communion with spirits of the dead - a practice long outlawed in the kingdom of Ile-Rien.

But now Nicholas's murderous mission is being interrupted by a series of eerie, unexplainable, even fatal events. Someone with tremendous magical powers is opposing him. Children vanish, corpses assume the visage of real people, mortal spells are cast, and traces of necromantic power that hasn't been used for centuries are found. And when a spiritualist unwittingly leads Nicholas to a decrepit mansion, the monstrous nature of his peril finally emerges in harrowing detail. Nicholas and his compatriots must destroy an ancient and awesome evil. Even the help of Ile-Rien's greatest sorcerer may not be enough, for Nicholas faces a woefully mismatched battle - and unthinkable horrors await the loser.

©1998 Martha Wells (P)2013 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Wells continues to demonstrate an impressive gift for creating finely detailed fantasy worlds rife with many-layered intrigues and immensely personable characters." ( Publishers Weekly)

What you get when magic and revenge collide.

You can only see the hole truth when you look at the hole picture from all angles.

Good writing and great narration

The story had an interesting premise and the writing was quite intriguing. Between the words and the expert narration, this was a very easy book to listen to. The overall plot and storyline while not thrilling, kept my interest.

Action, Adventure, and Sorcery, Oh My!

Martha Wells is a superior storyteller and this second tale of Ile-Rien is an example of her at the top of her game. I highly recommend the audio version as the narration is equally well done.

One of my favorite books

The female characters are strong, engaging and still charming. I love the story. it has many captivating characters.

Steampunky fantasy with a Holmesian flair

Martha Wells’ The Death of the Necromancer is book 2 of her Il-Rien series. Although set in the same region as book 1, the action takes place around the late 19th century. A nobleman who leads a double life, a master criminal and theft at night, is plotting an intricate revenge for crimes committed against a loved one. In the course of his elaborate setup, he encounters some powerful magic working against him. To add to the 19th century ambience, there is a Sherlock Holmes character with the nobleman taking on the role of Professor Moriarty.

Wells crafts a richly detailed plot with many creative escapes. The characters are quite engaging, and the various escapades have a ‘mission impossible’ flair to them.

The narration is well done with good character distinction. Pacing is smooth and a tad slow.