Tower Lord

Raven's Shadow, Book 2

By: Anthony Ryan

Narrated by: Steven Brand

Length: 24 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Vaelin Al Sorna, warrior of the Sixth Order, called Darkblade, called Hope Killer. The greatest warrior of his day, and witness to the greatest defeat of his nation: King Janus' vision of a Greater Unified Realm drowned in the blood of brave men fighting for a cause Vaelin alone knows was forged from a lie. Sick at heart, he comes home, determined to kill no more. Named Tower Lord of the Northern Reaches by King Janus's grateful heir, he can perhaps find peace in a colder, more remote land far from the intrigues of a troubled Realm.

But those gifted with the blood-song are never destined to live a quiet life. Many died in King Janus' wars, but many survived, and Vaelin is a target, not just for those seeking revenge but for those who know what he can do. The Faith has been sundered, and many have no doubt who their leader should be. The new King is weak, but his sister is strong. The blood-song is powerful, rich in warning and guidance in times of trouble, but is only a fraction of the power available to others who understand more of its mysteries. Something moves against the Realm, something that commands mighty forces, and Vaelin will find to his great regret that when faced with annihilation, even the most reluctant hand must eventually draw a sword.

©2014 Anthony Ryan (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“[Tower Lord] begins to realize the imagination and coherency of Tolkien, while remaining true to the heart and soul of the author. The Raven’s Shadow series is one of the best new series out there, challenging all the existing big-names to sit up and take notice, or be left behind.” (Fantasy Book Review)

“[Ryan has] proven himself as an author who can write a very diverse and convincing cast of characters...A wonderful follow-up.” (The Bibliosanctum)

Great sequel to an amazing fantasy series

Tower Lord was an incredible listen and in many ways I liked it even better than Blood Song (something I wasn't sure was possible). In this book we get five different POVs rather than the one (or two if you count Vernier) from Blood Song. I expected to miss having Vaelin in the spotlight, but I found myself enjoying the other storylines just as much as Vaelin's and sometimes more. I was particularly excited that there were several strong/smart female characters in the book, since women didn't really get a lot of page time in Blood Song.

I loved the narrator's voice, but there were several times when he could have made more of an effort to distinguish between character's voices (particularly during rapid back and forth dialogue).

For fellow audiobook listeners, I suggest checking out the maps included with the ebook on Anthony Ryan's website. I found the maps to be pretty helpful in keeping track of where the characters were throughout the book.

I anxiously await Book 3 :-).

Second book just o.k.

The second book started out o.k. but seemed to mesh into a kind of soup in the middle. At times it was confusing. When you really get into a series you know the characters, their names and even emotions. I found this book hovered on the edge of all of this although some descriptions of individuals were easily transformed into the mind and stayed as you saw them all the way through both books. I feel it was written with the ending not known at all before the beginning was even started. Some characters were well fitted in while others should have been left out as the confusion with names and their closeness to other names made it hard to visualise who the author was talking about for awhile. The ending was the biggest shock as I thought it was only a two book series. Perhaps the next book will make you a part of it more than this one. It was still a good book to listen to but I think only on audio.

Narrator is too monotone

Good story, more action than book 1. But narrator is too monotone between character voices.

Lots of characters

I love the first and second book! I'm struggling to retain all characters names and where they reside. The reader did an amazing job but if he changed his voice a bit with the characters I may have followed better. I loved his clarity in his reading. Now I must download the third and final book!

Really enjoy this story

The story and the narration are very good. This is my second listen to this book, which I don't typically do. I enjoyed it and am ready for the next book in the series.

A good listener needed for this one.

Story gets more narrators. So more like a bunch of short stories. Time line a little choppy so you may have to go back to early chapters to remember what is going on but it all comes together in the end. Some characters I found I could not keep straight but other then that a it is a good book. Worth continuing the story.

And so it begins. Daniel springbrook Wisconsin

Al Sorna has returned to a changed realm. The scheming owl is dead , his son sits on the throne, and the princess treaties with the Lownack striking a friendship in the meantime. Some of the reviews I have read were outrageous, Anthony Ryan has lost none of his story telling capabilities. And his skill is only accented by Steven Brands narration. This is a great book, the same is to be said for its brothers. May the departed be with them. My favorite aspect of Ryan's writing style is his ability to merge reality and magic, the dark, into myth worthy of the ancient Greeks, from who he pulls much, like all good writers. If he were to be delivered to his own world, Ryan would be the Aspect of the third order , I hope that's the right one, and I thank him for his wisdom.:'( ♋

Intense and Extreme Battles and Heroics

The Tower Lord is a fantastic sequel to the Blood Song! The characters are well developed, the environment is easy to imagine, and the plot continues to thicken. Although in my first review I was amazed that I was so taken by a book without magic. However, there were glints of magic undertakings in the first book I chose to take as secondary to the story. In this story the magic becomes more widely spread and the purpose of it is both for good an evil. The battles are fantastic and each character finds their way through a heroic journey to conquer the enemy. I would say this is a must listen to for paranormal and fantasy fans alike. I'm careful where I spend my credits, and this was a credit well spent.

Excellent

One of my favorite books and I've heard over 300. Great cast of characters and an excellent story.

if you liked the first, you'll love the second

if you enjoyed book 1, you're going to have a wonderful time listening to this sequel. the first book almost feels like an intro for this one (not to discredit the first). the characters feel familiar and relatable, and it's exciting to see them again