The Mongoliad: The Foreworld Saga, Book 2

The Mongoliad : Book one of THE FOREWORD SAGA was the best so far. I listened to it twice just for the joy of it. Book two is very good also. I am looking forward to book three. Well worth the credit or money not to mention the treat of the adventure . Enjoy

Many reviews of Book I of "The Mongoliad" were lukewarm at best. I like these stories more than some readers seem to, but agree that some of the complaints are valid and apply to this Book 2.

Complaint 1: variations on the theme of "rambling," "choppy," "no ending." All true. The books move between different characters and storylines and jump from one cliffhanger to another without a lot of closure. The first book ends abruptly, and the second book picks up with two new characters in a totally new location and storyline (Rome in the aftermath of Pope Gregory IX's death). But the Book I storylines do return (we DO find out what happened beyond the red veil) and I remain intrigued, even though I suspect some details got dropped along the way.

Complaint 2: "No characterization." Somewhat agree, but it doesn't bother me in this action-packed adventure. I agree there is no deep backstory for most of the characters, and there are so many characters (often with unfamiliar names) that it's easy to get them confused. I found the Mongol characters--the Khan and his entourage in the Mongolian capital--to be more fleshed out than the Europeans.

Complaint 3: "Too much detailed description of fighting." Somewhat agree. Medieval ninjas. But the authors are upfront about the fact that an interest in medieval fighting styles got them into the story in the first place.

Complaint 4, "book by committee." I disagree, I think the voice is consistent throughout.

Complaint 5. "Boring, too much history, hard to follow the history." This is where I'm on a different page. My interest in and knowledge of history has been spurred and enhanced by novels such as this one. I was relatively unfamiliar with this particular era and set of events beforehand. I was fascinated by the events described in the book, which inspired me to do a fair amount of outside reading. I learned a lot.

There is conversation you can read on Amazon between George R. R. Martin ("Game of Thrones" guy, just in case you didn't know) and Bernard Cornwell, author of many historical novels include the "Sharpe's Rifles" series about the Napoleonic Wars. They talk about (1) the close kinship of epic fantasy and historical fiction and (2) the way books and characters seem to "drive" themselves, so that an author him/herself is often caught by surprise by the direction a storyline or character takes. I think "The Mongoliad" is a case in point for both of these assertions.

If you've read part 1, then get ready to have very little of the characters you've grown attached to. A new plot line involving the Pope, a deranged priest, and Vatican shenanigans dominates this rather ill-paced sequel. Since I've already spent this much time on it, I'm somewhat obliged to listen to part 3, which I'm hoping has a bit more oomph to it.

Yes. It is gripping, thought provoking and very visual.

All of the characters were engaging and deep

Percival

No.

Great story. Very intricate and suspenseful.

Book 2 is all action with very little story. I was thrill to get through the first book, but with this book, it was just okay. It seems like there was a chunk of story, missing. Hoping the story get on track in the next book. This story of the saga was overwhelming with too much fighting. It was a bit of a let down because I wanted to know more of the background of the Mongoliads. It was still a decent read and looking forward to the next one.