Ravencry

Raven's Mark, Book 2

By: Ed McDonald

Narrated by: Colin Mace

Length: 13 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

In the second gritty installment of the Raven's Mark series, a bounty hunter faces down the darkest evil.

Ryhalt Galharrow is a blackwing - a bounty hunter who seeks out and turns over any man, woman, or child who has been compromised by the immortals known as the Deep Kings. Four years have passed since he helped drive the Deep Kings back across the Misery. But new and darker forces are rising against the republic....

©2018 Ed McDonald (P)2018 Penguin Audio

A rare and excellent story

Narrated amazingly, and more impactful than the first, a great story. A harsh and unforgiving story resonating with another old veteran.

Unique Setting, Extraordinary Narration

This 2nd book in the series drags a bit in the middle, but it's a grim tale worth seeing through. Made better still by its unique setting, determined characters and excellent narration.

As good as the first!

Ed McDonald is a fantastic grimdark author, and Ravencry proves he can repeat the magic from Blackwing. Colin Mace also did a stellar performance as the audio book narrator. Great stuff. Looking forward to Book 3!

It just gets better and better

Like any great series, each one of these books has a satisfying and incredibly creative story arc. You don't have to read every single book to get to one mighty resolution because the author knows how to create meaningful opposition and situations within each book. But the entire series, as a whole, slowly answers questions, fills in history, and manages to up the anty of its predecessor. The writing, narration, and story are just as good, if not better than the first book.

The perfect grimdark series

The second installment of Ryhalt Galharrow's story of defending Valengrad from another evil entity takes him and his companions back into the Misery. Something has been stolen from Crowfoot and Galharrow has orders to get it back, as the city has a segment of worshipers waiting for the Bright Lady to manifest and save them all. Nothing is simple though, with Galharrow dismissing the identity of the Bright Lady, finds himself taking orders from a raven, and now fears for the life of one of his best friend's. This is one of those stories that you just have to read or listen to, to fully appreciate the scope of how grim lives can be, but friendship and love can still make it all worth while, when life is at it's bleakest. The characters are vibrant in their believability in this fantastical world. All are flawed, but you want to hear their stories. I absolutely loved a little orphaned girl named Amaira, that made her way into Ryhalt's heart, as much as he didn't want her to. Ryhalt spends much of the story in denial of feeling anything, then his trek through the Misery becomes as much of an enlightening experience, as well as a treacherous one. The Misery is a story in itself, having to be one of the most fascinating places I've visited with it's unique creatures, never failing to amaze.
Looking forward to starting the last installment and of course, I won't pass up listening to Colin Mace. He captures the personalities perfectly and Galharrow himself, could have no other voice.

Dark and wonderful!

I have such a good time with this book! After reading and enjoying Blackwing, I wanted to continue with the series before letting too much time elapse. After listening to a sample of the audiobook, I decided to go that route. I was enjoying myself but somewhere around the midpoint of the book, I admitted to myself that some of the details of the story were getting past me. I continued with the book but decided that I was going to have to listen to it a second time because I didn't want to miss anything. So I did. Yes, I started this audiobook over again at the beginning just as soon as I finished it. I did pick up on quite a few things that I missed the first time around on my second listen and found that I really enjoyed the story a whole lot more so it was a good decision. I guess you could say that I liked this book since I liked it enough to listen to it twice!

This book is set about 4 years after the events of the first book. Ryhalt is still the leader of Blackwing and is working with his group. He knows things that would be dangerous if others found out but he knows how to keep things to himself when necessary. This book jumps right into the action with Ryhalt leaving a meeting in a rather unconventional manner just to stay alive. When he sees a man that he is sure he recently killed, he knows that something is going on. Plus there is the small matter of an important and powerful item that goes missing. I knew that Ryhalt had his work cut out for him.

This book was just as dark and bloody as I expected it to be after reading the previous installment. The story is set in a cruel world where things can and often do go wrong. Things are rather desperate at times and I was more than a little worried about the safety of all of the key characters. I loved the way that the reader has a chance to really get to know these characters better in this installment. A lot of the book is centered solely on Ryhalt and I felt that his actions showed exactly what kind of man he is. I thought that a couple of other characters important in his life were wonderfully developed so that they had a bigger impact on the overall story.

Colin Mace was the perfect narrator for this book. If you had asked me what Ryhalt Garharrow sounded like after reading the first book, I couldn't have come up with anything that fits better than this narrator. I think that he really was able to bring this story to life. His reading added excitement, desperation, hope, and uncertainty of the story when appropriate. I believe that his narration added to my overall enjoyment of the story and I plan to listen to more of his work.

I would highly recommend this story to others. It is a gritty fantasy that is well crafted and entertaining. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

I received a digital review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley and I purchased a copy of the audiobook.

Another solid entry in this series

I’ve often found the 2nd in a trilogy not quite as satisfying as the first and third books. Not this one! It took turns I never expected and back again in a unique magical world where the characters remain true to their progression. I just wish I could write a review that is as well written as are these books. Mr. Mace’s narration is perfect-breaths life into all of it.

Fantastic

As grimdark as it gets. I had been eagerly awaiting this book and it did not disappoint. The story is excellent and the reader really accentuates the grimdark nature of the story. If you like the first story you’ll be pleased with the sequel.

Satisfyingly dark

I have thoroughly enjoyed this and the previous book. I like the grim-dark stuff . This is going to sound a little screwy, but it feels more mature to me. I don’t think it’s good to say that things that are gory, dark, and a bit foul are mature, but it’s the best way for me to describe it. I’m middle aged and don’t care for young adult stuff. A lot of fantasy is coming of age stories. So Ryholt, Nenn, and the Dark Crow all appeal to me as adults who have bad vices, can be a bit nasty, and are rather violent but have a redeeming trait hidden in their depths.

I like how the Crow-God imprinted a tattoo on Ryholt that can tear through his flesh to give him a message. Very creative! I don’t think I’ve come across something like that in another series.

The Unnamed Gods, Deep Kings, and weird misery creatures have no explanation of where they come from, how they rule, or why people should care about them. This info is severely lacking. Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to matter a whole lot. Since Ryholt doesn’t seem to need the info then we don’t either (even though backstory would’ve been appreciated).

I loved the tag along raven in this 2nd book. He was great and added snark. I enjoyed his berating of Ryholt. I also like the Darling turned blind little boy old man who was a drunk. What a sight to see an angry drunk 10 year-old looking kid with a vulgar potty mouth.

I’m really looking forward to the next book and having Amira play a larger part. She turns the curmudgeonly Ryholt into a soft teddy bear.

I’m off to start listening to #3.

Thoroughly entertaining

Outstanding narrator, great story, my face hurts from holding back the tears! Starting book 3 now!