Blade of Tyshalle

The Second of the Acts of Caine

By: Matthew Stover

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki

Length: 31 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

On Earth, Hari Michaelson was a superstar. But on Overworld, he was the assassin Caine. Real monarchs lived and died at his hands and entire governments were overthrown...all for the entertainment of millions back on Earth. But now Hari, stripped of his identity as Caine, must fight his greatest battle: against the powerful corporate masters of Earth and the faceless masses who are killing everything he loves. Enemies old and new array themselves against him. And Hari is just one man - alone, half-crippled, powerless. They say he doesn't have a chance. They are wrong.

©2001 Matthew Woodring Stover (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

" Day of the Jackal meets Lord of the Rings.... A marvelous conspiracy thriller of worlds within worlds, where no one is necessarily who or what they seem." (Simon R. Green)

Unfulfilled Potential

I gave a pretty glowing review of the first book, some of which was based on the really clever plot mechanisms and where I could see the series going in the future. I certainly did not expect it to go where this book went. To be honest, I thought it just went... weird. I'm all about sci-fi and fantasy, which is all about weird, but it almost felt like the author was going out of his way to twist things in an unexpected direction. Normally, I love that in a book and really respect an author that can fool me (which was done to a perfect degree in the first book), but in this book, it felt like it was a twist for twist's sake.

The first book set up a wondrous potential future and the second book felt like the final book in a long series where the author is trying to wrap up all the loose ends. The first part of the book is actually better than the second part. Although I didn't love this book, nor the second part in particular, it has some dialog and personal insights that are pure genius. I've certainly read much worse books, and maybe I am being harsh because of the awesome potential I saw in the first one.

Yes, I will listen to the next book because Matthew Stover is really good and I really want it to be better. I also see that he is releasing a comic book series called OverWorld, I'll also need to check that out :)

excellent sequel

matthew Stover is one of my favorite authors and Caine is one of my favorite characters. I do not understand the bad reviews of this novel for the most part. Yes, it is a long book, but there are a lot of long great books out there. The people who complain about this are just lazy in my opinion, great things come to those who wait. I will say that this book is very violent and does have some disturbing scenes in it, but that is what it is supposed to be. This is grimdark fantasy and science fiction,and yes some of the scenes are over the top, but this is what you people signed up for. The purpose of the book is supposed to be depressing, we aren't reading Alice in Wonderland here.
I digress though, the book itself is fantastic, the characters are well developed, and the plot is intricate. I never expected this novel to go in the direction it went after the first one. What makes the novel even better is the action scenes. They might be the best I have ever read, they are certainly up there with Joe Abercrombie and Richard Morgan. Also, the narration by Stefan is top notch, and his portrayal of Caine is one of the best character performances ever. I definitely recommend this novel and strongly suggest that it is worth finishing and I can't wait for Stover's next novel.

Caine!!

This story dragged a lot of times but Caine is such a great character that i don’t seem to mind all that much. I loved the philosophical elements at play here but the metaphorical jargon can be a little cumbersome. I am okay with this, at the end i throughly enjoyed this listen.

An Ambitious Sequel

A rich, complicated sequel full of twists, tragedy, defeat and resolution. As good as Heroes

Rich plot very satisfying

The Caine series is extremely brutal but has depth and momentum that kept me wanting more. The characters are diverse and interesting. If dark fantasy is your genre you will not be disappointed.

love it

I wouldn't be dissuaded by all the naysaying about meta whatever stuff. it's there but it doesn't detract from the story. Some of it doesn't make.sense to me but the story is still great. Can't wait to listen to the next one.

Perfect Narration for Caine

The narrator is perfect for Caine. Good yarn worth your hard earned credit! Very underrated series. Will start on the next book in the series soon.

I LOVE THIS BOOK

Yes, it’s dark. And scary. And philosophical. And hard. And bad things happen.

And the story doesn’t always make sense.

BUT.

Put it all together, think on the philosophies presented, and decide where you fall. Once you’ve made that decision, the book will sizzle for you.

I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK.

My favorite book

I first read this book as a teenager full of ideals and metaphysical wondering. This book helped to shape me in ways I still don't fully comprehend. Listening to it again 12 years after my first reading has allowed me to see it in a new light, but it remains as impactful. The story was enhanced by Rudnicki's performance. My appreciation for this book has improved and I am looking forward to enjoying this novel more frequently as an audio book.

Good mix of fantasy and sci-fi

2nd book of the series.
A little formulaic now but the characters of Cane is to much fun. He gets a pretty sharp arc is this one, more so than the first book. Overall a good read with well written action scenes.
Only a few main characters get really drawn out but that’s okay, there is enough of Cane to go around.