Silence can be deafening. Especially to those who scream for blood.
Elven Zabel Lusine, a towering mysterious beauty, arrived at Vespa Academy pretending to be an unattached student with little history. She is wrapped in lies because the dark truth is too hard to believe.
Zabel carries an unborn child… and something much more sinister. Both are growing inside her. Together.
Nobles and famous figures are in full attendance at the Vespa Academy homecoming gala. But some guests were never invited. Spies. Assassins. Monsters.
And Zabel is more terrifying than all of them.
It’s the perfect storm for a generational disaster to be unleashed.
Experience a fantastical alternative history, where humans and their rivals co-exist in a tense peace. Witness five magical female leads attending a mysterious academy in a slow-burn epic series. This journey will end in the history books.
Silence can be deafening. Especially to those who scream for blood.
Elven Zabel Lusine, a towering mysterious beauty, arrived at Vespa Academy pretending to be an unattached student with little history. She is wrapped in lies because the dark truth is too hard to believe.
Zabel carries an unborn child… and something much more sinister. Both are growing inside her. Together.
Nobles and famous figures are in full attendance at the Vespa Academy homecoming gala. But some guests were never invited. Spies. Assassins. Monsters.
And Zabel is more terrifying than all of them.
It’s the perfect storm for a generational disaster to be unleashed.
Experience a fantastical alternative history, where humans and their rivals co-exist in a tense peace. Witness five magical female leads attending a mysterious academy in a slow-burn epic series. This journey will end in the history books.
Your Gracious Excellency,
Thank you for your effusive praise regarding my first manuscript, To End Every War! It means a lot to hear that from my favorite former classmate. Looking forward, how does one build a story bridge with neither a beginning nor an end? And how can it feel satisfactory when removed from a greater epic?
There may be a secret formula that can succeed despite its storytelling awkwardness, but it is a challenge nonetheless! My character-driven account of the first book has turned into a plot-driven story centered around the later 1901 and 1902 events that even you were a part of. It was a thrilling time, even for a boring woman like me!
By November, we were all running out of time. Too bad we didn’t know it. Only Esmeralda sensed it, yet even she was unprepared to reap the whirlwind. Let me add some much-needed perspective at the end of the journey.
Typed by my hand,
Bernie
P.S. I’ve included more clippings at your request. This time, the headlines dominate all!
The Late Morning of Thursday, May 1, 1902 (May Day)
Bernie took two steps up the tower’s spiraling stairs at a time. Each flight of stairs ran parallel to the outside red-bricked wall, turning at every corner. Pausing at a narrow mid-level landing, she caught her breath in her auburn ankle-length skirt. I wish I were in better shape!
Narrow glass-paned windows provided a view of the large driveway far below, revealing a panicked staff charging in and out of the castle doors. Most passersby in the driveway were personnel in black and red uniforms brandishing long rifles with bayonets affixed. Are the Carabinieri leaving or arriving? The castle’s walls surrounding the hilltop made it hard to tell.
“Don't panic!” mused Bernie to herself. “It's not the end of the world, just the beginning of a new one…” She found herself shaking nonetheless. Will this be the new normal for everyone?
Continuing up the next flight of stairs, Bernie finally heard voices at the top. So they are up here! Huffing, she clutched the metal outside handrail as if her life depended upon it. Bernie looked down to the small atrium far below and realized she had scaled six stories. Not bad for a bookworm!
Looking up, all that remained above her was the tower’s loft and roof. She moved slower, finally dragging herself to the sparsely decorated, wooden-floored loft. A short iron ladder in the center went to the roof and ended at an open hatch. Bernie paused to regain her composure, aware of what she was about to witness outside. It will be chaos and panic.
“...part of the port is on fire!” exclaimed a familiar male voice above. “I think one of the warehouses went up. It's difficult to tell what's going on west past the Turbella River.”
Bernie marched up to the ladder and started to scale it rung by rung. I need to face the facts. The sea breeze ticked her wavy, strawberry-blonde locks, as did the salty air it brought. Finally, her head exited the high tower, catching sight of the two people above.
A short-sleeved young man and woman leaned against the tall, red-white brick crenelations, each scanning the black smoke-filled horizon that dominated. The observing taller man had wavy brown locks and a confident look in his proud stature. Enzo looks like he's ready to save the city!
Enzo pulled up a small brass spyglass telescope that gleamed in the high sun. “It looks like the Academy is still fine.” He slowly pivoted eastward and eyed the towering hills behind the city. “I believe they're taking refugees now from the funicular railway. They shut down the gondola lift system.”
About a mile eastward stood a massive white and canary-colored hilltop monastery that overlooked the entire coastline. The complex made their opposing high castle look small.
With a grunt, Bernie grabbed the ladder’s final looped exterior side rungs and pulled herself onto the slightly slanted stone roof. The woman with loose black hair before Bernie turned around, squinting her brilliant blue eyes at Bernie. Is Esmeralda surprised to see me? While certainly attractive, there was nothing overly remarkable about Esmeralda.
Nonetheless, Bernie thought she always radiated a regal strength. Esmeralda softened her concerned and pale face, bringing forth a warmth that overpowered the black smoke beyond. Why is she hanging out up here? Bernie pictured the Duchessa hunched over a massive conference table surrounded by murmuring advisors. Maybe she needs perspective?
“Bernie!?” asked Esmeralda in a calm voice. “What are you doing up here? You said you would hide underneath a desk until the day ended. This is a far cry from that!”
Bernie shook her head. “It turns out that hiding underneath a thick desk is boring unless the room explodes.” She joined the duo at the crenellations. “Speaking of explosions, how many have we had so far?” The massive city surrounding them had at least five billowing fires, some commingled in the Zena cityscape below. How many have died already?
Enzo lowered his spyglass. “I think nine bombs have detonated. Fortunately, the frequency of them rattling us has slowed down.” He looked at Esmeralda with a deep frown on his handsome face. “Cousin, either the worst is over or–”
“--Or the other shoe has yet to drop,” replied Esmeralda. “If I were a betting woman, I would guess everything has been a distraction. The city’s Carabinieri has either been deployed or is guarding the unattacked critical institutions.” She took the tiny spyglass from her taller cousin and started scanning. “This is no last-minute attack. It's a well-planned and multi-stage operation with a crescendo at the finale. But where will it be held?”
Bernie bit her lip in deep thought. “This mysterious group has enough people to launch a full strike.” Could any of my friends be in danger around the city? She felt her stomach churn while her mind cycled through friendly faces. “What about the Academy? Could it be next?!” Bernie looked back at the stoic monastery across from them and gasped. No! No! No!
“I have considered that,” replied Esmeralda as if she were discussing a sizable lunch menu. “We are mobilizing the reinforcements who just arrived from the capital, but it will take time to get them there. Every road throughout the Zena is now a warzone or packed with civilians fleeing to the fringes.” She dropped the spyglass and looked back at Bernie with a nod.
Enzo shook his dark brown locks. “You're not worried, Esmeralda? Is it because of our odd little team up there?” He put a hand on his perfectly pointed chin. “No offense, but I'm still not convinced they're a solid squad. You would be better off rushing Calli and Major to reinforce the Academy with the local royal guard. They all have decades of combined experience and could teach any weapons course in one day!”
“There's more to strength than just firepower," countered Esmeralda while returning the telescope to her cousin with a smirk. “Remember what my team did at the hunting palace! I've hammered them into a single alloyed and still-molten sword for eight months. All that remains is to plunge them into the cooling waters and pull them out as something more.”
To End Every War was a unique book in the Epic Fantasy genre in that it wasn't an Epic Fantasy. I mean it was. It was set in an Alternate version of our world in 1902 where Elves, Dwarves, Giants, Centaurs, Selkies, demon-like Abraxas, and Fairies exist alongside Humans and in this case attend university together. There were the usual tropes that can be found in such works: arcane mysteries, magic, strife among various kingdoms, and so on.
But what set it apart was that the focus was on the characters, a circle of female friends and their conflicts with each other and adjustments to living in a new environment away from home. No epic quests, no good vs. evil battle. Just seven women of different species, backgrounds, and personalities learning to live with and like each other, more Feminist than Fantasy. In my previous review, I compared it to “Lord of the Rings meets Mary McCarthy’s The Group” and said that “it's not an Epic Fantasy with an All-Female cast. It's a Woman's Fiction Novel that happens to have a Fantasy setting.” I did not exaggerate.
The second volume, All Silence Must Cease, is less character driven and more plot driven but no less interesting. Alongside the individual characters and their internal issues within themselves, each other, and their peers, it also puts them into the larger scope of warring communities, secret societies, political backstabbing, and their own roles as future community leaders, influencers, and fighters.
The women are definitely rife with personal trauma that has affected their lives in Vespa Academy. Esmeralda Vespa, the Human future Duchessa, becomes a central figure in various power struggles. She weighs potential marriages and obtains a very dangerous rival with an unstable prince.
Zabel Lusine, an enigmatic Elf is pregnant and has a secret marriage to another Elf while her husband's guardian is her patron. Her body is also inhabited by a simulacrum, a violent Dark Elf named Shamir.
Viatrix Corna, a scholarly Dwarf finds her image of her family and species called into question. She has to deal with her father having an extramarital affair, her brother being part of a Socialist organization that is planning violence, and her grandfather being a member of a secret society that finances many of the happenings in the other lands.
While Alya Pamoroyan, an Abraxas, is studying in Vespa Academy, her kingdom has been attacked. She is anxious about her parents who are reported missing and her newly married sister, Dina who will soon be right in the thick of things.
Kirsi Takala, a Selkie, is struggling to put a hold on her violent nature, which all Selkies possess (and makes them good but terrifying fighters). She also is trying to solve a mystery involving her mother's time in Vespa and the dark secrets that led to her dismissal and a murder.
Kamila “Kam” Ruszo, a Human/Fairy hybrid is going through physiological changes as her body transforms into a more Fairy-like form. She also learns that her mother is a spy and assassin and has the Royal family in her sight.
The six women's struggles are both external and introspective, mixing the personal and political. There are great moments that collide their private lives with their public and pushes them into a wider circle of influence and change.
One of those moments involves an assassination attempt during a public event. The characters also face various conflicts such as Kam’s with her mother, Viatrix with her father and brother, Kirsi with bullying students, Alya with Dina, Esmeralda with the prince, and Zabel with Shamir during the attempt and its aftermath. These intertwining conflicts change their lives by pushing them onto darker, unsettling, and unstable paths.
The larger big picture events surround the characters but except for some violent moments and allegiances of older friends and family members do not directly involve them. Being peripherally involved might not be the same way as physically involved but it is no less traumatic.
They might be on the edge of the events, but those edges are becoming narrower and they will soon be thrown in.
Right now they have to live with the consequences of other’s actions. They worry about family members being exiled or disappearing. They are disillusioned by family members who walk violent and treacherous paths. Their darker sides become even more present as they give into violence, sadness, and rage. They weigh the changes that will be made to end these conflicts.
The strengths in both this and the previous book is the tight sisterhood and solidarity that form around the main characters. In this book, we still see that each character is able to put her own worries aside and use her talents to aid the others. Whether it's Viatrix’s scholarly pursuits, Kam’s interest in sneaking in and out of forbidden places, Zabel's intuitive wisdom, Alya's stoic rationality, Kirsi’s obstinate energy, or Esmeralda’s leadership and big picture thinking, these women always find a way to help one another through their various crimes and struggles. Which makes the ending all the more questionable, darker, and potentially even more tragic.
As the book ends, each character is given an option to become a larger part of the world around them. They are recruited by secret organizations, go home to fight in their own way, make advantageous marriages and alliances, and settle into private lives in their kingdoms while becoming involved with the local political scene. These changes could mean that they will not only participate in the upcoming conflicts but will be forced into becoming enemies with each other.
The school motto might be “To End Every War” but war seems to be what is going to happen. The characters have to decide whether they will take part or stick together to find a way around war and end it.