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The Last Seer King

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An epically woven, battle rich tapestry with much to look forward to in the volumes to come.

Epic sword, sorcery and intrigue continue in The Last Seer King by S. J. Hartland. Book two in the Shadow Sword series finds the last lines of ancient royal blood heading into battle against the Ghoul-God Archanin, who is both loathsome and alluring. Lords have lost their castles, some have lost their heads, and most have lost their freedom, in some form or another.


We pick up with a new character Dannon, a swordsman raised by the Varee, who excels at pillaging and raiding, and doing nothing but. Of course, his path is tested when his fates cross paths with Kaell. The struggle for Kaell meanwhile is one that is so twisted; there can be no denying this plot was well thought out by Hartland. Needless to say there isn’t much one can reveal about his story in book two, but it’s a unique aspect to magic, well imagined by the author.


Roaran, a myth on the pages of book one, is an ancient king we get to learn more about. His desire to settle an old grudge with a tyrant, and seek some absolution in the process is as spellbinding as the path he has secretly walked behind the scenes for ages. Meanwhile, we get to hang out with old friends, like Val Arques. This tortured soul, and Heath Damadar have plenty of witty repartee. Their clever back and forth plays as the comedic relief, but make no mistake, darkness lurks there. Val finds himself facing the traumas of his own past, where forgiving himself might be the toughest battle he has ever had to overcome.


This is a wicked tale of abuse and torture, hidden behind the enthralling guise of swordplay, danger and battles. The Last Seer King is more a riddle of magical mysteries where sorcery taints every word of this world. Hartland again delivers the richness without bogging the reader down with too many words. This is not a tale of good versus evil. Almost everyone has forfeited his or her pride and morals at some point, mostly out of desperation and the ever-pressing struggle for survival. This is only the start of an epically woven, battle rich tapestry with much to look forward to in the volumes to come.

Reviewed by

A sometimes kind, sometimes evil hedgewitch on a crusade to create as many fantastical worlds and read as many stupendous adventures as I can. Currently living with three loyal hounds, an impartial cat, and my very own vampire husband.

DANNON

About the author

S.J. Hartland is an emerging fantasy writer from the Darling Downs, Australia. She is a journalist and fencer who has spent too many holidays roaming around remote castles. The 19th Bladesman was her first published book, followed by The Last Seer King and The Sword Brotherhood (May, 2020). view profile

Published on August 01, 2019

Published by

150000 words

Contains mild explicit content ⚠️

Worked with a Reedsy professional 🏆

Genre: Epic Fantasy

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