Voidbreaker

Dalglish sticks the landing with his final Keepers fantasy, which sees humans and monsters battle each other, their own creators, and the threat of the void. Following the events of Ravencaller, tensions are high between the humans of Londheim, devout worshippers of the three Goddesses, and the dragon-sired, recently reawakened magical creatures who remember a time when the humans’ lands belonged to them. It’s only a matter of time before the city erupts in war. Dalglish does a masterful job setting up both sides as flawed—only the peacekeepers in the middle are true heroes. Among them are kind, sarcastic warrior priest Devin Eveson; his dagger-wielding lover, Jacaranda; his resurrected wife, Brittany; and his magical brother-in-law, Tommy. But Devin’s sister, Adria, a priest of the Keeping church, has been granted power over souls by the dragon-sired, and her magic threatens the order the Goddesses have established. Though her intentions are good, her actions may bring about the apocalypse, pitting the siblings against one another. The climactic battle is duly epic, though the series’ deeper themes of unlearning history and reevaluating what makes a monster get somewhat lost in the bombastic action. Still, Dalglish sends things out on an optimistic note that will satisfy series fans. This is a worthy finale. [em]Agent: Michael Carr, Veritas Literary. (Feb.) [/em]