Review: Children of the Enaisi (Sword’s Edge Chronicles, Book 2) by L.S. King
When change comes too quickly, not everyone is able or willing to roll with the punches….
Five years before Sword’s Edge takes place, Thane Alcandhor of the Rangers is summoned by his history-keeper friend, Delgan, to Pashelon Province. Specifically, Delgan requests he come to Pashelon Pass to investigate some remnants of the Enaisi: in this case, another entrance to the Portal Complex guarded by the Ranger’s hold at Zaidhron. The only way to enter this particular complex or the one at the hold is with a bio-key – a device only a Child of the Enaisi can command.
Since Alcandhor is a Child of the Enaisi, he has such a key, which he uses to open the door that Delgan and his companions found. He then leads the history-keeper and the rest inside, where they discover a secret that could rock the very foundation of their world. Though he wishes he didn’t need to, Alcandhor swears the group to secrecy, as this discovery could upend their society. With the risk of open rebellion on the horizon, they cannot afford any more problems right now.
But five years later, after Alcandhor’s niece Tam becomes the first female Ranger and helps stop the rebellion, things seem poised to settle down. However, Alcandhor’s foresight does not necessarily make him able to see everything – including his niece falling in love, or making contact with a long-dead Enaisi. Or is he dead? And what are they going to do about that little matter of “in love” that Alcandhor had to tell her about before they headed back to Zaidhron?
The Story
The Rangers’ triumphant march back to Zaidhron from Lairdton takes a few days and it is not entirely happy. One of their number, Nandhal, has gone Rogue and is on the run while another traitor, Tanadhon, is bound and being escorted to Zaidhron in their midst. Tam is feeling the loss of her father all over again as she contemplates the betrayal of these clan members. Must the Rangers live like this all the time, with the constant fear of losing a loved one and the grief that comes when one of their number dies or turns against them?
Luckily, her scamp of a cousin and friend Marcalan is there to lighten the mood. In Sword’s Edge it was discovered that Marcalan has Enaisi blood even though his parents do not, and he had been hiding this secret until recently. Tam, Alcandhor, and a few others are keeping this discovery quiet lest his mother be accused of infidelity to his father. But one thing Tam and Marcalan established early on was an emotional rapport through “sending” their feelings to one another, something begun to teach Marcalan how to use his own version of this ability.
However, the young rapscallion realized long before they started this connection that he was falling in love with his cousin. Marcalan knew he would recognize the woman he would marry on sight; so when he first clapped eyes on Tam, who is eight years his junior, he knew he had found her. But Alcandhor has made it plain no one is to go near Tam with romantic intentions until she’s old enough to become Thane, which will be in five years’ time.
Further trouble arises as Marcalan realizes the sending bond he and his cousin established is a lot stronger than either of them anticipated. He can’t bear to be apart from her and Tam cannot stand it either, leading her to realize they have what her uncle termed “in love.” Trying their best to remain “friends and cousins” doesn’t work too well when their bond keeps bringing them together like magnets, and things get worse when Marcalan learns a secret about his parentage. Whose son is he, really? Can he even be a Ranger? How could he ever be worthy of that title – or of Tam?
Meanwhile, Nandhal joins a group of Rogue Rangers and sets out to claim vengeance. At the same time, Tam receives a dream from an Enaisi, one claiming the name of her clan’s ancestor. Whether Alcandhor wants it or not, his plans are not going to withstand the coming changes. Can he make sure those he loves will weather them? Or does he love his plans more than he cares about them?
The Characters
Marcalan, a minor character hinted to have feelings for Tam in book one, receives more of the spotlight in this sequel. Twenty-three or twenty-four to Tam’s fifteen, he knows darn well he cannot afford for his love for his cousin to be recognized even as he is torn by the fact that he must keep his love for her secret from his Thane, who has decreed she should be left alone. The heart wants what it wants, though, and Tam’s heart belongs to him as much as his belongs to her. Yet it is the question of his parentage that threatens to break the lighthearted Ranger more than any forbidden love could.
For her part, Tam is not as much of an ingenue as she was in Sword’s Edge. The trials she has faced and conquered means she has grown more than her uncle realizes. She also proves she knows her own mind and heart better than he thinks she does when she freely chooses Marcalan. If anything, her problem is not that she isn’t mature enough to marry, but that she has enough post-traumatic stress from losses she does not even recall to accept that her new love is going to walk into danger just like the rest of their family must.
Poor Alcandhor really takes a beating in this book. Besides needing to plan an execution for Tanadhon and tracking down the Rogues, he also has to put out his wife, Aleta. Accepting that she didn’t love him was difficult enough; realizing that her constant disrespect for him undermines his authority and that he must put her out or lose what he is trying to build is much, much harder. It makes him even more likely to err where romance is concerned because he isn’t quite thinking straight.
The World
L.S. King expands on the world she introduced in Sword’s Edge brilliantly. The Enaisi are described in greater detail and the manner of humanity’s coming to this planet is also further explained. Ranger and Enaisi powers are explicated and shown further while future events are hinted at, setting up for the next book in the series. This is not just a well-crafted sci-fi/fantasy setting – it is a world in which to happily get lost!
Politics
None.
Content Warning
The romance is handled well and sweetly, but there is talk of “nestling” after marriage. Depression also features when Marcalan’s parentage is thrown into question, as the young man struggles with his identity and nearly loses that battle. There is also torture, discussions of rape, and a fade-to-black before a Rogue rapes and murders a mother and her teen daughter. All these events are handled delicately and well but it is worth knowing about them before going into the book.
Who is it for?
Fans of L.S. King and anyone who loved Sword’s Edge will devour this second book in the series. It is impossible not to fall into the novel and want more, as the world and characters linger long after the final chapter. Those seeking some sci-fi/fantasy that would make Andre Norton proud would do well to purchase both the prior book and this sequel, as King has proven an honorable heiress to the Grande Dame of Science Fiction. Readers who want some psi-powers in a Medieval setting but with plenty of science to go with the “magic” will love this book. Young adults hungry for a good read will enjoy it as well and they will be clamoring for the next installment after they are done, especially if they like action and romance. The book is not focused simply on the concept of “in love” – there are mysteries to solve, villains to fight, and trouble is brewing on the horizon. With all that going on, the romance is an acceptable place to sit down and breathe for a few pages!
Why buy it?
It is darn good sci-fi/fantasy. We do not have enough of that available. Could there be any better reason than that to purchase it?