New Book Alert: Vorodin's Lair (Book Two of the Warminster Saga) by J.V. Hilliard; All Quested Up But Too Many Places to Go

 New Book Alert: Vorodin's Lair (Book Two of the Warminster Saga) by J.V. Hilliard; All Quested Up But Too Many Places to Go 

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: The Last Keeper was a memorable first volume in the Warminster Saga in that it depicted a dark fantasy world becoming darker. A wizard sold his soul to demons for knowledge and wealth and became a monster. Daemus Alaric, a Keeper of knowledge, has prophetic dreams about the potential end of the world. Addilyn Elspeth, a noblewoman also has dreams of tetrine, a herd of black unicorns that herald impending doom. They team up with various characters like Sir Ritter, a half-elf knight, Prince Montgomery, a seafaring Prince, and a team of outlaws including Faux, who had a grudge against many of the royal family, to fight this Apocalypse. Meanwhile many characters, like Addilyn's father get killed, seemingly good character's evil intentions are revealed, and war is afoot. It's a great introduction.

Unfortunately, the follow up, Vorodin's Lair is not nearly as compelling. There is a lot of meandering with characters going places and not getting much accomplished.

Princess Addilyn, Daemus, Ritter and the others are recruited to seek safety in the land of Abacus and request assistance from the Athabasica, a post and important leader. Meanwhile, Prince Montgomery takes part in a massacre of a Naval battle. We are also introduced to various characters and subplots that become hard to keep up with after a while. 

There are some interesting moments, unfortunately they are few and far in between. Zamiel, one of the antagonists, has a very terrifying opening when he bonds and controls the tetrine.

We also see the further dissolution of society. The Keepers, the group Daemus was once a proud member of, use corruption and intimidating means to claim new leadership. Prince Montgomery's father is another of the long list of snobbish parents who reject their children in this series.

In this book one of the most intriguing characters is the Athabasica. She is worth the build up and shows to be a wise leader and poet. She is one of those types of characters who dispenses guidance and advice through cryptic means, leading the characters to figure things out for themselves. In the ensemble cast, she is the lone stand out.

Unfortunately, Vorodin's Lair has plenty of problems that outweigh its virtues. Vorodin's Lair suffers through what I call "Second Book Syndrome." The first book introduces us to the setting, characters, and plots that carry over in the series. The third (if it's the final book) usually has the climactic battle, the resolution of the quest, and the point where the protagonists meet their eventual fates and destinies. 

If done right, the second book can lead to some interesting character development and some intriguing side quests that strengthen or weaken the bonds that the protagonists share.

If done wrong, it's just an excuse to pad out 300 pages into extensively long sections that fill plots and characters that are unnecessary. Vorodin's Lair is the latter.

In every other chapter, the Reader is introduced to a character that either is new to the book or is a holdover from the previous book that it takes a struggle to remember. Daemus, Addilyn et al are detained not by important plot points leading to self discoveries. Instead they are held back by mere contrivances. 

It's one of those books where you could flip through the pages wondering "What did I miss?" Then you realize the answer is, "Not much."

Oddly enough, one of the biggest weaknesses in Vorodin's Lair is one of the best parts of The Last Keeper. Because The Last Keeper started out in a dark somber horror tone and continued to stay that way, there really is nowhere for Vorodin's Lair to go but darker yet. The tone falls into the "Too Bleak, Stopped Caring" territory somewhere around the tenth or so chapter. The series tries to top itself with bleakness to the point that it becomes boring. 

Even the characters become boring because the bleakness dictates that they can never actually win or achieve any sort of victory. The somberness takes away their agency or ability to take action to change their circumstances. After a while, it becomes hard to give a damn about anything that the characters do.

If there is to be a third volume of The Warminster Saga, let's hope it's better than Vorodin's Lair. This one features characters that are ready to quest but nowhere to go. Book Three can't get any worse.