Review – Winds of War by Rhett C Bruno

Before I ramble on, let me just add that is a joint effort between (mostly) sci-fi author Rhett Bruno and Jaime Castle, who writes (mostly) fantasy. I’m not always sure of the dynamics of two authors creating a joint effort, but our intrepid duo seem to have this one under control. I read Web of Eyes, the first part of the Buried Goddess Saga back in February (review here), and I liked it a lot. It was fun, fast-paced and mildly insane.

Zoom forward 10 months, and an audio copy of Winds of War came my way. Instead of just sticking with the odd couple formula of the first, they went with a slightly different tack. Whitney has taken Sora under his wing, looking to turn her into a thief of his quality (perceived or otherwise), but Sora has other ideas. They travel to Mei Ping, but find that trouble is following in their wake. An old foe has sent an assassin after Whitney, and even his prodigious luck might run out this time.

Torsten returns home, but faces his own woes. Lumbered with the boy king Liam, who has forged an alliance with the heathen Redstar, he must lead the Glass Army against the Shiatsu, but needs to watch his own back as Redstar tries to undermine his leadership of the armyat every juncture. But Torsten needs Redstar and his army if he is to win the day. Can he maintain a tenuous peace for the greater good?

So, here’s the good. The story is still fun, action-packed and mildly insane. Dour Torsten is constantly on the verge of blowing a gasket as he has to deal with Redstar and the king, who seem to be constantly undermining him. Whitney and Sora are often amusing, but their bickering can also grate at times, but Whitney’s ingenuity in face of certain death (or imprisonment at least) is still a chuckle.

Here’s the bad. It’s not the story, it’s as good as the last. It’s not totally the narrator. One would also imagine Idris Elba voicing Torsten or his sidekick Wardric. My beef is with his narration of almost everyone else. Whitney and Sora spend their time screeching at each other in some pseudo-Oirish accent, while Redstar sounds like some snickering pervert. It’s a pity, because the audio could have been really good otherwise.

Anyway, I’ll give it 3.5/5 for the audio, 4/5 for whatever format you read.