Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

A great continuation of Williams' new trilogy, Empire of Grass shows how to complex epic fantasy can be done, and done well. While the beats of classic fantasy are here, they are overlaid by the complexity of the characters and the motivations, eschewing the usual good and evil of a lot of epic fantasy. Can't wait for the third book!

Once again we journey to the immersive world of Osten Ard as created by Williams and follow multiple perspectives as they discover the ever present Norn threat and deal with the political implications of their actions. I was left feeling a little disappointed with this instalment because it felt incredibly dense at pretty slow in certain parts. I enjoyed the chapters following Morgan and his adventures in the forest and also found the Thrithings fascinating, but unfortunately, a lot of the political chapters focusing on Nabban just dragged for me. The action did move much quicker in the later chapters and the book set up very nicely for some revelations in book 3, but it honestly felt like it could have been streamlined a little bit more, for me.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

*** I received an advance copy of this book from the publishers and NetGalley ***



The second book in The Last King of Osten Ard series is a continuation from The Witchwood Crown. There was no grand finale of that book, so this coming straight off the back of it seems natural.

Where the first book was all about bridging from the previous series to the new one, and setting up some of the plot to come, this one was allowed to get on with the job at hand. And boy does it - there is so much plot. We chop and change from one character's PoV to another. At times this is a little jarring as they don't tend to be closely linked. And at certain points, we are reunited with a character we haven't seen for 100 pages or so and frankly have forgotten what they were up to.

This massive cast of characters, and epic strands of plot which barely converge throughout the book, is something I don't take well to. I found this with John Gwynne's books and the same is true here - I find it quite hard to remember who is who. And it doesn't help that some of the characters are fairly interchangeable, having very similar backstories and positions in their respective houses.

Some of the plot is revealed as we go through the book, which keeps the reader guessing (why are they doing that, why are they going there etc). However the narrative style is a little towards the "describe everything"/Stephen King end of the spectrum, which can get tedious at times.

There are key points in this book where characters converge together and they are truly wonderful pieces to read and really engage the reader. However there are so many tiresome trudges through the forest, and a few too many times where people suddenly meet up at the right time to be rescued.

An epic fantasy tale in every sense of the word, and definitely something different to the current crop of writers in the genre. But a massive commitment is needed from the reader (I think of myself as a medium speed reader but this took me nearly 4 weeks to finish).