Harbinger of the Storm (Obsidian and Blood, #2)

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Harbinger of the Storm (Obsidian and Blood #2)

by Aliette de Bodard (Goodreads Author)

3.94 · rating details · 47 ratings · 16 reviews

Death, magic and intrigue in this hotly-anticipated follow-up to Servant of the Underworld. A sumptuously-detailed Aztec world, which will appeal to fans of magical fantasy, historical drama, political intrigue and murder mysteries.

THE AZTEC EMPIRE TEETERS ON THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION.
As the political infighting starts within the imperial court, Acatl, High Priest for the De...more

Mass Market Paperback, 416 pages

Published January 6th 2011 by Angry Robot (first published December 17th 2010)

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Jan 08, 2012

Andrew rated it

The Revered Speaker -- that is to say, the Emperor of the Tenochtitlan nation-state -- is dead. His potential successors are maneuvering for the throne like there was no tomorrow. There may in fact be no tomorrow, because the Revered Speaker is the mortal representative of Huitzilpochtli, and without one in place... the universe gets shaky. For example, somebody important is torn into messy little gobbets by star-demons. Our favorite High Priest of the Dead decides to do something about this, ov...more

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Jan 31, 2011

Ove rated it

· review of another edition

Is it the end of the fifth world?
The Emperor is dead and so is the protection he provided for the fifth world now threatened by star demons, malicious summoners and inner strife.

It all starts when they find councilor Ocome cut to pieces by a star-demon inside the palace. The demon is on the loose and has to be found. The investigation into the councilor’s death starts to peel an onion of mystery with many surprising twists and turns to be enjoyed.

The succession is f...moreIs it the end of the fifth world?
The Emperor is dead and so is the protection he provided for the fifth world now threatened by star demons, malicious summoners and inner strife.

It all starts when they find councilor Ocome cut to pieces by a star-demon inside the palace. The demon is on the loose and has to be found. The investigation into the councilor’s death starts to peel an onion of mystery with many surprising twists and turns to be enjoyed.

The succession is far from as clear as it ought to be even though the Emperor named his preference and while the council and the different fractions struggle for power they have a star-demon loose in the palace and the wards protecting the world is getting weaker by the hour.

You can compare the story to a traditional detective story with Acatl as the lead detective and Teomitl as his loyal sidekick muscle with the difference that Acatl is the High Priest of the Dead with magical powers of his own beside the deductive mind needed for the job. Teomitl is a member of the Imperial family, the next leader of the House of Darts and a frequent vessel for his gods and their powers. He is also in love with Acatl’s sister which his family frown on to say the least. The daughter of peasants? It is not done. As his brother the dead Emperor’s chosen successor says.

Acatl continues to show little ambition for power but his life is starting to get intertwined with the ones in power and the gods that favors them. One could say that he is in the hot pan for the duration. I think we get an inkling of how people in a different culture reason and think. That is something I value in a book.

Aliette de Bodard has done it again. Harbinger of the Storm is an action packed Aztec mystery opera with magic, interventions from the goods and more twists and turns than the first book. It even has a love story with amusing snippets here and there, I love formidable women. The story is self contained and can be enjoyed standalone, but you will not want to miss out on the first. I wish it was 2012 already even if the world is going under while I read the final Obsidian and Blood.(less)

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Jun 14, 2011

Nicole rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads, fantasy, historical-fiction

Events were wrapped up neatly at the end of Servant of the Underworld and a year or so later Harbinger of the Storm begins with the death of the Revered Speaker, leaving the Empire in jeopardy. Political intrigues only impede a timely resolution to the Empire’s problems.

The parts of the book that really shined for me were the action sequences, dealings with the gods, and rich setting details. The overall reading experience was great, though at times for me the investigation dialogs a...moreEvents were wrapped up neatly at the end of Servant of the Underworld and a year or so later Harbinger of the Storm begins with the death of the Revered Speaker, leaving the Empire in jeopardy. Political intrigues only impede a timely resolution to the Empire’s problems.

The parts of the book that really shined for me were the action sequences, dealings with the gods, and rich setting details. The overall reading experience was great, though at times for me the investigation dialogs and political intrigue were tedious. This, however, wasn’t something I experienced in the latter parts of the book. I really enjoyed that Teotihuacan was used as a setting, and part of me wishes it could have been more than a cursory visit. Teomitl was one of my favorite characters, owing in part to his awesome granted abilities. I look forward to see how de Bodard continues to develop his character in the next installment of Obsidian and Blood as well as his relationship with Mihmatini, whose role in Harbinger of the Storm left me wanting.

I particularly enjoyed reading a story set in the Aztec Empire, a subject I was previously only acquainted with in the academic realm (a course on Mesoamerican Archaeology and here and there in other anthropology courses). The artistic license the author uses mingled with the historical setting and fantasy elements were a treat to me. I found myself transported into the mystical pre-Columbian world. The world building was skillfully done.

Overall I enjoy de Bodard’s writing, a minor gripe being that the many errors were slightly distracting. If you enjoy high-stakes fantasy with a superb historical setting, intrigue, blood, magic, and mystery, this certainly is a book (and series) you should pick up. If you lose track of the names or have difficulty, it would be worth referencing the extras sections in the back of the book for the list of characters, terms, and concepts as well as the pronunciation guide. Awaiting the third book.

Sincerest of thanks to Aliette de Bodard and the Goodreads First Reads program for the copy of this book.
(less)

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Dec 26, 2011

Reed rated it

I have an embarrassing confession to make--while quite enjoy Aliette de Bodard's Obsidain and Blood series, I'm not sure I will continue reading them for one simple fact that I will get to in a minute. The author has written an accurate depiction of the Aztec empire, with the caveat that any kind of magic the Aztecs believed in exists for purposes of the story. This is a very cool take on a historical fantasy, and I love the way de Bodard depicts the truly bloody world of the Aztecs.

...more

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Sep 15, 2011

Tony rated it

· review of another edition

Some days I feel like an Angry Robot fanboi. Who am I kidding? I am a huge fan. This book continues the great run of books they have released.

This is the second book in a series and I highly recommend reading Servant of the Underworld first.
I found the beginning of the first book a little too slow and hard to get into for my liking, but I was right there in the story from the first page of Harbinger. The main protagonist Acatl is the reluctant high priest of the dead and is part o...more

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Dec 28, 2010

Rob rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: random-comments-review

...I found Harbinger of the Storm to be a worthy successor to what I consider to be a very successful début. The emphasis in this book has shifted a bit from a murder mystery to political intrigue but the setting hasn't lost any of its appeal in the process. The novel zooms out a bit to allow room for more religious and political aspects of Aztec society to slip into the story. Despite my preoccupation with the historical aspects of the novel, Harbinger of the Storm is mostly a race against the ...more

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Sep 19, 2011

Scott rated it

So far, a loose blend of mystery, historical fiction, and mebbe flesh eating demons. I am enjoying it as the antidote to 'The German Genius'. I like the Aztec bits;all that blood. A world run on blood, starting with getting the sun to rise. I have been an avid Aztec novel reader since Jennings' first Aztec novel.
The cover caught my eye in the sf section at the bookstore. I have jumped into a series as Blood and Obsidian: Harbinger of the Storm presumably is, being marked #2 and all. Jumpin...more

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Feb 09, 2011

Lauren Smith rated it

Shelves: angry-robot, fantasy, myth-and-mythology

7/10

It’s been one and a half years since the events of Servant of the Underworld, the first in Aliette de Bodard’s mythological mystery series, Obsidian and Blood. Book two, Harbinger of the Storm opens with the death of The Revered Speaker, ruler of the Mexica Empire, and with his passing the Fifth World is left vulnerable to destruction. The Revered Speaker acts as the agent of the War and Sun god Huitzlipochtli, and without him Huitzlipochtli has no means of giving the human world...more7/10

It’s been one and a half years since the events of Servant of the Underworld, the first in Aliette de Bodard’s mythological mystery series, Obsidian and Blood. Book two, Harbinger of the Storm opens with the death of The Revered Speaker, ruler of the Mexica Empire, and with his passing the Fifth World is left vulnerable to destruction. The Revered Speaker acts as the agent of the War and Sun god Huitzlipochtli, and without him Huitzlipochtli has no means of giving the human world his protection. If a new Speaker is not chosen soon, star demons will descend from the heavens “to walk the streets and marketplaces of the city, to rend our flesh into bloody ribbons, to open up our chests with a flick of their claws and pluck out our beating hearts”. And that gory possibility seems increasingly likely as various contenders vie for political power, looking only as far as their own interests and ignoring the carnage that might follow their actions.

In fact, the star demons may already have started the slaughter – as with the first book, this novel begins with a grisly crime, but this time the body was left behind, if you can still call it that: “There was no body left, not as such, just an elongated, glistening mass of bloody flesh with bits and pieces of organs spread all over the stone floor”.

As before, it’s Acatl’s duty to investigate the crime, and from there he leads us into an increasingly dark and bloody tangle of mythology and political intrigue that is not merely a worthy successor to Servant of the Underworld, but a tighter, pacier and altogether more exciting read. Harbinger of the Storm finds Acatl to be much the same person he was in the first novel – torn between his principles on the one hand, and on the other the infuriating formalities that everyone lives by, but for which Acatl has little patience.

Acatl’s young warrior student Teomitl on the other hand is now brimming with the power of Chalchiuhtlicue – the Goddess of Lakes and Streams who became his patron towards the end of book one. This makes him even cooler. He radiates the magical force of his goddess whenever his temper flares and he can summon ahuizotls (lake monsters) to aid him in a fight.

And there are plenty of fights. Political battles give rise to physical battles with gods and mythical monsters, and the novel’s rich Aztec mythology is deeply intertwined with its human relationships and ambitions. Deceptive, power-lusting High Priests and councilmen drive the narrative, wielding dark magic and making secret alliances with capricious gods. They play apocalyptic political games even though star demons are on the verge of breaking the boundaries between worlds and threatening to bring the Fifth World to an end. In my review of the first novel I said I wanted more blood. Well, De Bodard has drawn her inky black dagger and drenched these pages in it.

Rather less sharp than her abilities with myth and storytelling though, is the editing of the novel. Myriad minor errors and inconsistencies are a tad distracting, and the motivations for characters’ behaviour and attitudes is not always clear.

I’m also disappointed in the way the narrative treats Acatl’s sister, Mihmatini, who Teomitl has been courting for the past year. A talented priestess in her own right, we see surprisingly little of her while the men run around trying to either save the world or destroy it. Mihmatini gets pulled in when she’s needed and then rapidly dismissed. The worst example of this is when she is left alone in Teomitl’s rooms while he and Acatl continue their investigations around the palace. I’m not even sure why she was there in the first place, but when they come looking for her a good while later, she’s still in the room, staring angrily at the walls as if she’d shut down in the interim, when neither her brother or her boyfriend needed her. Later, when there’s an opportunity for her to flex her powers and play a greater role, Acatl and Teomitl are given all the attention and she disappears from the book completely. Consequently her character is underdeveloped, and she appears largely as a flaring temper fussing over Acatl’s health. While Mihmatini’s capabilities are acknowledged, we never get to see her in action. Nor would it be clear that she and Teomitl were courting if the text didn’t say so; I don’t recall any display of real affection between them.

Luckily, this didn’t bother me too much, especially since I was enjoying the mystery, action and mythology. Harbinger goes further in exploring the nature and origins of the gods, and we get to witness them in the kind of menacing splendour that makes you use expletives of nervous admiration when monsters emerge roaring and ravenous in movie scenes, or a game boss looms large before trying to end you. In contrast, we also see the gods as oddly human, not only in their power struggles, but as actual mortals who sacrificed themselves to create the Fifth World. Shifting balances between strength and vulnerability are found throughout the novel, from the social inequalities between priests and warriors, to the use of magic to protect or kill, to the gods who, despite their power, can have no influence on the mortal plane without the sacrifices of living blood that humans offer to them. It’s a complex but intriguing story, and I for one am thoroughly satisfied with this sequel.

Read more of my reviews on my blog Violin in a Void (less)

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Mar 12, 2011

Erin rated it

Shelves: fantasy-w-folklore-myth

I've just started "Harbinger of the Storm" today. So far its great! I loved the first book in this series sooo much, so I have high expectations for this one!
I JUST finished "Harbinger of the storm" a few minutes ago. While, I found " Servant of the Underworld" to be a more immersing read; I still really enjoyed "Harbinger of the storm". I can't wait for more of my favorite Aztec's adventures!

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Feb 11, 2012

Todd rated it

Great book, well done and executed mystery, Kudos for Mlle de Bodard! Acatl is a fantastic protagonist and the murky politics of the Mexica court was realistic and well handled. Quite enjoyable!

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Jul 23, 2011

Becca rated it

Shelves: first-reads

I won this book from a Goodreads Giveaway - as it's the second Obsidian and blood book I had to buy the first before I read it. Harbinger of the storm is an engrossing read, and it's Aztec and historical context meant that it was something different to what I've read before.

The only issue I have with the Obsidian and Blood series is the names - I didn't know how to pronounce them and ended up skimming over many of them, which lead to me getting confused as to which character was doi...more

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Jun 03, 2011

Janice Crespo rated it

If you enjoy fantasy, Aliette will take you on a fantastic adventure from day one! (Actually, even if fantasy books don't always appeal to you!) Take a step down a new road and open a new world in your mind - excellent writing!

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Mar 08, 2011

Russ rated it

· review of another edition

I really liked this book. It is a murder mystery, set in the last days of the Aztec Empire, with magic. I found it fascinating, and it feels accurate. The author has put in enough details to bring an ancient, very different culture to life.

This is the second in a series. Although the book stands alone very well it's probably best to read the first book, well, first.

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Jan 31, 2012

S. Ben rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, fantasy, fiction, mystery, owned, series

Holy cow, the Kindle edition formatting was poor. Distractingly poor.

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Oct 22, 2011

Brian Richardson rated it

A strangely unsatisfying book...maybe I expected more depth to the Aztec mythology and gods. Instead it just felt casual.

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Nov 12, 2011

Jonathan rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, fantasy, reread, mystery

January 13, 2011

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Feb 20, 2012

Asher Williams rated it

Feb 18, 2012

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Feb 18, 2012

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Shelves: 01, fantasy

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Shelves: author-of-color, aztecs, fantasy, female-author

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About Aliette de Bodard

I am a speculative fiction author living in Paris, with a strong taste for history and mythology, especially non-Western cultures (China/Vietnam/Mesoamerica).
My short fiction has appeared in various professional venues, and the first book of my Aztec fantasy series "Obsidian and Blood", Servant of the Underworld, is now out in 2010 from Angry Robot.
In my spare time, I also d...more

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