CAINA AMALAS is out of time. She has risked too much for too long, and her enemies have finally closed around her. The Staff and Seal of Iramis have been found, and threaten to destroy the world with their sorcerous powers. The terrible Apotheosis of the evil Grand Master Callatas will succeed unless Caina makes one final sacrifice. Unless she makes the ultimate sacrifice... ABOUT THE AUTHOR Standing over six feet tall, Jonathan Moeller has the piercing blue eyes of a Conan of Cimmeria, the bronze-colored hair of a Visigothic warrior-king, and the stern visage of a captain of men, none of which are useful in his career as a computer repairman, alas. He has written the DEMONSOULED series of sword-and-sorcery novels, and continues to write THE GHOSTS sequence about assassin and spy Caina Amalas, the COMPUTER BEGINNER'S GUIDE series of computer books, and numerous other works.
Standing over six feet tall, USA Today bestselling author Jonathan Moeller has the piercing blue eyes of a Conan of Cimmeria, the bronze-colored hair of a Visigothic warrior-king, and the stern visage of a captain of men, none of which are useful in his career as a computer repairman, alas.
He has written the DEMONSOULED series of sword-and-sorcery novels, and continues to write THE GHOSTS sequence about assassin and spy Caina Amalas, the COMPUTER BEGINNER'S GUIDE series of computer books, and numerous other works. His books have sold over one million copies worldwide.
Well, the ending was quite anticlimactic for me. There'd already been a thousand and one prophesy about Caina's death, so I saw it coming. And I knew she'd still survive.
Well, so we're seeing a major mindset change happening here. First, the pyrikon, then the elixir restorata, and now, Caina is a vaikarion... The irrational hatred for sorcery is slowly dying out. I'm loving the character development though.
Ghost Exile book 6. Serious spoilers ahead for the earlier books.
It opens with them preparing to retrieve the Seal and the Staff -- Caina has already made plans to stow them elsewhere, and the danger of leaving them where they are is too great. And Sulaman asks Caina to come to the coffee house the night he is reciting. There, he tells her that if she goes, she will die.
She presses. If she doesn't go, the Apotheosis she knows Callatas is planning will happen, and kill many including her. So, she goes. Saying farewell to various people as she leaves.
An attack has them leaving at great speed.
And the rest of the tale involves undead baboons, winning a knife-throwing contest, a fear of plague, a magical object that doesn't work right, burning down a building, a dress, and more.
I wish I didn't finish books in the middle of the night and immediately go on to the next in the series. That said, I believe I read two short stores from Exile of the Ghosts after this book so bear with me if I mix up the plots.
***Spoiler alert***
Caina and her associates travel to Pyramid Isle to retrieve the Staff & Seal that Annarah had hidden there 150 years prior. Cassander Nilas is in hot pursuit and attempts to ambush them at the harbor in Istarinmu. Kalgri prefers to observe rather than aid Cassander, which does not please him at all.
Caina had been warned by Sulaman that she would die should she embark on this mission. She feels she has no choice but to go so holds Kylon at arm's length rather than succumb to their growing attraction for one another.
It seems that Kharnaces has awakened as they encounter several obstacles once they arrive at the island. Hundreds of nagataaru and five blood crystals seem to make advancing impossible. Caina feels her ability to hide from the nagataaru wearing her shadow-cloak and using her ability to sense sorcery gives her the best chance to access the library where the objects were left.
She does reach the library but encounters Kharnaces who enlightens her on both his and Callatas' plans for mankind. He also enspells her to help achieve his objective.
After Caina reunites with her associates, they return to Rumarah and once again encounter Cassander Nilas and Kalgri. I don't want to give away the plot but suffice to say that the meeting is explosive and there are several surprises. Kalgri finally bestirs herself to action.
Caina becomes a valikarion, guardians of the loremasters in ancient times. Several benefits are derived from this. (Why doesn't she use her pyrikon more? I know she hates sorcery but still, any port in a storm)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Another gripping read, perhaps a little slow to get going this time but grabbed me around 50% and whirled me along to the end. Will the Red Huntress ever be defeated? I guess I'll find out as it's on to book 7!
This series just keeps getting better. The first books were lacking but this one makes up for it. The strong main character and the great story telling keeps you reading, the pages turning easily. Great Reading Everyone!
This is my absolute favorite book of the Ghost series, above and beyond even the 1st set of Ghost books. Action. Suspense. Excitement. I can't say any more without giving out spoilers! Greatest read!
Another superbly written story. The perfect continuation of one of the best fantasy series currently out there! Jonathan Moeller is an astoundingly great writer who draws his readers into the story, and hooks them early, with a constant flow that is akin a race that the reader is a part of, weaving in and out of the story, truly experiencing the moments as the characters experience them as well.
The story is superb, and I love it. The editing, however, is horrendous. Paragraphs ending abruptly after hyphenation, incorrect word replacements, character and place names reversed. It would seem that the author relied on the word processor instead of having someone else read the manuscript, and the errors took away from my enjoyment.
I really enjoy these books. Mollher does a great job of keeping the storyline, character archs and tension consistent and tight. That makes for a fun journey I so look forward to.