2, Shadow's Edge: The Night Angel Trilogy

The first book in the Night Angel series was good enough to continue on to the second book. More than anything, I was curious what would happen to the characters and how things would change. Here are my thoughts. *SPOILER ALERT*

The Way of Shadows ended with the Godking from Khalidor initiating a successful coup against the Cenarian royalty. Kylar has killed his master, Durzo, and is now ready to start a new life with the love of his life, Elene. Of course, things don’t work out that way, and Kylar is forced back into the life he wanted to (or so he thought) leave behind. His mission now is to kill the Godking himself.

I’m not sure how I feel about this second book. On one hand, I gobbled it down. On the other, it didn’t do too much for me. Even more so than the first book, I found Shadow’s Edge to be the written equivalent of fast food. Food that you can’t help but want to eat, but then feel funny once you’re done. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly why this book didn’t do much for me even though I plowed through it in a couple days. I’ll see if I can lay it all out.

The characters are…. decent. At least, they were in the first one. Here, the characters get kind of dumb. Kylar himself becomes kind of annoying, as does his love, Elene. They do dumb things and become pretty whiny. Other characters, like the female assassin, Vi find themselves turning their lives around, or at least trying. I love redemption stories, but the redemption arcs here feel forced, like the author realized he was putting square pegs into round holes and just cut off the edges to make them fit in.

There are a couple other problems (like the scope getting too big for the sort of story this is, good characters doing dumb things, the insertion of love triangles, plot that moves slowly for the first third, etc), but the biggest problem by far is the payoff. *BIG SPOILER* Kyler actually ends up killing the Godking by the end of this book. Awesome, you might say. No, not awesome. See, the Godking is built up to be this horrendous monster who does some really screwed up things. In short, you really grow to hate the guy and when he’s finally killed, it’s this quick easy death. The guy barely suffers. When you create such a horrendous monster, make the guy suffer before you dispatch him. It’s just so unsatisfying to see this horrendous monster get a relatively quick and painless death.

All that said, the positives that allowed me to enjoy The Way of Shadows are still present here. Characters that are still fun, despite the problems above. The plot moves fairly quickly once it actually gets going, and I found myself interested in what would happen next. There are some interesting twists and the ending, despite being a letdown in one way, leaves you wanting more.

In the end, Shadow’s Edge is a step down from The Way of Shadows. It’s still readable and enjoyable enough that I’ll pick up reading the third book right after this one.

3.5 out of 5 stars

I read "The Way of Shadows," the first book of the "Night Angel Trilogy," a couple years ago and really enjoyed it. It was a hefty novel with a story worthy of its 600 pages, packed with great characters and moral dilemmas that kept me eagerly turning the pages. It's taken an embarrassingly long time for me to get around to reading the second installment. Though it holds up well as a decent middle book, "Shadow's Edge" isn't quite as satisfying a read as its predecessor. Spoilers follow.

The Godking's coup has succeeded and Cenaria is thrown into chaos. Following the violence of Cenaria City being occupied and his actions in the last book, Kylar Stern decides to abandon the assassin's life, opting instead to take his girlfriend Elene and his late master's daughter Uly to the city of Caernarvon, where he hopes they can start anew as a family, living an honest life with the darkness of his past far behind him. His attempt at a normal life is short-lived when he learns that a rebel army is amassing in Cenaria and Logan Gyre, his friend and the next rightful king, is still alive, but trapped in the Hole, the deepest of Cenaria's dungeons. Knowing that he's sacrificing perhaps his only chance at a future with Elene, Kylar dons his wetboy greys once again, hoping to save Logan, kill the Godking, and ultimately bring peace to Cenaria.

"Shadow's Edge" puts me in a bit of a conundrum. The book can be split fairly easily into three parts: the beginning, middle, and end...and my feelings about each part were pretty different, so I'm going to quickly break the book down and talk about each portion separately before discussing the novel as a whole.

The first 200 pages or so are, to be blunt, rather excruciating to get through. This portion largely deals with Kylar trying to settle into his new life as a family with Elene and Uly. There's some other stuff that makes an appearance, but Kylar's tortured attempt at being a family man and the inner turmoil and angst it brings very much dominates this first third. It's not so much that I have a problem with the concept itself. With Kylar becoming the perfect assassin at the end of the last book and all of the death that entailed (including that of his master, Durzo Blint), it makes sense that an existential crisis would be right around the corner for him. I can't even fault him for wanting to leave with the girl he's infatuated with and the kid he now sees as a daughter to get them out of harm's way. It did, however, seem very out of character that he would leave that many enemies at his back and so many loose ends (even he acknowledges that he could have killed the Godking in the first chapter and ended future bloodshed, but he promised Elene that he wouldn't kill anymore, so...). There's also a lot of repetition in these first couple hundred pages. Elene has made him promise to give up his life of violence, and he agrees because he ultimately wants to be with her. But, now that he has the ka'kari, his Talent is developing pretty rapidly and he's eager to test his new abilities, going as far as to play vigilante in the evenings...which, of course, Elene doesn't like, which leads to them arguing a lot. Kylar embodies a weepy, angsty, sexually frustrated teen so much and maintains it for so long that I wanted to shake him by the collar and slap some sense into him. I can accept him questioning what he's become, but I ultimately want to read about him kicking ass with his new Talent and discovering who he is, not about his Young Adult-worthy romance drama. Add to that the fact that Elene and Uly are the most annoying characters in the book (more on that later) and that I just don't buy Elene and Kylar's relationship (more on this later, as well) and you end up with a real slog of a read.

The next 250 pages (give or take) fare a bit better. I'd say everything starts to get moving after Jarl tracks down Kylar at his new home and asks him to rescue Logan and kill the Godking. This is the point where Kylar begins to embrace his role as the Night Angel (though he still isn't sure what exactly it means), Logan starts to get serious about finding a way out of the Hole, Vi begins to question her motivations and how she sees herself, and the novel's various subplots (and there are many) begin to come into play. The pace becomes quick, almost frantic, and a lot of new characters and ideas are introduced. The characters start to grow once again and it becomes apparent that everything is falling into place for a climactic ending. This is also where the reading experience went from miserable to somewhat enjoyable.

I say somewhat enjoyable because a lot of the issues with the writing itself begin to make themselves apparent in this section. Like I said above, the pace becomes fairly frantic at some points, and that acts as something of a detriment to the characters and the story. In short, it sometimes feels like both are being rushed in their development for the sake in moving the plot forward. It would have been nice if the story had taken a breather once in a while to let new events and information sink in rather that speeding on to the next plot point. The point of view also begins to shift pretty rapidly. It's rare to spend more than five pages with a character at any given time, which sometimes makes their stories feel incomplete and underdeveloped. As such, I sometimes had a difficult time becoming really invested in their journeys because I often felt like I didn't have the time to really get to know them and their individual struggles and how those played into the bigger picture. I wish Weeks would have slowed down the pace a little and stopped trying to cram so much into this novel so we could better appreciate how the events begin to build on one another.

Speaking of stuffing a lot into this book, there are a ton of subplots. The main story is of course that of Kylar, Logan, and Vi, but until their stories combine, they need to be treated as separate plots because they spend most of the novel in different places. There's also a focus on what's going on in the Warrens, usually from the viewpoint of Khaldrosa (a Sethi pirate who has turned to prostitution in one of Momma K's brothels after the coup), Momma K, or Jarl. Fair enough - this gives us a look into the city and culminates nicely into one of the book's key events: Noctem Hemata, or the Night of Blood. Then there's the subplot of Dorian trying to stave off the madness his Gifts and prophesy will inevitably cause, eventually leading him back to Khalidor to find the woman he's destined to marry. Eh, ok, sure, we see enough of Dorian for his story to still be relevant in this book. His plot is initially tied to Solon's, who, aside from witnessing Khali being brought to Cenaria, feels a little superfluous. A few too many pages are given to Feir tracking down a magical sword. This doesn't have much relevance in "Shadow's Edge," and it becomes apparent at the end of the novel that this will be more important in the next book. And, finally, a lot of time is spent with Sister Ariel of the Chantry, the institute that trains Talented women, as she tries to track down someone who can help solve an internal issue that is threatening to tear the Chantry apart. It's...a lot. Most of the subplots are at least somewhat necessary, but the extent to which some of them are covered, only serves to take away time from the many other things the novel needs to cover. The last two are clearly meant to set up conflicts in the third book, and while it's definitely expected to introduce some new things in the middle novel, they feel like they serve no purpose in this book and instead only waste space. Weeks has created a pretty complex story with quite a few characters, but it probably would have benefitted this novel to pare some of them down a bit.

My last gripe about this middle section is how many events are only possible due to coincidence. For example, Sister Ariel is trying to unravel the secrets surrounding a horrible creature that lives in a particular forest. Vi and Uly just happen to go by that same forest and run into Ariel. Later, Kylar is shot down near the forest and is found by Ariel, Vi, and Uly. Later, Vi visits a healer to see about breaking the compulsion spell that's been placed on her. Mere hours after her arrival, Kylar brings Logan to the same healer. I can suspend my disbelief to a certain extent when it comes to things like this, but the amount to which the plot relies on characters coincidentally bumping into each other is astounding. And these aren't small encounters; they often act as the catalyst to major parts of the story. This is especially tragic since Weeks begins to better flesh out his world in this book, characterizing Cenaria's neighbouring countries to both add potential threats and make the effects of the Godking's invasion a little more far-reaching. Despite his attempts to make the setting bigger, the characters constantly happening to just bump into each other only succeeds in making the world seem very small.

The last 150 pages are fantastic. Starting when Kylar and Vi run into each other at the healer's and decide to team up to defeat the Godking, the events in this final portion are climactic, exciting, and actually pack a pretty big punch for a second book. Perhaps oddly, some of the writing elements that didn't work so well in the middle portion of the novel are utilized quite well in the finale. The pace continues to be fast, but with so many events unfolding, it actually feels appropriate and adds a sense of urgency and tension that kept me eagerly flipping through the pages. Elements of those many subplots (or most of them, at least) come together and some pretty big things happen. Kylar and Vi are fighting at their best to defeat the Godking, as is Logan on the field of battle. This is what I had wanted from this book - the characters using their various abilities and putting their elite training to use to some pretty epic means.

Looking at the book as a whole, it's a pretty decent middle book. It manages to avoid the worst of the dreaded "middle book syndrome" and contains some pretty decisive, impacting events, which allows it to stand somewhat well on its own. While "The Way of Shadows" was about Kylar developing his abilities and eventually gaining the use of his Talent, "Shadow's Edge" focuses on him trying to figure out where he and his new abilities fit into Midcyru and how he can best utilize them to aid in the growing conflict, and I think the novel does a good job at depicting this struggle and all it entails. However, it's still obviously a middle book. While the characters do some big things at the end, a lot of time is spent introducing new subplots that seem to have little importance here and won't come into play until the third book. In some ways, it feels more like it's trying to set things up for the final installment rather than telling an interesting story of its own (oh, the woes of being a middle book!). Being the second book in a trilogy is hard; "Shadow's Edge" demonstrates some great middle installment qualities, but it also falls right into some of the common second book pitfalls that have tripped up many an author.

I've already talked about what I didn't like about the writing, so now I'll discuss what I did like. Weeks has a very functional writing style. There's little I dislike more than fantasy authors who try to get too poetic, too caught up in their own prose, or too descriptive when trying to tell their epic tales. Weeks avoids this by having a style that's easily accessible to all readers. Some have complained that it's too simplistic, but I can appreciate that he isn't trying to wow us with his vocabulary or show off how many different ways he can describe a room...instead, he just wants to tell his story. He manages to hit a good balance between giving us enough description to give the reader a good feel of the setting without bogging the book down with endless, over-wrought passages of detail. Will Weeks be winning any awards for his prose? Probably not, but the style lends itself well to this character-driven story and works to keep the reader easily invested.

I also appreciated the humour woven into the writing. Despite the nasty, gritty world that these poor characters are forced to inhabit, the figures manage to be pretty entertaining in their own sarcastic right. Sometimes it's in the form of a character making an aside comment; sometimes it's part of the prose; and sometimes it's included in the dialogue. Whatever form the humour happens to take, it's utilized well to flesh out the characters. It also sometimes takes jabs at some of the more well-worn fantasy clichés (one has to appreciate the Godking proclaiming himself to be Kylar's father, followed by "Ah, just kidding" after giving Kylar a moment to react). I almost always got a smile or chuckle out of these witty lines (which I'm sure made for an awkward flight for the person sitting next to me!), which is always a plus.

While Weeks definitely has a sense of humour, his world continues to pull no punches. This is not a nice fantasy world. Midcyru is a gritty, dark land filled with violence, and there always seems to be something bigger and nastier for the characters to contend with. "Shadow's Edge" opens immediately after a violent coup, and all of the horrors of being in an occupied city are portrayed. People are raped, beaten, humiliated, and brutally slaughtered. In the Hole, where Logan spends most of the book, the awfulness knows no bounds: it's filthy and its inhabitants run on the principle of survival of the fittest. The Holers have lost any sense humanity they may have once possessed and have no qualms against doing whatever it takes to survive, and with the only food sources being pissed-on bread provided by a sadistic guard and, well, one another, things get very grisly very fast. These are just a few examples from a 600+ page book. There's nothing kind about the world Weeks presents. If I had to compare it with anything, it would be GRR Martin's World: unfair, unforgiving, brutal, and unapologetic in its portrayal. So, to repeat myself from my review of the first novel, if you have a weak stomach and don't want to read about people going through some awful things, this probably isn't your series.

On a final note, there's also a hint of Martin in that no character is safe. As I've already mentioned, some big things happen; specifically, big characters die...and it isn't only the bad guys who meet their demise. Positive characters from the first novel perish, sometimes in gruesome ways, as do characters from this book. I love it when authors aren't afraid to kill off their characters; it adds a certain level of tension to the reading experience, and Weeks certainly doesn't disappoint on that front.

As an aside, the editing in this book was terrible. I don’t fault the author for this since it’s the publisher that handles the editing, but this probably had the most mistakes of any published novel I’ve read to date. Sometimes words would be missing entirely, sometimes the wrong form of a word would be used (“their” instead of “there” sorts of errors), and sometimes letters would be left out. Coming across these mistakes pulls the reader completely out of the world – they’re that jarring. I can forgive one or two editing errors, especially in a book this size, but “Shadow’s Edge” was full of them, and it does the story a great disservice to constantly yank the reader out of the plot when they come across these mistakes.

With my thoughts on the story out of the way, I’ll take a minute to discuss the romance. Unlike in the first book, romance has a much bigger presence in “Shadow’s Edge,”…and that’s a problem because if there’s one thing that Weeks doesn’t seem to know how to write, it’s romance. He can write combat, intrigue, dialogue, and characters like nobody’s business, but he completely lost me at the relationship. The primary pairing is between Kylar and Elene, which, if you couldn’t guess from my rant about the first third of the book, I’m not a huge fan of. Even though we spend about 200 pages reading about Kylar agonizing over Elene, I never understood why they were together or, more importantly, why I should want them to be together. Kylar wants to be with Elene because of how “good” she is. I’m actually willing to buy that. Again, Midcyru is a pretty brutal place, so I can see Kylar wanting to attach himself to someone who manages to stay “good” despite being put through the wringer, especially in light of his own struggles with what he has become. That would work if this were a one-sided romance, but it isn’t. I don’t get why Elene wanted to stay with Kylar. All she does is lament his way of life and his use of violence; she gets angry when he can’t completely give up his training to live a fairy tale life and always seems frustrated with him for something. She wants him to change himself completely to fit her ideals, and he can’t. She even asks another character how she can love Kylar if she doesn’t understand him. Funny, I often found myself asking the same question. There’s no reason these two should be together; they have no chemistry, no common ground besides their shared childhood (which is never given as a reason for them clinging to this failed relationship), and no understanding of one another. I get the distinct impression that we’re supposed to want Kylar and Elene to resolve everything with true love, and it just doesn’t work. Also, there is way too much sexual tension between these two. Kylar wants to get the deed done while Elene is clinging to her purity for religious reasons (though she also claims it’s because she’s too tired every night). It becomes very tiresome. As an aside, given both of their backgrounds as guild rats, Elene’s as a lowly servant in a wealthy household, and Kylar’s as an assassin that has spent a lot of time in brothels, and their ages, it’s completely unbelievable that at least one of them wouldn’t have had sex by this point. Oh, but wait, they were saving themselves for one another…which is clearly working out.

Let’s move on to the characters. Weeks generally writes his characters very well. Most of them are pretty multidimensional and, perhaps most importantly, all of them grow throughout the novel. Let’s take Kylar, the main character. He’s an assassin, sure, but he isn’t a cold-hearted killer. He can be practical and analytical when needed, but he can also be kind and, sometimes, almost naïve in how he expects things to work. As much as his immaturity bugged the Hell out of me in the beginning of the novel, I’m glad that he has that side to him because it often comes into direct conflict with the part of him that’s more pragmatic, forcing him to reconcile those parts of his personality to do what he thinks is right, both in regards to his moral compass and the bigger picture of how his actions affect Midcyru. I enjoyed watching his struggle to figure out what he was going to do with his deadly new capabilities and the role he was going to play in the grander scheme of Cenaria. Logan faces a similar battle after his ordeal in the Hole. He manages to maintain his grasp on his sanity and humanity, but he’s a changed person because of it. He’s also had a taste of power, both among the dregs of society in the Hole and as the potential king, which presents a new problem for him because while he enjoyed having control over others, he doesn’t really want to like it or continue using it in a manner that isn’t strictly necessary. Both characters develop quite a bit, not only from what we saw in the first book, but from where they begin in this one, and it’s clear that they have plenty of growing left to do in the third installment.

Viridiana Sovari is new in this book (sort of – she made a brief appearance in “The Way of Shadows”). As one of the few (possibly the only) female wetboys, she faces some unique challenges. She portrays herself as a badass that is happy to utilize any of her skills as a means to an end. As the exact opposite of Elene, Vi embraces her sexuality and uses it as a tool. Some have complained about Weeks opting to use the virgin/whore dichotomy to depict his two prominent female characters, but I rather liked it and I enjoyed seeing how Vi and Elene acted as foils to one another. Though outwardly beautiful, Vi is horribly damaged inside as a result of her cruel upbringing and finds herself undergoing a sort of metamorphosis as the walls she’s built around herself are torn down. Her change is far from complete in “Shadow’s Edge” (though she’s taken some large, and in some ways unwanted steps toward rebuilding herself) and I’m intrigued to see where her character will go.

Most of the characters are pretty well done. They’re flawed, which makes them interesting, and most of them grow in some way. I even liked the Godking as a villain (he’s pretty dastardly, but it’s believable within the context of Weeks’ world). Honestly, there were only two characters I didn’t like: Elene and Uly.

Elene is set up as the virgin of the afore-mentioned dichotomy, so she’s the exact opposite of Vi. She’s scarred on the outside, but pure on the inside…and oh boy, is she obsessed with her virginity. I dislike her for the same reason that Kylar seems to idolize her: she’s too “good.” Midcyru is not a nice place, and as a result, it’s full of wonderfully flawed, intriguing characters. Against this group, Elene stands out, not because of how “good” she is, but because she comes off as very flat and shallow. She’s naively attached to living by the virtues of her religion, which is all good and well, but at 18 years old in a country that’s being torn apart by war, her rather rosy view on how things should be feels out of place. Additionally, as we see with her treatment of Kylar, she’s more interested in trying to shape people to fit her ideas than she is in adapting to her situation, and it makes her incredibly frustrating (and I don’t get the impression that she’s meant to be aggravating). She probably grows the least of any primary character; though her very last scene gives me hope that maybe she’ll be forced to mature in the next book. I hate to say it, but if there’s one character I want to die by the end of this trilogy, it’s Elene.

Uly, Durzo and Momma K’s daughter, is simply annoying. A lot of authors struggle to write children, and Weeks is no exception. My main issue with her is that she acts too young for her age; she’s supposed to be twelve for a majority of the book, but she acts about half of that. If the author had wanted her to behave the way she does, why not lower her age? To give some perspective on ages and maturity in Midcyru, Jenine is fifteen when she is married to Logan and many of the Godking’s concubines are around that age or younger. Vi was molested as a child and began to use sex as a tool in her early teens. Many of the guild rats are even younger, and we’ve seen some fairly young prostitutes between the last book and this one. In short, people grow up fast in this world, whether they’re nobility or from the Warrens. Unless she’s been locked away in a bubble somewhere for her entire life, there’s no reason for Uly to act as childish as she does. I think we’re supposed to find her…endearing? Cute? At the very least, she’s supposed to raise the stakes for Kylar. Whatever her purpose, I found her to be an annoyance…and I really wish authors would learn how to write children better in general.

“Shadow’s Edge” is…ok. It holds up decently well, despite being a middle book. It keeps the story going, resolves a couple big conflicts, and sets up some more. The terrible beginning and bloated middle sometimes make it a slog to get through, though the payoff in the end is worth it. Whatever my opinions on this novel, with the big reveal in the epilogue, there’s no way I’m missing the next one. “Shadow’s Edge” gets 3 stars from me: it’s not bad for a second novel, but it’s definitely still a middle book.

This review will be spoiler free (for this novel at least; there are SPOILERS for book one, so read at your own risk). If you're interested in a more in-depth review where I talk about spoiler stuff, let me know in the comments!

Shadow's Edge picks up nearly exactly where Way of Shadows left off. Kylar, Elene, and Uly are leaving their country to try and carve a new life for themselves. Kylar has sworn to give up killing. Of course, peace can't last in this war-torn world.

Here are the three most important things you need to know going into this book:

1) Kick-ass ladies. I think, almost subconsciously, the fact that there were very few women in the first book was killing me. There wasn't very much room for me to connect with anyone, and the male dominance was boring. This one throws several old characters into a new light and also introduces new ones that I love. I was actually surprised how much I enjoyed some of these characters, and several that I started off disliking had such incredible character growth that by the end I adored them.

2) Magic takes center-stage. In the first book magic is a bit confusing and not really super prevalent. There are a lot of different orders and the rules of magic don't make sense. That's quickly rectified by this novel. All the different orders aren't too different, and now that Kylar can use magic it's easier for the reader to see how it all works. I actually really enjoyed the way the magic works in this series, now that I can understand it. It's not as defined as something Brandon Sanderson might create, but it's also structured to be a bit undefinable. Looking forward to seeing how magic progresses in the final book in this series.

3) War. I've read several books about wars, whether real or fantasy. Of the the fantasy ones, this one takes the cake. Never before have I felt so transported into a war, a real war with real consequences and political maneuverings and good generals and bad generals and spies and everything else, that didn't actually exist. The plot was constantly moving, carrying the characters down their (unexpected) paths. There were several moments when reading that I had to remind myself this wasn't actually real.

In a nutshell, this is a fantastic read. If you picked up the first book and weren't completely thrilled with it, neither was I. But this changes everything and is worth a go.

Book Info: Genre: Dark epic fantasy
Reading Level: Young Adult
Recommended for: fans of dark epic fantasy
Trigger Warnings: murder, killing, assassination, violence, rape, torture, mutilation, stealing, slavery, cannibalism, danger to child/kidnapping, sexual assault

My Thoughts: This second book in the Night Angel trilogy is much better edited than the first book, which is very strange; I guess maybe there was a different editor? Why they wouldn't have had an editor go through the omnibus edition to check for consistency I don't know but there it is.

Things move along very quickly in this book. Kylar learns more about his abilities and Talent, as well as the “extras” that the ka'kari provides him. I was very happy about some of the people who are disposed of in this book, and also intrigued by some of the new characters that show up. One this this author is very good at is creating characters that will cause a reaction in the reader, be it good or bad. There is a great deal of gray in the series, where the bad guys aren't really evil so much as twisted, and the heroes are often damaged in ways that make them less than perfect. I like this sort of thing.

If you like dark epic fantasy, with an antihero and lots of violence, check out this trilogy. Don't let the problems with the first book put you off; this one is better.

Series Information: The Night Angel Trilogy
Book 1: The Way of Shadows, review linked here
Book 2: Shadow's Edge
Book 3: Beyond the Shadows

Disclosure: I purchased the omnibus edition of the trilogy for myself. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: Kylar Stern has rejected the assassin's life. The Godking's successful coup has left Kylar's master, Durzo, and his best friend, Logan, dead. He is starting over: new city, new friends, and new profession.

But when he learns that Logan might actually be alive and in hiding, Kylar is faced with an agonizing choice: will he give up the way of shadows forever and live in peace with his new family, or will he risk everything by taking on the ultimate hit?

The second installment of these series certainly didn't disappoint at all. I love the tough, unapologetic, gritty story that the first book brought to life and was afraid that it may have been toned down in the second book as the main character struggled with his identity but it wasn't. The way that the first book ended definitely leads the main character to an identity crisis, don't worry I'm not going to share any spoilers for those who haven't read it, so I assumed there would be a lot of soul searching and moving back and forth from one view to the other. There was less of that than I was expecting, to be honest. To me, that's what puts Weeks up there with other good authors. He isn't easily predictable. Some of the things that happened in this book I didn't even see coming and especially not the way they happened so that's a definitely plus.

The story was equally as enthralling as the last one though I felt like it got better in this story because we are more familiar with the characters and we are learning more about them and why they do the things that they do. Though certain twists and turns in the story surprised me, I was never surprised by the characters reactions to things or how they arrived at certain opinions or thoughts. Weeks seems to know his characters well and make his story believable rather than just making the characters fit the story as some authors do.

I like that the story deepened in this book rather than just going off in an entirely new direction What I mean by that is this: at the end of the last book, you feel like things wrap up a bit quickly with lots of unanswered questions and the main character going off. This book brings everything back into focus; there were no easy answers, no nicely packaged answers that barely dealt with the real problem, just because the main story ends doesn't mean all the other threads got ties up. Several threads are still flapping loosely at the end of the last book and though the main character makes to escape from the world there really isn't any escape for him. He can run, true, but his destiny is still going to find him no matter where he goes until he deals with it one way or another. Decisions must be made and sometimes they are made by others when a person wavers too long in indecision.

This book beautifully sets up the rest of the series and I'd definitely recommend it.

The Shadow's Edge is the second book of the Night Angel Trilogy. The trilogy focuses on assassins in a fantasy realm. However, the assassins must rely mostly on martial arts, stealth, poisons, and weapons, rather than spells. This book has much more magic than the first book and some fantasy creatures are introduced. The second book takes place in Cenaria during a Khalidoran invasion. Throughout the book there's action, political intrigue, and character development. There's also a good bit of death. No character is safe. If I had to make a comparison, it's fairly close to George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire.

Plot
The story continues with Kylar Stern, Jarl, Logan, Elene, Vi, Hu, Momma K, and the most vile loathsome Godking ever written. This guy makes King Xerxes look like Willy Wonka. The plot deals with the invasion. The story is epic and defines the boundaries of the human spirit.

Characters
The characters in this book are excellent. The author, Brent Weeks, does a great job at making sure they read like real people with real emotions. The story is full of characters that you'll love and despise.

Writing Style
The writing style is pretty accessible to just about anyone. It's pretty simple. The action scenes are also well written and easy to visualize. The Chapters are about ten pages long, and you'll find yourself reading five to ten Chapters per sitting. In the 600 pages, there are a few nonsensical sentences. But these are easy to overlook because the story and characters are great.

Dialogue
The dialogue does a great job at portraying the relationships between the characters. Brent Weeks also writes what the characters are thinking as they are speaking. It becomes clear that some characters say things to further their own selfish goals or try to dominate others. Some of the dialogue feels like modern day slang, and seemed out of place, but this is easy to overlook.

Maturity
This book is for adults who like a dark element to fantasy. There is violence, gore, sex, cannibalism, murder, and rape. It's Rated R to X and seems more horrific than fantastic.

If you want to read a brutal epic adventure, and don't mind anachronistic dialogue, this is for you! If you're a fan of GRRM and you're tired of waiting for his next book, you will most likely enjoy this one. Don't let the 600 pages deter you, the story moves fast and something interesting happens every few pages. Like the first book, it's very good.

Warning: This book is very brutal! Avoid it if you don't want your imagination going to very dark places. Characters get physically and mentally broken. It's not a pretty sight!

Brent Weeks's second entry of his Night Angel Trilogy starts right where The Way of Shadows left off. Kylar has decided to move out of Cenaria City with his girlfriend Elene and their (essentially) adopted daughter, Uly. He is ready to leave the life of an assassin behind, and grow old with the woman he loves while trying to come to terms with killing his master, Durzo. Meanwhile in Cenaria City, the Godking Garoth Ursuul has taken over with his Khalidorian army, but Jarl (the newly appointed Sa'Kage) and Momma K aren't about to let him have the city without a fight. Other plots deal with Vi given the task of killing her longtime friend, Sister Ariel figuring out the secret of a mysterious creature, Dorian and his friends recovering the sword Ceuroc, and Logan trying to survive in a jail full of unsavory characters all looking for the first chance to kill him.

Weeks's strength in his writing is also his main weakness: the fast pace. His style is very easy to read and is accessible to all sorts of people. However, there are many times when the pace begins to be too much and things need to take a breather. At times it seems he almost gets impatient; some scenes are not properly set up or lack enough descriptive detail which took me right out of the story. Also there are some key character revelations that come across as too quick to be believable. The other major problem is the construction of the novel itself. Some chapters are fifteen pages long, and others are four. Some chapters contain several different point-of-views, and others only contain one character. Some subplots are introduced early only to be dropped halfway through, and others aren't brought in until the final act. It feels like Weeks didn't have a full grasp on all the various plot threads that are brought forth. One of the great things about authors such as Tad Williams or Steven Erikson is there is some sort of pattern or logic toward the construction of their novels which helps makes all the different subplots make sense. This isn't present with Weeks. Finally, as more of a minor complaint, Shadow's Edge has the feel of a very traditional fantasy plot (fighting and evil ruler against horrible odds). Weeks adds in certain elements to keep the story fresh, but it wasn't enough to take it away from that traditional feel.

This is not to say Shadow's Edge isn't worth reading. It really is a lot of fun to read. It is fast paced and easy to read. Kylar is a likable and multi-dimensional character well worth having the trilogy formed around. The other main characters, Logan and Vi, both also go through their own transformations. Vi especially has an interesting character arc. The action is well done and there is a lot of it. More of the world is introduced, especially the Khalidorian religion. As with The Way of Shadows, Weeks shows that he can kill off characters. Perhaps what I applaud him most for is Weeks's ability to close off certain subplots, keeps others going, and still introducing others. There isn't a feeling that there is too much to cover in the next novel. I would also like to mention there is a particular scene (near the end) that I did not see coming and makes events much more interesting for the final book of the trilogy.

In conclusion, Weeks shows both his strengths and weaknesses in Shadow's Edge. There is no sense that he is just delaying to move the plot forward for the conclusion. He accomplished more in 650 pages than George R.R. Martin could in twice the length. Weeks just needs to spend more time on the construction of his novels and slowing down the pace at times to let the reader breathe. The novel's fun and fast nature alone is enough to make this an enjoyable read, but it is nothing more than that. Readers of The Way of Shadows will enjoy Shadow's Edge.

I look forward to Beyond the Shadows and other novels Weeks decides to publish. He has a great upside and is worth looking out for in the future.

3/5

Brent Weeks definitely did not let me down. Not many times I read sequels with surpass the first book. This is one of it. This book expands the background laid in the first book, and brings it to a full bloom.

The story still continues on the life of Kylar, a full-grown assassin now. Cenaria had been fully occupied, the rebellion was forming, and Logan was still kept deep in the Hole. The Godking was tightening his grip on Cenaria, while Kylar was getting out of Cenaria to start a new life, just to realize that his past will always haunted him.

The first novel of the series is like the laying of the chess pieces on the board and some opening movement. One side was under pressure, and victory was on sight. But total destruction was evaded. The heir survived. On the second novel, the play on both side became more subtle. Each was laying traps for his opponent. The end game was difficult to predict. New players, initially not taking part in the first novel, were coming, bringing their own interest. The game became more complicated. The balance of the game was change. Brent Weeks was indeed the master of the game. He laid the characters like a professional chess player. The intention was hidden until the attack was commenced. And once the attack began, it was hell unleashed.

Brent Weeks succeeded in expanding the first novel, in terms of plot as well as tension. The new faction and point of view characters indeed make the story more interesting. Unfortunately, it is the main characters, Kylar, that somehow was not really grown. I expect a deeper characterization for Kylar. Fortunately, it is saved by the discussion of Caernarvonian culture, which is an important plot point. Logan part is much better, and of course Vi's part. It looks like that we are going to have a trinity finally: Kylar, Logan, and Vi.

The dialogue is witty, despite some cliches. The pacing is good, not to slow not to fast. It is easy to get hooked when you read this novel. The best part I will say is the plot. All the plot device are laid carefully till they converged to the final event. The final conflict was indeed a very good climax, even though it was a bit predictable. Weeks was too obvious in showing the trail. I hope he can write with more subtlety (which he did, in his The Black Prism (Lightbringer) series).

Overall, a very good sequel, better than the first book. 4 star!

Book Two of the Night Angel Trilogy, Shadow's Edge is a breathtaking read. With all the characters left off in various places from book one, you start to really delve into the world, the magic, and the mythology of it all. Kyler's awkward love triangle makes for a compelling narrative as an invasion into the country takes place. It can be hard to keep up with all the threads sometimes, and often you get lost in the mystical aspects of it all (a character has premonitions and sometimes that messes with his head a little too much), but as always, Weeks does a masterful job of leveraging the "other characters" in his story to make them compelling, and integral to the overall story.

Shadow's Edge by Brent Weeks

Shadow's Edge is the second book in The Night Angel Trilogy. The first book is The Way of Shadows and the final book is Beyond the Shadows. After writing this trilogy, he has gone on to start a new series titled Lightbringer, which includes The Black Prism and The Blinding Knife, due out in the Fall of 2012. He as also written a short story that ties into The Night Angel Trilogy titled "Perfect Shadow", dealing with a main character in the trilogy. Shadow's Edge is published by Orbit and released November 2008.

Kylar Stern wanted to leave the wetboy, assassin, life behind. He left Cenaria after The Godking successfully took the city by force. He lost almost everything to The Godking, but was able to escape with his love, Elene, and a little girl named Ulyssandra to start a new life. However, it's harder to turn your back on killing than Kylar thinks, but he is trying. Unfortunately, events cause him to return to Cenaria to rescue his best friend, Logan, and to take down The Godking. But is he good enough to do it?

Criticisms:
1) Chantry. There's a very forced in sub-plot of an organization called the Chantry in Shadow's Edge. The Chantry is an organization of female maja (females who are talented) and the whole sub-plot involves the Chantry looking for an answer to an internal issue. It doesn't feel like it belongs in this story. Thankfully, it really seems downplayed, but when it is first brought up, it's distracting by how much it feels forced into the story. It's not a bad sub-plot, but where it is introduced in the story, it's a severe change in the tone and pacing. It basically grinds Shadow's Edge to a halt and makes you wonder why this is so important. It doesn't help that it doesn't payoff in the end of this story, but at least the whole internal issue is downplayed when this sub-plot comes up.

Praises:
1) Characters. Once again, the characters are the one of the highlights of this story. While all characters in the story are good, there are three that stand out the most. Logan Gyre, Kylar Stern, and Viridiana Sovari really stood out. Out of everyone in the novel, these three are the ones that really left the most impact. With each of these characters, you see them go through a lot and by the end of the novel, they feel more rounded as characters. They are likable. Logan probably goes through some of the most horrifying changes out the three. His trials in the Maw really make him more of a rounded and real character. He has seen so much and uses what he has seen to change himself for the better. Also his mere presence inspires a lot of the characters that surround him, as well as making the reader feel good about themselves. Logan is just a good character who comes out of this story better for it. Kylar has a rough start in Shadow's Edge. He comes off as a little annoying at times, but you still like him. He feels real because of this. It's almost like you know him, without actually knowing him. He also goes through a lot in this story and does come out better from these trials. They pale in comparison to what Logan and Vi goes through, but he becomes something more at the end. Speaking of Vi, she almost steals the story. She's good. She's interesting, fun, and dangerous. There is just something about her that makes you like her. You're supposed to like her, but it's surprisingly how easily you find yourself liking her. She's an interesting character with an intriguing background and personality that gets more interesting as more is revealed. She really is surprising. All in all, the characters in Shadow's Edge are good, but Logan, Kylar, and Vi are the ones that really carry this story.
2) Ending. While the characters in Shadow's Edge are great, the ending is what makes this story really stand out. It's action-packed, fast paced, exciting, and will leave you pumped up for the next novel. It's rare that an ending makes you this excited that words are hard to explain how good it is. It's one of those endings that you should never spoil, for any reason. It's just that good.
3) Action. There's a lot of action in this entry of the series and it's good. It's fast paced, exciting, and leaves you in awe. It's just beautiful to read. The action is as intense and as exciting as you can get. It even varies with little fights to wide-scale battles, and they don't feel alike at all. In most fantasy novels when it comes to having multiple 'kinds' of action, they make it all feel the same. Shadow's Edge does not do this. Each style of fighting is distinctly different and while the small fights really do focus on each fighter, the large-scale battles do focus, mostly, on the entire battle, not little skirmishes that the important characters are in. This gives each fight a distinct difference in tone and makes unique. Also there is a distinct difference in each kind of fight. The small, solo fights really invoke artistry. They are beautiful dances that really do leave you in awe. The large-scale battles are the exact opposite. They aren't beautiful and they aren't artistic. They are brutal, dirty, and gritty. It's interesting that there is such a difference in how they are written. It is something that you don't expect. The action is unique and leaves you with something deeper than you would expect.

Side Notes:
1) Profanity. There is a lot, and I mean a lot, of profanity in this series. To me, the excessive use of profanity comes off as childish and juvenile. Profanity can be used in a 'good' way, mostly to enhance a situation's emotions. The Night Angel Trilogy walks a very thin line with this. There are times when it does come off as juvenile, while at other times, situations are enhanced by it. There were times when I thought that the usage of these words fit perfectly, then there were times when it came off as annoying. Like I said, the series is walking a very thin line with this. It still should be used sparingly.
2) Magic. The magic of this world is better explained in Shadow's Edge. The first book, The Way of Shadows barely touched on how the magic of this world works. In this one, you definitely get a better feel for it.
3) Cover Art. Once again the cover art is very generic. It's a slightly better pose, but it's still very boring. It's not interesting enough to really catch your eye. Also there is a smokey red color effect that does draw your eye, but there's nothing else to look at. Like with the first novel, Shadow's Edge has much better international cover art. The French version is very good. It's dark and the red highlight helps in drawing your eye to Kylar, who looks very intimidating. The Russian version is decent. It shows Kylar and Vi doing something and makes you wonder what it could be. The version for Spain has a great pose with a lot of personality with it. Once again, the default cover is a real letdown. But if you are in the science fiction/fantasy section of your local bookstore and see such a generic cover in the mass of interesting, colorful, and dark covers, your interests may pique as to way this cover is so bland. So in its own way, these covers do work. But I would like to see it be a little more elaborate.

Overall: 5/5
Final Thoughts:
Shadow's Edge is a fantastic sequel. It's full of great action, awesome characters, and a superb ending. There is a shoe-horned in plot that doesn't fit dealing with the Chantry. This sub-plot does drag the story on when it appears, but thankfully, it gets downplayed for other important events. But it is still noticeable. Otherwise, Shadow's Edge works on every other level. The characters are fantastic. They feel like they could be real people. They all have distinctive personalities and really do stand out. The three main characters; Logan, Kylar, and Vi, were fantastic. Logan really goes through a lot and to see him come out of it as a better person. He really raises your spirits. Kylar goes through an interesting change and really does feel like a real person. Vi almost steals the novel. She's interesting and the more you learn about her, the more you become invested in her. The thing that really sold me on Shadow's Edge is the intense and exciting climax and ending. To spoil it would do you a disservice. It's just something that you have to read. Finally the action in this novel was very good. The solo, small fights were fast paced and beautiful, while the large-scale fights really felt gritty and large. It's rare to have a novel to really make those two kinds of fights feel entirely different. All in all, Shadow's Edge is a fantastic sequel and is a great book on its own. The more I read of The Night Angel Trilogy, the more I can't recommend it enough. It's quickly becoming one of my favorite series.

Before I begin my review, I'd like to note that I am including a spoiler line below. While I will not be spilling any secrets from this book, my review will include spoilers from the first book. If you have not yet read The Way of Shadows, I recommend doing so before continuing this review.

*** SPOILER LINE *** SPOILER LINE *** SPOILER LINE ***

Kylar Stern has given up his life as a hired killer. He has chosen to start a simple, normal life with Elene. The couple moves far away from their home in Cenaria, along with Mama K's daughter Uly, to start anew.

Meanwhile in Cenaria, Godking Garoth Ursuul has taken over the King's Castle and is killing anyone who gets in his way. He is making a great effort to expand his Khalidorian military power against the rising Cenarian rebellion. Unbeknownst to Garoth, Logan Gyre (the rightful heir to the throne) is still alive, living in the dungeon pit below the castle with the prisoners.

Eventually, Kylar's past comes back to find him. He witnesses the murder of one of his closest friends just moments after discovering that Logan is still alive. It is this combination of circumstances that draw Kylar back to the streets of Cenaria. The city's only hope of survival is the leadership of Logan Gyre, and Kylar is probably the only person who would dare to attempt a rescue. He may also be the only person who can kill the Godking now that Durzo Blint is dead.

Shortly after Kylar leaves home, Uly is kidnapped by Vi, the same wetboy who attempted to kill Kylar in The Way of Shadows. Elene arrives home to discover that her family is gone, and she rides back to Cenaria in hopes of saving her loved ones. All three women are intercepted during their journeys, and all three wind up going down very different paths from where they started.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this series. I thought the first book was great, but this one was even better. The world becomes so much larger in this installment of the series. We are no longer spending all of our time in Cenaria; now we are learning about other kingdoms and leaders across the land. Every culture is vastly different from the next. Some kingdoms consider all magic and magic users evil, others believe that magic can be used for good, still others use only dark magic. It's absolutely fascinating.

Kylar is no longer the student apprentice we met in the first book. He has grown accustomed to his strength and power, and has no fear anymore. Of course, we know he is immortal, but that doesn't mean that dying isn't going to be painful each time he faces it. I enjoy seeing Kylar take control and face danger with a single-minded ferocity.

There are so many twists and turns in this book that it demands absolute focus in order to follow the characters and twists. It was an unpredictable and challenging read, which is right up my alley. It is also very intense and often gruesome, but somehow even the gruesome parts are incredibly creative. The fantasy elements really come to the forefront in Shadow's Edge, much more so than in the first book.

I recommend this series to fans of fantasy series like A Song of Ice and Fire and Lord of the Rings. My only negative comment about the series is that there are only three books! I already know that I'm going to want to read more about these characters no matter how the final book ends.

This is the second book in the Night Angel Trilogy. The first book left the reader in quite a tangle and this book picks up right where that one left off. It was a good installment in this series, the plot and characters are well woven and engaging. I listened to this on audio book and it was very well done (please excuse any name mispellings, as I listened to this).

Kylar has fled the city with Elene and Uli and they are trying to make a life for themselves in a city neighboring Cernaria. Of course that is not mean to be. As the God King destroys Cernaria, Jarl who now rules the Sa'kage, is trying to figure out a way to save a city doomed by the God King's rule. Eventually Jarl finds out that Logan is alive and in the hole and travels to tell Kylar; Kylar is again forced to choose between a peaceful live with Elene or possible saving the city he loves. There are billion other things going on at the same time; but that is the core of the story.

Weeks does an excellent job of weaving a story from numerous viewpoints. The detail and description he puts into the story is fantastic; he can really write. The scenes are engaging and really carry the reader from one section of the book to the next. The characters are realistic and people you really care about; they are human and make mistakes but they also have moments of glory. It was fun to see all the minor players from the first book finally coming into their power.

You absolutely must read the first book before this one or you will be completely lost. I had also forgotten how Weeks doesn't shy away from describing extremely uncomfortable and gory situations in great detail; definitely not for those with a week stomach. Our poor characters never get a break and Weeks absolutely breaks your heart with some of the things he puts these characters through.

I do have a couple of complaints. The first is the incredibly vast number of viewpoints the story is told from; while generally well done, at times it was confusing as to how much time had passed (or not passed) when viewpoints were switched. The other complaint is that Weeks has a tendency to over-explain. When a character does something complicated or clever, he always feels the need to spell out the reasons behind it for the reader. I personally think the reader deserves more credit; if a character does something clever let the reader think "Ah, that was clever"...don't spend two sentences explaining exactly why the character did it when it could be easily deduced by the reader.

The story ends at a good point and I am curious to see what things are dealt with in the final book. To be honest I cringe a little bit when I think what else our poor characters will have to go through in the next book. I would like to think things end well for them all, but I am going to guess that they don't. We will see.

Overall the book is incredibly complex and very well written. Weeks does an excellent job of making complex characters that you really care about and an excellent job of really engaging the reader. The world building is spectacular. Readers should be ware though that he is very detailed in gory and disgusting description so those with week stomachs may want to check out Jim Butcher's Furies of Calderon (Codex Alera, Book 1) or any of Brandon Sanderson's works instead (Mistborn Trilogy Boxed Set). The only other things I had trouble with were the vast multitude of viewpoints and the constant over-explanation of character actions. I enjoyed the book and am excited to see how everything turns out in Beyond the Shadows (The Night Angel Trilogy).

Shortly after Cenaria's fall to Khalidor and the death of his teacher, Durzo Blint, Kylar Stern decides to give up the violent life of the wetboy. He moves with his childhood love, Elene, and Blint's daughter to another country, hoping to start over as an herbalist in a more peaceful setting. But unable to give up his training, Kylar takes to stalking the streets at night as a vigilante. After some time, an old friend seeks Kylar out, and asks him to return to help the resistance movement. At first, Kylar refuses because he wants to make his relationship with Elene work. But then his ward is kidnapped, and he has no choice but to rush back into the life of killing that he tried to forsake.

Like The Way of Shadows (The Night Angel Trilogy), SHADOW'S EDGE shaped up to be a really strong, action-packed story. It isn't going to win any acclaim as great literature, but I'll certainly remember it as one of the more fun books I read this year. Weeks does a great job continuing the story from where it left off. SHADOW'S EDGE has a bit of a more magical feel to it, and I think that added a nice change. Kylar was frustrated for much of the previous volume because he couldn't access his Talent. Now that he's overcome that hurdle, it's really neat to see how he plays with his abilities.

One thing I really liked about the story was that Kylar's role as the Night Angel. He at first rejects the idea of being a wetboy because he doesn't want to be a person who loves violence. But he realizes that he can use his powers and abilities to do actual good and to meet out real justice. That changes his entire outlook about his abilities. He also learns that he needs to release his own desires and put the good of others first.

Also, I thought that the story was incredibly well plotted. Weeks made sure not to leave any major plot points unresolved, and was even able to throw in a really big twist during the climax that caught me off guard.

A year from now, I think I'll take away an aspect of Weeks' world-building that I hadn't really noticed before. He seems to really like using "real-world" ideas in an epic fantasy world. For example, he used the Hebrew concept of the nephilim as a kind of angelic messenger, even going so far as to echo some of the language found in Genesis. I don't typically like this type of allusion in my epic fantasy, and I wasn't 100% thrilled about it here. But from a creative perspective, Weeks is still working on his story crafting. I think the story is strong enough to stand a little real-world intrusion.

I'd recommend this book to epic fantasy fans who like the action and tone of Brandon Sanderson's MISTBORN trilogy, but with the salty language of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire Series. And, of course, if you enjoyed THE WAY OF SHADOWS, pick this up.

This, thus far, has been an impressive trilogy from an obviously talented new author. Weeks has done a great job building a believable world and engaging characters who grow and develop as the story progresses. While dark, at times, the story itself highlights the warring natures of good and evil and the people torn between them. Repeatedly, throughout the book, the question is asked, "can a man change?"

Shadow's Edge takes a huge step in the development of this story and, in my opinion, is a HUGE improvement over book 1 in the series, which I found to be highly entertaining itself. In fact, I'd go so far as to rank this one up there with some of the other fantastic new writing I've read lately by author's like Rothfuss and "Name of the Wind." The characters are deep and engaging, not to mention easy to identify with. The themes are well developed but not preachy by any means. The action and suspense are beautifully written and well-executed and the encounters, while truly bizarre at times, are made real by the level of description and immersion the book provides. Perhaps best of all, one can clearly see that the end was planned from the beginning. This is a cohesive story in which each part contributes to the whole. There appears to be little in the way of "making it up as we go." Refreshing considering the seeming prevalence of that approach in a lot of other fantasy on the market today.

If you're looking for resolution, you won't find any here. The book is clearly meant to be the bridge between the first and third. That said, by the end of Shadow's Edge, the stage is clearly set. And if the cohesion and organization that so characterized this book is any indication, Weeks is likely to have some great things in store for book 3.

My only gripe: really sloppy editing. So much so that it distracted from the story at times. And when I say that, I'm talking about really basic editing mistakes: typos, entire words missing from sentences that should be there to make them grammatically correct - that kind of thing. In other words, the actual production of the book comes off rushed, and doesn't do justice to the quality of the story. It's minor, but it's irritating. I don't remember this being an issue in book one, but then again, it's been a several months since I read it.

All in all, a great second offering and a strong recommendation. I keep wanting to compare it to Rothfuss because they are both fairly new to the game, but if you are a fan of grown-up, dark, smart fantasy with an eye toward character development, you'll love this series.

This is kind of a redo of a previous review. because my first review was pretty sloppy.

First of let it be said this is a good book series. the writer is new and so there are a few minor quibbles and gripes but the pacing and smooth the action well well done, the story compelling. long story short is that in every way that matters this book and this series are a good read.

since most of the reviews focus on how great the book is I just wanted to point out some of the flaws. first and foremost the writers voice is kind of... unusual. there are narrative descriptions of actions that read allot like a teenager telling a story to his friends at the mall.

This extends to the specific vocabulary. The story will often flow wonderfully until the author throws in a word that simply does not belong in the atmosphere created. its a sword and sorcery medieval fantasy but characters use words like Microbraids, contraceptive and bang (slang for having sex) which can be totally jarring in the middle of an otherwise well written narrative.

Avid readers will recognize the inspirational origins of many aspects of the story drawn from other stories especially, Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, Magic for example is often described as knots or webs similar to the way the One Power is described. There is an organization of female magic users divided into subgroups based on their specific magical strengths or interests and labeled by color (women who specialize in healing magic are Green magae for example) Even their center of organization is not surprisingly a great white tower (in the shape of an angel) located on an island in the middle of a river/lake.

having said that even with the similarities to other writers the story maintains an overall uniqueness and originality that keeps you interested in the continued development of the story and characters.

I enjoyed this series and honestly look forward to more from this author. after a few more books in this world I would love to see something totally original as the writer develops.

He survived as Azoth a street urchin thief in his hometown of Cenaria until he became Kylar Stern, apprentice "wetboy" to legendary assassin Durzo Blint (see THE WAY OF SHADOWS). When they became embroiled in the Godking's successful coup, his mentor and his best friend the rightful king of Cenaria Logan Gyre died though he survived again; he quits the life of a professional killer seeking a new start with his beloved Elene.

Kylar and Elene accompanied by their adopted daughter Uly leave Cenaria with its too many recent deadly memories for Caernarvon. There he opens up herbalist shop as a skill he learned as a wetboy assassin, but instead of murder, he uses it to heal. However, inside his soul, he feels pulled by his love for Elene vs. his missing the adrenalin rush of an assassination. While somewhat accepting the ennui of a shopkeeper, he hears rumors that Logan is alive and hiding in the Hole of Maw prison amidst cannibalistic and psychopathic killers. Meanwhile, the former shadow rulers of Cenaria the Sa'kage continue to rebel against the Godking, but face extinction without a miracle. Jarl asks Kylar to join them by rescuing the rightful king and assassinating the wrongful king.

Although not quite as action-packed as the opening gamut, SHADOW'S EDGE has enough escapades to avoid the mid book feel of only setting up the finish. Kylar is a fascinating protagonist as he has matured since his deadlier days, but still feels the addiction of a kill. The support cast is solid from his family who yank him with love to Jarl who yanks him with adventure and the fate of his buddy to Logan who is slowly dying in the Hole. The second book in the Night Angel trilogy is an engaging character driven fantasy as the audience expects Kylar to return to the shadowy world of the assassin, but at the same time have some doubts whether he is willing to pay the cost: his life with Elene and Uly.

Harriet Klausner

Kylar, the night angel, only wants to leave killing behind for his one true love. But when his friend shows up with news that his best friend is still alive what else can Kylar do? He takes a job on the Godking and goes to rescue his best friend.

I thought this book was written better than the first. The characters developed more, the plot was interesting, and there were points where I was blown away by what was happening. I really enjoyed everything about the book. I was having a hard time putting the book down and keeping my mind off of what was happening. The story was so well written that I was totally involved with it and had no problems keeping up with what was going on. I was always trying to guess what was going to happen next and was blown away when something entirely different happened.

I found myself wondering about Logan Gyre throughout the whole book. He isn't the main character but he is one of the main characters and his story enticed me the most. Kylar was another story that I was involved with and I couldn't believe what was going on. I thought that this whole book was a jaw dropper. There were multiple times I was like 'There is no way that just happened.' I thought that the characters were fun to get attached to and I was always worried about what would happen to them.

I did notice a couple of grammatical errors throughout the book but it definitely wasn't as much as the last book. I don't know if I can attribute those to the editor or the publisher making a mistake while printing. I also would of like to hear more about Logan's side but he did play a major role in the ending of the book. I was also rather upset when some of the important characters just kind of fell off of the earth. I do hope we hear more about these characters and a couple more mysteries will be solved in the next book.

(I want to say that I'm not going to give away the plot of the book. Weeks is great with plot as always, and I fear that even subtle of hint may spoil something.)

Shadow's Edge by Brent Weeks.

Well.

As I thought with the first book, the world is amazing and the plot interesting. Brent Weeks shows that he has a strong imagination and the ability to lay out a complex story. Unfortunately with this second book, although the plot twists are interesting and I like the inclusion of more characters, I can't quite maintain the same interest as I did with The Way of the Shadows.

The first thing that struck me about this book was Elene. I spent the first half being annoyed at her. I eagerly await Elene's usefulness, and can't for the life of me understand why Kylar has any interest in her. She's annoying and incredibly two-dimensional, and I find it upsetting that although so much time is spent on her, so little is gained.

I soon came to realize that the reason this bothered me so is that this sentiment applies to all the characters. They all seem to be surprisingly immature. Their side thoughts are poorly entered into the text, jarring the reader from what appears to be a complex procedure, for example, to some random thought of Kylar's. I understand that Weeks may be using these thoughts to flesh out his characters, but it hurts the book more than aids it. Furthermore, be it Vi or Kylar, all of these side thoughts are the same. I feel like Weeks swings in at random moments and inserts his own thoughts, masking them as those of his characters. It doesn't work.

I suppose it all boils down to this--Weeks is an amazing author. His world and plot--and even characters, when not drowned in unnecessary thought--are all amazing. His work hints towards and impressive imagination, and I'm very happy that we are privy to it. He is, however, a poor writer, and it hurts his work. His syntax, the general verbosity--so much of it is unnecessary, and it actually takes a lot away from what could be a very impressive fantasy novel. I don't, however, wish to call Weeks on this; I want to call Orbit. I've said this about Orbit books before, and I fear that I will continue to say it: editors. They need better editors! It's great to have another Fantasy and Sci-Fi publisher out there, but what does it mean if editors are leaving authors unchecked? I feel that if Weeks had a strong communicative relationship with an editor, this book would come off in a way that his imagination merits, and not in the poorly-demonstrated way that it does.

Moral: EDITORS ARE A MUST. I'm mid-way through Weeks's third book in this trilogy, and am running against the same brick wall. I hope that in his future works his writing--or editing--greatly improves. His ability for creation all but demands it.

BRIEF SYNOPSIS:
With the fall of his home, Cenaria, to the Godking, Kylar Stern has left the wetboy (assassin) life behind. He, his "wife," and his adopted "daughter" are looking to settle elsewhere, but the nature of his skills and passions proves difficult to abandon. Meanwhile, the King of Cenaria is living in the dungeon of the castle making allies and enemies with the wretched criminals. Events transpire that force Kylar to return to his home, his former allies, and his previous lifestyle.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:
SHADOW'S EDGE was a nice follow-up to THE WAY OF SHADOWS. It does not surpass by any means, but it picks up nicely and continues the intriguing character development of some of the most memorable characters in recent fantasy literature.

SHADOW'S EDGE takes place in a multitude of locales and the travel in between. This technique allows for Weeks to do some more world building for his fantasy world, which is well executed. The reader should have a greater appreciation for Weeks' creation after reading this book.

By far one of the strongest aspects of Weeks' The Night Angel Trilogy is the characters. They are interesting, compelling, and believable. Logan and Kylar are extremely fascinating and reading about their exploits incites emotions that range from love to hatred, empathy to disgust, and everything in between. It has been a long time since I have read a book that has so easily charged me emotionally, which if for no other reason, is a reason to read SHADOW'S EDGE.

J.Stoner

This is a middle of a trilogy book. So that sets your expectations. Bridge books have problems that the story can not end, the conclusion is not final. That happens here.

Weeks however has a lot of tools at his command and he is very good at using them. We follow our hero and the many other heroes through trials and tribulations that are horrific and soul shattering in nature.

We find that evil is further developed in this world, as is magic more defined as we leave the city setting of the first book and encompass more of the world. That perhaps sets up one of the few flaws. Evil in this world has been growing to such an extent that the world of good is caught virtually unaware.

With such evil, the conquest of our troubled kingdom and its heroes in the first book seems to have been done too easily unopposed by the rest of the world. An analogy would be that the world leaders know that Hitler and the Nazis are capable of great evil and that if they leave Germany that will destroy France, but no one tells France or goes to their aid, and France in this instance would be a tenth of what it was in ours. A very easy walkover. And then the atrocities committed would be 10 times as great as they were.

Otherwise, the writing is good, though a few typos have crept in, the plot twists are many. The stereotype is not set in stone and twisted on its ear often enough to be fresh. Well worth a read now and again.

I have to keep pinching myself to remind me that this trilogy is the authors first series he has written. Yes these books are just that good! This book continues on from the war and conquest of the God King and the subsequent terror unleashed by him on the populace of Cenaria. We also see the very difficult realities for people who are under the boot of an occupation army, starvation, murder, rioting and rape are a daily reality for the people. Most affected are the poor of the Warrens who find themselves brutalized on a daily basis, through such adversity they manage to gain the power to stand up and and fight back against the God Kings hoard.

What I do find great is the characterization Weeks has created for his characters. We see the lives of people like Kyler greatly changed as he finds the women he loves and takes her away from a life of a pain and misery and ultimately from Kylers work as a wet boy. But will Kyler be able to leave his exciting life behind? Will he have just one more job to complete? Also we get a glimpse into the like of the ousted King Logan as he tries to survive the hell and misery of the hole. Will this peril be to much for him? Or will he survive to become stronger in himself?

I'm about to start the third and final book in this series, i'm hoping it wll be as good as the first two.

This is a fast paced and fun sequel to The Way of Shadows. It's a strong follow up and just as fun as the first. The work I used in my previous review was fun, and it still applies. Don't be confused by the 600+ pages, you'll be done with this in no time and jumping to pick up the next, and last book in the trilogy. You immediately get drawn into the characters you are familiar with and are captivated by the ones who are new.

Each point of view the story is told from, either focusing on Kylar, Logan, or really any character, immediately draws you in and then leaves you gasping for more as it quickly changes gear so that the reader can see all the players on the chess board at the same time. While at first this may be a little disconcerting it doesn't make the story seem ill-planned or choppy. Every turn of the page gets our characters in trouble, and I again was in nail biting tension thinking "Oh dear how are they going to get out of this mess!" and the pay off is that its not always the obvious solution.

The dry wit and compelling characters is a major attractor for me. I think that there are perhaps only one or two that I can't get all that excited about, but they are are not major in terms of plot advancement in Shadow's Edge. The tension is often cut by a sly comment or biting internal dialogue but not in a way that seems forced or cheesy. I find that it is very rare for me to get this taken in by the fantasy genre. Shadow's Edge doesn't only take me in, it puts me in a full nelson and makes me read whether I like it or not, and I like it. A+

(Check out my interview with the author here: [...] and more reviews at: [...]

Shadow's Edge is a long way from the first book and an absolute pleasure to read. Characters like Durzo impress the reader in the first book and leave lasting impressions. In this book, there are a multitude of stories about myriad characters and they have been handled impeccably. The book has the same pace as The Way of Shadows but the characters, narrative, plot and twists are ten times better. Kylar is now looking to establish a different life for himself, far from the politics and killing that had hitherto engulfed his life. He has found the love of his life, Elene and the talkative Uly who is like a child to both of them. As he seeks to alter his ways and evolve into a person that he thinks he can be, the reader walks two steps behind and feels everything that Kylar goes through on his voyage. And through it all, characters like Jarl, Logan, the vile Godking and the seductive Vi all pursue their own fates. As far as second books in trilogies go, this one is exceptional.

Shadow's Edge by Brent Weeks is the second book in the Night Angel Trilogy. The first novel is titled The Way of Shadows (The Night Angel Trilogy) with the third being titled Beyond the Shadows (The Night Angel Trilogy). After reading the first book in this trilogy, I was both excited and nervous to read this book. Excited because the first novel was one of the best books I have read in long time, I loved ever word of it. Nervous, because I as concerned that Mr. Weeks would not be able to catch lightening in a bottle twice. Could he possibly live up to the greatness that was book one? There is also the trend in some trilogies that that the second book is merely a bridge novel to further the story without much substance behind it. Here are my thoughts on this novel.

The plot of this novel picks up where the first novel ends. Kylar Stern has done enough killing and wants to walk away from the wetboy business. He goes to extraordinary steps to get away from everything and renounce his one time profession. What, if anything, could get him to once again pick up that life he tried so desperately to put behind him? This novel is also riddled with sub plots that make this book, and world, come to life. Some of the sub plots include, Logan Gyre was left in the ultimate prison cell with societies worst criminals at the end of book one. Does he survive the battle with losing his sanity, and battling the other people in the cell? The prophet Dorian can see the future. However, seeing the possibilities of the future leave him teetering on the edge of sanity. There is also the sub plot of the Godking and what his rule means to the country. There are several other sub plots, but in the interest of space and not wanting to spoil anything I will stop there. Suffice to say that, while book one was a sprint into the realm on an assassin and occurred at break neck speed, this book has a slightly less frantic pace. However, the slight slow down does nothing to affect the plot or book. The story is a masterwork of pacing, and it is obvious that Mr. Weeks put a great deal of thought into not only each book, but how the overall plot meshes together. I can not really put into words how good the storyline is in this book. It is a story that is easy to get caught up in and one that you want to read just one more page before you go to bed. Only to realize that it is four in the morning. To me a book that can capture a reader like that is a rare thing, and so far, Mr. Weeks is two for two on that.

The characters in this book are largely the ones from the first novel. Characters such as; Kylar, Logan, Vi, Momma K, Jarl, Elene, and Garoth. This, of course, is just a small sample of the characters in this novel. There are a lot of characters in this novel. However, unlike other novels with a lot of characters, I never once felt like a character was lost or pushed to the side. In fact, I think each character was written near flawlessly. There is a great deal of character development in this novel, actually more than what I thought would be present. The thing that surprised me were the number of characters that were developed to a significant extent. In most books, significant character development is usually reserved to one or two characters. In this book, there are no less than half a dozen characters that receive significant development. This makes the book feel much more rich and vibrant, and it is very easy to connect with this wide assortment of characters. At no time did the characters feel like they were being dragged through the plot, it actually felt like they were creating the plot and influencing events. This is something I can not say about several books I have read. I really enjoyed the characters and the vibrant nature in which they were written.

I have one very minor criticism about this novel:

There are several places throughout the novel where the copy editing was off. There are missing word that snap the reader out of the experience to figure out what word is missing. It's not a big deal, but when a book flows this smoothly, those things are easy to notice.

Some things I enjoyed about this novel:

1 - The depth of the plot and sub plots. It is rich, vibrant, and has enough twists that the reader is never allowed to get comfortable with what they think will happen. I enjoy being surprised while I am reading, and I was surprised several times in this novel.

2 - Just like the first novel, this novel doesn't hold any punches. Some authors become too attached to their characters and never kill any of them. That is not the case with this book, or series. If a characters death will benefit the story, Mr. Weeks is not afraid to kill them. It's refreshing and makes the books that much more interesting to read.

3 - For a new author, Mr. Weeks prose is very refined, fluid, and expressive. Mr. Weeks writing is very easy to read, but at the same time it is an adult novel. If you are looking for a feel good story with flowery language, this is most certainly not the book for you.

When all is said and done, I really enjoyed this novel. This book, and series, gives me renewed hope that the fantasy genre still has new and fresh ideas to offer to its readers. With the first two books in this trilogy, Mr. Weeks has announced himself to the fantasy genre as a name to watch. Usually when I read a series I try to take a break in between novels to read something different. That will not be the case with this series. I will be starting the third and final book immediately as I must know what happens. The degree to which Mr. Weeks has been able to get me connected with the characters is amazing; I can not even guess what will happen next. This is certainly a series that fantasy fans should read, it has something for everyone. I would even hazard a guess and say that people who usually don't read fantasy novels may enjoy this one as well. I know this series will be very high on my recommendation list for a long time to come. Do yourself a favor and check this one out.

Cenaria has been invaded by the Godking but Kylar and Elene have left the country as Kylar tries to break with his violent past and take up the trade of herbalist to please Elene. It doesn't go well as a change and before long Kylar finds himself drawn back into the horror that Cenaria has become under the Godking - and Elene will find herself on an unexpected path.

This is a strong follow up to The Way of Shadows (The Night Angel Trilogy) and easily keeps the reader engaged. Kylar continues to be a character you like and who's story you want to follow. The Good Assassin is rather overdone in fantasy these days, but I decided to take a chance on this series, and I'm really glad I did. These books have easily kept me reading once I got past the first chapter or so in book 1 and I'm a bit hesitant to pick up book 3 straight away as I know that it will be the last I'll get of these characters for a long while. This is a series I'll be recommending to other friends who read fantasy novels.

OK - so I read and love the fantasy genre. I have read hundreds of them over my lifetime. So that means I often as a reader have to suspend belief in the physical world and get transported to another one where the rules and physics of our world don't apply. However, I've got to say that the main character here, Kylar, takes on a certain level of stupid that really surpasses my ability to believe.

I can somehow bring myself to believe he obtains a magic sword that has incredible powers - this is standard stuff in fantasy land. However, what he does with it and for what reasons??? I'm just befuddled.

Mr. Weeks continues his narrative, but seems to have struggled with how to get this one going. The first two hundred pages are just a bit difficult to swallow. It's not that the characters are all that different or the plot doesn't move along well enough, it is just these stupid decisions that are not justified enough by the author. I understand being in love and wanting to do the right thing by somebody, but the author doesn't do enough to convince the reader that the main character is doing these things for reasons the he really believes in.

Once he accepts his fate and moves on into the story, this book picks up again where the first book left off. Typically the second book in a trilogy is the darkest and this is true for this book too. The characters must deal with many issues and emergencies while trying to stay true to themselves. Difficult decisions have to be made. Fights have to be won. An assassin must accept his role.

Pros:
o more action
o interesting characters
o a world that is becoming better defined and understood

Cons:
o some stupid plot twists
o inconsistency of characters can detract from the plot

Overall - worth reading, if you can make it past the first 200 pages or so...

There are a lot of character viewpoints in this book, and at some points, this can be confusing because characters don't come back into focus for awhile. The plot is fairly easy to follow although because of the huge cast of characters when viewpoints switch, it can take a few moments to re-orient yourself as to what is happening in this specific corner of the story.

Weeks introduces us to some other cultures in the world he has created, and they are imaginative. A lot of these cultures are seen through a host of viewpoints which gives the reader a depth of understanding of their placement in Weeks' world which I greatly enjoyed.

I appreciated Kylar's development from someone ill at ease with himself to someone with more purpose to his actions. In general, I liked the second book more than the first because it has a more hopeful tone to it although the body count is again sky high.

Weeks puts the reader in a gritty, harsh, world and creates interesting characters you care about. There are some cool themes and ideas, and some great scenes (like Logan in the Maw with its sinew-chewing horrors). The books are fast-paced and have enough action to keep you entertained. The books steal a bit from existing works (like Hobb's Farseer Trilogy), but also contains enough originality to be unique.

One drawback is that it reads like Weeks kind of makes up magic as he goes along ("Oh so now Blint has that power too? Oh, that's possible in this world too hu?"). But his world and its magic become consistent and make sense by the end. It was also fairly predictable, and the main character's internal struggle got a little old.

But all-in-all I feel confident dark fantasy fans will like The Dark Angel. I enjoyed these books and missed the characters when I was done.

This book took some time to read, not cos it was big, but cos it was so emotionally draining. I read 50 pages and had to stop. And took a break for some time. The reason, well let me put it like this. I saw a glimmer of hope, then I turned around and Weeks stabbed me in the back and left me bleeding.I should have learned not to trust it but I kept turning around and getting hit again and again.

He is an excellent writer and he has created a rich world, but there is darkness, such darkness that I had to take those breaks from it.

And the darkness he creates it not a darkness that I read and think no way (well except for those cannibals, but then that happens too, like that plane crash in the Andes.) But here the deal was war, and what happens during and after it. People do not live happily ever after. No there is death, rape, and bloody murder. It is brutal and it happens every day in real life too. The thing is just that Brent Weeks put it here for all to see, and he really pushes it.

It is not a gore fest in blood and guts. Yes there is death, and horrible things. But he tells about them, without going in to details, because that would really have been bad. Now they are just there in this dark, dark world without hope.

But ok, something about the story then, Kylar has left the fallen city and gone to another with Elene and young Uly.. But then he hears that Logan might be alive, but in a place worse than hell. Can he really turn his back on his nice new life and go back to what he used to be? The answer is pretty obvious, he may be a killer but he is also nice and wants to help his friends. He is loyal, and righteous (well most of the time, I mean he was an assassin.)

This story started away from the horror, but went there via the side characters, while Weeks dealt blow and blow of hopelessness. But he has such strong characters that never give up even after the horrors that are happening to them. And there is still one more book, this one left with hope again but there are things to be seen too. I just have one hope, that he keeps Kylar alive, because I want him to be happy.

One other thing is how he made me see one character in a new light, one I should, have hated, but even among this hopelessness there is forgiveness. All hope is not lost.

Great series, even if it is dark. Take your time reading it, or perhaps you are not like me and I can deal with these things. I always have a hard time to deal with sadness, and darkness. Which is weird since I love fantasy and big war scenes, but I still wanna live in lala land and see HEAs and freakin unicorns.

Brent Weeks debut novel Way of Shadows was a brilliantly written first novel. It had all the things that fantasy readers look for when reading a new novel, something new, great world, believable characters within the world and of course quality writing that keeps you up too long at night for just one more chapter. Shadow's Edge starts right where the first ended and unfortunately falls into that dreaded new author's second book syndrome (lots of words written, but little plot movement). Along with the second book syndrome all the characters have become something different, but not in a good way. Weeks took everything you liked about all your favorite characters in the first book and reversed them. Kylar is now a herbalist, wanting to be married and has an adopted daughter, Momma K wants to give up the Shinga gig and mope about how much she loved Durzo, Logan becomes an animal.....do you get the point yet, ridiculous. There were also too many chapters in this book I couldn't even finish and just skimmed due to the lack of depth of the writing, no plot movement or character development that was complete filler. Some examples were Kylar and Elene a day at the market (yes you read that right), a full chapter rape scene, the Godking and Neph talking about nothing, any chapter with Dorian dreaming, many more, but there are just a few. 300 pages in and this is what you get, luckily the ending is good, but does not make up for a bad book. This book feels like the pulisher was submitted book 1 loved it and told Weeks you need to make this a trilogy because you have a winner. While I agree the first was a winner, the second is a huge disappointment when compared to the first. Unfortunately, not recommended, but you are forced to read this dribble to hopefully read a much better third novel conclusion.

*****CONTAINS SPOILERS!*****

The second installation in the Night Angels Trilogy took a huge step backwards from the fantastic impression left by the first novel. It had enough good points that I am excited to read the final book, but if I hadn't already bought the last novel, I probably would not have been in any hurry for it after reading Shadow's Edge.

We open to a Kylar who is almost completely unfamiliar to us. He's trying to give up his role as a wetboy and the Night Angel in order to live a normal life with Elene. Why? I DON'T KNOW! Elene is an utter bore and I can not fathom what Kylar finds so appealing about her. They have almost nothing in common. She can not accept him for the person that he has become, just wants him to be the sort of man that she thinks he ought to be. To Kylar's credit, he tries, and I expelled a huge sigh of relief when he failed and started going out behind Elene's back. Still, for the first couple hundred pages of the book, I didn't find Kylar likable or interesting at all.

Then there is Uly. This might be a minor gripe, but she really annoyed me. I'm wondering if Weeks has ever met an 11-year-old, because Uly is much more the depiction of a girl several years younger. Like Elene, she is overdone in terms of the innocence stereotype and just comes out flat and uninteresting.

Let's move on to Vi! I was so excited when it looked like she was going to be a spotlight character in this book. A female wetboy in the same ranks as Kylar, whom we only glimpsed earlier but who has been training with one of the most twisted wetboys in the series, is bound to be a fierce, powerful character, right? Not so much. Again, we have a female character that is overly sexualized. Who suffered sexual abuse and now uses sex as a weapon. Very little of her potential as young woman who is trained to kill in a hundred different ways. And then we get whalloped with this sudden crush she develops on Kylar out of NOWHERE. And as if the crush weren't bad enough on its own, it wasn't even done well. Vi had so much potential to be a sassy, powerful female lead, but she was turned into a weak, simpering idiot.

And if you thought the first book had a lot of characters, you haven't seen anything yet! If I ever read this series again, I swear I am going to keep a list of the cast of characters. It gets to the point where there are so many of them that it's hard to care about any of them.

And finally, the excess of torture. We get it, the Godking is a bad, bad man. Do we really need endless descriptions of a massive variety of horrible things that people can do to each other and have him explore every single one, no matter how small a part it even plays in the grand scheme of things? After a while it felt like Weeks was just trying to pack in these scenes for shock value.

Fortunately, this book is not without its redeeming qualities. Again, Logan Gyre really shines. At the end of the last book, he was cast into the Hole just after being made king. Weeks did an incredible job of building the Hole, a microcosmic fraction of the world that the characters live in. I loved that Logan, who has previously been a beacon of a young man who always does the right thing, is slowly broken down. He wasn't impervious. As much as I loathe the book Lord of the Flies, life in the Hole reminded me much of that, of how far your average men and women will go to survive. The one downside: once he's freed from the Hole, it doesn't seem to have had much of an effect on him aside from the fact that he's no longer robust. Logan falls right back into his leadership role as if he was never dehumanized, and I expected to see a little PTSD with him.

I liked seeing Kylar and Vi work together. They do make an interesting team, and I'm intrigued by where the ending of the last book will lead them in the final installation.

The writing itself is still good. A little too verbose and redundant - so far, I think both books in this series could have easily shed about two hundred pages and been better for it. Still, I'm really enjoying the story and I'm excited to see how it all ends.

I read a lot of Sci-Fi books. I really enjoy the majority of them and even if they're a little dull, I pull through. I found it extremely hard to put this book (and the 1st and 3rd books) down once I picked them up. This is much to the chagrin of coworkers and my boss and my husband and my daughter. They survived... right? However, on a happier note, it's the first time my husband has picked up a book that isn't a graphic novel or magazine in about 5 years. He's currently on the third of the series and I've already loaned the first book to another friend.

Pros: Fast paced, colorful, has unexpected actions (yes, people you like will die), love the cliff hangers Brent leaves you with
Cons: The main character seemed a little whiny, but I dealt with it.

Kyler Stern has settled down to a life of comfortable domesticity...at least he's trying; however the synchronicities of life conspire to pull him back into his darker avatar of the Night Angel (sort of a cross between Jet Li and the Shadow) to seek justice, right wrongs and just beat up bad guys in general.

"Shadows Edge" by newcomer Brent Weeks is as much fun as the first in the Night Angel trilogy "Way of Shadows". In the first novel Azoth/Kyler is being trained (by his teacher Durzo Blint) as a Wetboy, sort of a super assassin. In this novel Kyler has rejected the life of a professional killer but cannot fully accept the life that his fiancé wants for him, that of a budding herbalist. In a way, this is the coming of age of a young Kyler Stern. The novel does an admirable job of describing that time in most of our lives when we are forced to create of ourselves a new person; an amalgam of the person that our parents, teachers and mentors want us to be and the person that we ourselves wish to be as well the person that destiny has chosen for us. All change is difficult, especially when it requires that we may disappoint the people that we love the most, and this is the case for a young Kyler Stern. We see Kyler struggle with opposing sides of his nature in an attempt to be true to himself but keep the love and acceptance he has struggled for his whole life.

An emaciated but much wiser King Logan Gyre has escaped prison and taken his place at the head of an army to fight the Godking. This is a story of honor, war and redemption as the young characters from the first novel are all forged in the heat of despair to create the men and women that the realm needs in order to defeat tyranny.

As other reviewers have mentioned, there are a lot of story lines here but I did not find myself bogging down with them and in fact enjoyed the fleshing out of the trilogy. I highly recommend "Shadows Edge" and will be the first in line at the end of this month for my copy of "Beyond the Shadows", the conclusion of the Night Angel trilogy.

8.7/10 stars.

It was tough to put this one down. GREAT book, and a definite improvement over its predecessor. Lots of twists and turns. Great ending.

My one nitpicky complaint: Most of the major characters and action occurs in the following distinct locations: "Cenaria," "Ceura," and "Caernarvon." If you're reading a book over the course of weeks, these locations, due to the similarity in their spelling, can become confusing. What's the obsession with CAE locations? How about picking dissimilar names?

I listened to the first book of this trilogy and loved it. I checked out this audio book from my local library highly anticipating the continuation of Kylar's story. I was slightly disappointed. This book was still very good but somewhat of a letdown from the first book. This audio book had the same reader as the first and was great, as in the first. Mr. Weeks writing continues to be top notch. I am excited to start the last book, with this books cliffhanger ending it should be a fun ride!

The first book in this series really gripped me early and wouldn't let me put it down.

This book.... well, it was worth the time investment. Nice reading, but at first blush it just kinda didn't progress much. After the events of the first novel, the author took his time in setting up the circumstances of the characters again, as everything had changed based on the end of Book 1. For my tastes, this was maybe too long. I found myself reading to finish the book, rather than because I was riveted.

But then the plot picked up (I can't pinpoint where), and the book became a must-finish project. Everything picked up an incredible momentum, and you get heroism, sacrifice, really interesting magic and monsters, and one heck of an end to this section of the story.

Con: the hero, Kylar, is almost too powerful, and on occassion, just waded through what should have been incredible challenges. It is hard to imagine what can realistically give him a run for his money.

Pros: the author sets up each book to tell a main story and let it reach resolution, while laying the groundwork for the next book's big plotline.

After what seems to be the conclusion of the main story, I cannot wait to see what direction the author takes us in for Book 3.

This book flows seamlessly. The character development was perfectly done. Kylar's internal struggles between what he wants, what he is, and what he must do was laid out like only a truly talented writer can do, which makes knowing that this is only Weeks second novel astounding. Logan's character was no less well done, and Elene's protected life and black and white ideals was smashed in a realistic, yet profound way. What was most surprising in the book was the development of Viv's character, her background, and her importance to the story development for the next novel.

This story was 645 pages long and was so engrossing that the time flew by as I read. I can't wait to start the next one. This is highly recommended reading.

I may have already admitted that I don't read a lot of epic/heroic fantasy--but as my title suggests, what I have read is the guy who founded the genre (LOTR 3 times), as well as another guy (GRRM) who I believe is considered one of the leaders of the field today. So I hold such books to an extremely high standard. If I'm going to go to the effort of keeping dozens of weirdly-named characters straight, care about a plot that spans three books, and wade through 2,000+ pages, I better get fascinating characters, magnetic storytelling, cool plot elements, and satisfying fights and battles.
I'm happy to report that as with the first book, this second book delivers on all counts. As with the first one, I read it at all possible opportunities, mimicking addict behavior very closely. The emotional range I thought was better, as I got more involved with the characters--an improvement on book one.
Sure, there were a few copy editing gaffes here and there, but as a former proofreader myself, I have to commend those who worked on this one for doing such a fine job with a 700-page book.

The 1st book was such a great surprise. Maybe I had too high of hopes for the 2nd. Maybe. Maybe this has middle-book syndrome. Maybe this is just a weak 2nd book. My vote is for the latter.

I liked Terry Brooks as a teenager, but when trying to re-read some of his books as an adult I got tired of how the main characters never WANTED do something great. They had magic but didn't want to use it. They had magic stones but didn't want to use them. They had a magic sword but didn't want to use it. Whereas, we as the reader use our imagination to imagine having no such problems - fantasizing about holding backs hordes of evil minions with our magic and cunning.

Most of this book follows the same script. The 1st book he was trained to be a killing machine, destroying his enemies. The 2nd book, he knows he's the best, has the ultimate magic sword, magic in his blood, and what does he do with it? Doesn't want to use it. Hmmm.... Seems I've heard this story in the countless Terry Brooks young adult books I read as a teen (no offense Terry, I loved your books as a kid - even went to one of your signings).

I quite enjoyed the first installment of this trilogy, and hoped that this book would be of similar quality. It was better. Excellent pace, good development of characters, worldbuilding which got more intricate and a fascinating plot. Brent Weeks provided the full package, and made me lose some sleep. This novel is a real page-turner, and hard to put down.

Apart from Kylar, I really got into the characters of Vi and Momma K. Brent gives plenty of depth to his characters. The trials of Logan intrigued me the most, though.

This is a dark, edgy fantasy with some fascinating characters, who you'd wish to follow into the final installment of the trilogy. I know I will.

The changes of viewpoint that distracted from the first book are not so distracting in this book. When the viewpoint is changed in Shadow's Edge, it is to a character of importance that we hear from again soon after their first introduction. The side plots in this book, as opposed to the first book, were very interesting. I could feel everything coming together, and I loved it. With that said, I have absolutely nothing to complain about with this book, it is wonderful!

The characterization is amazing, the plot is epic and full of twists and turns, there is hope, love, and betrayal. If you enjoyed the first then you will certainly enjoy this. Next please!

"Love is a fragile, corruptible thing. And yet I have seen it evince a curious strength. It is beyond any comprehension. Love is a weakness that once in a great while triumphs over strength. "
The first in this series -- The Way of Shadows -- while not a perfect book and very much had the 'debut' author feel to it in some respects, I couldn't help but to truly enjoy the book a great deal. I had to pick this one up immediately afterward which is high enough praise in my book.

Still, I just felt that not all aspects of the craft were quite to the point of excellence yet. It was Brent Weeks' debut book and it was a particularly strong and enjoyable one at that yet still lacking a certain element of refinement. It wasn't there yet.

Shadow's Edge is.

I laughed, I got a face full of onion juice. I was kept on the edge of my seat (figuratively at least, I don't often read while seated you see) almost from start to finish.

'Almost?', I hear you ask? Observant li'l blighters ain't ya's. But yes, 'almost'. You see, for the most part this is quite a high intensity and high action somewhat fast paced book. Whenever things do slow down it is to give you a bit of a breather while the stage is being constructed before your very eyes and a muttered, 'Oh no...' is out before you're even aware of it.

Even throughout the very beginning -- which picks up essentially immediately after the end of the first -- you can feel this sense of building tension and the escalating clash between the worlds of a pair of the main characters. I was interested because the first book -- for all it's grimy darkness -- did a good job of making us care for these characters. But it still didn't seem to ... hmm... engage quite as well as the rest of the book.

A minor niggle, but one nonetheless.

Once things really get going, the machinations and manipulations of the new players involved, the brutality of the oppressing force, the desperation in the actions of those strong enough to rebel... They will not let you rest until the book is completed.

And after you're done, the consequences will ring in your mind until you either go crazy or begin the third and (currently) final book in the series.

For me, while this book doesn't quite eke its way onto the pedestal containing the works of Scott Lynch and Patrick Rothfuss, it comes remarkably close.

In Shadow's Edge, Weeks continues his story of the wetboy Kylar Stern. Unfortunately, this book is less impressive than the first. Numerous details about the Midcyru are left out that leave the reader wondering (this is remedied in the final book). The magic systems are never fleshed out, which causes confusion when Weeks switches between magic systems. Worse, Weeks seems to be stealing ideas from Robert Jordan-the Chantry and the Lae'knaught? Really? This book had a great pace and interesting characters but unfortunately its weaknesses were too glaring to allow it to be more than a mediocre book. Weeks has potential but he needs to work more on developing a unique story.

I enjoyed this book much more that the first. Weeks seemed more focused with this effort; his writing more concise and polished.

Kylar has been left to fend for himself, now that his teacher (Durzo Blint) has been dispatched. And this makes for a much more interesting tale with lots of unexpected twists and turns.

There are, as with any good fantasy, many magical happenings, romance and love, some new found friends and enemies and several battles of both the small and large variety.

Concerns...

1.)Again, as with the first book, use of verbal vulgarity (the 'f' word) in areas were a little more 'sensitivity' was required, was a concern. But the frequency was not as prominent as with the first book.

2.)unexplained events...there were a couple areas in this book where people were about travel a dangerous 'path' to a locale to do something or meet someone. The next chapter featuring this person, has him/her at the 'site' with no indication of the travails he/her encountered along the way to get there. He/she just seemed to magically 'arrive'.

Conclusion:
All in all, much improved from the first book; better writing and a better and more focused story. There is still room for improvement...hopefully the third and final installment will have all the kinks worked out. Easily 4 to 4 1/2 Stars.

Ray Nicholson

I like this series and will read the third, but I'm having a really difficult time with the rampant sexism the author seems to show through his female characters. The majority of the women fall into two archetypes- the innocent virgin or the wise whore. The female characters seem to only take action in response to having or not having sex and how that has affected their lives. Sex is only referred to as f%*king and lacks any emotional depth. It's a very shallow view of women.

Shadow's Edge is a classic Book 2 in the Empire Strikes Back or Two Towers vein - big surprises from the beginning and even less resolved at the end than the situation was at the end of Book 1.

It's a great read; I think Brent Weeks really hits his stride in the second half of this book. The flaws which were apparent every so often in the first book are less obvious here, and the characters really start to develop in interesting and unexpected ways. Heroes and villains are not always what they seem, and there are some really cool plot twists in the last 100 pages that set up Book 3.

The action is, as usual, top drawer. There are still some lapses into 20th century vernacular and syntax (especially during the Caernarvon segments with Vi and Kylar); and the dialogue during the climatic confrontation is just awful. But these are easily forgiven because the story is positively cranking. And then Book 3 gets even better.

Shadow's Edge continues the saga of Kylar Stern and his new role as the Night Angel. This book takes the reader out of Cenaria and into the wider world of Mydceru and all of the the magic, horrors, and intrigue that it contains. I was especially pleased with the way Brent Weeks masterfully pulls the reader along with the ever mounting tension of the storyline. Despite what I felt was a rather slow beginning Shadow's Edge more than makes up for it with a riveting climax. This is one of those rare books in which you can get lost in the story and find yourself hundreds of pages later feeling that very little time has elapsed in the interim. Highly Recommended.

These books are amazing, I read a huge quantity of sci-fi/fantasy and these made my Top 5! It has been a long time since someone wrote something to make it on my list with Ender's Game, Deed of Paksenarrion, Dune, and The RiddleMaster of Hed. I was intensely impressed at this gold mine. I am eagerly watching for the books that Brent Weeks writes in the future!

Now that I am done raving, a product description: The books are excellent, a blend between the swashbuckling mysterious of The Lies of Lock Lamora and the action pack awesomeness found in Jim Butcher or John Ringo. Great character developement, they force you right along every page. I called in sick to work because I got the book at 9PM and didn't finish it until 6AM the next day! The first book had a slight bit of confusion, but it was resolved very nicely in the second book and finished beautifully in the third with a refreshing blend of sorrow and hope!

I hope this review inspired [i]everyone[/i] to buy these books!

Epic, nation-saving sword and sorcery in a grand, fast-paced romp. Only with a hero that's far too easy to kill, and more 'coincidences' than you could conjure up with a dozen mages.

In the first book of this trilogy, Weeks did a great job of slowly developing characters and complex relationships. Had this one been the first, I may not have come back to it.

Weeks has some vivid imagery and sets a scene creatively through his descriptions yet more tellingly through the response of the characters. Unfortunately, he hasn't yet mastered the art of an effective transition chapter. All the disparate protagonists rush headlong across the better of two nations and of course wander into each other in the exact moment needed to advance the motive for getting them to run somewhere else next. By the middle of the book an observant reader could easily predict who or what was going to pop up next, because Weeks wrote himself into a corner without an apparent out except to have one of his God-like heroes intercept and redirect another one without planning on it ahead of time as two people just happen to meet when convenient.
And the final star loss is for the excessive and totally unnecessary cussing. You can create worlds and people and languages and can't come up with three curses for people to use that are not s___ or f____? Really? Nothing breaks the flow of an alternate world more for me than having the hero use a modern English/American slang swear word for no good reason other than lack of imagination by the author. Curses can provide depth, history, theology, alien language immersion, or any number of great elements to a tale and character. Weeks's world is apparently filled with simpletons who use the same two swear words despite supposedly hailing from at least five distant nations so far. If that's what I wanted to spend my time reading, I'd just go online to any teenage blog and read the responses from the mostly illiterate masses.

Spoilers...
I was really let down by this book. The first half is dealing with Kylars angst and sexual frustration. Nothing I really care about nor anything like the first book. The second half dealt with random characters all making obviously bad choices that were 'inevitable' and dealing with their consequences poorly and regretfully. I wish there was better character development and real struggles, hardly an epic battles at all. This book makes me regret starting the series, probably not going to read the next, although I really hate not finishing series.

It's hard to do, but he did it. He outdid himself. The story is immensely engaging with plot twists, subtly, and excitement.

You will literally hang on every word, as he surprises you with what next.

I've been liking the new authors who have been coming out, Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss come to mind, and Brent Weeks is definitely on that list of great authors.

Great story of intrigue, love, adventure, and moral dilemmas.

GO READ IT!

About a week has passed for Kylar Stern and Logan Gyre in "The Night Angel Trilogy" second novel "Shadow's Edge". The editing improves slightly but the character relationships change drastically. Still, the connections between the characters are interesting despite the unusual courses their lives take.

By the end of the novel I was trying to determine why the character directions altered so much. It seemed the author wanted to either adjust all the dynamics as a dramatic plot device or unhappy with their paths. I can grudgingly accept some changes but among Viridiana Sovari and Elene Cromwyll and Kylar, Logan and Jenine Gyre and Dorian Ursuul collections provide too much drama. Similarly, Kylar's hasty decisions (especially one in particular) changes his abilities in such a way where I wondered if the author wishes to reduce Kylar's enormous power.

I believe the awkward use of the "f" bomb totally unnecessary given the minimal overall usage of vulgarity in the cruel world. Gnasher has a minor but important role yet disappears without mention. The odd moments are Vi's obsession with Kylar, his streak of luck to conveniently continue the plot, and specifically the arrow striking Kylar and his ridiculous dialogue with the archer afterward. I did find the end to be pretty wild and unexpected with a huge shocker between Kylar and Vi.

A better detailed map of the significant terrains and comprehensive appendix including the many characters would have been useful.

Thank you.

Rollicking read. Second in the series and no slowing down here. Instead the characters introducted earlier are more fleshed out and have plenty of adventures. I particularly enjoyed Vi and Momma K, but it's really Kylar and Logan's book. Klylar exlores his growing talent and Logan the depths of his peronsality. Great imagery and imagination at work. Very happy with this series. (not a stand alone, you have to read book 1 to appreciate what goes on here)

The characters in this book are fighting for their lives, their home, their freedom. There is no clear right or wrong, good or bad. The struggle in this story feels so real, despite the fantasy world with magic.

Shadow's Edge is a classic Book 2 in the Empire Strikes Back or Two Towers vein - big surprises from the beginning and even less resolved at the end than the situation was at the end of Book 1.

It's a great read; I think Brent Weeks really hits his stride in the second half of this book. The flaws which were apparent every so often in the first book are less obvious here, and the characters really start to develop in interesting and unexpected ways. Heroes and villains are not always what they seem, and there are some really cool plot twists in the last 100 pages that set up Book 3.

The action is, as usual, top drawer. There are still some lapses into 20th century vernacular and syntax (especially during the Caernarvon segments with Vi and Kylar); and the dialogue during the climatic confrontation is just awful. But these are easily forgiven because the story is positively cranking. And then Book 3 gets even better.

Shadow's Edge continues the saga of Kylar Stern and his new role as the Night Angel. This book takes the reader out of Cenaria and into the wider world of Mydceru and all of the the magic, horrors, and intrigue that it contains. I was especially pleased with the way Brent Weeks masterfully pulls the reader along with the ever mounting tension of the storyline. Despite what I felt was a rather slow beginning Shadow's Edge more than makes up for it with a riveting climax. This is one of those rare books in which you can get lost in the story and find yourself hundreds of pages later feeling that very little time has elapsed in the interim. Highly Recommended.

These books are amazing, I read a huge quantity of sci-fi/fantasy and these made my Top 5! It has been a long time since someone wrote something to make it on my list with Ender's Game, Deed of Paksenarrion, Dune, and The RiddleMaster of Hed. I was intensely impressed at this gold mine. I am eagerly watching for the books that Brent Weeks writes in the future!

Now that I am done raving, a product description: The books are excellent, a blend between the swashbuckling mysterious of The Lies of Lock Lamora and the action pack awesomeness found in Jim Butcher or John Ringo. Great character developement, they force you right along every page. I called in sick to work because I got the book at 9PM and didn't finish it until 6AM the next day! The first book had a slight bit of confusion, but it was resolved very nicely in the second book and finished beautifully in the third with a refreshing blend of sorrow and hope!

I hope this review inspired [i]everyone[/i] to buy these books!

Epic, nation-saving sword and sorcery in a grand, fast-paced romp. Only with a hero that's far too easy to kill, and more 'coincidences' than you could conjure up with a dozen mages.

In the first book of this trilogy, Weeks did a great job of slowly developing characters and complex relationships. Had this one been the first, I may not have come back to it.

Weeks has some vivid imagery and sets a scene creatively through his descriptions yet more tellingly through the response of the characters. Unfortunately, he hasn't yet mastered the art of an effective transition chapter. All the disparate protagonists rush headlong across the better of two nations and of course wander into each other in the exact moment needed to advance the motive for getting them to run somewhere else next. By the middle of the book an observant reader could easily predict who or what was going to pop up next, because Weeks wrote himself into a corner without an apparent out except to have one of his God-like heroes intercept and redirect another one without planning on it ahead of time as two people just happen to meet when convenient.
And the final star loss is for the excessive and totally unnecessary cussing. You can create worlds and people and languages and can't come up with three curses for people to use that are not s___ or f____? Really? Nothing breaks the flow of an alternate world more for me than having the hero use a modern English/American slang swear word for no good reason other than lack of imagination by the author. Curses can provide depth, history, theology, alien language immersion, or any number of great elements to a tale and character. Weeks's world is apparently filled with simpletons who use the same two swear words despite supposedly hailing from at least five distant nations so far. If that's what I wanted to spend my time reading, I'd just go online to any teenage blog and read the responses from the mostly illiterate masses.

Spoilers...
I was really let down by this book. The first half is dealing with Kylars angst and sexual frustration. Nothing I really care about nor anything like the first book. The second half dealt with random characters all making obviously bad choices that were 'inevitable' and dealing with their consequences poorly and regretfully. I wish there was better character development and real struggles, hardly an epic battles at all. This book makes me regret starting the series, probably not going to read the next, although I really hate not finishing series.

In the 2nd book of the Night Angel Trilogy, Kylar Stern tried to reform from a life of killing. He moved with Elene and Uly to another country, where he will be a mild-mannered herbalist. Yet, his newfound life is disrupted when Jarl visits and tells him that Logan Gyre, his best friend, is alive. Having failed Logan once, Kylar cannot stay and instead returns to Cenaria to save Logan.

In this book, Kylar continues to struggle between what he is-a killer with a conscience and what he wants to be - a man good enough to Elene. We see much more character development in this one, not only Kylar, but everyone else as well: Logan, Vi, Dorian, Elene, among many others. There're tons of different plots and characters follow. Mr. Weeks did a wonderful job in keeping the pacing of this book quite frenetic, so that you don't want to put it down. I marveled at the planning Mr. Weeks did in order to put all the subplots together in the end.

Fantasy novels usually aren't my thing, but occasionally I like to pick up one or two. I'm glad my choice this time is this trilogy. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to start the third book.

It's hard to do, but he did it. He outdid himself. The story is immensely engaging with plot twists, subtly, and excitement.

You will literally hang on every word, as he surprises you with what next.

I've been liking the new authors who have been coming out, Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss come to mind, and Brent Weeks is definitely on that list of great authors.

Great story of intrigue, love, adventure, and moral dilemmas.

GO READ IT!

About a week has passed for Kylar Stern and Logan Gyre in "The Night Angel Trilogy" second novel "Shadow's Edge". The editing improves slightly but the character relationships change drastically. Still, the connections between the characters are interesting despite the unusual courses their lives take.

By the end of the novel I was trying to determine why the character directions altered so much. It seemed the author wanted to either adjust all the dynamics as a dramatic plot device or unhappy with their paths. I can grudgingly accept some changes but among Viridiana Sovari and Elene Cromwyll and Kylar, Logan and Jenine Gyre and Dorian Ursuul collections provide too much drama. Similarly, Kylar's hasty decisions (especially one in particular) changes his abilities in such a way where I wondered if the author wishes to reduce Kylar's enormous power.

I believe the awkward use of the "f" bomb totally unnecessary given the minimal overall usage of vulgarity in the cruel world. Gnasher has a minor but important role yet disappears without mention. The odd moments are Vi's obsession with Kylar, his streak of luck to conveniently continue the plot, and specifically the arrow striking Kylar and his ridiculous dialogue with the archer afterward. I did find the end to be pretty wild and unexpected with a huge shocker between Kylar and Vi.

A better detailed map of the significant terrains and comprehensive appendix including the many characters would have been useful.

Thank you.

Rollicking read. Second in the series and no slowing down here. Instead the characters introducted earlier are more fleshed out and have plenty of adventures. I particularly enjoyed Vi and Momma K, but it's really Kylar and Logan's book. Klylar exlores his growing talent and Logan the depths of his peronsality. Great imagery and imagination at work. Very happy with this series. (not a stand alone, you have to read book 1 to appreciate what goes on here)

The characters in this book are fighting for their lives, their home, their freedom. There is no clear right or wrong, good or bad. The struggle in this story feels so real, despite the fantasy world with magic.

I really wanted to like this book, and it's not bad...it's just not quite as good as the first in the trilogy. This is one of those books where you love the characters, but sometimes you just feel like killing them for some of the idiotic choices they make.

Let's start with the good: First, I honestly do enjoy reading about the characters. They are interesting, and I especially enjoy the viewpoints of Dorian, Sister Ariel, Vi, and Logan. Kylar's storyline is interesting, but also has a tendency to cause me intense amounts of frustration. Logan's storyline is probably my favorite in the book, although it can be quite dark. Overall, the plot keeps me interested and guessing at what will happen next, and I love learning more about the world.

On to the not-so-good: I'm going to open this with my real point of frustration with this book...Kylar. He tries sooo hard to change for Elene...to the point where he sells Retribution, the magic sword that is his inheritance from Durzo. And what does he do with the money he gets from it (which by the way is no where near what the blade is worth)? He goes and buys magical wedding earrings so he can prove to Elene that he really loves her. I spent my time reading this part thinking "please don't sell the sword, please don't sell the sword." It felt like a betrayal of Durzo's trust. And speaking of Durzo, Kylar spends most of the first half or so of the book thinking about how sorry he is that Durzo is dead, and how he had never really understood his master. And then mentions of Durzo just sort of...disappear. Until the end of the book, anyway. Also, we have a subplot for Elene, where she leaves in pursuit of Kylar, but her viewpoint shows up so infrequently that I never really get a good sense of what is going on there.

All in all, I enjoy this trilogy, and the third book is much better than this one. But the frustration the main characters (cough Kylar cough) cause me ends up marring the superb storytelling. 3 1/2 stars.

As you move past the first book in the trilogy into the second installment, you would expect some of the fast paced action to slow down and go for a poorly fleshed out carryover to the final excitement of the last book. However, this is not the case with Shadow's Edge. This book fluidly moves with the same pace and even more exciting action than you found in the first novel. The characters expand and change and cause such page turning fervor that you will be compelled to read just as quickly as you were in the first installment.

This book did a lot to open up the novels for me. With this second novel, there is a much larger, encompassing world to build on from the first book and balance the increasingly intricate plot pieces. Characters from the first book are fleshed out more fully and the story just gets better and better. I like where this is going... they kind of remind me of my coveted XBOX time playing Assassin's Creed (the noble killer).

This book destroyed the series for me. It drags on and on, and that the bad guy is really a bad guy is forced down your throat.

Full review on my blog:

https://redletalis.wordpress.com/2013/03/31/the-night-angel-trilogy-b-weeks/

What a great series of books. Shadows Edge is a great book. Enjoyed everything about this book,great characters and great story. Theres no boring parts at all in this novel. Kylar is a great character that is funny, brave, and from the first book actually a all around hero. So many interesting characters in this series..Dorian, Solon,Feir, Vi, Elene, its great characters and a perfect plot. Well done.

So Kylar Stern has become one of the most skilled wetboys (assassins) in the city, he's crafted the beginnings of a legend in his name, he's obtained a strange power that he's only just begun to discover the potential of....and he's off la-di-da-ing as an herbalist with an incredibly Good and kind "wife" (Elene) and a little "daughter" who's witty but cute (Uly). The author was very good at displaying the conflict within Kylar and I DID really find myself wanting happiness for him, but i couldn't help growing impatient for the moment where he'd take up his wetboy grays again. But maybe that was another of the author's tricks--to make the reader truly feel Kylar's inner shadows calling from beneath the light of his new life. Or maybe i just liked the story better when Kylar was killing people. Hard not too, when it's much more exciting that way.

Book 2 in the Night Angel Trilogy really sucked me into it's depths (nearly down into the Hole) and left me turning pages so fast I got papercuts (not really). The tale takes off the moment Kylar makes the decision to take up the way of shadows again. Time to kill the Godking. Stuffed with subplots and character development, this book follows Kylar, Vi, Logan, Elene, Garoth Uursul, and a host of others on their separate journeys. Between all the characters that fill this story, some are traveling wide distances to reach their ultimate goals (Kylar), and some are just stuck in a hole for most of the time (Logan). All, however, are traveling defenseless within their own souls, and that is what truly gives substance to the intricate, interweaving plotlines.

The themes run deep into the human spirit, and there's lots of emotion felt these pages, which does a lot of good in developing the characters, most prominently Vi, the famale "wetboy" who played a much lesser role in the first book. I have to single her out because she really steps foward as a complex anti-hero/protagonist. I liked this book better than the first primarly due to her storyline and the development of her character. Could just be my opinion, but she's also a stronger character (in terms of development and depth on the author's part) than Elene. I wanted to like Elene, but she just seems to simple to be compelling (maybe that will change).

The writing style and author's language is basically like the first book--fairly simplistic but fueled with emotion. Some reviewers dislike the modern day slang and the modern-sounding dialogue in general, but I really like it. There's no right way to speak here--not all fantasy novels need to include stiff, stale dialogue. I particularly like the metaphors and extended metaphors the author uses to portray a situation or a character's emotions as well. They really enrich one's understanding--they do what a metaphor should do (not what metaphors often do) and don't seem forced (even when part of a character's dialogue). I found them helpful.

You really sense the importance of everything that is happening, and a certain few scenes really forced me to sit back and reflect on what I'd just read (especially the Nocta Hemata). Logan's portion of the story was helpful, because he seemed pretty useless in the first book, despite that I liked his character the first time he came onto the page. Now I see why he was important to introduce in book one. I clung to every word of his speech toward the end of this novel, and for me that was definitely the climax of all the significance beyond the plot. I really liked that speech. It wasn't your average cut-and-paste "we will strive and rise above" speech, its emotion was very specific to the events of novel.

The culture of the world also grows some depth and everything seems to be laid out on a larger scale than before. The magic system was a bit confusing at times, but it wasn't anything drastic. There's a lot sexual-related content, so if that bothers you, don't read this. It's also pretty graphic at times, so you know, do what you must to avoid what bothers you.

I'm probably rambling, so I'll leave you with encouragement to pick up Shadow's Edge if you've read The Way of Shadows and thought it was even only "pretty good." I wasn't sure if I was going to continue this trilogy, but I finally decided to and i'm glad I did. It just keeps getting better. If you've stumbled onto this page and don't understand half of this review, I suggest reading The Way of Shadows. Brent Weeks is a promising author and I repsect his attention to the characters especially. To me, the plot means nothing without true, complex characters to drive it. This author proves what good can come from telling a character's story rather than throwing characters into a story. There's a difference.

Happy reading.

Others have done a plot summary, so I'll leave that out. If you want to know what kind of books these are, think George Martin teamed up with Tad Williams. It has that kind of feel.

These are adult themed books, however. You will not want to give these to your teenager due to the *ahem* number of adult situations and references. I stopped reading Goodkind because of the harshness of those situations - these are close, but not to the level where I'll not want to read the series.

All in all, excellent work.

I really enjoyed the first book and quickly began the second. This book is full of well developed and well utilized characters. I usually find the middle story to be my favorite, with the building actions and the story weaving in front of me with the enticing mysteries they hold. I found this to be no different. I foresee this becoming a favorite of mine for years to come.

I thought that this series was going to be like the Dark Tower series from Stephen King. In a lot of ways I was right, in a lot of ways it's actually better (in my opinion, of course). I am really thankful that this second book was just as well written as the first. I actually liked this one a little more. I am recommending this trilogy to everyone I know who reads this type of book.

I'll be short and to the point. This series is the best. The character plot and story plot drag you in and you don't want to put down the books. There is just enough of a back story given to leave you wanting more yet enough given to help you understand what is happening. It is a fresh take on the old vigilante rogue / magician theme. This series to me belongs at the top of the fantasy charts

Wow, what can I say. This trilogy is truly exceptional. This is the type of book that grips you from the first chapter and doesn't let go till the end. And the best part is the complete trilogy were all released within a month of each other, so you are not left hanging for months on end.

Can't wait to see what else Mr. Weeks has in store for us.

After a reading the first book I was excited to read the 2nd in the series. Boy was I in for a surprise. This book is nothing like the first and the fact it got so many great ratings tells me the author has a lot of relatives.

The biggest problem is that the book swings back and forth between the gritty, Dark Age realism that I liked so much about the 1st book and a farcical comedy. On one hand we have graphic brutality, rape, and even cannibalism. On the other hand we have a sexless union between Kylar and Elene (who has become a self righteous nag) accompanied by a wise cracking Uly (who obviously watched too many episodes of The Cosby Show). Between scenes of warfare, executions, and people eating each other we have Kyler putting on frilly aprons, selling enchanted swords to buy wedding rings, arguing with Doll Girl about his feelings, her feelings, money, etc (no kidding, it's worse than Dr. Phil). He basically takes more crap and gets less sex than Ray Romano. Elene and Uly became so unsympathetic that I was hoping they would be killed and put me out of my misery.

If you were into the whole assassin thing, you are SOL. Kyler basically becomes a supernatural hero in this novel, which is lucky for him as he is constantly getting killed in the most banal manners possible.

The book is very busy with respect to characters. The last one had a bunch, but handled them well. This one has more and does not to the point where you pretty much don't care about any of them.

Unlike other people, I am not as bothered by the author's liberal dropping of the f-bomb and other gratuitous use of modern slang (if he says that's how people talk in Midcryu who am I to say otherwise?).

I am normally not a very critical reviewer but I felt this book broke faith by being hugely dissimilar to the first one in the series.

I was suprised how much I liked the second book much better then the first. Sometimes second books in trilogy's aren't the best but this one kept me in suspence and I couldn't stop reading it till the end, and the ending what a punch. I can't wait for the last book now that I know someone I won't say who, is back with so many possibilities.

Brent Weeks does it again with his sophomore book! Kylar is back, and he is leaving the way of shadows behind him, or at least trying to. Problem is his wetboy past is quite hard to leave behind. I have always had issues getting into second book in the series, simply because the writing often feels as though it is being forced for the sake of a trilogy or series. I am happy to say, it isn't here. Mr. Weeks again gives the reader characters you can empathize with and care for, and a plot that always surprises.

Bottom line if you liked The Way of Shadows, Shadow's Edge will not disappoint.

If you have read the first book,I don't see how you can resist the urge to read the second. This book is every bit as good. This series is one of the very, very few that I will most likely read again in 5-10 years.

this book is fantastic, it has an amazing plot that keeps me guessing. Brent Weeks really got that movie playing in my head. outstanding action scenes and mysterious endings want to keep me reading more.

Shadow's Edge, the second installment of the Night Angel Trilogy, is just as excellent as its predecessor. After reading the first book, I had to go out and buy the next two right away! I haven't been disappointed one bit.

This isn't your typical G rated story. The charters are dirty, selfish and completely awesome! The depth of the charters and the way the author builds them keeps you intrigued and able to relate to each and everyone of them. I highly recommend this entire series.

Not only is this the second book in the series, it's also the second time I've written a review for this book. Not sure what happened to the first one. Anyways, onto the review!

1 star, yes. It was not a good book. The main character was written differently; it came down to consistency, or rather inconsistency. The mood for the main character changed for the worse. I couldn't reconcile how he became such an idiot from being the best assassin a few pages early in the first book. I'll break it down:

1) He leaves town with his girlfriend to start a new life. I had a huge problem with this because of the setting. He essentially left enemies, a large amount of enemies, at his back. Plus, he left his friends to deal with a new twisted leader. It just doesn't make sense to me why he would expect to move to a new town and all would be dandy and perfect and flowers and rainbows. In fact, that's the attitude he adopts.

2) His new attitude isn't reconciled with the fact he knows how to speak to women, very well, but when it comes to sex he approaches it all wrong. I mean, I'm not ricco suave, but whining about not getting laid and dropping f bombs and throwing tantrums in front of your woman is no way to the split tail.

3) Everything else goes on as I would expect; this makes the contrast to the Main character even more painfully obvious. I felt like he was using writing formulas and tricks to sell the story instead of me participating in an adventure or taken on a journey.

4) Probably the second biggest complaint is in the little things that Weeks missed. The book became self aware; not in an autonomous way, but it was broken so bad in some parts that I became aware of the words on the page. This is not good, it's like a musician hitting the wrong note in a song. In the first book, he used off timings and off keys and rhythms but it harmonized. In the first 200 pages, it became like nails on a chalkboard.

5) This led to the height of all absurdity. Allow me to set this up. I became emotionally attached to the main character; not in a creepy way where I stalk Brent Weeks and email him 10 times a day. But where I cared for him, not as an imaginary figure but as a real personality. This is a testament to good writing; I was immersed in the world Weeks wrote. Then around page 200 the main character stabbed me. Not in the back, but in the face. And then as I fell onto the ground trying to hold in my life juice; Weeks takes out a sword, which calls a Gundam from space, he then boards this Gundam and shoots a nuclear missle onto my body that is writhing in pain on the ground. This really happened. Believe it.

And here's how: Kylar kills his master and gets his sword which is a Lost Relic of impossible power; everyone is searching for these Relics and he now has one in his possession. To him it also symbolized his master whom he wanted to save, or didn't want to kill. Remember, he has countless enemies at his back. Oh, and this sword makes him live forever and invisible. So he does what any impossibly great assassin would do. He pawns it for a fraction of what it's worth (stabbed in the face) and then buys a pair of earrings, the earrings are like a wedding ring but it's 'magical' because you can't take them off so you're married man everywhere you go, because his 18 year old wife wants to get married. Now, if it wasn't bad enough and you aren't intellectually insulted and holding the book as if it were a pink python, get this: The earrings cost the EXACT amount as his magic lost relic sword he just pawned...(Gundam 9000 pwns my deeply disturbed countenance). I was like..............wut?

That's when I knew, deep in my heart of hearts, that this was the stupidest book I had ever invested in. The reason Weeks' gives for why the earrings are so expensive is because they are "display models" and that some queen or such a long time ago made some law that you can't sell display....yeah. yeah. I mean, he could have tried to sell it to me. But instead he was "**** you" and I was "****ed" out of my money. And I liked the first book so much I went out and bought the last two. The third one I will never read and I will take it back. I just accept that absurdity. Obviously, there are alot of people who can. I could have accepted selling the sword, or buying the earrings, but not in the way it happened. It broke keyfabe, and it was impossible to take it seriously, as a novel. I could no longer be immersed by such a slap in the face.

The concept is good, even though there is less graphic sexual content I still find myself bit fully being able to enjoy the series with those unnecessary scenes. I get that some of this can happen and I'm not even complaining about the mention of it, but it's the fact that he goes into the detail of it. I find it brought the potential of this series down.
It's definitely a series I probably wouldn't read again do to the magic ka'kari killing his need to train to get better. As soon as he got that everything was possible without him trying. A little disappointing

Warning: this review contains some spoilers.

This book really rubbed me the wrong way. The characters seem more bland than in the first book and things happen to them when it's convenient for the author. Need the sword to take on another shape? No problem, it just happens to be one of its magical powers. Battle is being lost? We'll just turn this powerful monster around and have it fight for us instead. Things like that really make me a sad panda.

I also had a problem with how Vi turned out. She falls in love with Kylar after meeting him for, like, the second time. This cold hard assassin bitch is all of a sudden a weeping, blubbering woman. It felt like reading a romance novel. Not my cup of tea. When Vi and Uly met one of the Sisters, it seemed like the author wasn't sure which one should be more powerful, or Talented. I really have a problem when authors make everyone powerful. Yay, everyone is powerful and miserable and in love with someone. In the first book it seemed like Vi's talent was mostly reflected in her ability to seduce, but apparently she can develop it to become an insane magae.

Oh, then there's the ka'kari. It can pretty much do whatever you dreamed of, short of cooking dinner. And it talks. But not only that, it also makes faces that wink. That seemed incredibly silly to me. I didn't quite understand the point of Elene being captured for Neph's experiments. She just escapes right away. Seems like the author wanted to go somewhere with it, but then scrapped the idea.

Let's see, what else? Oh, the foul language and the slang return from the first book. Only the cursing is worse. Sometimes it seems there is no real reason for it, just throwing f-bombs for the fun of it. The author also seems to use "bang" a lot. As if that is a normal word to describe sex in Midcyru. Sure, that can be the case. But "bang"? Really?

The skiing chapter is unrealistic. Feir would have broken every bone in his body skiing at such a speed and crashing. Luckily for him, he kept on crashing and somehow landing back on his feet. For a first time skier on quickly-made wooden skis, he sure is a pro. I should take lessons from Feir, or perhaps the author should try skiing himself and see how easy it is to learn.

It seemed like I disliked something in, pretty much, every chapter. Maybe I'm just too nit-picky or spoiled by authors like George Martin. All the standard cliches from fantasy books are present: war between nations, all powerful hero, magic sword, noble king, etc. I wasn't too bothered by these, however I felt these cliches weren't developed enough to make me feel interested in them.

All in all, I would like to find out what happens at the end of the trilogy, I just don't know if I can stand to read all of this garbage about how Vi, Elene and Uly love Kylar and which one of them he gets to "bang".

I won't spoil the fun here with revealing anything. Shadows edge was a very good sequel to Way of Shadows, and they were very different books. The middle of Shadows Edge got a little slow, but the end picked up with a lot of action, suspense, romance, etc. I have the 3rd book here in my hand and can not wait to see what happens in the conclusion. I kind of agree with another poster here who said that since Kylar is SO good, its not fun to read. But Kylar is also very flawed and torn inside, he's just unbeatable on the outside. But the other characters are very well developed so the reader has many others to follow and/or hate. Overall, it is definitely worth the read!

Loving this series so far. Hope to see it keep going down this path.

Much darker and more adult than a lot of series in the genre.

Not a whole lot else to say that won't give away something for those who have not read it.

I HAD to write this review for my fellow readers because I don't want them to make the same mistake as me: do yourselves a favor and don't bother reading or buying this book. Much better to stay with the memory of what a good book was the first one.

This book is boring, poorly written, full of incongruences and with a disgusting christian morale diffused everywhere (it will be even worse in the third one!).

Unless you are a 13-year old reading your first fantasy book, or a priest/nun needing a fantasy revisitation of the bible, leave this book on the shelf.

In the 2nd book of the Night Angel Trilogy, Kylar Stern tried to reform from a life of killing. He moved with Elene and Uly to another country, where he will be a mild-mannered herbalist. Yet, his newfound life is disrupted when Jarl visits and tells him that Logan Gyre, his best friend, is alive. Having failed Logan once, Kylar cannot stay and instead returns to Cenaria to save Logan.

In this book, Kylar continues to struggle between what he is-a killer with a conscience and what he wants to be - a man good enough to Elene. We see much more character development in this one, not only Kylar, but everyone else as well: Logan, Vi, Dorian, Elene, among many others. There're tons of different plots and characters follow. Mr. Weeks did a wonderful job in keeping the pacing of this book quite frenetic, so that you don't want to put it down. I marveled at the planning Mr. Weeks did in order to put all the subplots together in the end.

Fantasy novels usually aren't my thing, but occasionally I like to pick up one or two. I'm glad my choice this time is this trilogy. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to start the third book.

I love these books. Brent Weeks continued a great story with the second Night Angel book. Given the introduction and setting of book one, this story allows itself to explore the world in which the characters live, the history of a very well imagined world and the consequence heavy decisions that drive the story.

Weeks had better be working on new books as the third of the trilogy is due out in November. After that, I expect a lot more from him. He is a writer to watch while we read his works.

This book and the rest in the series can be classified as the best I have EVER read! the books are engrossing and keep you entranced! Once the first book was started I new I had to get them all!! I read the whole trilogy in about a week doing nothing else and I have to saw it was one of the best weeks of my life!

Well, here we are on book II of Brent Weeks' "Night Angel Trilogy." I've gotta say, for as much frustration this series has dealt me, the rewards are certainly numerous.

In the review for the first book, I said that the main problem mainly sat with the numerous perspectives and subplots. This is something that some might be able to overlook, but it got me groaning more than a few times. I do not believe that so many perspectives can be juggled successfully, or should be. Whether this will change in further novels remains to be seen, but thanks to this three-book deal, it's going to recur at least once more.

To be perfectly brief, because the rest of the review will be extremely nitpicky, "Shadow's Edge" is a vast improvement over the last book. So much so that while I was kind of put off by reading another installment of the series before, I am just plain excited to read the last book. The characters can breathe now. No more origin story to muck everything up. (I know the upbringing of a character is technically important, but they're oh so predictable.) And fortunately, Mr. Weeks knows his characters inside out, so Kylar, Elene, Vi, and Uly all react exactly how they should as the story progresses.

And the story, again, a vast improvement. It's much more darker, realized, and logically unpredictable than the first. And Kylar actually does his assassin thing! whereas in the first, there was so much emotional baggage being thrown around, killing wasn't high up on the list of priorities. But at the same time, it's not reckless. Kylar never acts without a reason, which makes it more of an emotion game rather than an action scene.

Basically, if you liked the first one, you'll like the second even more. And if the first one wasn't your thing, don't expect this one to be either.

Now for the nitpicky-ness. I think the Night Angel Trilogy is a genius concept. All three were written with the intention of being released one after the other, so there's this abandon with the storytelling that makes it much more compelling. Which is a rare thing to find. But there are several detrimental factors that hinder the story so much it's aggravating. It's like looking at the Mona Lisa through a stained glass window.

The main problem is the subplots and perspectives. They switch back and forth so much to so many times that the book feels less like a novel and more like a collection of short stories. There were so many instances where the story would cut away to a perspective that, in retrospect, had no reason to be there. One example (SPOILER ALERT:) was when the story followed one Baron Kirof for several chapters until he died by falling off of a mountain. A few pages later, his death and his actions were all summed up by another character, making all of those chapters merely extra pages.

These cutaways hinder the flow of the main storylines so much it's frustrating. Kylar, Logan, and Vi had stories that threw me into emotional circles, they were so well done. Everything else just seemed like they were there to add pages, and even though some were important to the story, they could have easily been merged with the main storylines or made so they didn't pop up as frequently as they did.

As I said before, if the problem with the subplots is ever remedied, these novels would pack an insane punch. But, instead, they're not only unnecessary in their own right, but they somehow manage to bring down the really great story arcs.

The following items are little personal gripes that I'm sure others might not share. There is a problem with word repetition at times, as pretty much every character gets hit in the "solar plexus" at least once (and Kylar gets hit there metaphorically in one instance). There's some very lax description for the world and characters; there isn't much beyond the name of a town, or the color of a character's hair to satisfy those who really want to see the world breathe. And some of the plot devices are a wee bit too convenient; (ANOTHER SPOILER:) Uly runs off from the group for the first time in the novel, and it's so random that you know she's going to get kidnapped and that Kylar will get caught up in something from there. (That's not a knock against the actual story itself, because as I said, it's brilliant).

And, this is an extremely personal gripe, the extreme use of language doesn't seem to fit the overall tone of the story. It just pops up too much and some of the dialogue starts to sound like something to rise up from a bar in the early hours. Even the place where Logan spends much of his time in the novel is called some obscene term that it's almost laughable (even more so when he tells his story to his followers later on and just flat out says it, the King he is).

Anyways, that's about it. Aside from my personal hangups, the subplots are the only mar on this otherwise flawless piece of storytelling. The characters never do anything that's, well, out of character. The tragedies that occur are never trivial, and they can really get to you (the whole story of the Hole is...I don't want to wear out the word brilliant here), the fight scenes are detailed very well, and the whole ordeal will definitely leave you wanting the last book in your hands as soon as you hit that final chapter.

I HAD to write this review for my fellow readers because I don't want them to make the same mistake as me: do yourselves a favor and don't bother reading or buying this book. Much better to stay with the memory of what a good book was the first one.

This book is boring, poorly written, full of incongruences and with a disgusting christian morale diffused everywhere (it will be even worse in the third one!).

Unless you are a 13-year old reading your first fantasy book, or a priest/nun needing a fantasy revisitation of the bible, leave this book on the shelf.

I bought this book because of the positive the store reviews; that is a mistake I will not be repeating. This book was formulaic and trite; I put it down after 100 pages, wishing I had an incinerator to introduce it to. Weeks is a far cry from writers such as Robin Hobb or George Martin.