cpark2005 reviewed An Echo of Things to Come by James Islington (The Licanius Trilogy, #2)
Review of 'An Echo of Things to Come' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
James Islington gives us another worthy read in An Echo of Things to Come. While I think it falls just a bit short of The Shadow of What was Lost it continues to do well much of what the first novel in the Licanius Trilogy did. The magic system is interesting and engaging while remaining somewhat mysterious. The background and history of the world is immense. I had a hard time putting this one down.
The world building in An Echo of Things to Come, much like its predecessor, feels very reminiscent of large epics like The Wheel of Time or A Song of Ice and Fire. There are whole swaths of the history of this world that we only get to see in brief glimpses—sometimes literally, as Caeden remembers we benefit from brief vignettes that outline a much larger whole. One of my favorite things about epic …
James Islington gives us another worthy read in An Echo of Things to Come. While I think it falls just a bit short of The Shadow of What was Lost it continues to do well much of what the first novel in the Licanius Trilogy did. The magic system is interesting and engaging while remaining somewhat mysterious. The background and history of the world is immense. I had a hard time putting this one down.
The world building in An Echo of Things to Come, much like its predecessor, feels very reminiscent of large epics like The Wheel of Time or A Song of Ice and Fire. There are whole swaths of the history of this world that we only get to see in brief glimpses—sometimes literally, as Caeden remembers we benefit from brief vignettes that outline a much larger whole. One of my favorite things about epic fantasy is the deep history that often accompanies it, and Islington delivers that in spades. In addition to a creatively imagined world, I found myself able to relate to and root for the Caeden, Wirr, Asha, and Davian throughout the book. These are not perfect characters, but they are characters who are trying to do the right thing and trying to do so without becoming the evil which they hate. I love that even in the midst of a world that is pretty grim, where ultimate ends are fated and immutable, there are people trying to be good.
There were a couple things that didn’t work for me. The first of those is that the novel suffered a little bit from middle book syndrome. This was most noticeable in the first half of the novel with Davian’s storyline. To me, it felt like that storyline contributed very little to the overall story and merely kept Davian busy until it was time for him to actually contribute to the larger plotlines again. It’s possible that the third book may change my view on this, but for now I felt like there were some wasted opportunities there. The second thing that didn’t work for me is that there is an incredibly stupid character decision that takes place near the 70% mark. I felt like the characters just walk a bit blindly into something when they wouldn’t normally do so. The frustrating thing is I think that issue could have been fixed with just a few changes.
Regardless, I really enjoyed An Echo of Things to Come and am eagerly awaiting the third book in the series, The Light of All that Falls. I also need to give a shout out to the titles of these novels. They are just perfect. If you enjoy epic fantasy with intricate plots that intersect a deeply imagined history and keep you guessing, this is the book for you. Check it out. 4.3/5 stars.
5 – I loved this, couldn’t put it down, move it to the top of your TBR pile
4 – I really enjoyed this, add it to the TBR pile
3 – I liked it, depending on your preferences it may be worth your time
2 – I didn’t like this book, it has significant flaws and I can’t recommend it
1 – I loathe this book with a most loathsome loathing
