After the events of Valor of the Healer, the three pro­tag­o­nists went in different directions, but now they must come together again. Faanshi, the former slave girl, is coming into her own as an ex­tra­or­di­nar­i­ly powerful healer with her new people, the elves. Kestar, formerly a Hawk sworn to expunge elven magic, is a prisoner of the Hawks being taken to stand trial. Julian, his lost hand and burnt-out eye regrown by Faanshi’s magic, is seeking vengeance against the brother who maimed him. Rumors of Faanshi’s power and ac­com­plish­ments are fueling uprisings as the dis­con­tent­ed masses throw off the yoke of Adalonian power.

It’s not uncommon for the second book in a trilogy to be the weakest. I’ve yet to read the third book, but this one delivers: the principal characters grow and face new problems; the plot moves along and takes some in­ter­est­ing turns; and new characters are introduced with their own mo­ti­va­tions.