A Chorus of War by Scott Palmer
Blurb:
The highly anticipated sequel to the award winning, bestselling epic fantasy series, The Last Ballad.
Fires return. Empires burn.
James Culdaine and the surviving folk of Mal Hallow have spent the winter sheltered in the haunted castle of Kallahorn. When a dwindling food supply and the looming threat of siege forces them to leave, James struggles to keep his family's kingdom from falling apart and begins to question his place in the world.
Deep in the mountains of the Fells, Etta struggles to find the peace she has promised to her young grandson. But when she is forced to take help from a mysterious person from her past, Etta finds herself deep in the tangles of ancient prophecy and at odds with everything she has ever believed in.
Meanwhile, a prophet of Karaat and the growing army at his back, make their way through the Behruvian desert to exterminate all who don't bow to His name, while a young prince of Hest tries to prepare for their coming amidst a civil war and the growing influence of a baleful spirit that has possessed him.
An ancient echo of war has returned and the gods are silent.
Welcome back to Ardura.
Review:
"History is a song with a chorus of war and many, many verses of tragedy."
Frankly, I think it’s clear that Scott Palmer has been delving into some of Karaat’s dark magics because there is no way an author’s first series should be this freaking good. A Chorus of War is the second full length entry into The Last Ballad, and it is pushing this series into the hallowed category of “One of My Favorite Series of All Time.”
Spoilers aplenty below!
A Chorus of War picks up after a hard winter in Kallahorn for James and Maggie and the people of Mal Hallow. Adeqor is presumed dead after the confrontation with the Mother of Nature at the conclusion of A Memory of Song. James has been mentally terrorized by the Maw; the rulers of the Hallows are itching to reclaim their kingdoms from the Ayelish. Etta—formally Wulfee—has taken a vow of peace and is traveling with the si’otha.
Where A Memory of Song was a fairly contained entry into The Last Ballad with only two POVs and all of the action taking place in northern Ardura, A Chorus of War introduces a handful of AMAZING POVs and expands the story to encompass all of Ardura and some of the surrounding islands. Palmer has stated that he was deliberate in keeping AMOS firmly rooted in the lore and conflict in the Northern lands to allow the reader to develop a strong connection to our core cast of characters. Then with this second novel, he’s expanded the story to epic proportions. There are so many great new characters, from Halda of Massay Rock of the Dagglands to Aldred Hester to my personal favorite, Julien Esterbraun.
With these new POVs, Palmer has rocketed this series into a complex, epic grimdark fantasy series that is going to ensnare readers for years going forward. While all of the POVs are fantastic and there isn’t a single one that I was disappointed to see coming up next, Julien Esterbraun took the prize for my favorite new POV. He has a dynamic, reckless confidence that is fueled by the knowledge he’s obtained from the gods of the place and time of his death. He can boldly enter any conflict he wants because he knows that it isn’t his time to die. As a result, he plows through the opposing Hester forces, wielding his ancient dragon bone in a fiery retribution for his discarded race: Draku. The race of Draku, created by the enigmatic Insa Rolin, is fascinating and I cannot wait to learn more about their bonds to the seemingly extinct dragons of yesteryear. Julien’s near-manic, god-driven conquest through Esher is fueled by his insatiable need to reach the Lovasi castle: Kelson’s Keep in Hest. In classic fashion, Palmer has left us on a jaw-dropping cliffhanger as Julien descends the steps into the bowels of Kelson’s Keep and awakens what awaits him in the dark depths. There were multiple times while I was reading Julien’s chapters in particular that I was reminded of Michah the Metal from Zamil Akhtar’s Gunmetal Gods series. He has that same crazed, brutal energy that I loved in Gunmetal Gods.
"I am destiny come, a prophecy that has been in the making for a thousand winters."
One of the most intriguing aspects of this series is the deep, complex worldbuilding that Palmer has created. I’ve mentioned this in other reviews, but there are certain series that have such astounding worldbuilding that I truly crave a Silmarillion or Fire & Blood type book that dives into the history of the world, and this is 100% one of those series. For every piece of land, for every story, there is a depth to the history that completely floors me. I asked Palmer about this and he said he basically has an entire book of history about each culture, castle, and piece of lore that he references as he writes, and it is so evident when reading The Last Ballad. There is so much substance and fascinating worldbuilding. He’s promised me that one day we’ll get all of the background history and I literally cannot wait. One of my favorite examples are the scattered Lovasi castles that dot the landscape. There are mysterious hints to how truly ancient these castles are, with dark secrets buried in their depths. I just want to learn more about these mystical castles! I need more answers!
“People don’t care what their home is called or who owns it on a map, they just want to be there. They just want to be safe, by the gods.”
This is a dark, eerie series that fits unapologetically in the grimdark genre. While the world burns down around everyone and we’re being pursued by cannibal Demhoni, with the threat of dream eating Abori from across the ocean, there is a surprising amount of tenderness and emotion in this series. This is a world where the majority of hope has been sucked away and smothered. But there is a flickering ember which Palmer masterfully magnifies. “There’s only one thing that keeps the fire in all of us burning. Every fire needs an ember, and hope is that ember Swey. You have to keep it burning, you see? Never let that ember fade. The smallest ember can become the biggest fire.”
And finally, our main duo: Maggie and James. The Queen and King of Mal Hallow. Life and Death. This is a duo of passion and danger. In one moment, they’re passionately making love under the boughs of the nytewoods and the next, they’ve mercilessly slaughtered thousands of people who may have been an incoming army. Their relationship has this dangerous sensuality to it where they are each other’s entire world, but because the world doesn’t exist outside of each other, they are willing to burn EVERYTHING down to protect each other and the peace they’ve found in each other. This juxtaposition is amazing and I cannot wait to see how Palmer utilizes this moving forward.
“Love and hate are two sides of the same axe, Wulf. One for each, and a sharp and deadly blade separates them.”
A Chorus of War is the dark, eldritch horror filled sequel that The Last Ballad needed to catapult it into the pantheon of fantasy greats that will live on in my memory forever. I have a few hills I’ll die on in the indie fantasy scene, and Scott Palmer and his The Last Ballad series is one of them. Everyone who loves John Gwynne, Stephen King, Ryan Cahill, George R. R. Martin, and Joe Abercrombie need to clamber to this series! Scott Palmer is the next indie fantasy author to ascend into stardom. Mark my words. Read this series.
