Protector by Andy Peloquin

Blurb:

The Hunter’s legend conceals cold, dark truths.
Half-demon bastard. A butcher with the blade, assassin, monster.

For millennia he has stalked the world, conquering all in his path and wading through rivers of his enemies' blood.

But he remembers none of it.

Now, an oath made in bitterness and regret thrusts him into a new role to which he is entirely unsuited: guardian of a young boy touched by gods and hunted by demons.

The Hunter sets off into desolate wastelands and deserts to seek out answers with blade and brutal skills honed by centuries of violence. At his side rides the boy, an ever-growing inconvenience and testament to his past failures.

But as the legions of his enemies close in around him, the child he protects may not only hold the key to his past, but become his very hope for salvation.

Review:

On paper, there are book concepts that just work. And when you take the concept of a half-demon assassin constantly trying to suppress the darker voices in his head, all the while his demonic blade lusts for blood and death, you can just sign me the eff up.

With Protector, the second book of the Darkblade series, Andy Peloquin ups the ante on the story of the Hunter of Voramis and further cements him as one unstoppable killing machine worth rooting for.

The Hunter’s eyes have long been closed to the millennia of blood and carnage that covered his past, but slowly, his eyes are opening. After swearing an oath to someone he failed to guard a demon-hunted boy named Hailen, the Hunter finds himself in the uncomfortable and unfamiliar position of playing protector. But there is something special about the boy, something that stretches beyond his naïve innocence toward the world, something that chases the two across desolate wastelands. Something that may be the Hunter’s key to not only his past, but also his future.

I was already enthralled by the Hunter after the first book in the series—a feat that stood against the odds of the body count lying at his feet. Right from the start, Peloquin has perfectly shown the balance of man and monster with the Hunter, and that continues wonderfully in Protector. By putting Hailen at his side, and forcing the Hunter into a more fatherly role, we get to see our (anti-)hero thrust into a position of struggle. As an assassin, the Hunter is death incarnate, but as a guardian, he must be anything but. There’s an excellent dynamic between the Hunter and Hailen that flies off the page, where our protagonist is doing all he can to shield this young and innocent youth from all the darkness and horrors of this world—including the Hunter himself. It’s a well-worn trope, but Peloquin wears it well here.

In contrast to Assassin, Protector is much more of a slow burn in the first half while the Hunter and Hailen travel across the desert wastes in a large caravan, all the while the Hunter must suppress his demonic urges to kill, but when this powder keg finally ignites, hoo boy was the wait worth it. This book is a masterclass in how best to nail a slow build-up and make it worth the reader’s time. The second half of the book flies by with twists and turns, betrayals, high action, and an ever-growing body count that shows the Hunter has not lost his touch. Even with the first and second halves feeling a bit disparate from one another, it does little to hinder how good the plot is overall.

And that’s not even taking into account how well Protector sets up the next books in the series. While all the action on the page had me on the edge of my seat, a second story slowly begins to open to us as the mystery of just who the Hunter is gets revealed bit by bit, slowly leading us along a breadcrumb trail, thousands of years of memories trickling in and leaving us wanting even more answers. Going into this series, I did not expect as much depth and lore from a story of a nigh-immortal assassin, but with what’s been shown so far, I’m chomping at the bit for more.

If you’re looking for an assassin series with pulse-pounding action, then Darkblade should grip you on that criteria alone. But if you’re also down for a deep character study about the balance between man and beast, light and darkness, gods and demons, and the lesser evil rising above it all, then Darkblade is gonna dig its teeth even further into you—and Protector will send you hurtling to read the next book. Peloquin has captured me two books in, and I can’t wait to see where this massive epic series goes next.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, my dinner knife won’t stop screaming at me, so I think I need to go eat something.