Steel Gods

Although slow-moving for the most part, Grave Empire featured a number of exciting chapters near the end, with thrilling action scenes and a captivating visit to the underwater kingdom of the Stygion. Revelations were made that elevated this tale to another level, but the rushed finale left something to be desired. Still, it set the stage for what appears to be an ambitious and multilayered saga that many should find appealing.

This sequel follows more or less in the same vein. Indeed, Steel Gods shares the same shortcomings and the same compelling elements of its predecessor. So chances are that anyone who enjoyed the first installment will find a lot to like about this second volume.

Here's the blurb:

Industrial revolution beckons. Spiritual catastrophe looms. And the Empire of the Wolf teeters on the brink...

The true horror of the Great Silence has been revealed. As nation after nation succumbs to the mind-plague and Sova scrambles to enlist help from across the globe, Ambassador Renata Rainer has been given a simple task: save the world. While she travels to the Principality of Casimir to enlist the help of the Empire’s oldest enemy, Lieutenant Peter Kleist returns to the haunted forests of the New East to search for ancient answers—and finally confront the terrible fate that awaits him.

In their wake, a task force of engineers, soldiers, and arcane experts will try and unpick the final secrets of the Great Silence—on both sides of the mortal plane. But time is running out. Count Lamprecht von Oldenburg has returned to the capital, armed with a terrible vision and enough madness to see it through. Those who stand in his way face a simple choice: join the revolution, or die.

As the world tips towards chaos, all paths converge on the Eye of the Sea, where the fabric of reality wears thin—and where the Empire of the Wolf must confront the most terrible enemy it has ever known.

As mentioned in my review of Grave Empire, the Great Silence series takes place about two hundred years following the events of the Empire of the Wolf trilogy. The setting is no medieval European analogue. It's a flintlock fantasy featuring a vast empire akin to the British Empire spanning dominions, territories, colonies, etc, which has reached a certain level of industrialization. The worldbuilding continues to be interesting and well realized. Once again, the author does an excellent job depicting the changes brought by urbanization and technological advancements. Swan also portrays the bureaucratic aspects of the imperial apparatus, the army, the diplomatic embassies, companies, etc, quite efficiently. Trouble is, as was the case in the first volume, certain things make little sense. One of the principal shortcomings of this book is the decidedly weak political intrigue. Swan excels in many different aspects when it comes to writing novels, but politicking is definitely not one of them. Everything that has to do with the delegation sent to Casimir to broker an even stronger peace between the Empire and the Principality, as well as the entire religious revolution plotline, felt contrived and a bit half-assed. Both storylines would have benefited from a little more work, methinks. As I've said before, not everyone can be a politicking master like George R. R. Martin, Katherine Kurtz, or Jacqueline Carey. But since a large part of Steel Gods hinges precisely on political intrigue, this can be quite a setback at times.

Even if I was totally enthralleded by the premise and the plot of Grave Empire, the characterization didn't quite work for me. Swan did a good job fleshing out the protagonists and giving them agency. And yet, I never could really root for any of them. Steel Gods features more POV characters and another vast supporting cast. Which, if I'm being honest, works better this time around. It's not perfect, mind you, but it is an improvement. Impulsive and often annoying Renata Rainier, remains what can be considered the series' main protagonist. I still have a hard time getting into her plotline, especially since a lot of things feel contrived just to keep the story moving forward. I first thought that her relationship with Captain Lyzander would help matters and make her more endearing, yet it wasn't meant to be. No less easy to like in the first book was Peter Kleist, a craven commissioned officer in the Sovan army sent to the New East. In over his head, a stranger in a strange land, he nevertheless grew on you as the tale progressed. Peter's storyline was by far the darkest and goriest of the novel, and it was also the most fascinating. His perspective has now become my favorite. His journey back to the land of the Kato and the Tree-Man was great. So was his relationship with Olwin. Given everything he has lost, it was nice to see them find comfort in one another. Count Lamprecht Von Oldenburg, who used to be an opportunistic nobleman bent on reintroducing outlawed magic back into the empire, has gone completely insane. And his madness could spell doom for mankind. Two new arcs, those of Captain Jason Laine and Kaito Kuroda, one an officer in the Sovan navy and the other a sorcerer from the Ayakashi Imperial Shögunate, worked particularly well, even though it took almost until the very end to understand their importance in the greater scheme of things. My only gripe is that these new arcs were mostly meant to allow Swan to channel Patrick O'Brien and he did overindulge with several naval scenes and battles. The addition of entities from other planes of existence was a nice touch that added layers to an already complex plot.

Like its predecessor, Steel Gods does suffer from pacing issues from time to time. It takes a long time for all the perspectives to come together, but given the number of storylines that was to be expected. Problem is, Swan has a tendency to overdo everything when it comes to the travelogues and he makes sure to showcase every single village/city/region down to the smallest detail. As mentioned in my previous review, it does make his universe come alive with arresting imagery, yet it also slows the rhythm of the tale too often for my liking. As a result, what with all the superfluous material, both installments are much longer than they need to be.

And yet, for all of that excess, Richard Swan continues to push the envelope with an intriguing endgame and the exciting finale of Steel Gods. The ending, especially, and the epilogue, set the stage for what should be a memorable final volume.

Time will tell if the author can close the show with aplomb and panache.

The final verdict: 7.5/10

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