Reign Breaker by J.J. Fischer Review

 

I absolutely adored Reign Breaker, the second book in the Painted Wind series by J.J. Fischer. It was awesome to get to travel back to this fantasy world she created and revisit Rigan and Corcoran, plus get to know Prince Soren better and be introduced to the newest main character, Isel. Plus we got to see old friends, yay! And old enemies, boo! Not really "boo," but I definitely could have done without seeing a couple of the villains from the first book, especially with the parts they played in this story.

Reign Breaker was told from four points of view. We again got to follow Rigan and Corcoran, and we also get to follow Prince Soren and Isel, the young lady who looks so very much like Rigan. The story takes place on both parts of the Twin Kingdoms, Jardia and Calidore. 

There is adventure and danger and political intrigue and war. We get to learn more about the Shro Khan, the evil, shape-shifting monsters who play a much bigger part this time around. In fact, they seem to be a lot more powerful now and I'm really concerned about how they are going to affect our characters in the upcoming books. There is a lot in this book about how the Khan are affecting characters in different ways already. 

But we have also learned more about the Divine Will and see more characters who trust in Him and urge others to as well. I loved the introduction of the new "race" that seems to be followers of this Divine Will, and I hope we get to see more of them. I'm also wondering if we will ever get to learn more about this world besides the Twin Kingdoms.

I have to say, the relationship between Rigan and Corcoran could use a bit of help. They need to work on their trust and their communication. Hopefully they get a chance to do so. I loved the way the relationship between Prince Soren and Isel has been progressing, except for the fact that there is a bit of a love triangle that was going on, and then maybe not going on, but then might be an issue again. 

And in all this, who can we really trust what with the Shro Khan being able to control people. And then there are prophecies that may or may not be real. And unexpected twists that kept me glued to the book. 

Yes, this is a book and a series that I can definitely recommend. Be aware though, this book ends on a cliffhanger, so you may want to wait to read it closer to when book three comes out. And definitely make sure to read book one, The Heart of the King first, as this story picks up right where that one left off. 

I received an e-copy of this book as a member of the launch team and was not required to write a favorable review. These are my own honest thoughts.