First book of a new year and it’s a very good one. I really like this story and how it has developed.
As read in the last book, Willowood, mother of Valerie and gandmother of Piper was rescued from the dungeons of So-Elku’s palace. That rescue resulted in the loss of a lot of people including none other than Valerie, Piper’s mother. Her death pushed Piper over the edge and she had reason to blame no one but Magnus. She’s also full of terrible stories told to her by Nos Kil about Magnus which are totally wrong, but she hasn’t taken the time to ask Magnus if any of it was true. So, with all that, she flees the safety of the Gladio Umbra and hides herself in So-Elku’s palace tower.
Of course this pleases So-Elku to no end. He believes that he can get Piper to believe in his cause and use her powers for his evil plans. Yet, it seems that everyone that knows of Piper, wants to have her for their own. It doesn’t take long for Moldark to learn of Piper’s location so he sets out to take her from So-Elku no matter the cost.
Strangely, though, Piper agrees to go with him voluntarily! Not sure what that’s about, but she believes that she may have found her grandfather even though he seems to have turned into something evil and now calls himself Moldark. She taken to the Black Labyrinth, Moldark’s ship and he tries to win her over by allowing just enough of her grandfather to come to the surface to make it difficult for Piper to know whether she’s doing the right things or not.
Meanwhile, Magnus and Awen along with all their friends are going to rescue Piper no matter the cost. But, first they need to gather more troops, a lot more. That starts with trying to convince Magnus’ old mentor, Colonel Caldwell, to join with him and then attempt to steer additional Republic Marines to their cause also. After the firefight at the Worru spaceport where almost two platoons of Marines were wiped out, that might be a very tough job.
A very good book where you’ll want to know for sure if Piper stays in the clutches of the evil Moldark. By the way, just what is he anyway?