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Title: Death's City
Series: Blood on the Reik #2
Author: Sandy Mitchell
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 416
Format: Kindle Digital scan
When we last left our heroes, they were surrounded by the Witch
Hunter's forces with no escape. So the beginning of this book they
obviously get captured, Hanna gets a sigil that seals her powers and
she'll literally explode if they can't get it off. But they do escape,
thanks to Fritz's now fully transformed chaos brother.
The trio hooks up with an old wanderer who helps them to Marienburg,
where everyone gets various jobs to survive. Rudi continues his hunt to
find his real parents and to figure out just what this "heir" thing is
all about. City adventures ensue and by the end of the book the trio
have to run again, as the Witch Hunter has caught up to them.
Rudi has got to be the dullest clod of dirt in the whole field. He
runs right into the arms of the chaos worshippers who just keep on
trying to kill him and sacrifice him. I'm hoping that this time around
he learned his lesson. There is obviously a schism within Chaos's ranks
[big surprise there, right?] about what do with Rudi. One group wants to
sacrifice him for some reason and the other group doesn't want to
sacrifice him, but we have no idea what they DO want. With the Witch
Hunter and the powers of the Empire behind him, you have a very big 3rd
player.
Near the end, the Witch Hunter kept trying to talk to Rudi about
something but Rudi wouldn't let him get a word in edgewise. I can't say I
blame him but still, the stupid Witch Hunter should have just yelled "I
know 'Information X'" instead of trying to "talk" to Rudi. You can't
kill someone's relatives and friends, then capture them and once they
escape expect them to sit quietly while you explain "what is really
going on".
On the writing aspect of things. Too may little pointless details
were included. I know they were written in to give the book depth and
all that malarkey, but it really came across as padding. I don't need to
know about breakfast, break, lunch, afternoon, dinner and night time
details of their journey on the road.
With all of that, this was a fun read. Rudi being on the City Watch
gave rise to some good action scenes. I do feel like I need to hunt down
a Warhammer wiki page and start reading these in more of an order than I
have with the Forgotten Realms books. Random isn't the best way to read
a vast collection of books.