Dear reader. Are you looking to continue the saga of The Red Kingdom? Curious as to what the aftermath of the attack on Abalreen has yielded? Curious as to who is still among the living and who has been lost? The journey continues in author Ryan Lanz’s The Way of Stones.
The Way of Stones draws the eye of readers with a cover depicting the main character deep in a forest. Ahead of him, breaking through the trees is a shaft of sunlight. It is bringing a small amount of light to this dark forest scene. All around Rhael are trees with the roots of one sitting high above the ground. Rhael is depicted on guard with his cloak being drawn behind him by a strong wind.
As readers further gaze at the cover of The Way of Stones we see that Rhael’s left hand holds a long sword at the ready. His ability manifests itself in his right hand which is not just aglow with a lick of flame, but is ablaze. This forest scene gives the sense that a battle is imminent. While a foe is not in sight, it gives readers the sense that a fight is coming, and that Rhael feels the need to be prepared.
As The Way of Stones begins to unfold author Lanz kicks things off with a prologue. This prologue introduces a character who made a “glancing” appearance in book one, The Silver Crystal. This new character, Jaheim, is a child when we meet him at the beginning of The Way of Stones. Something heartbreakingly terrible is set to unfold. Author Lanz conveys this sense to readers through the gathering of the people of the town. But there are a multitude of clues that are dropped that Jaheim has failed to take note of.
What unfolds in the prologue for The Way of Stones gives readers a clue as to why Jaheim did what he did during the fight inside of Abalreen. His future is shaped by a tragic moment in his past that can never be undone. But one that he will fear the consequences of moving forward as The Way of Stones continues to unfold.
Author Lanz leaves Jaheim with the past for a minute as he transitions back to more familiar characters in The Way of Stones. Readers are reunited with Rhael who is currently still in Abalreen. It’s not exactly the best place to be after all of the chaos that unfolded in The Silver Crystal. However, Rhael, Gobo, and Bendrish are still, for all intents and purposes, “trapped” inside the city.
Author Lanz has not moved the story along more than a few days after the ill-fated attack on Abalreen. Rhael and company are currently holed up in his deceased friend’s home. For now, only they know the fate of the owner of the house, and so are taking advantage of this fact. With food running low, Rhael must come up with a plan of what to do next. Staying in the city after the chaos of the “battle” is ill-advised.
Of course, with the increased guard presence, and dealing with the current issues at hand – primarily food running low – Rhael is going to have quite the task ahead of him finding more. The Way of Stones will, unfortunately, show to Rhael that “friendship” is a fragile thing. Readers will hope for the best along with Rhael in a particular scene that will unfold but will be brought back to reality by a harsh truth.
Rhael isn’t the sole character that author Lanz will draw readers’ attention to. Once again in The Way of Stones, readers are given a wide cast of characters, and every couple of chapters will see a shift to each one in turn.
Phessipi managed to escape Abalreen at the end of The Silver Crystal. (Check out the review for book one here.) Her ill-fated plan to attack the city resulted in major losses for her group. Now, in The Way of Stones, she is struggling with the guilt of her failure. She believes those left behind are dead or worse. Author Lanz portrays Phessipi as continuing to mourn the loss of the man she loved from book one.
Her people need her, but for a time she is lost to her pain. Of course, this creates a vacuum. Her people still rely on her, but another, Mulvah, is tired of witnessing Phessipi’s “weakness” and lack of action. Readers will view Mulvah as a morally gray character. Author Lanz portrays her this way throughout The Way of Sones because of future interactions with specific characters from The Order. Mulvah will claim she cares about the other ability users, but what do her actions show?
Wonder what happened with Levas? Well, brace for outrage, because author Lanz is making sure that readers are thoroughly outraged with how he is treated in The Way of Stones. We won’t drop any spoilers here, but Levas’s entire life is about to be ripped away from him in a truly unjust way. On a level, Levas will disappoint with his reactions, but author Lanz will keep readers gripped with what unfolds next.
The Way of Stones is an engaging and well-written addition to the Red Kingdom series. Where The Silver Crystal sets the stage and the groundwork for what is to come, The Way of Stones picks up the ball and really runs with it. Author Lanz writes detailed chapters that focus on one of the primarily selected characters. Each character and chapter brings something enticing and engaging to the storyline of this book. Readers will feel motivated to find out what happens next.
The more that The Way of Stones unfolds readers won’t be able to resist wondering – who can these characters truly trust? Rhael is being propositioned for a chance to save his own skin. Will he take it? Mulvah is given a similar proposition, but with her own history with The Order, will she be foolish enough to trust them? Rhael is struggling with his ability to flicker in and out of existence. What does it mean? Can he find the answers?
The deeper this novel goes, the more questions that will arise. The drama builds beautifully throughout The Way of Stones. Author Lanz writes believable characters that draw readers in, and will have them choosing sides of who to cheer for concerning their success. There will be close calls for several of the characters throughout this book. It will literally pull you to the edge of your seat.
The amount of fantasy in The Way of Stones is higher than what readers will have gotten in Book One, The Silver Crystal. Readers looking for more magic will absolutely appreciate that we’re getting more in this installment of the series. Seeing that magic is now such an integral part of Rhael’s life especially this makes sense.
Readers should be forewarned there is a mild cliffhanger at the end of The Way of Stones. It’s not a big one, but you become so engrossed in the story that you forget it’s coming to an end until you “stumble” past the last page. We blame Gobo for this. LOL! He’s such a mixed bag of a character, but he brings a nice amount of humor to this book. He’s mildly featured more prominently towards the end, and so as we’re drawn in further, the story comes to an end, for now.
There is a lot going on in The Way of Stones. Secrets are coming to light. Agendas are being laid, and allegiances are being drawn. How well these allegiances will stand is anyone’s guess, but if it’s an ability user aligning with a non-user, well, we can all guess how that will end.
Author Lanz has written a detailed and engaging novel that will draw readers in with his attention to detail and riveting storytelling. There will be new characters to discover and old ones to reunite with. One thing is for sure, and that is that something big is coming and we look forward to finding out what exactly it is.
Readers who enjoy fantasy novels will absolutely not want to miss out on the continuation of the Red Kingdom series with The Way of Stones. With the magical elements becoming more integral concerning the storyline this book will lure readers in with a gripping storyline, riveting details, and intriguing characters.
Check out the review for book one, The Silver Crystal here.
Pros:
- Engaging
- Well-written storyline
- Interesting characters
- Twists and surprise revelations
- Good character development
Cons:
- None of merit
Scribble's Worth 