A Fire in the North-David Bilsborough

A Fire in the North
David Bilsborough
Tor, Jun 2008, $25.95
ISBN: 9780765318930

In the tunnels under the mountains of Eotunlandt, Nibulus leads the Questor survivors of the battles as they struggle to reach the surface where they expect their enemies the Thieves will attack them en masse. Instead when they finally reach the outside, no one eerily awaits to ambush them.

Bolldhe heads towards the next fight with the resurrected evil lord Drauglir and his horde. He expects the engagement to occur somewhere near Vaagenfjord Maw, but has little hope to win except for the strange sword he now possesses.

Gapp and Methuselech reach Wrythe where the malevolent necromancer Scathur has quietly ruled for centuries while regaining strength lost five hundred years ago on Lyndormyn, Peladanes defeated the evil rawgr Drauglir and his supernatural minions; he quickly knows who Methuselech’s soul is and imprisons both of them, but they escape with his horde in pursuit. Soon everyone heads for Melhus Island and its underworld where the armies of the dead await to add to their ranks.

This is a direct sequel to The Wanderer's Tale that takes time to get started as the various key players and their allies are established for new readers. Once the action accelerates there is no slowing down as this military fantasy goes into hyperspeed with confrontations seemingly everywhere. With all the various armies at war and new leaders and heroes emerging, A FIRE IN THE NORTH still pares down to the destined Wanderer who remains the only one who can save an apathetic prosperous world from the malevolent Drauglir and the wicked necromancer Scathur as The Annals of Lindormyn move forward.

Harriet Klausner