First Published: 2019
Contains spoilers
The Blurb: THE ONLY EASY DAY WAS YESTERDAY - - Despite the odds, Morgan defeated his captor, DuPont, and the Immortals of the East Horsley Colony. His rebellion destroyed plans for initiating a new Great Immortal Battle. Now, returning to America with his allies, Morgan will confront a war in the form of retaliation. The defeated Immortals want Morgan dead for disrupting their plans. Although protected by security, Morgan must fight to survive while testing his independence and defining his role as part of a team.
Morgan's past paves the road to his future. Survival is not the only goal. He must come to terms with guilt. Accept failures and celebrate successes. Embrace friendships and trust new relationships. Abide by rules and lead with authority. Because everything that happens now will shape the man that Morgan becomes.
The review: I received this volume as an Advanced Readers Copy and, as such, I have ignored the occasional typo that I have come across – though they were very occasional. I preciously reviewed Renna’s first book of the series Darkness on the Horizon. Within that we got a coming of age story set within a supernatural world, the lifting of a young man into adulthood – as he escaped poverty through sheer luck and personality, he still had to contend with challenges but they were of a supernatural nature.
The first volume wasn’t perfect but it was an enjoyable volume and this continued in that vein, with Morgan returning to the USA and immediately put in peril when the immortals are attacked by allies of the rogue vampire element (this volume makes a clear distinction between immortals – the name of the more moralistic vampires – and vampires – the monsters as Morgan sees them). They discover that there are a group of rogue vampires in the US and they have taken it upon themselves to destroy Morgan.
Whilst that peril plays out (and is fairly straightforward as an action plot, without perhaps as much of the complexity imbued in the first volume) Morgan still has to come to terms with maturity – be that politically, socially or sexually. There is some nice interplay with authority, with peers and allies who are jealous and with prospective lovers (be that casual or otherwise). The book happily steps away from hetero-normative, realising that the same base coming of age can be played out with any sexuality but recognising that queering the plot adds other layers in – those were only partially explored but, nonetheless, were explored and are open for further exploration should a third volume be forthcoming. Also, please note, that the fact that the action/supernatural plot is simpler is not a detriment to the book and actually allows a little more focus.
Lore-wise I asked a question around the sunlight rule in the previous review. This was answered in as much it seems that sunlight causes younger Immortals to burn and blister and even scar – but their healing should allow them to recover (I imagine there is a tipping point), whilst older ones die almost immediately. All the vampires develop inherent individual skills and it seems that Morgan is particularly skilled in combat, though it is also clear it is a skill that needs developing and honing. The rule about stealing powers by eating the heart is still there but the immortals we root for do not appear to do that. In a side moment we come across a Dogman – a near indestructible creature that is akin to a werewolf and we hear about other supernaturals being out there.
Generally, the writing was stronger than in the first volume but there was perhaps still the odd moment where the dialogue didn’t ring true – this was less stagy in places and more situational – but they were the exception not the rule and the author continues to draw a nice world around us. Whilst the character of Morgan still has room to grow, of course, I’d see this as a nice point where the author can step away from the coming of age, in future volumes, and settle into some world building as it is clear he has some original, strong and fun ideas. 7 out of 10.
On Kindle @ Amazon US
On Kindle @ Amazon UK
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