Customer Reviews

The Eyes of Sarsis (War of the Wizards Trilogy, Book 2)

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King Hower of Reme is warned by the mighty Prye of Ice that the King and his daughter, throne Princess Jiltha, will be involuntarily involved in a black magic intriuge. Depsite mage's warning, Jiltha is seized and held as a sacrifice for a vile rite. King Hower, knowing that Tiana has destroyed one powerful demon-mage, turns to her for help.

Part II of the "War of the Wizards" trilogy has Tiana of Reme fighting hulking barbarians, blood-thirsty jewels, the walking dead, and black magic. A great sequel to "Demon in the Mirror".

The Eyes of Sarsis begins the second tale in the War of the Wizards Trilogy featuring the fiery-haired pirate captain Tiana Highrider. Paired once again with her ebony-skinned foster father, Caranga, this time they set off aboard the "Vixen" to retrieve the Eyes of Sarsis. A pair of magical diamonds of mysterious power. This time Tiana's adventures take place more on the open sea, which is more akin to her pirate nature. Like Demon in the Mirror, The Eyes of Sarsis is a short book (207 pages). It's a solid adventure story of not so good (Pirates & power hungry wizards) vs. evil (Sarsis). My thoughts;

Pros

+ More interesting characters are introduced and some from the previous novel appear with more face time. Tiana and Caranga of course are always great. The wizard Pyre was also a more prominent character in this book which was great as you got to what he was really capable of. The barbarian Bjaine and the wizard Ekron were also nice additions to the story.

+ Author's do a better job of explaining the known pantheon of deities.

+ Ample action throughout most chapters. While not as action heavy as Demon in the Mirror there's enough going on to keep you interested.

+ Another original storyline, this time with vampiric gemstones instead of nuns.

+ Great cover art by Rowena.


Cons <WARNING - POSSIBLE SPOILERS!>

- No map, once again. (Note: Book 3 - Web of the Spider, includes a full map of the land as well as a glossary and gazetteer. If you want to better understand and appreciate the story I would suggest having Book 3 as a reference before you begin reading Book 1.) There's one point in the book where I was referencing the map to determine where they're sailing and the writing indicates an opposite direction. Not confusing if you don't have a map but incorrect if you do have one.

- The idea of Non-Beings is confusing and doesn't make a lot of sense.

- Bjaine, a hulking barbarian warrior and new character to the series had literally no action sequences. Also, the demon he had bound within him by the wizard Ekron virtually played no part in the story. It wasn't until the very end that it became important. Even then it was still brief. Ekron mentions at the very beginning that Bjaine wouldn't enjoy the way the demon needed to feed, yet nothing is ever mentioned after that. I felt like it was story potential wasted.

- The Eye of Sarsis' illusions were quite confusing at times. I found myself rereading certain pages because I became confused as to what truly happened and what the characters just imagined.

- Less action and adventure compared to the Demon in the Mirror. It would have been nice to see Tiana do a bit more fighting, but she was without her weapons for half the story.

- Too short.


The Eyes of Sarsis was an extremely enjoyable read and a worthy follow up to the Demon in the Mirror. The story itself felt a bit more pieced together and flowed nicely but lacked the action of the previous title. It started out strong and very similar to the first book but the Eyes of Sarsis seemed a bit too powerful and not easily defeated/contained by mere pirates. A nice addition to the War of the Wizards trilogy and worth a read if you enjoy high fantasy.