Academ's Fury (Codex Alera, Book 2) (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Tavi peeked around the corner of the boys dormitories at the Academy's central courtyard, and said to the young man beside him, "You've got that..." (more)
Key Phrases: First Lord, Lady Aquitaine, Lady Placida (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Best known for his Harry Dresden fantasy noir novels (Dead Beat, etc.), bestseller Butcher shows he's equally adept at epic fantasy in the second Codex Alera book. Two years after the events of Furies of Calderon (2004), the First Lord of Alera, Gaius Sextus, struggles to control a realm facing growing border troubles and civil strife as High Lords scheme to advance their own causes. Fortunately, Gaius has loyal supporters such as his nephew Tavi, now a 17-year-old Academ, a student of Alera Imperial's great Academy, who also serves as Gaius's page and is secretly training to become a Cursor, one of the First Lord's elite spies. Then Gaius falls ill, leaving those closest to him, including Tavi, desperate to keep his weakness secret. With Cursors being murdered, an ancient menace known as the "vord" heading for the capital and civil war on the horizon, Tavi has his work cut out for him. Butcher skillfully weaves in the necessary back story without slowing the pace. Solid world-building, intriguing characters and vivid action make this a solid addition to a marvelously entertaining series.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Tavi, the young hero of Furies of Calderon (2004), is now in the capital, ostensibly serving as a page but secretly training to become a spy. When the first lord falls to a sorcerous attack, Tavi and his closest friends and teachers must conceal the lord's condition lest the realm fall into civil war. In the Calderon Valley, a long--forgotten horror awakens and heads for the heart of Alera, while Tavi's closest relative, the newly appointed Steadholder Isana, faces at least two sets of assassins. This is a fine coming-of-age, fantasy-action novel. The characterizations are excellent, and the plotting is very well developed. The second book of the Codex Alera, though not as exciting as Furies, includes plenty of action, and Butcher provides enough background so that it can be enjoyed without having read its predecessor. Frieda Murray
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Ace Hardcover (July 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0441012833
• ISBN-13: 978-0441012831
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (64 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #635,357 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

• This is item 2 in The Codex Alera Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than the first book, January 25, 2007

By	Paul O'Connor (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Academ's Fury (Codex Alera, Book 2) (Paperback)

Other people have done a very good job of describing the plot so I'll use my review to explain my reaction to this book and why I gave it such a good rating.

First, a word of warning, one of the other reviewers commented that it is a fragmented middle book to a trilogy (typically the weakest link of the story). While I don't agree completely with him, there is some justice to this claim so I'd recommend that readers finish the first book before moving on to the second one.

The first book was a delightful romp into a new fantasy universe but the characters were two dimensional, their likes and dislikes were stamped in metal and were unchangeable throughout the entire novel. This worked because the universe was so new and interesting to the reader. Fortunately Jim Butcher recognized the weakness and corrected it in this book. Setting the story two years after the novel was an excellent idea, the characters are still recognizable but have matured and don't see everything in such black-and-white terms. Sometimes good people have bad things happen to them and they have to make compromises to survive.

Another interesting facet of the story is that while the characters were extremely capable in the last book it turns out that they aren't all-powerful. When Butcher pulls back the lens and allows the reader to see more of the environment they exist in, you realize that they may be powerful but there are much larger powers that regard them as toys to be played with or broken at a whim. This revelation makes the characters much more believable and interesting.

Finally, I don't know how he did it, but the author believably maintains the suspense level right through to the last page. There's more action here than in a dozen Hong Kong martial arts movies and it flows clearly and logically from one scene to the next.

I've just read that Mr. Butcher has contracted to write at least three more books in the series. I can't imagine how he's going to maintain this level of interest and intrigue over such a long period but I have faith and I'm very much looking forward to finding out when the next book comes out in paperback.

18 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The series gains depth as Tavi starts growing up, July 19, 2005

By	K. Maxwell "katmax1" (Perth, Australia) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This book takes place 2 years after the events in the first book of the series. Tavi is now a trainee Cursor at the academy in the capital and still has no furies to call his own. However, when the First Lord collapses one evening while alone with Tavi it is up to him to decide the best way to prevent this sudden health problem from plunging Alera into civil war. At the same time those in the Calderon Valley discover that the Wax Forrest has spawned a new evil that makes the previous wars in the valley look like child's play and could destroy all of Alera.

This story is played out in the space of a few days as Tavi tries to balance final exams with impending invasion and the political games of the high lords. Tavi is growing up and this comes through clearly in this novel, and though it was somewhat disappointing to find him still fury-less, Tavi still manages to do more with his brains than many powerful people with furies ever achieve. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next volume of this series, though its clear that without furies Tavi's options are becoming more limited, still, this is a series I will continue to be happy to buy in hardback.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Butcher does no wrong, August 31, 2005

By	Dussan (Baltimore, MD United States) - See all my reviews

He takes to pure fantasy like a fish to water and going a route that pleases me immensly. One thing I dislike in the current fantasy trend is the "realistic" fantasy that is coming out these days. Taking historical incidents and weaving a fantasy tale, with a different planet and characters yet have the same brutal feudal outcome does not appeal to me. I like my fantasy to have magic, and action, a bit of romance and a lot of fun.

Martin and many others coming along seem to revel in bombarding you with the phrase "no one is safe". That gets old after a while and you want to sit back and read about characters you enjoy.

Butcher does this. With Academs Fury Tavi grows to a young man with still the sameproblems, being the only human unable to control a Fury. This time around we see Tavi at the Academy, when the Emperor falls ill. Thanks to Tavis' quick thinking and wits he and the Emperors most trusted aids are able to keep the realm from falling apart, if only for a short time. Back home, Tavi's family is underseige by a new threat, one that he may have unleashed. This threat could destroy the whole Empire if it is not stopped.

Butcher keeps many of the secrets and the path of the story to himself. Tavi continues to display a fantastic intellect, with quick thinking and bravery that rivals another of my favorite underdogs in literature Miles Vorkosigan. Tavi does not let his handicap interfere with what needs to be done, yet you can feel the lack of inability to Furycraft during each incident and adventure. For in a world where the smallest of childerend and the most unintelligent of men can use this power effectively, you just know that if Tavi had this power he would be a force to reckon with.

I give it five stars because of the sheer originality of the symbiotic realationship between the Furies and humans as a system of magic.

It may not appeal to the hardcore fantasy fans, that love the gritty realism in fantasy these days. But to Butcher fans this is pure gold. I eagerly await the next round.