After absolutely LOVING the first book in this series: Heart of Mist, I couldn’t wait to be able to read the second book. However, I had to wait a whole year which wasn’t great, but oh my life, the wait was definitely worth it! I had listened to Heart of Mist on audiobook, so I definitely wanted to carry that on and so I pre-ordered the audiobook for Reign of Mist. I had gotten so used to the narrator and the way that she voiced the different characters, that I couldn’t think of the characters talk any other way.

The realm’s darkest secret is out.

The cruelty of the capital and the power-hungry King Arden have scattered Bleak and her companions across the continents.

On the run in a foreign land, Bleak finds herself tied to some unexpected strangers. When the answers she yearns for are finally within reach, she must face the hard truths of her past and take her fate into her own hands before it’s too late.

Meanwhile, secrets and magic unravel as a dark power corrupts the realm. Bleak’s friends are forced to decide where their loyalties lie, and who, if anyone, they can trust.

But one thing is certain: war is coming, and they must all be ready when it does.

If you read my review of Heart of Mist, you will know that I loved it so much and Reign of Mist was no different.

Helen Scheuerer has this brilliant way of writing. She captivated you with her descriptions of the world that she’s created, and then pulls you in with the character dialogue to make you fall in love with each and every character (even if its a love-to-hate them).

 

“Love and loss so intricately entwined. You cannot have one without the other, unfortunately.”

― Helen Scheuerer, Reign of Mist

 

Like Heart of Mist, the sequel is written from a handful of different points of view such as Bleak, Henri, Dash, and Swinton. I don’t think that there is A SINGLE POV that I don’t like, or one that I prefer to the other. All of them are written with such care, and it doesn’t FEEL like Scheuerer has a favourite character, they are all written with such precision. Does that make sense? I normally find that when I’m writing a review of a book that have multiple perspectives, I find it really hard because there are normally some POV’s that I’m not a massive fan of. However, that’s not the case when it comes to The Oremere Chronicles. I love all of the perspectives and the only characters that I don’t like are the ones that we are EXPECTED to dislike i.e. KING ARDEN BECAUSE HE’S CRUEL AND I REALLY WANT HIM TO DIE.

Another element of this book that I really can’t get over is how wonderful Scheuerer’s writing style is. I know that I already mentioned this in my review of Heart of Mist, but I’m going to mention it again because her descriptions of all the different places are beautiful. I especially loved her descriptions of Havennesse. I normally HATE feeling cold, but the way that Scheuerer described the cold of that part of the world, and then went on to describe the warm clothes and the fire that Bleak would use whilst there just made me feel so comfortable. Havennesse is definitely a place that I would want to go and visit (once they’ve sorted out all of that cult stuff though. I couldn’t be dealing with that.)

 

“Bravery is doing something despite being scared.”

― Helen Scheuerer, Reign of Mist

 

I think that one of my favourite elements of this series are the lack of romance. There is a tiny bit of lesbian romance but nothing too major, and I really love how there isn’t any because it just shows that you don’t need romance to move a plot forward. Scheuerer manages to keep up the pace of an amazing plot without having any romance drama. Also… it doesn’t make me feel lonely so there’s that…

Instead of focusing of the aforementioned romance drama that plenty of fantasy novels have (I’m looking at you Throne of Glass!), Scheuerer tends to focus more on the friendship element of relationships. What makes two people become friends? What makes a friendship work? There are plenty of new friendships that are struck up in Reign of Mist and the new friendships are ones that I ADORE SO MUCH. They melt my heart and I just love them so much. The old friendships are also conveyed throughout this book as being strong but sometimes tested which I think is brilliant, because just like relationships, no friendship is smooth sailing.

 

“Someday soon, you are going to have to accept who and what you are.”

― Helen Scheuerer, Reign of Mist

 

One of the only qualms that I have with this book is one that is very similar to how I feel about the ending of The Remnant Chronicles… The ending of Reign of Mist is so fast paced, which I can definitely understand because it’s a battle and battles aren’t really slow going. However, the entirety of the second book and some of the first book have been building up to this battle, so to only have the last 50 pages of Reign of Mist be about this world-changing battle doesn’t seem to be enough. I also know that from an editor’s point of view, you don’t want too much of the book to be battle scenes because the description can get samey and could potentially bore the reader. But there has to be some way to make the two work together, right? Don’t look to me for answers because I have no idea… I’m just putting the suggestion out there.

Overall, this was an absolutely fantastic book and I can’t believe that I have to wait A WHOLE YEAR for the third (and final?) book. However, there are prequels that I can read in the mean time which I will definitely do. I really don’t understand how more people aren’t reading this series. It’s stunning.

 

 

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