-starts playing Aloe Blacc’s Back In The Saddle in the background-
It’s time to kick my butt into gear and knock these reviews out! I have this one and hopefully a review for Mina Cortez by Jeffrey Cook should be finished by tonight or tomorrow morning. I’ve been in an awful funk lately and I’m trying to force myself out of it. Bah!
Anyways! On to review!
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Today I have the privilege to talk about the third book in Kelly Blanchard’s Chronicles of Lorrek: I’m Still Alive. Of course in order to talk about this, we need to back track just a tidbit and refresh on the happenings of book two: I Still Have A Soul. So if you know, you haven’t read that book then go read it before I spoil things.
As we remember we had that big battle that involved…well basically everyone. Well at the end. Before that we had a Lorrek with no memories who was hellbent on killing Vixen. Per Roskedouche’s orders of course. Er..Roskelem. Then we had Verddra having taken over Nirrorm and Jechoram arming itself to the teeth. Everything came to an epic head in a giant aforementioned battle that definitely required tissues. So I’ll skip over a lot of the details, and just touch on some important ones that of course come up.
Lorrek regained his memories.
Vixen was fatally wounded.
Theran is stuck in a piece of Jechoram armor.
Lots of people died.
And most importantly, one of them was Honroth.
So when we come to I’m Still Alive, Heldon has taken over as King of Cuskelom and it has been about a year since the events at the end of ISHAS unfolded. While from the end of that book, we know Vixen is still alive, the beginning manages to make you temporarily second guess yourself until you see her sitting there perfectly fine. Fawn-who goes by Radella-found an ancient place where upon staying a year you are given another life. So if you die your body sort of…regenerates in a way and boom you’re fine.
So our favorite assassin lives to see another day!
And it’s just in time because things in their world are starting to get crazy.
The Princess Mordora is turning everyone who gets in her way to stone. Including one of my favorite people. And then you know…she went and seriously injured another one of my favorites. (I’m actually pretty sure that Kelly and Jeffrey live off of my feelings and hurting them). The problem with stopping her is that she has a new strange bracelet and is being protected by some being attached to it named Rykeldon.
On top of that, new visitors arrive to Cuskelom. And these aren’t any visitors, they’re representatives of the thymords named Draben and Reven and claim to be the creators of the World Orbs and handblades that the nation possesses. Now, they want those things back.
Heldon and Erita (now his wife and Queen of Cuskelom) work to stave off them off and send them to Lorrek to be distracted by attempting to capture Rykeldon; a much more important venture than retrieving the items. And while this is all going on, we get to see meltdowns, epic chew outs, and a moment of brothers being…well brothers.
This book is filled with the same type of imagery and exceptional worldbuilding that we have become accustomed to in Kelly’s books. She bridged the gap from the first to second installments and continues on spectacularly and seamlessly in the third. I’m Still Alive will leave you turning the pages wanting to know more. New worlds, new races (dragons anyone?), and even a subtle underhand mention of something called “Joktan” in the neutral nation of Talhon. The Chronicles of Lorrek are (as I’ve said before), a spark of classic fantasy novels for the modern era. Like ISHAS though, don’t forget some tissues. You just might need them.
Add it to your Goodreads list today.
The Misplaced Selchie 