I'm pretty shocked why C. T. Rwizi's masterpiece, the Scarlett Odyssey Saga isn’t a bestseller yet!
Readers seriously should be cheering, shouting on the rooftops, agonizing over the devastating ending of this second installment and suspense-nail-biting over whether or not there will ever be a continuation, a third book… Because although Requiem Moon seriously offers everything a fantasy reader’s heart desires, it ends on a nasty cliffhanger and we demand a sequel.
Requiem Moon picks up the story of prequel Scarlet Odyssey: Having finally gotten his status as a male mystic confirmed by the Yerezi Queen, Salo and his crew - she-warrior Ilapara, young atmech Tuk and finally Alinata, a gorgeous Asazi in the service of the said queen - finally make it to Yonte Saire, the Jungle City, where he is supposed to complete a pilgrimage to the Red Temple as well as act as a sort of spy. Through a series of magical obstacles, they find themselves unable to reach the destination of their pilgrimage and also to leave the place. His path eventually and finally crosses with King Isa and her cousin Jomo, the two remaining survivors of the massacred royal Saire family, who want to push their own agenda; to the end of uniting their tribe and preventing a genocide they need Salo’s skills to extract the powerful Covenant Diamond in the Red Temple.
The biggest strength of this second Scarlet Odyssey-book is at the same time its greatest weakness; it is jam-packed! From fantastic but brutal gladiator fights, a messy rebellion, chosen-one-moments and personality crises, conversations with gods, very interesting twists, to lots and lots and lots and lots of royal plots and intrigues and more… Sometimes it can really feel an overkill on the good stuff.
On the other hand, among an abundance of gnarled storylines you will find perfectly fleshed out characters, major AND minor, that are easy to be interested in and so you will always keep up; I truly root for every single one of them and in the second book I had even more to enjoy thanks to the dapper warrior Kamali and the dreamy cameo appearances of Salo’s childhood friend from the first book; Niko. The little flirtations between Jomo and Ilapara were heavenly (“Here was a woman who had an eye for bullshit.”) and the character Jomo was in general a highlight for me ("Jomo still hasn’t gotten used to the metallic timbre the pendant adds to the mystic’s voice. He wonders what his own voice sounds like on the other end of the enchantment.”) I found that Rwizi wrote much more freely, more humorously in this second book which felt good.
I also thought Salo’s crisis intriguing, his character that we got to know and appreciate in the first book cracking a little, showing weaknesses and inconsistencies, maybe due to the weight of being a male mystic or maybe because of the discoveries concerning his own nature and past... Who knows? But it was certainly a very interesting narrative device to show him through the eyes of the other characters which helps seeing more facets of his personality.
In the previous book I was fascinated by the aspect of magic becoming so detailed and elaborate that it almost turns into science; and that aspect is even intensified in Requiem Moon (I don't mean to give away spoilers but there are profoundly interesting notions here!). Beside the magic system, the worldbuilding, this time with a greater focus on city life, is extremely successfully done, rich, spectacular and vivid as ever and even more than before.
As I mentioned above, Requiem Moon's only flaw, if it ever is one, might be that there are too many intertwining storylines. Yet, it is still an intense and colorful read much worthy of its predecessor. And if you haven't read that one, I think you're missing out and should quickly do so!
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