Emperor of Ruin by Django Wexler

 

The tale of Burning Blade and Silvereye comes to a thrilling conclusion in Emperor of Ruin by Django Wexler. Events pick up after the literally explosive conclusion of the last book. Maya has activated an ancient machine which has rid the world of the plague that destroyed the powerful Chosen who once ruled much of the world. In doing so, she has freed the last of the Chosen, the Corrupted Ashok, who has been locked away for 400 years to avoid infection. Now free, he promises to bring a new age of prosperity and enlightenment. Gyre and Maya know that death and servitude are truly what his rule would bring.

Gyre and Maya have been at cross purposes throughout the first two books in the series, but now are united in their goal of bringing Ashok down. It will take both of their efforts to bring together old allies and old enemies if they are to have a chance of winning freedom. 

Maya has been branded a traitor, which presents obstacles as she must sneak back into the Forge, the seat of Centarch power, to find information necessary to bring about Ashok's fall. Their dangerous gambit gives them just enough information to form a plan to take down Ashok. Now Gyre must rescue some of the people left behind at the end of the previous book while Maya must undertake a search in the mountains near Deepfire for a hidden weapon that may be powerful enough to give them a chance in the fight against Ashok.

While Gyre and Maya spent much of their time apart in the first two books, they are able to be together much more in Emperor as they are united in a common purpose. Just as they find common ground individually, they also learn that the use of deiat by the centarchs of the empire and the use of dhaka by the ghouls doesn't come with inherent good or evil. Both can be used for good and both can be corrupted and used for vile purposes. 

The supporting characters, namely Maya's friends Beq and Varo and Gyre's friends Sarah and Elariel, and especially Kit give the book its heart and its humor. A couple of key characters are introduced along the way that are also both sympathetic and vital to the story. The pace is a little slow in the first half of the book as the characters pick up the threads of their plan, but it pays off in the second half of the book as events move at an ever faster pace leading to an action-packed conclusion that will have you flipping the pages as fast as you can. 

This series started off with a bang that introduced interesting characters and a fully-developed world that only made you want to explore it more. Each book adds to the history of the world, subtley changing some of your opinions. Emperor of Ruins brings the series to a rousing conclusion that pays off on its promise and delivers perhaps the best book in an outstanding series. Both the story and the characters end in a satisfying place. This is a must for epic fantasy fans. 

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher.