Now that Lindon and Yerin are no longer constrained to the Sacred Valley, we learn just how backwards that isolated location was. The Elders of Lindon's clan were Jade rank sacred artists and they had amazing powers, but out in the larger universe, Jade is nothing. The next rank up, Gold, has three levels of its own, Lowgold, Highgold, and Truegold and there are plenty of ranks above Gold. In fact, outside of Sacred Valley almost everyone is at least Lowgold, so Lindon is even more of a fish out of water; however, he does learn that he is not actually unsouled. This means that Lindon actually can progress through the ranks, if only he can find someone to teach him.

No one has left Sacred Valley in a hundred generations, and it is here than Lindon is born within the Wei clan, one of three clans to call the valley home. All natural things in Sacred Valley exude vital aura, and Lindon's people are sacred artists capable of cycling that aura into madra within their bodies. There are many aspects of madra and a sacred artist will typically use only one or two of them, depending on the Path that they follow. Twice a year the elders of Sacred Valley test their children, starting as early as age six, using a bowl of pure madra, the material from which souls are made. If the madra clings to a child, that child has the soul of an enforcer and will become a warrior, if the madra retreats away from a child, that child will be a striker, if the madra rises then that child will be a ruler, and finally if it freezes, that child will be a forger. Lindon begs for the madra to freeze as he puts he his hand in the bowl, as wishes to follow the path of his mother and create wondrous items of pure madra. He places his hand in the bowl and nothing happens.....Lindon is unsouled.

The Catenan Republic is built upon the Hierarchy, a social structure where those at the top sap the Will of those below them to gain strength and live longer. In this pyramid structure which is eight levels deep, the Octavi are the lowest of the low, and of course, the most numerous. They receive Will from no one, yet cede half of their own Will to the Septimus above them, thus they are weaker and shorter lived. Each Septimus receives Will from eight Octavi and cedes half their own Will to the Sextus above them, who receives Will from seven Septimi, and so on up the Hierarchy. There are three primary pyramids in this society: Religion, Military, and Governance and they are all vying for power. This society has become so strong that they have conquered everyone around them. But like most empires, when there is no external threat to focus on, in fighting becomes the norm. Then there is Vis, born to ruling family of Suus, the last society to fall to the might of the Hierarchy. Vis has kept his identity hidden and vowed to never cede his Will to those who killed his family, but soon he will be the age where he must. Can the vengeance of one young man topple an empire?

Mira's parents wish she'd get a real job, but she's living the dream with her cat Kline in a small house that she has surrounded with poisonous plants after getting her degree in botany. Then the System arrives and everyone is whisked away to a world that has more magic than technology. A System entity known as the Oracle explains the basics and asks about the kind of life Mira wants. Does she want to be a badass adventurer, perhaps a combat mage pursuing godhood, or would she prefer a safer life as a normal civilian? All Mira wants to do is work with plants,so she could be a farmer, but that sounds boring. Irritated with the whole situation she declares that what she wants to be is a botanist. That's not a standard class so she is automatically classed with those struggling for power and not afraid of violence, and furthermore, since she doesn't like people, she wants to be dropped into a forest far away from everyone else. The Oracle does try to talk her out of it because the available area matching that description is a deadly forest full of poisonous plants and higher level animals that can only be accessed once a year. Luckily for Mira, the System sends all pets with their owners as they start their new life!

A few years ago, gigantic circular portals opened up across the Earth and for the first few months they did nothing. Then suddenly they released hordes of monsters and millions died. Since that time we've learned that the portals lead to world fragments with a core that can be destroyed before the monsters reach critical mass and invade Earth. We've also learned that these fragments are rich in valuable minerals and plants, which is a huge help in fighting the monsters, but our best weapons are actually the few humans who have developed Talents. Talents are superpowers that can grow more powerful with use or even gain additional skills. Some can summon an invulnerable shield once a day, manipulate lightning, or move with amazing speed and make up strike teams to destroy the cores. Other Talents aren't combat related, but might be even more valuable, like Adaline's ability to evaluate the importance of what she sees, which allows teams to extract rare minerals and plants. For ten years she has risked her life in the Breaches, but today is her unlucky day. Alone and wounded, she still tries to help a dying humanoid who passes on an unusual inheritance.

Up until now, each book of the Street Rats of Aramoor series has focused on different tribe of kids, and the time has come focus on Ayrion's own tribe, Avalanche. Yes, technically Ayrion started in a different tribe that has already had a book, but let's not quibble right off the bat. This is the finale of the series and Michael Wisehart uses it to bring back some key characters from prior books into one final adventure before Ayrion moves on to become the Guardian Protector of the King. Like a meal full of comfort food in front of a warm fire, this book seems to have everything a fan of the series would want in a finale, but how is the story itself?

This is a long series, and sometimes it gets bogged down in details about cultivation and/or blow by blow action scenes. However, every once in a while Zac learns a bit more about his origins and his connections to both the ancient Limitless Empire, which created the System, and the Technocrats, that would prefer to destroy it. This fifteenth book in the series spends much less time on cultivation and instead makes major advances in both the main plot as well as secondary characters and sub-plots, which has reignited my interest in this series, especially after book fourteen wasn't as exciting as I had hoped it would be.

God's attention seems to be elsewhere and as Lucifer unleashes his minions on Earth, God makes no answer. The year is 1348 and the Black Death is rampant, but that's just a small part of the problem. The war between heaven and hell has spilled over on to Earth and a young girl rich in faith tries to fight back against the horrors. Is it her faith that makes this possible, or is she just as mad as everyone else? Thomas isn't sure, but as a fallen knight who dreams of redemption, he can't help but take up her cause, no matter how annoying she happens to be. This unlikely duo travels around medieval France coming up against one horror after another, and while Thomas tries to solve every problem through killing, Delphine urges peace. They may disagree on the methods for fighting back against Hell's minions, but why is it up to them in the first place? Where is God and why is he allowing this to happen?

The mercenary wonderist Cade, a great term for various forms of magician, and his friend, frenemies, as well as a few random add-ons stepped up to prevent an extra-planar invasion of their world. Too bad they were being used and now instead of a simple invasion the Celestine Plane and Infernal Plane have access to Cade's world and angels and demons are wreaking havoc using mortal lives to keep score. Angry at being tricked, and just angry with everyone in general, the Malevolent Seven have sworn to kick out the celestines and infernals with their newly coined motto "Peace at any price, no matter how many people we have to kill". Does this sequel live up to dark irreverent humor of the original?

I'm not really a fan of vampire movies and TV series and when I do choose to watch one, I am rarely impressed. So I was very surprised when I got into The Originals (back when it was on Netflix) and found myself eagerly looking forward to the next episode. I really enjoyed the series and especially liked when they got creative in the storytelling while staying true to their version of vampire lore. It's based in New Orleans and tells the story of the Mikaelson siblings, Elijah, Klaus, and Rebecca, the first 3 vampires ever created, (hence the name "originals.") This version of New Orleans is also home to werewolves, witches, and humans, although these factions are constantly vying for power and violating the terms of any peace agreements and killing each other off. So, does this 3 book series carry on with the interesting story telling, or is it just a cash grab that drops the name of the series to lure in suckers like me?