The Uncrowned King tournament is a prestigious gathering of sacred artists unlike any other. All of the Monarchs of the most powerful families attend in person, each fielding teams of their strongest young Underlords. The tournament itself spans several months and has a multiple round structure, with each round presenting a different challenge designed to whittle down the playing field. All four of Cradle's main characters have qualified as competitors in the tournament, but not all of them are representing the same team, which means that they could wind up fighting against each other at some point. Eventually, the top eight competitors will earn the title of Uncrowned, and with it receive personalized training from a Sage before the next round. The final four each receive gifts from the other families and promise of future ascension to Sage and beyond. Because this tournament takes place in the shadow of a looming war, the stakes are higher than ever, and both sides plan to push the rules to their limits.

This book flew by as the different challenges each round kept things interesting and the tension continually built up as the contestants were eliminated. Fortunately there were plenty of opportunities for the main characters to engage with each other and even times where they could help each other during the competition. Eithan, Yerin, Mercy, and Lindon all got a chance to show off their abilities, but as the number of remaining contestants dwindled, the thought of an all out battle between them really started to loom large. I will keep this vague so as not to spoil things, but the sense of anticipation built up to an unexpected battle, and then the book abruptly ended without paying it off. Seriously? So this was a great book with excellent action and combat that ended on a totally BS cliffhanger. 

Travis Baldree did another great job on the narration and I must have finally adapted to his pacing because I no longer needed to slow him down. This series definitely has me hooked.