Book Review | Bargain with Fate @MarianAllen

Bargain with Fate — I needed to read this and another in December to get to the top of my TBR mountain. I’m not reviewing the other one, as it was a big non-fiction one with several things to say about it. I’ve decided to make it a series instead. You’ll see what I mean when I start it. So I think I’ve reviewed all the books from 2021 now.

This book is the second in a series, and it’s part of my 2022 Finishing the Series Reading Challenge. There seem to be a LOT of books in there to read!

Bargain With Fate (Sage Trilogy #2)

by Marian Allen

Usurper. Lost Heir. Runaway bride. Land on the brink of civil war. All so familiar, until Tortoise — the Divine Creature who ignores the rules of right and wrong — challenges his fellow divinities to meddle.

Suddenly, children targeted for murder are adopted, swordsmen turn into blacksmiths, and none are reliably who or what they seem. The four Divine Animals are afoot: Tortoise, Dragon, Unicorn, and Phoenix. Hold on tight.

Book 2: Bargain With Fate
In the second book of the SAGE trilogy, memories, people, and items of power are recovered. The mighty are helpless, the weak are strong, and a little girl clutches creatures of terror to her ragged heart. (goodreads)

My Review

When I finished The Fall of Onagros, I went straight online and bought the rest of the Sage Trilogy, I was that impressed. But I only put them on my TBR until this time last year. This explains why it took me so long to pick up the threads of who was who and what had gone on in the first book. I was under the impression I’d read the first a year ago, and in fact it was more like 20 months. So having sorted my brain out…

Bargain with Fate gives no background to the story so far. At the back there is a list of characters and how they fit together, more or less in order of appearance, which helps. Of course I found that after I’d read it! I vaguely remembered what was going on, and quickly picked up the interesting system the author invented for names again. But I was still having trouble distinguishing one character from another.

The story is as rich in detail and plot as before, with a little less politics, as the problem raised in the first book is examined and progressed, although not solved. From that point of view this is not a complete story, although it ends part of a quest. A bit like the end of the Fellowship of the Ring, in fact.

The author once again creates a beautifully rich and detailed world with magic, myth and mystery all tangled together, ready to unravel if one of the protagonists can find the right thread to pull.

A very satisfying read, and one that leaves me anxious to get on with the final book in the series. I’ve checked: no later ones added. I’m glad I bought both sequels at once–I should do that more often.

Book Review | Bargain with Fate @MarianAllen 'beautifully rich and detailed world with magic, myth and mystery all tangled together' #SAGEtrilogy #fantasy Click To Tweet