billies_not_so_secret_diary 's review for:

Born of an Iron Storm by Anthony Ryan

2.0

adventurous dark slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Born of an Iron Storm 

by Anthony Ryan 

Age of Wrath #2 

Fantasy 

NetGalley eARC 

Pub Date: Aug 26, 2025 

Orbit Books 

Ages: 17+ 

Elvine is held prisoner, but not in a cell; instead, her mother's life is threatened, and now Elvine is at the beck and call of the only living Sister Queen. 

Thera and others are gathering forces to fight the Nihlvarian before they take all the lands and kill or enslave the people. 

This book/series has so many characters that it is hard to keep track of who is who and what they are doing. Sure, they each have their own chapters, and after a few pages, I knew who it was about and what they were doing, but there was also the fact that many months go by, and that also got confusing because when the next chapter started, they had to catch up with the previous chapter. I still don't know if it has only been months or years that have passed since the end of the first book. 

Worse is the lack of depth in the characters, which is something hard to develop when there are so many. Also, most of the story is told, not shown. But it's hard to show when the story has to be hurried along, and telling makes time go by faster. 

Yes, the plot and the characters are interesting, and some of them I do like and wonder what will happen in the next book, but at the same time, this one dragged on and on as the characters traipsed around the world, talked to this person and that one, made swords, a battle here and there, etc, to the point that I had to force myself to read it. I couldn't skim because of the number of characters and the extended time frame that all this happens in, so it was a tedious read that got boring. 

As to the next book, I do want to find out what happens (this one was a cliffhanger), but it's not high on my want-to-read list, plus I can already guess, so I hope that's good enough. 

This is violent, so it's not suitable for readers under 17. 

2 Stars