3.5 stars. Following a shocker at the end of the first book in the continuing adventures of now Spook Tom Ward, he is forced to lead the human army against the Kobalos by his ally Grimalkin and the head Prince of the realm. He finds himself outmatched by one of their most powerful mages, and is about the succumb when he is aided by a most unexpected person, who readers will be very glad to see. I think some of the things that made the Apprentice series may return, but the foes in this series are more violent and dark. I also think that Tom's apprentice Jenny Calder is not as likable nor as diligent as Tom himself was. Tom also seems to use less of his gifts than in the past, relying more on brute force than guile and his special gifts. Finally, I think there was more vomiting in this book than in all the others combined. Yecch.
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Literary merit: good
Characterization: good
Recommended: Yes
Reading level: young young adult

This is the second book in the series. I did not read the first one. This book did a good job at filling in on the back ground missed by not reading the first. The character development was good and story line was alright. I would only slightly recommend this series and book. ( )

This was a good continuation of the Starblade Chronicles. This is the second book in the Starblade Chronicles; which will be a trilogy. I enjoyed watching as all our old favorites continue to fight a new and threatening fiend from the Dark. This book is aimed at an older audience than The Last Apprentice series, more young adult than middle grade.

It always takes me a bit to get back into Delaney’s writing style. His style can come off as a bit stiff or stilted sometimes, but once I get a few chapters in I get used to this style again and enjoyed it .

This is a rough book for Thomas and he ends up allying with a variety of unlikely allies to protect the County from the evil that is approaching. Alice is in the story a lot more which I enjoyed; she has become a force to be reckoned with but there is also some lingering sadness here because of how deeply Alice has become involved with the Dark.

About half of the book is told from Tom’s apprentice’s POV; Jenny. It is interesting to see Tom from Jenny’s point of view and see what she thinks of his actions. At times between trying to deal with his apprentice Jenny, trying to not be overwhelmed by Grimalkin’s various plots, and dealing with Alice’s descent into the Dark Tom seems tired and a bit hopeless. This made my heart ache a bit given what Tom has had to deal with. However Tom is not alone in his sacrifices...both Alice and Grimalkin have walked tough roads as well.

Overall this was a good continuation of the series. I would strongly recommend reading The Last Apprentice series before reading the Starblade Chronicles. There are a lot of nuances between characters that will be missed or not understood if you did not read the Last Apprentice series. I am curious to see how things culminate in the final book of the Starblade Chronicles. ( )