Son of the Shadows (Sevenwaters #2) by Juliet Marillier

Daughter of the Forest 

Son of the Shadows is the second book in the Sevenwaters series by Juliet Marillier.  Daughter of the Forest was a good first book - it really set up this world and introduced some of the conflicts that are coming up in this book. But there were some unanswered questions in the first book and this book swoops in and sort of answers some of them.  I mean, there are six books and a novella in this series, so presumably more of this will get fleshed out as we move on.

Okay, so our main couple from the first book have had three children: Niamh, a beautiful, pampered princess; Sean, the only boy and presumed heir to Sevenwaters; and Liadan, our intrepid protagonist, who, like her mother, has Sight and some healing abilities. Liadan is kidnapped as she travels with her newly married sister to her sister's new home (at this point, my eyes rolled back into my head because this is an exact same plot point in the first book) and of course, falls in love with a brigand. He falls in love with her because of course he does. Plain women who have healing skills are obviously irresistible to all men. She returns home, pregnant and unaware of all the implications her love will have.

Liadan is a tad bit "not like other girls," which is something that can grate. Niamh has a sexual relationship outside of marriage and her brother HITS her and she's forced into a marriage she doesn't want. Liadan has a child out of wedlock and no one gives her the least bit of crap for it. I don't know, my friends. The family dynamics in this one are wild. 

But boy was it ever a page turner. I felt like some parts of the first book were homework, like I was wading through text that was obvious worldbuilding without really adding much to the characters or plot, but this book was just excitement after excitement. The villain was interestingly complex, the magic was just slight enough to entertain, and love interest was exactly what I imagine a fantasy hero to be like. I liked this one more than the first one and can't wait to read the next one.

4.5/5 stars