Friday, January 03, 2020

Book Review: 'The Ayla Trilogy: Book 2 - Storm Weaver' by Matt Griffin

Cover art by Matt Griffin
Matt Griffin's 'The Ayla Trilogy' continues with the excellent 'Storm Weaver'.

After rescuing Ayla from the clutches of the Red Root King and Queen Maeve, Finny, Benvy and Sean join Ayla in her quest through the underworld and into Fal, an Ireland from the ancient past, in search of Maeve to destroy her evil. But along the way, the friends begin to question Ayla's motivations, as the quest begins to consume her, which soon ends up fracturing the party and they split and go their separate ways. With the dangers of Fal as well as a war also looming on the horizon, things aren't looking good for the group of friends.

'Storm Weaver' is a really good sequel to 'A Cage Of Roots'. With the group of friends on a quest to defeat an ancient evil, there are obvious comparisons to 'The Lord Of The Rings' with this entry in the series. But Matt has done an excellent job of reinterpreting a classic and explores it with his own ideas and characters as well as weaving more Irish mythological influences into the tale. The new characters added more depth to a story that was already packed with great characters, and the story was fast paced and action packed, but not too much as there was still room for the story to breathe and develop, keeping me engaged throughout. The illustrations, once again by Matt, are excellent and serve the mood and atmosphere of the story well!

A typically 'middle' book, as it continues from the previous book and sets things up for the next. But it's done in a way that is compelling and makes you want to know what happens to the friends from Kilnabracka! Looking forward to reading the final chapter in the trilogy!

Available from:
O'Brien Press

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