The Other Lands--Book Two of the Acacia Trilogy

The second volume in Durham's three-part epic fantasy series picks up nine years after where ACACIA: THE WAR WITH THE MEIN leaves off, and Queen Corinn wields a powerful (but sometimes unpopular) hold on the Acacian empire. Meanwhile, Dariel and Mena, Corinn's siblings, face new threats at home, while conspiracy and war brew across the Gray Slopes in the Other Lands. Narrator Dick Hill handles Durham's complicated, undulating prose with dramatic, enthusiastic energy. While his theatrical style may not please all listeners, it serves to distinguish the countless characters spread over the Acacian empire and beyond. Moreover, as Durham's work favors prose and monologue over dialogue, Hill's careful vocal characterizations work to highlight the internal drama as well as the external conflicts between the characters. A great match of author and narrator. A.H.A. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

July 13, 2009
The power and originality of Durham's impressive fantasy debut, 2007's Acacia: The War with the Mein
, isn't quite matched by this sequel, though it still features intelligent, well-crafted prose and complex characters. After a political assassination led to the overthrow of the Acacian Empire, the murdered king's children were split up and found very different destinies. The focus here is on the oldest, Corinn, now queen. She is a morally ambiguous figure, fiercely guarding her secrets of magic, willing to drug her subjects to stifle dissent and sacrifice her own siblings for power. Her depiction is the book's strength, as many of the other plot elements—betrayals, close brushes with death, terrifying monsters—are standard fare. Fans will still look for book three, but with diminished enthusiasm.