Prisoner of the Iron Tower: Book Two of the Tears of Artamon

This was a great sequel to the first book and your mind is racing from the start and the MC is on your mind the entire time, even when you're not reading! I almost completely binge read this, only reason I didn't was because of eat and sleep!

I have a recommendation for people reading this series. Read the books sequentially. There's just so much detail, so many political plots and characters and mythical things to remember that if you don't read the series all at once-well, let's just say I had to go back to "Lord of Snow and Shadows" for reference quite frequently. Other than that little hitch though, I have to say this book is a heck of a follow up to the first one. Gavril Nagarian the very young ruler of the wintry nation of Azhkendir and heredity carrier of a dragon/vampire type of demon has at last cast it out but in doing so removed the best means of defense his people had. And after losing the war with the new Emperor Eugene of Tielen who has united the continent (although he did severely damage the mans appearance with some nasty burns) he has made Eugene angry enough to imprison him in a famed iron tower housing lunatics and political prisoners. A tower from which no one escapes-unless maybe you could breathe fire and fly... At the same time Eugene's magician is searching for the source of the demon, as his master aspires to have one of his own, knowing nothing of the blood lust the creature inspires. Ruthlessly using Kiukiu, a spirit singer and Gavril's love to search the lands beyond to death for help he determines the location-and is about to unleash a plague of dragon demons upon the world... And in rebellion in the new empire is about to explode. Add in a couple of demon hunters from a holy nation to the south and this is a book whose tempo never ceases to excite. As with her last novel, Sara Ash clearly merits another four stars for this intriguing and excitingly. Fans of the first novel will not be disappointed. And I look forward to the third.

The second of the three volumes in the Tears of Artamon series shows some improvement over the first volume. This series is set against a higher tech level than most fantasies, being based roughly on Eastern Europe circa 1700, and the relatively unusual setting should be one of its strengths, but the society was so vaguely described as to negate that strength. The setting is more filled in this time, although still not as realized as it should be. The characters were entirely one dimensional in the first volume. That's not quite as bad here - some characters, especially Prince Eugene, whose ambition to become emperor over all the five nations of Rossiya drives the plot, are much better realized in the sequel. Unfortunately, Gavril, the central character, isn't as strong as he should be. Some reviewers complain that Kiukiu, his love interest, is too easily manipulated by other characters. That didn't really bother me; since she is described as young and inexperienced it's consistent for the character. But Gavril's mother, who is portrayed as mature, smart, and widely traveled, is equally easily gulled. In this book, Gavril has been defeated and is imprisoned in an asylum and forced to undergo brutal 'treatments'. Kiukiu is desperate to find Gavril, and her hope of finding him leads her to foolishly trust the villain Kaspar Linnaeus. At the end, Gavril and Kiukiu are reunited, but the prices both have paid may make the reunion meaningless. Meanwhile, Eugene is searching for both a guarantee of his new empire's security and a miracle cure for his beloved daughter, which drives him to a desperate attempt that endangers not only him but the whole world. This book ends with more of a cliffhanger than a resolution. The books in this trilogy are intended to be read as a unit, and don't work at all as standalones.

Prisoner of the Iron Tower (2004) is the second Fantasy novel in the Tears of Artamon trilogy, following Lord of Snows and Shadows. In the previous volume, Gavril let the Drakhaoul destroy the Tielen army besieging Kastel Drakhaon and then rescues his mother from Swanholm. With help from Malusha, Gavril liberates himself from the Drakhaoul. Later Kaspar Linnaius, the Court Artificier, takes the terribly burned Prince Eugene away from the monastery of Saint Sergius. In this novel, Gavril has lost his daemon, but the creature then possesses Andrei Orlova, Astasia's brother. Astasia returns to Muscobar with Count Velemir's ashes and discovers that the West Wing of the Winter Palace is aflame. The Tielens use her request to rescue the Grand Duke and Duchess as justification for the invasion of Mirom. Emperor Eugene proposes to Astasia and she accepts. The Grand Duke agrees and gives Eugene the Mirom Tear of Ardamon. Now that all five Tears are possessed by Eugene, his jewelers reconstruct the imperial crown. After the fifth Tear is added, the crown glows red and a beam of red light shoots into the heavens. Following the imperial wedding, Eugene wears the crown for the first time. With the formation of the New Rossiyan empire, Eugene begins to think about the defeat in Azhkendir. Gavril Nagarian still rules at Kastel Drakhaon. Eugene sends dispatches to the Northern Army. In this story, a Tielen army once more besieges Kastel Drakhaon and Gavril surrenders himself to them rather than watch his druzhina die needlessly. He is taken to Mirom, tried and convicted for acts against the empire, and confined for life within an insane asylum. There his name is taken away from him and he is known only as Number Twenty-one. Empress Astasia gets permission for Elysia Andar to return to Smarna. Despite Tielen occupation, Smarna is rapidly becoming a thorn in the side of the empire. When Elysia finally arrives in Smarna, she finds herself in the midst of a rebellion. When students demonstrate before the Old Citadel, the Tielens fire on them and kill a student; open insurrection is now inevitable. Magus Linnaius searches the locked archives at Saint Sergius's monastery and discovers some forgotten information about the banished daemons. He also discovers more in Kastel Drakhaon and interviews Kiukiu about the casting out of Drakhaoul from Gavril. Linnaius then overwhelms her mind and gets her to lead him to Malusha. The title and Gavril's confinement remind one of The Man in the Iron Mask. The context, however, is quite different. This novel has demons! Recommended for Sarah Ash fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of political intrigue, demonic possession and exotic magic. -Arthur W. Jordin

I enjoyed this novel more than I did the first book in this series, and read it quite quickly. The story moves along at a brisk pace with a steady character development for all the main players in the story with no noticeable slow patches in the plot pacing. By ridding himself of the Drakhaon Gavril Nagarian appears to have gained personal freedom for himself. However, he has left his country fatally weakened to Prince Eugene's ambition. Gavril and those he loves will pay a price higher than he ever imagined for his freedom from his daemon and by the end of this novel the whole world will stand on the brink of disaster as old secrets and their promise of power become unravelled. I'm looking forward to book 3 of this series, which I assume is the final volume. It will be interesting to see how these storylines resolve as these characters grow on you as you are alternatively appreciative and appalled by their actions.

Because of the human blood drank by the dragon-daemon Drakhaoul that possesses him, Prince Gavril Nagarian of Azhkendir defeated the invaders led by Prince Eugene of Tielen (see LORD OF SNOW AND SHADOWS). However, to keep his soul human, Gavril rids himself of Drakhaol. The consequence of purging himself of the dragon-daemon is the loss of the power that enabled his country to vanquish the Tielen forces. Eugene, still dreaming of uniting the entire Rossiyan people under his rule, leads a counterattack, but this time without the dragon, Gavril fails to drive back the enemy. Gavril is locked away at the remote high security Iron Tower, permanent home for the criminal crazies. The obsessed Prince now possesses five of the "tears" ripped from the giant ruby eye of the sculptured dragon that guards the entrance between two worlds. Drakhaoul returns with the uniting of the tears in the eye of the dragon being the only way to send him back to his realm, but the likely person to accomplish this deed remains locked away in a tower of lunatics. The second tale of the Tears of Artamon trilogy is a fantastic epic fantasy that contains several strong subplots. The key element is that readers will believe the cast is real to include Drakhaoul and the seesawing emotions inundating Gavril as he goes from hero and free to despondent and prisoner. Eugene is also a delightful individual as the audience observes his fixation through the eyes of his disgruntled spouse and others, but believes he is destined to unite the principalities while human cost does not matter to him. Readers will cherish this excellent tale. Harriet Klausner