Review of Lord of the White Hell: Book Two

	Lord of the White Hell: Book One by Ginn Hale 346pp (Trade Paperback) My Rating: 9/10 Amazon Rating: 5/5 LibraryThing Rating: N/A Goodreads Rating: 4.7/5

Lord of the White Hell: Book Two completes the Lord of the White Hell duology by Ginn Hale. Book One came out in the middle of August and Book Two was just released today. Since the second book picks up right after the first one and this is one book split into two parts, I would strongly recommend starting with Lord of the White Hell: Book One instead of the second volume.

As this is a continuation of the first book, I am going to skip the plot summary and refer to my review of Lord of the White Hell: Book One for those who are not familiar with these two novels. If you have read the first book, you know what the books are about and there is really no need to discuss what happens in the beginning since it's really the middle and I'd like to write about the book without spoiling it. In this review, I'll cover some of the differences between this and the first book and what I thought of both books as a single entity.

First of all, I loved the second half of this book just as much as the first one. It did take me a little bit longer to get to the same level of complete absorption as in the first, but before long I was just as swept up by the story. Although it did suck me in pretty quickly, I thought I might not enjoy it as much as the first part for a little while. This was mainly because there was a lot more sex, and I do have a tendency to get bored with a lot of sex scenes. They did not drag on for too long before moving on, though, and they also were often integral to character development so I didn't mind them as much as I thought I would. However, I still much preferred reading about the various characters, the cultures and mythology, and the curse.

Both books are very heavy on character development and relationships between the characters, and so many of the characters came across as real and likable. Kiram, the scholarly boy with the genius for mechanics, and Javier, the lord controlling the white hell, are of course the best drawn as the main protagonists the books focus on. Yet reading about any of them was immensely enjoyable, and all the friends from the academy had such a wonderful camaraderie shown through humorous, smoothly written dialogue. Even childlike Fedeles, whose conversation mainly consists of singing the names of his favorite horses, shines as sweet and good-natured - and was a character I really cared about in spite of the fact that he is not even normally coherent.

In book two, there is a break from school and Kiram goes home to the Haldiim district in Anacleto. At first I was concerned that this meant there wouldn't be as much time spent with the characters I'd come to love so much, but it didn't end up being a problem since some of them lived nearby and others visited. Also, this allowed a firsthand look at the Haldiim and how their way of life contrasted with that of the Cadeleonians. It was particularly refreshing that even though they were more open-minded and less strict than the Cadeleonians, they were not portrayed as perfect in every way. Even though they allowed people to marry a person of either gender and seemed in general more lenient, the matriarchy still had some of the same pitfalls as a patriarchy. Marriages were still often made based on forging an advantageous connection with another family, and mothers still refused to give their sons certain freedoms. Regardless of culture, everyone seemed human with their own strengths and flaws - even compassionate Kiram was not immune to some prejudice when it came to the Cadeleonian religion.

The conclusion was very exciting, and every plot thread was wrapped up. Even though it had a satisfying resolution, it does feel like there is room for sequels since more adventure is probably in store for Kiram.

Although it had many similarities to Wicked Gentlemen, such as the examination of two conflicting cultures, a character driven story and a romance between two men from opposing societies, Lord of the White Hell was not as prettily written. Even so, it is a stronger story, although perhaps I think that because I usually prefer longer stories with more time to get to know the characters.

Lord of the White Hell is highly recommended to readers who enjoy character-driven fantasy with some romance and focus on social structures. It had me captivated from start to finish and is easily one of my favorite books I've read so far this year.

My Rating: 9/10

Where I got my reading copy: ARC from the publisher.

Reviews of other books in this series:

• Lord of the White Hell: Book One

Read Excerpts:

• Lord of the White Hell: Book One
• Lord of the White Hell: Book Two

Read an Interview with Ginn Hale

Review of Lord of the White Hell: Book One

	Lord of the White Hell: Book One by Ginn Hale 362pp (Trade Paperback) My Rating: 9/10 Amazon Rating: N/A LibraryThing Rating: 5/5 Goodreads Rating: 4.73/5

Lord of the White Hell: Book One by Ginn Hale was just released on August 15. Fortunately, there is not a long wait for the conclusion to this fantasy duology - Lord of the White Hell: Book Two is scheduled for publication only a month later on September 15. The first book does end on a bit of a cliffhanger so this is very good indeed, especially since book one is absorbing enough that I added the finished copy to my wish list.

Kiram, a gifted seventeen year old, is the first full-blooded Haldiim accepted into the prestigious Cadeleonian Sagrada Academy due to his work with machinery. It is an honor to be chosen as a hopeful for winning the Crown Challenge, but it is also difficult as Kiram must contend with prejudice and superstition from the beginning of his time at the school. None of the other boys dare sleep in the same room with a heathen Haldiim, which leaves him sharing space with Javier Tornesal, a duke who commands the white hell and is therefore also not a desirable roommate. One of Javier's ancestors traded his soul and opened the white hell to destroy some invaders, and those of the Tornesal family still keep the pact. While Javier is generally well-liked and respected, no student wants to have his soul exposed to the white hell while sound asleep.

Fortunately for Kiram, he does not believe in the hells or Javier's lack of a soul and instead avoids Javier because he thinks he is taunting him with his flirtatious behavior. Homosexuality is forbidden by the strict Cadeleonian religion, and although Kiram finds Javier attractive, he does not want to be deemed responsible for corrupting a Cadeleonian. Soon the two do strike up a friendship due to their mutual fondness for Javier's simple-minded cousin Fedeles, who used to be a normal young man until the familial curse of the white hell is said to have changed him. As Kiram and Javier become involved in a more complicated relationship, Kiram learns more about Javier's situation and realizes just how much danger they may all be in - and wonders if there is some way he can save both Javier and Fedeles from their cursed fate.

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Lord of the White Hell: Book One had the same strengths that made me enjoy Ginn Hale's earlier work, Wicked Gentlemen - compelling characters facing a clash caused by belonging to two very different social groups. In Wicked Gentlemen, there was a dissonance between Belimai's demon ancestry and life in Hells Below and Harper's role as a part of the Inquisition. Lord of the White Hell features a pair of young men who come from completely different cultures. As a Haldiim, Kiram was brought up in a matriarchal society that is open-minded about sexuality and does not follow strict religious rules. Javier and the rest of the Cadeleons tend to be very devout (or at least concerned with appearing to be devout) about practicing their religion. They must atone for their shortcomings through penance, only show interest in the opposite sex and uphold certain standards. As the two are attracted to each other, their different attitudes about socially acceptable behavior provide a source of conflict.

Although there is focus on the relationship, it is certainly not the only source of contention in this novel. Kiram faces many challenges common to young people, especially those leaving home for the first time to go to college - being accepted, making friends, becoming independent, and struggling with subjects one may not be as good at. While Kiram excels at mathematics and science, he does have difficulty with sword-fighting and horseback riding, mainly due to a lack of exposure (and I did appreciate that whenever he did improve, he did so at a realistic pace and was not suddenly the master of everything in the known universe and beyond). Other challenges are not as common - there's also the mystery surrounding the white hell and Kiram's desire to save his friend Fedeles from his curse.

Kiram was very easy to feel sympathy for. He's a young man leaving his home to go to a distant school in a foreign land and a lot of hopes on his shoulders since he's supposed to have the potential to win the Crown Challenge for the academy. From the moment he thought one of his new teachers didn't like him too much, probably because his first impression of this supposed great thinker was his falling out of a carriage into the mud, I felt for Kiram. The other characters were also wonderful - Javier with his mix of charm and arrogance he used to cover up any vulnerability, the artist Nestor with his kind-hearted good nature and Fedeles with his childlike sweetness. It is an all-male school and there are almost no female characters and none of the few there are appear for very long.

As this is the first half of the story, there is a cliffhanger ending that left me desperately wanting the next part of the book. It was one that wormed its way into my heart and made me really care about these characters and what happened to them, making it rather difficult to have it end without knowing how everything wrapped up.

Lord of the White Hell: Book One made me eager to read the second book. Spending time with the characters in their world was an enjoyable experience, and I look forward both to discovering more about the white hell and finding out what happens to Kiram, Javier and Fedeles.

My Rating: 9/10

Where I got my reading copy: It was an ARC from the publisher.

Other Reviews:

• Babbling About Books, And More!

Tomorrow there will be an interview with Ginn Hale discussing topics including her upcoming projects, some of her favorite books from childhood, the thought process behind the cultures she creates and the role of empathy in writing.

The Leaning Pile of Books

This was a very good week for new books as I'm very interested in all the books that showed up and one is a definite must read since I already read the first book and loved it.

The Black Prism by Brent Weeks

The Black Prism is the first book in the Lightbringer series and will be released in hardcover on August 25. The first three chapters can be read online and there is also going to be a book tour that covers some of the western US as well as Texas and Florida.

I liked the first book in the Night Angel trilogy by Weeks (although not quite enough to read the next two immediately as I haven't even gotten them to add to the giant to-read pile yet). This one sounds very compelling - the description has me pretty intrigued since just the first paragraph makes me ask so many questions that I would like to know the answers to:

Gavin Guile is the Prism, the most powerful man in the world. He is high priest and emperor, a man whose power, wit, and charm are all that preserves a tenuous peace. But Prisms never last, and Guile knows exactly how long he has left to live: Five years to achieve five impossible goals.

But when Guile discovers he has a son, born in a far kingdom after the war that put him in power, he must decide how much he's willing to pay to protect a secret that could tear his world apart.

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Lord of the White Hell: Book Two by Ginn Hale

Lord of the White Hell: Book One will be released later this month on August 15, and this second half of the story will be published one month later on September 15. I read book one a couple of weeks ago and loved it (enough that I want to buy the final version since I have the ARC) so I really cannot wait to read the rest of it. The review for part one is in progress now so I can put it up right around the release date.

Kiram fought his family and Cadeleonian bigots to remain in the Sagrada Academy to prove himself as a mechanist and to dispel the deadly shadow curse that threatens to destroy his upperclassman, Javier Tornesal. But when his efforts provoke retaliation, Kiram's family and home are endangered. Both Kiram and Javier risk everything in a desperate gambit to combat the curse. But they never imagined their battle with come so soon, or that it would be lead by the one person they trust most of all.

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Travel Light by Naomi Mitchison

This is a rarity for a review copy - it is is not a book that just came out or is coming out soon. It was originally published in 1952 and this particular edition is 5 years old. It sounds like a delightful fairy tale and sometime when I'm closer to caught up on reviews I'll have to read it (it shouldn't take that long to read - it's fairly short). Oh yes, and the endorsement on the book by Ursula K. Le Guin doesn't hurt, either.

A young woman is transformed by a magical journey from the dark ages to modern times, from brooding medieval forests to bustling Constantinople. Halla is turned out of her father’s castle by her new stepmother. Her nurse transforms herself into a bear to look after Halla. This is just the first of the wondrous and natural changes in Naomi Mitchison’s magical 1952 novel. Travel Light will appeal to fans of the Harry Potter series and Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials series, as well as to readers of Ursula K. Leguin and T.H. White.

The Leaning Pile of Books

This week I got some books ordered off my wish list that didn't arrive on time for my birthday and two review copies (one ARC). One of the review copies is actually a duplicate copy of a book I received the end of last week so I won't be including it again. However, this does mean that around the time I read The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker, I will be giving away my second copy.

I haven't made much progress on reviewing lately and suspect that may be the case for a little while. It's been busy lately, and next weekend I'm going to be moving instead of writing. Since I have already read one of these books, though, I did talk about what I thought of it a little.

Lord of the White Hell by Ginn Hale

I loved Ginn Hale's Wicked Gentlemen so I was very excited about this book. It's the first of two books that will be released only one month apart. Book 1 will be out on August 15 and the second book will be out on September 15, but there is a 15% discount for pre-ordering the first book and a 25% discount for pre-ordering both books by June 15. There is an excerpt available online.

Kiram Kir-Zaki may be considered a mechanist prodigy among his own people, but when he becomes the first Haldiim ever admitted to the prestigious Sagrada Academy, he is thrown into a world where power, superstition and swordplay outweigh even the most scholarly of achievements.

But when the intimidation from his Cadeleonian classmates turns bloody, Kiram unexpectedly finds himself befriended by Javier Tornesal, the leader of a group of cardsharps, duelists and lotharios who call themselves Hellions.

However Javier is a dangerous friend to have. Wielder of the White Hell and sole heir of a Dukedom, he is surrounded by rumors of forbidden seductions, murder and damnation. His enemies are many and any one of his secrets could not only end his life but Kiram's as well.

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The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner

I've heard so much about this series from Angie of Angieville and Ana from The Book Smugglers that I just had to read them. And I've already finished this one since I was unable to stop reading it today until I got to the end. The Thief was good, but this one was something special and now holds the spot of favorite book I've read so far this year. The first thing I did when I finished was look up if it was supposed to be in stock at my local bookstore, and it looks like it is so I just may have to pick it up this week because I really want more. Now.

It was one of those that I really wanted to finish but I also found myself going back and rereading a lot of parts I'd just read because they were just so good. I loved the characters and the dialogue and the way every little thing seemed to have significance. This is one I can definitely see myself rereading. (Leaving out the blurb since there would be huge spoilers for The Thief in any plot description.)

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Hand of Isis by Jo Graham

I really enjoyed Black Ships so of course I wanted to read Jo Graham's second novel. This one is set in Egypt and is about Cleopatra's handmaiden.

Following her acclaimed debut, Jo Graham returns to the ancient world with a novel that will captivate lovers of fantasy, history and romance. Set in Ancient Egypt, Hand of Isis is the story of Charmian, a handmaiden, and her two sisters. It is a novel of lovers who transcend death, of gods who meddle in mortal affairs, and of women who guide empires.

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A Brother's Price by Wen Spencer

This is a new-to-me author I've been wanting to read. After looking through her books to pick one to start with, I thought this one sounded the most interesting, probably because I'm a sucker for a plot involving gender reversal.

In a world where males are rarely born, they've become a commodity-traded and sold like property. Jerin Whistler has come of age for marriage and his handsome features have come to the attention of the royal princesses. But such attentions can be dangerous-especially as Jerin uncovers the dark mysteries the royal family is hiding.

New Books by Ginn Hale

A little while ago I found out some very exciting news for fans of Ginn Hale - she has not one but two new books coming out later this year! Ever since I read Wicked Gentlemen, I've been wishing she had more books I could devour so this news has made my night. Now I just can't wait for the sequel to Wicked Gentlemen...

These books are part of a new two-part series with the second half released only one month after the first one. Lord of the White Hell, Book One will be released on August 15 and the second book will be released on September 15. An excerpt from the first book is available online.