The Cage of Dark Hours
The Five Penalties #2
By Marina J. Lostetter
ISBN 9781250757470
Author’s website: lostetter.net
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Omar
Summary
The Cage of Dark Hours is the second novel in the epic fantasy trilogy from acclaimed author Marina Lostetter, where the defeat of a serial killer back from the dead has pulled the mask off the myths and magics of a fantastical city.
Krona and her Regulators survived their encounter with Charbon, the long-dead serial killer who returned to their city, but the illusions of their world were shattered forever.
Allied with an old friend they will battle the elite who have ruled their world with deception, cold steel, and tight control of the magic that could threaten their power, while also confronting beasts from beyond the foggy barrier that binds their world.
Now they must follow every thread to uncover the truth behind the Thalo, once thought of as only a children’s tale, who are the quiet, creeping puppet masters of their world.
Review
Three years or so have passed since the events of The Helm of Midnight, where Krona and her team capture the new serial killer who was using the Charbon mask, resulting in the death of her sister. At the same time, Krona learns about the Thalo puppets that seem to be controlling the wannabe Charbon killer and about individuals who have some magic that shouldn’t exist, but she has seen it.
As the story begins, Krona is not doing well. She is now the captain of her team and is still doing her job, but outside of working hours she is a mess, she has been trying to find a way to get her sister back, knowing very well that she will die if somebody reports her.
Stranger things across the city are also hunting Krona. People have started to show up dead with strange mark on their foreheads, markings similar to the one that the healer Melanie had before she ran away, but there are also people who are showing up with madness and the same markings.
As Krona works on finding the reason for these deaths, the Thalo puppet reveals herself to Krona and warns her of the upcoming assassination that will result in blaming her.
Like the first book, the story shifts between different points of view of the characters: Krona, old characters that we meet again, and even the Thalo Child. The Thalo child is the reader’s window to the world of the Thalo puppets, who they are, and their beliefs. In the case of the Thalo child, their story spans a different timeline until it meets up with Krona’s present.
In The Cage of Dark Hours, we learn more about the world of the Five Penalties series, the valley that the five gods sacrificed themselves to create for humans to live and thrive. Now, we learn a bit more about the government and its internal workings to maintain the peace between them, but also the lies that hide underneath it all that are brewing a war that might set them back into the dark ages.
The Cage of Dark Hours explains the magic that exists in this world, how each god has their own, the corresponding metals, and Vargs that hunt humans. In addition, the mystery of the Vargs is revealed and a new lighting comes to exist. Magic is born and later transferred into the world.
A third book is in the works, and I can’t wait to see where this world will continue, who is the Savoir, will the war commence, and what other magic will emerge.
If you are a fan of Marina J. Lostetter’s work, then I recommend you, The Cage of Dark Hours.
