(Book gifted by author in exchange for honest review)

What I Liked. I had a strong feeling at the conclusion of Exile that I was going to love Sanctuary and I was right. In some ways this book was better than the first two books combined. It wasn't perfect mind you. But you can ask anybody in this household and they will tell you I literally disappeared from this world every time I opened its pages.

Juggling this much information is hard sometimes but for the most part I had very little trouble keeping up. There are some really clever players in this drama and they kept me on my toes. I wavered between "omg, what else can go wrong" to "omg, what a great solution!"

The issues explored are deep and varied. The pace marched to a rhythm of 2 steps forward, followed by one or more steps back. Progress is made but the means are often tragic or at the very least, painful. And as with almost any civilization, change is fought against every step of the way.

The whole process was a joy to read.

What I didn't like. I wasn't entirely happy with the ending. It had too much of a "to be continued" feel to it. To make matters worse, I am not sure -- this being a prequel -- if there is going to be a continuation of this story or it was designed to tie into the first series, Fall of Fair Isle. I doubt that it is though. I haven't read the first series but it is my understanding that it takes place well into the future. The cliffhanger I am referring to suggests something more imminent.

Now before you misunderstand me on this, the book did conclude most of the major conflicts; effectively ending this chapter of the character's lives. It was only the very end that felt like a segway into a whole new series. Granted one I very much want to read but it is bad enough when book one and two within a trilogy end in a cliffhanger. For a concluding volume to do so makes me alittle angry. If I loved the series I don't need a hook to read the next one. I'm going to do it because I love the author's style. The whole reason why I read entire series at one time is so I don't have to put up with cliffhangers! Grrrrr.

Conclusion. As long as I shove my annoyance over the ending aside, I have to say this was the strongest of the three books. I can't help but admire a writer who so perfectly juggles the lives of so many people all while dealing with a myriad of social, racial, cultural and gender related issues. This is true Epic Fantasy all the way from beginning to end. Highly recommended.

Original post on Dragons, Heroes and Wizards ( )

Sanctuary is the third and final volume in Rowena Cory Daniells's Outcast Chronicles. I have previously reviewed the first two volumes, Besieged and Exile. I suggest reading those for a bit of background on the setting of the world if you are unfamiliar with it. A copy of this book was provided by the author for review purposes.



I jumped into Sanctuary immediately after finishing Exile. Unlike Exile, I'm not sure that Sanctuary works as a potential starting point into the series. The story picks up immediately where Exile left off and, although there are some reminders of earlier events, it builds a lot more on the events of the previous book. Needless to say, this review will contain spoilers for the first two books in the series.



After co-ordinating the evacuation of the T'En from Chalcedonia, Imoshen finds herself having to deal with all the brotherhoods and sisterhoods crammed into too few ships. Unsurprisingly, tensions are high as the T'En find themselves living in close quarters and resenting their exile. I really loved the way Imoshen thought ahead and foresaw many of their problems. Some of my favourite parts were when she kept outsmarting one of the more annoying brotherhood all-fathers and making him look stupid (which he was). Through all the hardship they have to face, it's her leadership and compassion which holds the T'En together.



Sorn, the halfbreed who was raised to serve King Charald and now serves Imoshen and the T'En, continued to grow on me as a character. He's clever and has somehow ended up without human or T'En prejudices. In the end he always fights for the greater good (admittedly, less so at the start in Besieged). His quick thinking and, in particular the way this plays off other people, was entertaining. He was definitely my favourite character in this book.

I was a bit worried that the ending would be a little up in the air as the King Rolen's Kin trilogy was. Luckily, this was not the case. There's definitely room for sequels — and I hope Daniells decides to write more books with these characters — but all the pertinent plot lines are nicely tied up.


Overall, I really enjoyed Sanctuary and the Outcast Chronicles as a whole. I highly recommend them to fantasy fans, particularly those that might want something a little different to the medieval gender politics commonly found in fantasy.



4.5 / 5 stars


You can read more of my reviews on my blog. ( )