Defiance of the Fall Book 2 by J.F Brink

Ok I am fully invested. I can’t believe I waited so long to start this series but what’s done is done and we’re all a little embarrassed about it.

Continuing on from the first book, as many sequels tend to do so. DotF follows Zac on his path to become supreme Hatchetman and protector of the people of earth, after the ‘fall’ of the system.

Growing stronger by the chapter with new skills, abilities and titles this book (and series so far) fits into the genre as perfectly as anyone could possibly expect.

 But then I have to say, we have been seeing a lot of tropes appearing, along with a lot of familiarities – which in my mind is a good thing; tropes are tropes for a reason, and that reason is because we love them. Similarities that come to mind are the treasure hunt from Primal Hunter (love it too), the zombie apocalypse, and the split core like in Cradle (wait I need to write that one up too, don’t I?). Again I must reiterate: we like tropes! Give me what I expect from the genre and I’ll give you my time!

 Moving back to the story, we get plenty of developments in the story and characters, with interaction with the wider world, the central government, Zack’s sister (spoiler alert) and the introduction of the shapeshifting assassins – something that needs a little more planning than brute force and ignorance to kill.

 Alliances with alien races is the soup of the day for this book, which is a nice way to turn given that most humans we encounter with a bit of power have a tendency to become the worst of the worst. I would have liked a little more on the kingdom building front though, but I guess we’ll have to wait until after the treasure hunt finishes – which is where the book ended.

 I’m really looking forward to where this series goes and I know if I opened my eyes I’d see the spoilers everywhere. But this series is too good for that, I’m just sitting back and enjoying the ride.

 See you after the treasure hunt, back in Port Atwood where I’m hoping to see some amazing developments!