Breath and Bone

Really enjoyed this conclusion to the "Lighthouse" duology, which really are two halves of one book that should just be read together. This one would not make a lot of sense without having read the first; and the cliffhanger at the end of the first made me need to read this one immediately.

Valen continues to be a complex, interesting character - a dyslexic, drug-addicted high-born magic-user in denial of both his birth right and his magic, living life as a low-class rogue of sorts. In the first book he stumbles into a monastery and into a lot of politics as the land of Navaronne is fought over by the three sons of the recently deceased king. In this book, Valen has picked the son he'll back - Osriel, The Bastard - and we watch through his eyes both the politics and his own personal struggles as he learns the truth about his parentage and magic, and has to make some difficult decisions about whether to support Osriel's plan to conquer his brothers and win the crown. There are some great new characters in this book, notably the prickly doctor Saverian, and most of the characters from book one return to have their stories resolved. Overall a satisfying ending to a good story.