The Sorrow of the Sea by Stephen Aryan

Book Review

Sarah Deeming

Temujin has usurped his father as Khan of the Ilkhanate, but his work is not done. He is still at war with his father’s brother, Berke, and leader of the Golden Horde. Timur’s army grows ever bigger and more dangerous as he continues his march to destroy the other Khans and become the ultimate ruler. And the other Kozans are watching him from the shadows, content to leave him alone for now but ready to kill him if he interferes with their plans. One wrong move could ruin all of Temujin’s plans for peace.

However, he is not alone. General Kaivon stands with a group of kings and soldiers, ready to fight Timur for their freedom. And without knowing it, the Twelve are grudgingly helping him, women with a vast spy network. Everyone is watching Temujin, ally and foe, waiting for him to make a wrong move. Can he keep one step ahead and finally bring peace to the region?

Seas of Sorrow is the high-energy climax to Aryan’s immensely powerful The Falcon and The Nightingale series, which follows the Mongolian Empire after the death of Genghis Khan and the power struggle between his descendants. The book starts with a very handy recap of previous events, but if you haven’t read The Judas Blossom and The Blood Dimmed Tide, I highly recommend starting there first. Seas of Sorrow is not a book read without knowing the previous works. The action begins with Temujin meeting David, King of Georgia, to create an uneasy alliance in exchange for Georgia’s independence.

Temujin has always been my favourite character, as his development is nuanced, and each step forward has been hard won. He is certainly not the plump scholar we met at the start of the series. His development continues throughout the book as he is now in power and must learn how far he is willing to go for his ideals, what he is willing to sacrifice, and what is a hard no for him. He came full circle in Seas of Sorrow, which was very satisfying, and he has still retained some of the sensitivity that made him a standout character for me. I also felt that Kokochin and Kaivon had the development they deserved. Kaivon leads the army against Timur, and Kokochin uses her skills to protect people like her. Without going into too much detail, both have the chance to fix their past mistakes and find redemption in their future.

This isn’t the same for every character. The Kozan are a group of six semi-immortals with magic and a desire to manipulate the course of humanity for their own ends. They are formidable opponents, and throughout The Blood Dimmed Tide, they are shown to be calculating, powerful, and beyond human understanding. Again, without giving away any spoilers, I didn’t feel the reputation built up over the series deserved the ending each of the six got. It lessened their threat and made me question if they were really as dangerous as we had been led to believe. However, in any story with a cast as large as this one, giving every character a detailed, satisfying ending isn’t easy. In some cases, the characters just vanished, with the others wondering if they would ever see them again, which, while certainly realistic, did give the impression of the ending being a little too rushed for the magnitude of the preceding events.

However, none of that stops The Falcon and The Nightingale from being one of my favourite series from the past few years and Seas of Sorrow a must-read 2025, even with my minor niggles. It is action-packed, full of twists and turns, character deaths, and impossible survival against all odds. The fight scene when Kaivon and Timur finally meet is visceral, a full-blooded battle, expertly told in snippets of different characters’ points of view as they fight for their lives. I was out of breath just reading it and was emotionally exhausted by the end.

If you’ve already read the first two books, then Seas of Sorrow deserves a place on your bookshelf, and if you haven’t, then I highly recommend visiting your local bookshop today and buying the series in its entirety. You won’t be disappointed.