Warlords of Wyrdwood by RJ Barker

Book Review

Elloise Hopkins

Cahan du Nahere was Cowl-Rai, chosen as a god’s saviour, though he shunned that future and chose to live as a hermit on the edges of the Wyrdwood. Now Cahan finds himself as the last chance for the people of Harn. With their village destroyed, and the Rai, powerful leaders of Crua, no doubt planning a return to kill the remaining villagers, Cahan, who they named the forester, is the only one who can take them into the Wyrdwood to make a new home, far away from the Rai. Cahan knows the forest well, but there are secrets even he cannot answer, and the journey will not be an easy one.

The trion, Venn, saved Cahan and now travels with him, though both are missing the monk, Udinny, who accompanied them before. Having spent many years ignoring his Cowl, suppressing its magic, then being forced to use it to save the people of Harn, Cahan struggles to resist its desire for power. In the aftermath of winning that battle, Cahan is about to discover something else that will change him.

Rai Sorha has vowed vengeance on Cahan, after he destroyed her Cowl. She survived, and she will find him, even if it means stalking him through the darkest depths of the Wyrdwood. She may have no power of her own to call on anymore, but she is determined to stop him from using his. Elsewhere, Saradis, Skua-Rai of the god Tarl-an-Gig, like Sorha, has no cowl of her own, but she too has power she can wield over others. And she too, maintains an interest in Cahan du Nahere.

Warlords of Wyrdwood, second in The Forsaken Trilogy, tracks Cahan and his companions, and Sorha as she follows, as they navigate the terrifying dangers of the forest in search of a new home. Barker’s world-building weaves in rich descriptions of the strange creatures, and their interactions with our protagonists, and also expertly crafts the many characters, and the bonds and clashes between them, to keep the story humming with tension and conflict.

The other narrative threads work towards the confrontation between Cahan and his former High Priestess, Saradis, so we see her plotting amidst Rai society in Crua. We also have a point of view from Udinny the monk, who we know from the first book, and we meet Dassit, a Trunk Commander working for the Rai, who becomes tied up in the greater story. Most interesting perhaps is Ont, the butcher from Harn, who comes into his own as his life transitions into the Wyrdwood.

With so many different characters narrating so many parts of the story, there is a lot to keep track of, and we can be hugely grateful for the backstory at the beginning. As we reach the end of this book, the reader is given much more of an insight into Crua, the forest, the gods, and how they are all connected. It has been said before, but this truly is a unique world that offers a surprise with every new chapter, and promises an epic conclusion.