Book opens with Darrow surviving a stab wound through the lungs. For sure.

Sevro makes the great point that Darrow keeps letting people go, it's like he wants to lose. I do also appreciate that Darrow giving up the sons of Ares to the Rim has political and strategic implications two books later.

If you wish to be prepared, you must first be broken.

Lysander sleeping w/Atalantia sucks now for some reason, even though he was all about it (blinded by the crazy) towards the end of the last book.

If nothing else, Brown has demonstrated that he can write a bitchin' soliloquy, even from Book One with Eo. Can't wait for the epic horns down moment when Darrow curb stomps Apollonius. Kind of painfully evident aftet Lysander gives the speech about being distracted about the cause for the way, and their animus needing to be directed towards the common enemy of Darrow, that we get a chapter from Virginia where the still-present aristocracy of the Rebellion is very obvious. Kind of begging the question about what the hell is Darrow even fighting for, and what sort of reform is Lysander fighting for/why against Darrow; their worldviews are far more similar than either of them probably would care to admit.

Lysander prefiring a planetary railgun slug a week in advance is so cool:

They shot us with our own detritus

Sevro going nonverbal after learning about Ulysses is one of the first actually "chilling" images for the character who's reputation is one of insane violence. Atlas grafting Helios' arm onto his own for a disguise is metal.

"Lysander – Bringer of Darkness" is an awesome chapter title given the book's title.

In the cold prison of our mind, we are alone with our doubts, self-hatred... (Cite end of chapter 48)

Making Volga kill her own father, after she was just forced to ceremonially kill 13 people in cold blood by her father is crazy work from Darrow.

related