Burned

Not, I feel, one of the best books in the series. Verus is always up against seemingly insurmountable odds, but here, the threat is just a bit too all-encompassing. There's a general feeling of gathering gloom, albeit lightened up by some good bits along the way, and the corrupt politics of the Light Mages is perhaps, a bit overplayed in order to set up the core plot. The ending is kind of depressing, too. Having said which, it's by no means a bad story, with some good use of the setting; I just didn't like it as much as some of the earlier books.