Dragonfly Falling

Whenever you read the second book on a trilogy, quadrology or in a series, it's either a hit or a complete miss, and believe me, I have read a lot, this one Dragonfly Falling is a bonafide HIT!!!!

From the moment I read about the insect-kinden, I was already interested, the perfect blend of insect to human traits, Mr. Tchaikovsky has a true follower with me, a bit wary at first since I truly despise the arachnids(damn heebie jeebies!!!! BRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!), again much to my surprise, I actually like the portrayal of the so called spider-kinden(still writing as fast as I can because I do not want to be reminded), this universe is starting to unfold bit by bit, and such a wonderful read!!

Definitely the star of this book is the ant-kinden and how they treat others of their kind, much like in real life, they are fearless, numerous and truly destructive(ever killed a roach and caught one ant put it on the roach, within minutes you will see a lot of ants, dismembering the carcass and bringing it with them!!) Reading through the battle, one would think if the ants were as big and intelligent as the humans, who would truly conquer who????

One of the best series so far, and I still have seven more books to go through!!!!!

Lots of things going on in this book because the War has come and the main characters are all scattered in different cities trying to defend themselves from the Wasp Empire advance. It's rich with battle scenes and military strategy discussions. And I was not bored by it. Thalric continues to be that complex lawful-evil character turned lawful-neutral. Totho makes a sacrifice that is probably changing his alignment. It's war and people die. All the characters go through the process of growing up, caught in a reality that is much harsher and more violent than they've ever imagined. They are not students anymore, it's the real deal.