I can't tell if it's a virtue that this was such a slow burn. By the end of this book, the entire premise is barely reconcilable with where we started. But I've been bored in so many places along the way that I think a book could have come out somewhere here.

For what it's worth, not super clear where things are at now, but the second half of this book went completely bonkers and I need to continue and see where we go from here.

I think that this series really strains credulity in three places:
1. Multiple people have set up wheels-within-wheels-within-wheels chessmaster gambits over decades that somehow went off exactly as planned despite the intercession of numerous literally unpredictable events/forces.
2. There are like 10 different nonverbal languages here of fairly intense nuance and subtlety, and they are used often enough that everyone involved should really realize that these are happening.
3. The Machtvolk go from underground, suppressed faith to having built schools and shrines (yes some were already there) and many new structures, etc. in what would seem to be what, a few months? A little more time could have passed here, honestly.

There are others. Scholes loves repeating words and phrases (lamps, stars, moonlight--you name it, it gutters), and hitting story beats over and over. (Vlad's story is important and also interminable. Petronus was interesting just about until he understood his dreams.)

All that said I can't put it down. What is even going on? Is this series actually delivering on nothing being as it seems? ( )

When this series began, there were complaints from some reviewers that the destruction of Windwir seemed too inconsistent. Why did Neb survive, but not others? What was the nature of the destruction that it could raze the city, but leave random individuals untouched? At the time, I attributed this to the randomness of destructive nature - if you've ever looked at what did and didn't survive a tornado as it decimates a community, you know what I mean.

Antiphon takes a stab at starting to give the rationale in the context of the Nine Lands, and yeah, I didn't see that coming :)

Antiphon is a worthy continuation of the Psalms of Isaak, in what can only be described now as a science fiction epic, shrouded in fantasy, with the drapery of steampunk and the trappings of...fantasy. Bah. Post-apocalyptic apocalyptic fiction?

Whatever classification system you use, I call it a good fun read. Probably not the best place to dive into the story, still a great read. Enjoyed it! ( )

Pros: fascinating characters, lots of intrigue, several secrets are revealed

Cons: very slow moving

Antiphon begins six months after Canticle ends. When an attack rocks the confidence of Rudolfo to keep his lands safe, he and Jin Li Tam make a difficult decision. Winteria’s still stunned by the revelations of the last book and wonders if there’s any hope of returning her people to their former faith in their home-seeking. Neb discovers blood magicked runners in the wastes who don’t die after three days and tries to find out who they are. Meanwhile, the Antiphon requires and answer, and the metal men search for it in many places.

This is a fascinating series, with a lot of intrigue. Each book uncovers more layers underpinning the desolation of Windwir. There are plots upon plots and secrets within secrets. And just when you think you’ve gotten to the bottom of one mystery you discover there’s an entirely new side to it that reframes what you know.

The characters are all great. Winters grows a lot in this book, coming more into her own as she questions how to best help her people. It’s sad - but understandable - what happens with Rudolfo. It was great seeing Vlad Li Tam with an intrigue not worked through his children.

It was nice getting some answers to questions, even if there may still be hidden nuances and twists to those story threads. I’d love to learn more of the history that’s been hinted at with Whym and the wizards. I happened upon a short story Scholes wrote about the love affair between Francisco and a mysterious woman (A Weeping Czar Beholds the Fallen Moon), which factors into this novel nicely (you can read it on Tor.com’s website here http://www.tor.com/2009/02/17/a-weeping-czar-beholds-the-fallen-moon/).

The book is very slow moving with characters mostly getting from point A to point B, both in terms of location as well as with understanding of the underlying purposes of what’s been happening these past two years since Windwir fell.

I am very interested in seeing where things go from here. The book left several characters in fascinating places. ( )

Really liked this one! Now that I've read the 3rd book, the 2nd book makes more sense. It was definitely necessary. Eagerly anticipating for Requiem! ( )

I am really enjoying this series and this book was no disappointment. The story continues on as it has before, as the kingdoms try to put themselves back together, while trying to fight off the coming of the Crimson Empress. The characters that have dominated the series to this point continue to do so, which is good because they are all excellent. Good action, though the pace that the plot is revealed is quite slow. There is quite a surprise revealed about Neb, but we already knew he was special somehow. Great stuff. If you aren't reading this series, you should be, it is one of the best currently being written. ( )