‘Fear is stale bread and hard cheese. Terror is milk and honey,’ Malagant grinned. ‘And right now, Agravain, you are quite the delicacy.’

In The Ravenmaster’s Revenge, Sannox brought us his unique take on the Arthurian legend, where King Arthur and his knights are the eternal, unageing defenders of England throughout history. Sannox ably combines the modern tone and conventions of a contemporary thriller, which often collides with the ideals of an older, simpler time.

In this sequel, set one year on from the events of the first book, the focus moves from Arthur to one of his loyal knights, Agravain. Please note that this review contains some major spoilers for The Ravenmaster’s Revenge, so if you haven’t read that yet I would urge you to do so, before moving on to this brilliant follow up.

The Ravenmaster has been defeated but at a terrible cost and Arthur is still feeling the consequences of Merlin’s death. However, due to the split timeline structure, characters who died in the first book still have a role in this novel, a conceit I really enjoyed. Thus, we get more of Merlin and all of Arthur’s knights, even if they fell during the action of Ravenmaster. In fact, Sannox takes this further. The plot of Ravenmaster is very much entwined with Agravain’s story, the change of viewpoint allowing the reader to explore previous events from a different perspective.

Arthur and Agravain find themselves facing a fearsome new foe in this book – Sir Malagant the Dread Knight, lover of Morgana Le Fay. We also have new characters to enjoy such as Agravain and the enchantress, Nimuë. Nimuë, portrayed in this novel as Merlin’s new understudy once his association with Branok comes to an end, is a fascinating character. Merlin’s relationship with her is interesting, complicated and at times disturbing as his increasing desire for her clouds his judgement. Whilst both are practitioners of magic, Merlin is far more concerned with the rule of England and the fate of its kings, whereas Nimuë is much closer to the land’s spirits and nature.

Agravain and Arthur are also very different, ultimately leading to them going their separate ways. Nimuë offers to counsel Agravain whilst he acts as London’s self-appointed protector after the Great Fire of London and their relationship provides the central foundation of this novel. Malagant has escaped from Arthur, and Agravain is determined to hunt him down in 1700s and 1800s London. The grimy, poverty-stricken reality of this era is captured painfully well.

A feature of this series is how Sannox combines key moments of history with the action of his novels. This time Spring Heeled Jack and the horror of the Jack the Ripper murders provides more than just a backdrop, as Sannox weaves his story together with the available historical facts, to the point it become difficult to see where reality ends and fiction begins. It provides a sense of realism to the story, giving it a strong sense of time and place.

A key theme of Agravain’s Escape is longing and loss. Sannox forces us to confront our inevitable inability to recapture the past, no matter how much we may desire to do so. Ravenmaster was an entertaining read, which I thoroughly enjoyed and rated highly, but with Agravain Sannox tops every aspect of that book. Partly this is down to Agravain being such a captivating character – I absolutely loved how he was portrayed in this novel. However, I think the emotional depth of Agravain’s bond with Nimuë is the standout feature. This is far from a fairy tale love story, but I’m struggling to think of two characters whose complex relationship I have found more compelling.

Sannox is a gifted and imaginative writer but I think where he shines is in how he executes his craft, always skilfully building his novels towards a breathtaking conclusion. Genres are effortlessly combined, drawing together myth, legend, horror, thriller and fantasy in a fusion that makes many novels appear dull and drab by comparison. I have now read six of his books and not once have I correctly guessed the ending or, frankly, even come close. On each occasion, I’ve been left surprised yet satisfied, whilst always wanting more. The conclusion of this novel is powerful and impactful, displaying Sannox’s best writing, right up until that haunting final paragraph. That’s going to stay with me for a long time.
In summary, this is an outstanding novel, full of thrills and unexpected twists, which packs an emotional punch I wasn’t expecting. It’s clear five-star read and sets things up for a thrilling conclusion to the series with the final instalment, Tristan’s Regret.