As the first book is epic in the truest sense of the word, I can only imagine the places the series will go.

Before wrapping up this review I also want to point to the major themes that El-Arifi explores in The Battle Drum. Thank you for letting me read the advance copy of this book, it really was worth the time I took to read. Though this is a standalone novel, it’s set in the same universe as Maniscalco’s Kingdom of the Wicked trilogy, and certain elements, character dynamics, and plot points will be harder to follow for readers unfamiliar with the earlier books.

Similarly, Sylah and Anoor, like both men and women, yet no one comments on this, and there are no labels for it.

Anoor turns out to be not such a weak, entitled milksop as Sylah had expected, and imprisons Sylah, forcing her to go cold-turkey. This books does what many “second books” duo and expands the world and flings its characters across it. Although targets and combat were part of the test, competitors also had to prove their skills in other areas: tactics, stealth, blood magic, and strength of mind.The world building in this book is incredible – some books pile information upon information on the reader and it makes it difficult to fully immerse yourself in the story. However, The Final Strife is a phenomenal book—my favorite I’ve read this year by far—and The Battle Drum is perhaps my most anticipated new release coming in 2023. I should also point out that the ending of The Battle Drum is not quite as strong as The Final Strife, which left us with so many great cliffhangers. I know I pointed out some flaws in this book, but I want to reiterate that I only did so to demonstrate to some readers why this book might not work for them as well as The Final Strife did.