The Sword of Light was the first books by Aaron Hodges that I’ve read (listened) to, but it won’t be my last. I love grand, sweeping adventures, similar to Lord of the Rings, and this trilogy did not disappoint. The narration was solid and the world-building was excellent.
The Sword of Light trilogy tells the tale of the 3 lands, their gods and their fight against Archon. It’s a grand adventure full of magic and a daring effort to fight back the forces of darkness. It reminded me a lot of the Lord of the Rings series (I know, that gets said a lot, but it was true for me with this series) and had some similarities, but also some differences from it. We meet our unlikely hero, Eric and things quickly go from bad to worse. Along the way, he’s joined by new members of the company that will each play a pivotal role in the final battle against Archon’s dark forces.
I really love the world Aaron creates in this series. We’re giving pieces of the mystery a little at a time so there are still things to learn about how the world came to be by the time you reach book 3. The mystery of trying to figure out how the world came to be the way it is and what events led up to it are a nice way to break up the story without being frustrating. The actions comes fast and often in each book. Each book is also told through alternating members of the company, so you get a chance to get inside each character’s head a little more than just “hearing” the events from the view of Eric.
There’s a lot of character growth in these books as well. While Eric starts out as an unlikely hero, he grows into the role by the final battle and the progression feels right. It’s not too rushed or unbelievable. Each company member has some degree of growth and they each have a little different personality that keeps the book interesting. There are several twists and turns along the way and it definitely kept the story from getting too predictable. You will need to read the whole series though. Each book ties into the next one, so if you’re reading book 1 thinking it will wrap up neatly in case you don’t want to continue the series, it doesn’t. Each book ends with clear, unfinished business leading into the next book. All the books in this series are out now, so just plan on reading (or listening) to them all. It’s worth it!
Aaron did a great job with this trilogy. I really enjoyed the story and the characters. The narration was well done also. There were a lot of voices for the narrator to keep track of and David did great with them. I’m looking forward to the next adventure from Aaron.