Book Review – Fugitives of Chaos
Author: John C. Wright
Cover Artist: Scott M. Fischer
Publisher: Tor
Binding: Hardcover
Publication Date: April 2007
Fugitives of Chaos continues the story begun in Orphans of Chaos.
The five orphans Amelia, Victor, Colin, Vanity and Quentin have discovered their true nature: They are the offspring of the mythological Titans and their captors are an equally legendary and diverse pantheon of Greek gods and lesser figures. In turn, they have discovered their various abilities and how they can be countered or used. Thus begins a race to learn how their powers can effect an escape from captivity and avert a war between Chaos and Cosmos that will destroy the very universe itself…
Having read and been greatly impressed by the first volume of the series, I had great expectations for Fugitives of Chaos and didn’t come away disappointed. The same strong characterizations and inventive twist on Greek mythology as well as the fascinating (if dense) metaphysics are combined into a very intriguing mix.
If there is a criticism to be had here, it would be that the book does tend to drag a bit in places, due to the (albeit necessary) discussions of how Amelia and company’s powers work, and how they can be nullified by their various counterparts in the pantheon of gods and lesser beings. As such, there isn’t an incredible amount of plot advancement, though the ending is neatly done, setting up for the final volume in the series.
However, I will say it was nice to have a “Dramatis Personae” included at the beginning of this book (which the first book lacked) to keep track of who’s who, given that most of the players are known by at least two or three different names.
In sum: A good follow-up and here’s hoping the final volume will conclude the series on an even higher note.
About 
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.