In Lyon’s second Chorus of Dragons book, The Name of All Things, is recorded this time by Senera, one of Relos Var’s associates, and the majority consists of Janel and Qown telling Kihrin their story, in a bid to gain his assistance. During the time they are storytelling, they and the rest of Janel’s people are trapped by the dragon Aeyan’arric in the tavern they are at. Janel was waiting on Kihrin and one other in order to tackle another dragon problem. The other Janel refuses to disclose at first. Sometimes enemies become temporary allies. Sometimes not. 

First off, I loved Senera’s footnotes! Even more than Thurvishar’s notations in Ruin of Kings, these were full of deliciously sarcastic humour. The perspective switches were easy to follow, and had different voices. The last maybe one-fourth of the book was a return to the present, when Janel’s mysterious contact finally arrives, and they take the fight to the great dragon Morios. 

I might not agree with Var’s methods, but through Senera, Janel, and Qown’s eyes one begins to see a much more complex and complicated adversary. Var is old, older than most even realise, and these plans have had centuries to solidify, and those plans make sense! It’s as they realise in the book, sometimes you have to choose the best of two unpalatable options. Of course, with his gift and curse of longevity, Var sees time differently. I’ll be interested to see if he continues as the ‘villain’ in the next book, or if they’ll work together again. 

I gained more appreciation for Var, but my favourite character in the book is Brother Qown, who ends up in some pretty rough situations, but still manages to plug along. He’s a sweet, gentle-tempered man with a compassionate heart that threatens to get him in trouble sometimes. 

We get to see more Cornerstones in this book! Qown has Worldhearth, which allows him to spy or communicate through light sources. Senera has The Name of All Things, which can answer any question. Just be careful how you ask, or you could end up stuck writing out the answer til you die of dehydration! Var has Warmonger, though we don’t learn how that Cornerstone works. Each Cornerstone is tied to one of the dragons. And there’s one dragon whose Cornerstone I really want to learn. 

Highly recommended!

***Many thanks to the Netgalley and Macmillan Tor/ Forge for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. Reviewed for JBN Book Tours.