It’s finally here! My most anticipated book of 2025 has arrived. The Damned King is the third book in the Eidyn Saga, which, notably, is not a trilogy! It’s the follow up to the excellent The Lost War and the arguably even better The Bitter Crown. The Damned King sees us return to the story of Aranok, Allandria, and company, as they aim to wrest back their nation from the clutches of the usurper king.
If you haven’t read the first two books in the series, I wholeheartedly recommend you check them out. You’ll find my review, here.
Be warned, from here on, there may be spoilers of the earlier books. The saga has many twists and misdirects, which may be inadvertently revealed below.
What Is The Damned King?
I must confess, I thought The Damned King was going to be the final book in the series. It was only when I wrote on Bluesky, I was looking forward to reading the final book, that author Justin Lee Anderson informed me that there was, in fact, another book after The Damned King to come. More Eidyn Saga, you say? Happy Days!
But what did that mean for The Damned King? Things after The Bitter Crown felt like they were building to a crescendo. Did the series have legs for a longer run in? Where would the story go next?
The novel opens with our heroes surrounded. The druid city of Traverlyn is under siege. The light that held back the demon horde has been extinguished, and night is falling. Worse, somewhere in the city hides an illusionist assassin. In a time when trust is hard to come by, a further wedge is driven into the fragile resistance.
Why Read The Damned King?
The Damned King is the Eidyn Saga’s Empire Strikes Back.
What? You want more reasons to read it!?
The Damned King pulsates with tension. The opening chapters deal with the demon onslaught. Will Travelyn stand, and if so, at what cost? We know from reading the first two books that Justin Lee Anderson isn’t afraid to finish off his characters when you least expect it.
The rest of the book deals with the aftermath. Can the resistance push through? Will they liberate the memories of the rest of Eidyn? The green shoots of rebellion are pushing through, but will they be short-lived?
I don’t think The Damned King has as many “Oh my god” moments as the first two books, but it’s a captivating read. About halfway through the book, I found myself thinking, “Things are going awfully well. This can’t be good.”
The second half of the book is like a massive jump scare. You dare not hope that our heroes will traverse it unscathed. You know what’s coming, and when it does, you can do nothing but read on helplessly. (Actually, on reflection, the end features several “Oh my god,” moments, so perhaps Anderson had just lent me a false sense of security.)
It’s hard to say much more without giving away spoilers, except to say, The Eidyn Saga puts its characters and its readers through the wringer, and The Damned King is no exception. I think the comparison to The Empire Strikes Back is a fair one, and who didn’t want to watch Return of the Jedi after that? I anticipate great things for the final volume, probably with fewer Ewoks but greater trickery than Episode VI!
The Damned King, delivers another strong dose of character-driven fantasy with more unexpected twists and terrible pitfalls. I can’t wait to read the final volume. The Eidyn Saga is set to become one of my favorite fantasy series of all time.
If you would like to pick up a copy of The Damned King, you can do so here in the US and here, in the UK. (Affiliate Links)
If you enjoyed this review, check out my other book reviews, here.
I received a copy of this book in order to write this review.
