Bringer of Dust is the second book in the Talents trilogy by J.M. Miro, the pseudonym for Steven Price. Ordinary Monsters, the first in the series, was the first book I read in 2024 and a delightful surprise.
I was a little hesitant about the second book because, well, it’s a second book and second books have second book problems. How much does the author continue from the first book? How much do they resolve? What new characters do they introduce? How do they continue to build the story and keep the reader engaged? How do they do they without making it seem like it’s dragging it out into three books or the opposite, being in a hurry to get to the next book. Fortunately overall, Bringer of Dust managed to avoid many of these problems.
Picking up after the battle of Cairndale, the remaining Talents have split into smaller factions – each with its own task to help rescue Marlowe who is stuck in the orsine. The book is a continuing battle of good versus evil with some new and returning characters.
J.M. Miro does an excellent job bringing the reader back into the world of the Talents in the early sections of the book. Since it had been a year since the first book, it’s a challenge to walk the line between a recap and diving into the new storyline.
As with Ordinary Monsters, Bringer of Dust is a fun and engaging fantasy adventure. I look forward to reading the final book. It’s available at your local library or bookstore or, if you insist, an online store owned by a tech oligarch.
