Matt/Sköll and the other three “alphas of all” are getting ready to make an epic run through all of Scandinavia, gather other Vargr, Völsung, Sleipnir, and whatever other long-forgotten sibling races they can before leading them to Brussels to demand their rights be recognized. But, along the way, they uncover more clues to unlock the past. Those clues come at a cost, and understanding their implications may challenge the beliefs of Vargr, Cubi, and the other races.
“Running Ember” continues the Vargr saga with a massive coming-together of all the mythical creatures of Norse legends. You need to have read the previous books of the series to even have a clue what is going on. As it is, your head will probably spin with all that is revealed in this installment, along with several of the characters. We now have a huge cast of characters to keep track of, and while Sköll remains the most central character, parts of this book are also from Steffan, Rasmus, and Hati’s point of view.
I think I’ll describe this as a very “cerebral” book, although not in the traditional sense. There are a lot of symbolic visions, both as dreams and insight from the Völve seers who have joined the group. These are followed by discussions trying to find the meaning of these visions. Those can read like a transcription of a complicated Dungeons and Dragons session.
A common theme running through the entire series is humanity’s lack of care for nature, and each other. This latest book suggests that greed - whether for money or power - is a sort of disease. Some are immune to the infection or manage to resist it, but some are not. It’s an interesting concept, and is very believably presented in the story.
I suspect things are coming to a conclusion, but it's always a mistake to assume that with this series.
“Running Ember” is available from Smashwords or Amazon (commissionable link).
