The Game of 100 Candles by Marie Brennan: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

The Game of 100 Candles by Marie Brennan

The Legend of 100 Candles is the second Legend of the Five Rings novel by Brennan that I’ve read, and I like it even better than the first. Two years have passed since the events of the first book, and Ryotora and Sekken have spent most of it apart. Both are still suffering from the consequences of Sekken’s sacrifice, but true to their natures, neither has told the other about it.

Now Ryotora has come to Sekken’s home town to negotiate about the fate of the shrine that they’ve saved. Court intrigue isn’t Ryotora’s strong suit, but he has Sekken there to help him. And then things start to go wrong when an evening of story-telling leads to a strange sleeping curse. It’s time for the men to investigate.

This was a great story. Both men struggle with their feelings, their duty as samurais, and their health. And when they figure out the reason for their poor health, things become even more muddled. The romance doesn’t have much room to grow; rather, the men figure out what they need to do to uphold their duty and feelings on their own. The end result is satisfying, if brief.

The mystery, once it presents itself at 30% mark, is intriguing and difficult to solve, made more difficult by politics and family demands. And once again, Ryotora saves the day.

This was fairly different in style and pace from the first book, the focus on characters rather than the mystery. I like where it took both men, individually and together. Side characters were interesting and multi-dimensional. The end for the men was left rather open, and I absolutely must read more.