It is always a bit of a worry when you start to read book 2 of a series when you enjoyed book 1. I mean, what if the author has "lost the plot"? What if it is just not up to the same standard? What if... What if....

Luckily, in the case of "The Bard of Azure and Gold" my concerns were totally unnecessary. Within a few lines I was transported back into the familiar world of Turuth, Quinn, Calana, Bob and the others, continuing the quest that began in Volume 1.

Adrian Drake has succeeded in maintaining the momentum he created in the first book and has developed the story in an enchanting and compulsive manner. Frequently, whilst reading the tale I found myself reluctant to put it down. As the book came to a conclusion I was left desperate to find out how the story would conclude. So, Adrian, GET WRITING!!!!! I want to know what happens next!

As you can probably tell from my top-10s I am a big fan of this kind of lyrical, enchanting fantasy and the chance to read such a glorious example of the genre has been a great pleasure.

I have been looking forward to reading this book since finishing the first book in the series some months back. Now having finished this volume I am now eagerly waiting for the next volume. I need to know what happens next.

This book picks up the tale of this rather oddly mixed group of companions setting out on the next leg of their quest. They have the first of the artefacts they need before facing the bad guy directly and need to obtain the others. All they have in the way of clues is an old prophecy written by a madman and their individual knowledge of various of the world's mythologies. Add in the fact that a powerful necromancer, the high priest of the evil god is attempting at every step to prevent their progress, meaning they have to fight the undead, demons and crack mercenary bands at various points in their travels.

Despite the high action content and fast pace of the novel the author manages to include further exploration of each character's personality and background, as well as more of the history, magic and religions of the World of Marna. That all this fits into a book that will not require you to work out in order to lift it is a tribute to the author's concise writing.

The other main attraction for me with this book are the characters and their interactions. Nothing in the way of dialogue seems forced, the reactions of the individual party members seems entirely natural and I felt as though I wanted to throttle one or two of them at times for being so pigheaded.

It was a joy to read this book, but now I am left waiting on book three.