I loved The Shattered Vigil even better than the first book! The story is really starting to come together. I love how complex the characters and plot are. It definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat! I also love the humor the characters have. It balances the story nicely.

Now we are starting to get somewhere with this story. We now have those moments that you can say "Ah, I get that now." or "Finally, now I understand"

I love to read books by Carr, but it can take some major brain action sometimes to really get going with these stories. I will keep coming back to his books time and again,

Great fantasy novel. Cannot wait to read the sequel. Everything you want in a novel: interesting characters, a quest, a villain, romance. Cannot recommend highly enough for fantasy readers.

Shattered Vigil is the second book in The Darkwater Saga and it picks up right where the first book left off. Their victory over the dark forces during the feast of Bas-solas should have guaranteed safety for the continent. Instead, Willet and the rest of the Vigil discover they've been outsmarted by those seeking to unleash the evil that inhabits the Darkwater. One of the Vigil has gone missing, and new attacks have struck at the six kingdoms' ability to defend themselves.

Worse, a deadly new threat has emerged--assassins hunting the Vigil, men and women who cannot be seen until it's too late. To thwart the perilous new risk, the church makes the drastic decision to safeguard the Vigil by taking the surviving members into protective custody. But there are secrets only the Vigil can unearth, and so Pellin makes the heart-wrenching choice to oppose the church in a race to turn back the evil that threatens an entire continent.

I have read all of Patrick W. Carr novels so far and they never disappoint. And this one is no exception. You certainly need to read the first book in the series in order for this one to make sense, but once you have started, you will not be able to put it down. The world he has created is magical and interesting. The characters all have a storied past that is slowly being revealed. If you like fantasy, adventure and little bit of romance, this series is for you!


I received a free copy from the publisher. No review, positive or otherwise, was required—all opinions are my own.

Everyone has those authors – when someone asks you for a recommendation – they’re the top names to spill out of your mouth. When asked why you like them, you can try to name things like excellent style, plot, or characters, but it’s really all of those things, and yet none of them at once. It’s that otherness, that quality you can’t pin down, but that resonates so strongly with you. Most simply put, the way you read, they write.

“The Shattered Vigil” has more of everything from the previous Darkwater Saga book – more world building, more character history, more twists. There is never a moment where the reader knows what is coming next, as nothing is ever revealed as you would think. This is edge-of-your-seat storytelling at it’s finest.

The story has so much going on, so many plot threads weaving and looping back on themselves, with each character getting their chance to carry the narrative. I really enjoyed that aspect, that through the individual adventures of each character, we begin to see just how vast the fight really is, and how it will impact their entire world, not just one kingdom, not just one story.

There is well-timed humor, deeply poignant moments, and pulse-racing-page-flipping action, all led by characters I don’t want to leave at the end of the work. In short, I crave the next installment!

I received a review copy of this work from the publisher through NetGalley

I have taken FOREVER to write this review. I read The Shattered Vigil months ago and have returned multiple times to write this review. There have been many iterations and at one time my review was almost 2000 words long. I thought that might be a wee bit excessive ;). I can't imagine that you want to read a comprehensive treatise rather than a book review. If you do, I would really love to meet you.

My problem is that I love this series. It is everything that I love in a speculative fiction/epic fantasy series. Characters with depth that I really get to know and feel passionate about… great world building… clean... full of excitement and suspense… gripping… So what on earth is the problem? Just one… the genre. These books are marketed as Christian fiction. This is the only genre that I will get cranky about (I promise). For a book to be marketed as “Christian” it needs to meet the most basic tenets of Christianity. Carr’s work doesn’t.

So what does the web say that the genre Christian fiction represents? I found that almost all of the definitions were the same. I'm going to share two with you. The first definition comes from WorldCat, the world's largest network of library content and services. WorldCat states that the genre Christian fiction is

“Used for works of imaginative fiction that promote Christian teachings or exemplify a Christian way of life.”
OCLC WorldCat

The second definition is from Joshua Wimmer's lesson in his Introduction to Humanities course titled Christian Fiction: Definition, Authors & Books. Wimmer teaches that Christian fiction is

“A literary genre dedicated to the narrative representation of Christian theology and ethics.”
-find the lesson on study (dot) com

Wimmer extrapolates upon the definition, saying

“Despite the many and widely varied denominations of Christianity found in the world today, there are two of these principles that are fundamental to all works of Christian fiction: the divinity of Christ and the authority of Holy Scripture. Therefore, no matter what specific context (i.e., Catholic or Mormon) the author approaches the narrative from, it should at all times express the central ideas of salvation only through belief in God's son, Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Bible as God's word and law to humanity.”

I post Wimmer's definition and further explanation specifically for the fact that he states that a Christian fiction story "should at all times express the central idea of salvation only through belief in God's son, Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Bible as God's word and law to humanity." (How about we avoid my thoughts on the fact that he included Catholic and Mormon in his explanation). Those most basic tenets are not expressed in The Darkwater Saga. (Just a reminder… take a look at the “cautions for Christians” portion of my review of The Shock of Night for further information.) These books should be marketed as epic fantasy, leaving Christianity out of it. I would greatly respect Patrick W. Carr if he were to take a play from Davis Bunn's playbook. Davis Bunn did it right. When he chose to explore writing outside of the Christian fiction genre he created the pseudonym, Thomas Locke. Under this pen name, he writes fantastic mainstream novels. Take a look at my reviews of his books and you will see that I rave about them. I genuinely love them. Carr doesn’t need to use a pen name, but he really shouldn’t market his books as Christian fiction. That genre is getting more and more abused (by far too many authors). Let’s keep it genuine folks.

-A book list and links to my reviews for the books written by Davis Bunn (primarily Christian fiction) can be found on the blessed and bewildered blog.

-For Bunn's mainstream fiction books written under the pseudonym Thomas Locke, as well as links to my reviews, go to the blessed and bewildered blog.

So… I obviously read this, the second book in the series, and will likely continue to read any future books published in the series. I love the books. I dropped a star on the rating because of the genre issue. I hope that the lower rating will entice people to read why I have given a lower rating. I am shamelessly using this review as my plea for authenticity in marketing. Truly, read these books… enjoy them... recommend them to your children… just understand that they are not Christian.

As a member of the Bethany House Blogger Review program and NetGalley, I received a review copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

I was so excited to read the latest from one of my favorite fantasy writers and to continue the enthralling saga that started in 'The Shock of Night". This series is even better than Mr. Carr's previous series which I am surprised about as I thought that one was excellent.
Willet is a complex,strong and fascinating hero that made the book all the better. I love the strong cast of characters in this series, at times they are hard to keep straight so it is good reading the two books in the series close together.
I always love a good, complex story and this book certainly lives up. I highly recommend it!
I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Where some books lag in the second book in a series, Carr gives us a very strong book instead! It's dark, and light, and strong and fascinating. I will be watching and waiting for the next book in this series. It's worth reading in so many ways!

My copy came from Net Galley and Bethany House. I wasn't required to leave a review.
I actually couldn't wait to! My thoughts and opinions are my own.