Sanctuary by Ilona Andrews is a standalone novel in the World of Kate Daniels. We did meet Roman (hero), in previous Kate Daniels books. Roman is the priest of Chernobog, who is the God of Destruction, Darkness and Death, and in Sanctuary, we learn more about his backstory, which includes his chaotic family, as well as becoming Chernobog’s Black Volhv. Roman is depressed, wanting no company during the winter holiday, and to his surprise, a boy races to his house and begs for Sanctuary.
Almost immediately, elite mercenaries appear on his property, wanting the boy and his puppy; with them thinking this was going to be easy, with the hermit in the house. Of course, little did they know he was a powerful dark priest. Besides the mercenaries, they are also attacked by mages, strange priests, unleashing magic and trying to douse the house with fire. Roman collects a hoard of witchy pets and demonic beasties, which he manages to bring out in the fight to death against those who want the boy at any cost. While the attacks continue, Roman teaches Finn what not to use and what is safe.
We learn a lot about Roman in his early years, especially with his perfect older brother. His father was Volhv with Chernobog, during those years, and always pushed for the older son to follow him. Roman was lonely and felts ostracized from his family. But when he got older, the choice to replace the father, was a complete surprise as to who Chernobog chose. In the current time, Roman’s dreams show him dragging a tree to give to Morena (Chernobog’s wife), where he sees Andora, a girl he knew when they were very young; he also sees Farhang (the mage) who is in the dream and Finn, who is in for the ride.
What follows is an exciting and intriguing story, with Roman tied to the Slavic gods in this world, with magical siblings; not to mention his wonderful menagerie. Finn was a very good addition, and Andora, a childhood friend, who may become a potential romance. It was fun to learn about his younger years, being lonely with his meddling family. I look forward to seeing the possibility of a full novel upcoming. Once again, Ilona Andrews, our illustrious duo, gives us another wonderful masterpiece.
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