Drumindor

Pages: 626
Published: 2024
Language: English

Drumindor is the fifth book in Michael J. Sullivan's Riyria Chronicles, the lighter, more episodic prequel sequence starring the fan-favorite rogues Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater. It can be read as a largely self-contained adventure while still fitting into Sullivan's broader world of Elan.

Hired to stop a vengeful dwarven engineer from sabotaging the massive twin towers of Drumindor, Royce and Hadrian travel to the sun-soaked resort city of Tur Del Fur expecting an easy payday. The setup lets Sullivan lean into what made the series popular: the odd-couple chemistry between cynical, deadly Royce and honorable, warm-hearted Hadrian, laced with humor and clever schemes.

Lower-stakes and comparatively relaxed against the epic sweep of Riyria Revelations, Drumindor offers accessible, character-driven adventure fantasy. Longtime readers get continuity and payoffs, while the caper structure keeps it welcoming and brisk.

Prose complexity: 4/10

Adventurous Lighthearted Funny

Heist Revenge Grumpy Sunshine

Epic Fantasy Fantasy Adventure High Fantasy

Michael J. Sullivan

Michael J. Sullivan is an American author of epic fantasy, best known for the Riyria series. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961, and worked as a commercial artist and illustrator, running his own advertising agency from 1996 until he closed it in 2005 to write full time. He began the Riyria Revelations to help his dyslexic daughter learn to read, self-published it from 2008, and it was later reissued by Orbit and translated into more than a dozen languages. His other series are the Riyria...