Book Review: The Pact by J.E. Hannaford

Genre(s): Fantasy

Content warning: There are some violent scenes in this book, mild gore, torture, and one character suffers an injury that requires amputation. Some of the content may be disturbing for some readers.

Tellin continues her mission to free the captured Old Ones and return them to their homes in The Pact (this is the sequel to The Skin, which I read and reviewed a few months ago.) But this time, the stakes are even higher; signs are present that indicate the ancient pact between humanity and an ancient magical race is nearing its end. If the pact is broken, the world is doomed.

The first thing I want to mention about this book is the worldbuilding. I thought it was done well in the first book (The Skin), but this one took it to the next level. It was really well done. I loved seeing more of the selkie society, as well as that of the annwn. And Lord Flame! I’m a sucker for dragons, and I loved him!

In this second book, Tellin narrates about half the story, while the other half focuses on Maddoc. He’s a guardian of the pact and half annwn, with some unusual abilities of his own. While I love Tellin’s character, I think I liked Maddoc’s more. He was an unexpected hero, and I enjoyed that aspect of his character.

Without giving anything away, I loved the complexity of the plot and some of the unexpected twists that appeared near the end. And the ending was perfect. (Side note: This series is marked as a duology, but if the author ever decides to write more of Tellin and her adventures later, I will happily read them.)

The Pact is book 2 in The Black Hind’s Wake duology. I read and reviewed book one, The Skin, here: Book Review: The Skin by J.E. Hannaford.

Author website: jehannaford.com

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