The Shadow Sorceress

** SPOILER ALERT **

The Shadow Sorceress is the fourth book in the The Spellsong Cycle by L.E. Modesitt Jr.. It is possible that parts from the first book, The Soprano Sorceress, the second book, The Spelsong War, and the third book Darsong Rising is/are spoiled when reading on. Look for the former parts for less/non-spoiler review(s) on The Spellsong Cycle.

The Spellsong Cycle:
Part 1: The Soprano Sorceress: https://www.hebban.nl/recensie/ericwijnen-over-the-soprano-sorceress
Part 2: The Spellsong War: https://www.hebban.nl/recensie/ericwijnen-over-the-spellsong-war
Part 3: Darksong Rising: https://www.hebban.nl/recensie/ericwijnen-over-darksong-rising


** END SPOILER ALERT **

L.E. Modesitt Jr. is probably most known for his epic Recluse series, but besides Fantasy he also wrote a lot of Science Fiction. The Spellsong Cycle is an Epic Portal Fantasy where a singer and teacher is brought over to the world of Erde. On Erde Anna is, because of her background in music, probably the most powerful sorceress on Erde. But eventhough she is powerful, she also doesn't know how the magic on Erde works and that really has it's drawbacks.


The Magic System:
The magic system employed on Erde is songmagic. There are two kinds of songmagic: Clearsong en Darksong. Darksong binds the living or once-living. Darksong is dangerous to use, but the why/how is not further explained. Clearsong binds the nonliving.
People can use magic by singing, but it has to be clear singing, which means without dissonance. The song can be enhanced by using musical instruments, but these then needs to be in harmony with the singing, which is somehow a bit lacking on Erde. Next to that the singer/sorcerer needs to visualize in his mind what is to happen. So any distraction might be hazardous. There do not seem to be a lot of sorceresses, and the reason for that might be that females become infertile when they use songmagic. Using songmagic also takes something from the one employing it. All sorcerers seem to have an insatiable hunger and need to eat almost continuously.
In The Soprano Sorceress Anna found out that is isn't possible for her to cast a spell that directly effects her (say a spell to heal herself), nor that it is possible to create things from nothing. If a spell for instance requires wood or stone it will take that from the immediate surroundings. The further away these products are the harder the spell is for the sorcerer to perform.
In The Spellsong War Anna found out that eventhough she thinks she is using Clearsong, she is probably unwittingly using a lot of Darksong too. The cost for reaching her daughter in the mistworlds is mounting with each try. And she struggles a lot with when would be the right time to try again.
In Darksong Rising Anna comes to the realisation that the more powerful the sorcerer or sorceress is, the more gets reflected back on them when using any kind of spellsong. She starts using spelsong less and less.

The Shadow Sorceress picks up the story years, or seasons, after the happenings in Darksong Rising. Anna has gone further with the school she started for the nobles and the sorceresses of Erde. Secca and Richina are the last two of the four chosen to be the first new batch of Sorceresses. Lord Jecks has died and now Anna has died too. Secca, her sorceress in training, needs to take on the tasks that Anna was in charge of. With the help of Richina, she starts going forward with the tasks: building bridges, bridges and roads in real life and bridges between people. The Lords of Defalk would want her to take a consort, but that is not her wish.

The Sea-Priests, long vanquished enemies of Anna, become active again. Secca needs to find a way to deal with them once and for all. Unknown to Secca the Ladies of Shadow warn the Matriarch to make sure that battle song does not return to Erde. Although the Matriarch seems to agree with the Ladies of Shadow, she has no idea how she could take care of their request.

Although Anna's death early in this book effectively means that the third book Darksong Rising could have been the last book in the series, Modesitt's new protagonist Secca picks up as easily as Anna did. Although I find it hard that Anna did not get back to earth to get reunited with her daughter, which meant everything to her, it is just how sometimes thing are (in stories as well as real life). But Secca takes up her role splendidly and quickly moves Anna to the back of the story. That is apart from the times Anna is mentioned, as happens when we talk about the people that have fallen away from us. Although Secca struggles with the same things Anna struggled with when first coming to Erde. Secca does things her own way, and she often wonders how Anna would have taken a descision.

The chapters in this book are of varying length, but the engulfing story makes you want to read on. The writing style of L.E. Modesitt quickly emerges you in the story.