A. K. Larkwood

The sequel to A. K. Larkwood's stunning debut fantasy, The Unspoken Name. The Thousand Eyes continues The Serpent Gates series—perfect for fans of Jenn Lyons, Joe Abercrombie, and Ursula K. Le Guin. Two years ago, Csorwe and Shuthmili risked the anger of the wizard Belthandros Sethennai to gain their freedom. Now, they make their living exploring relic worlds of the ancient serpent empire of Echentyr. They think they're prepared for anything—but when one of their expeditions releases an Echentyri soldier who has slept undisturbed since the fall of her homeland, they are thrown back into a conflict that has lain dormant for thousands of years. Shuthmili will give anything to protect the woman and the life that she loves, but as events spiral out of control, she is torn between clinging to her humanity and embracing her eldritch power. Meanwhile, Tal Charossa returns to Tlaanthothe to find that Sethennai has gone missing. Tal wants nothing to do with his old boss and former lover, so when a magical catastrophe befalls the city, Tal tries to run rather than face his past—but he soon learns that something even worse may lurk in the future. Throughout the worlds of the Echo Maze, fragments of an undead goddess begin to awaken, and not all confrontations can be put off forever . . .

The Thousand Eyes

claire

Didi Chanoch

A terrific sequel that elevates everything I loved about The Unspoken Name, raises the stakes, and keeps the focus on these fantastic characters.

Savannah Winchell

3.5 ⭐️
Idk the pacing and structure of the plot were wild
But like still good tho

Mia Kern

"I have a sacred duty," [they] added... What people always meant by it was: I plan to commit an astonishing fuckup, and it will hurt my feelings if you try to stop me. p.82


The Thousand Eyes really was The Unspoken Name on steroids, and I say that in the best way possible. Once again, every time I thought I knew where the book was going, Larkwood veered us into a different direction. Only this time with more magic and higher stakes and, casually, more living gods and goddesses! 

I thought the character development in this one was stellar. The multiple, changing perspectives really allowed me to get to know these characters so well, and I loved seeing how their arcs wrapped up. (view spoiler)[Tal, I'm immensely proud of you, even though I know you'd be embarrassed to hear it. Shuthmili, girl, if you can dedicate yourself to one thing for 15 years, I can dedicate myself to waking up a little earlier. Csorwe, I'm gutted that we didn't get more time with you this book. Sethennai, go fuck yourself, you wonderful, charismatic, terrible, complex human being. Or whatever you are. I came around to enjoying characters like Oranna and Cherenthisse, and wholeheartedly enjoyed Tsereg and Zinandour.  (hide spoiler)]


Larkwood is so incredibly imaginative with her worldbuilding and descriptions. I surprisingly enjoyed how much this book dealt with their world's divinities, even if it could get a little confusing at times. It certainly made for some wild, unpredictable plot twists! I wish we could've spent some more time with the characters before everything dissolved into chaos, but I absolutely enjoyed every second I did get with them.

Brilliant, bold and thrilling, The Thousand Eyes by A. K. Larkwood is the epic fantasy sequel to The Unspoken Name. Could you sacrifice your dreams to escape a nightmare? Csorwe, Shuthmili and Tal survey abandoned Echentyr worlds to make a living. The empire’s ruins seem harmless but fascinating. Yet disaster strikes when they stumble upon ancient magic during a routine expedition. This revives a warrior who’d slept for an age, reigniting a conflict thousands of years old. And the soldier binds Csorwe to her cause. Shuthmili is desperate to protect the woman she loves. However, as events escalate, she’s torn. Can she help Csorwe by clinging to her own humanity or by embracing her eldritch powers? Tal heads home, but his peace is shattered when a magical catastrophe hits his city. The wizard Sethennai is missing and Tal can’t face seeking his former lover to ask for help. So, he flees – but there’s no escaping the future. For throughout the Echo Maze’s linked worlds, fragments of an undead goddess are waking. Soon all must choose a side. Praise for The Unspoken Name: ‘An outstanding debut . . . unlike anything I’ve read before’ – Nicholas Eames ‘Richly detailed, enthralling and extraordinary’ – Jenn Lyons ‘Stylish, classy and timeless . . . I cannot recommend it enough’ – Tamsyn Muir ‘An adventure I couldn’t put down’ – S. A. Chakraborty

Alice Hyman

To say I was over excited at getting this EARC through is an understatement. After The Unspoken Name being an immediate 5 stars I had no idea what to do with myself until the next book released. Now Unfortunately I find myself in the same position - I need another book. These books just leave you wanting more and more and more.

The direction this book took was so unexpected, there were innumerable times when I had to just stare at my kindle in disbelief. This book looks at typical sci-fi and fantasy story tropes and then just flies off in the other direction cackling. Like you know when you are reading and you see a character make a bad decision and you are mentally screaming at them to not do that, yeah well apparently we also make bad decisions, because I did not see any of it coming - The plot twists blindside you and the romance is so so so freaking heart breaking.

I wished we got to see more of the worlds in this book, that was one thing I really adored in the first book and felt was a bit missing in this one. The maze especially is such an epic concept. 

I really enjoyed that we saw more of Tal this book, the sass was as always on point and the character arc was just perfect. If anything I just wish it was all longer, some parts felt slightly rushed and I wished there could have been some scenes just with the characters being themselves or exploring the world. But again, I am completely obsessed with this series so I’d read the Tlaanthothe phone book happily.

Old gods, new gods, magic, necromancy, sass, sapphic romance and cranky morally grey characters with a purpose. I mean what more could you want ?

Huge thanks to A. K. Larkwood and the people at Tor books for the opportunity to read this amazing book !

Samantha 

The sequel to A. K. Larkwood's stunning debut fantasy, The Unspoken Name. The Thousand Eyes continues The Serpent Gates series—perfect for fans of Jenn Lyons, Joe Abercrombie, and Ursula K. Le Guin. Two years ago, Csorwe and Shuthmili risked the anger of the wizard Belthandros Sethennai to gain their freedom. Now, they make their living exploring relic worlds of the ancient serpent empire of Echentyr. They think they're prepared for anything—but when one of their expeditions releases an Echentyri soldier who has slept undisturbed since the fall of her homeland, they are thrown back into a conflict that has lain dormant for thousands of years. Shuthmili will give anything to protect the woman and the life that she loves, but as events spiral out of control, she is torn between clinging to her humanity and embracing her eldritch power. Meanwhile, Tal Charossa returns to Tlaanthothe to find that Sethennai has gone missing. Tal wants nothing to do with his old boss and former lover, so when a magical catastrophe befalls the city, Tal tries to run rather than face his past—but he soon learns that something even worse may lurk in the future. Throughout the worlds of the Echo Maze, fragments of an undead goddess begin to awaken, and not all confrontations can be put off forever . . . At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

The Thousand Eyes

Reviews