The Gathering of the Lost: The Wall of Night Book Two

By Helen Lowe

“Strange magic, dark treachery and conflicting loyalties, set in a well realized world.”
—Robin Hobb, author of Dragon Haven

“[Lowe] reinvigorates the epic fantasy with appealing characters and a richly detailed world.”
—Library Journal

Sure to become an epic fantasy classic, Helen Lowe’s magnificent Wall of Night series is big, ambitious, and gorgeously drawn—a story of bravery, treachery, and cataclysm in a richly imagined world. The Gathering of the Lost is the second of four books set in a fantastic imperiled realm garrisoned by nine great Houses and protected from the terrible Darkswarm by the towering mountain range that gives the series its name. Supremely literate, brilliantly imagined and executed fantasy in the vein of Brandon Sanderson, Guy Gavriel Kay, and Barbara Hambly, The Gathering of the Lost is populated by a grand cast of unforgettable characters, some still holding to the beleaguered Wall, others scattered in their quest for the fabled Heir of Night, who vanished from their midst five years earlier.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Mar 27, 2012
• ISBN: 9780062096449

Helen Lowe

Helen Lowe is an award-winning novelist, poet, interviewer, and blogger, whose first novel, Thornspell (Knopf), was published to critical praise in 2008. Her second, The Heir of Night (The Wall of Night Series, Book One) won the Gemmell Morningstar Award 2012. The sequel, The Gathering of The Lost, was shortlisted for the Gemmell Legend Award in 2013. Helen has a second-dan black belt in the martial art aikido and represented her university at fencing. She posts regularly on her ". . . on Anything, Really" blog, occasionally on SF Signal, and is also on Twitter: @helenlowe.

Reviews for The Gathering of the Lost

[seonjoon · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Despite the lack of a coherent schema to the use of magic in this series, some jagged plot moves, and a surprisingly thin development of the main character Malian, I find myself falling in love with the world the Lowe is building.

[timjones_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Impressive continuation of the tetralogy begin in "The Heir of Night". The protagonist, Malian, has aged from 13 to 18 between the two novels, allowing this one to have a darker tone and more adult material - "The Heir of Night" felt like a YA novel, but this one much less so. In addition to the quality writing and characterisation, the hints being given out about the background of the world make me want to keep reading. Looking forward to the next volume!

[thewalkinggirl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm not normally a fan of really wordy, slow-moving stories, but I just love the mood that Ms. Lowe is able to create with her words. Her voice really works for me. (I'd supply a quote, but it would take like two pages to get the full effect.)I also love how she took a pretty standard epic fantasy storyline and still managed to surprise me.Really looking forward to book 3!