Of Sand & Snow by Bryce O’Connor is book 5 of the Wings of War series. The series has been a hidden gem of Dark Fantasy where the main protagonist is not a human. He is a very large, winged lizard that was taken in by a human Nomads that travel the desert as merchants. Raz i'Syul Arro is a character that doesn’t need plot armor because he is so much more powerful than humans. In fact, I would say he gives other characters plot armor by saving their asses. The second main protagonist is an albino religious woman from an order that can wield magic. Syrah Brahnt gets weaved into the series early on and then becomes more important with each book. They are in my top three of most formidable duo in all of fantasy that I have read.
By book 5 as Raz becomes a more important figure that has to worry about assassinations, having Syrah’s magic around only adds to his feel of dominance. It seems at times by book 5 that some humans have become a bit OP just to give them a chance at Raz where he does feel threatened in the heat of a large-scale battle. He can be ganged up upon like anyone. Even for his size he still only has two arms, two wings, and a tail to defend himself with…. that’s all. Overall throughout the series you do worry about him, but he is still a giant among men.
I would say this is the weakest of the 5 books that are currently out. I actually thought it was the final book in the series. I was wrong. There are still a few revelations in this book and a huge battle at the end. Most of the book are the slavers and Raz’s people strategizing against one another. It can get kind of dry and drawn out. There is a lot of strategic posturing on each side to counter the other side. It does tend to bloat the book. It is still interesting, but we all know what we want to see and it gets dragged out. I will say the relationship between Raz and Syrah becomes more intimate and intricate. It is of course a non-sexual love between the two and it works perfectly, especially being two separate species that have been through many dark trials in their life. They literally need one another to keep the darkness at bay that tries to overwhelm them.
This book could have been the final book and I kind of wish it was because O’Connor is wrapped up in other works that make him more money. Book 6 seems like it will not be out until the end of 2022 at the earliest. The way this was written if not for a few decisions by Raz and Syrah this war could have been over in book five. Unfortunately, it isn’t and seems like we will get a more intimate showdown in book 6 from the main representatives of each side. I will still buy it when it comes out because I love these characters. I must know how it all ends. O’Connor has created a fascinating world and we only know one section of it.
This series can be very dark, as I say that though, Book 5 is not as dark as the other books in the series. This series has slavery, rape, abuse, murder, torture, etc. as slavers and barbarians play prominent roles on this continent. However, by book 5 the downtrodden are a legitimate trained army now and it is mostly just brutal in terms of pure warfare at this point. The weak have now become strong and can defend themselves. They may not be as well trained as the army of the slavers, but they have Lizard kind on their side which brings in brute strength and of course other connections…but I won’t say more.
We get a real magic duel in book 5 which only further makes the huge battle that much more interesting. It gives us a bigger idea of battle magic vs battle magic. It takes more strategy instead of just launching fireballs at one another. My only complaint is that when Syrah and Raz are fighting out numbered in the middle of a huge skirmish they seem to be isolated with no explanation. Your two main generals should have some kind of guard no matter how powerful they are. Small gripe of otherwise a wild battle that displays some interesting strategies.
Overall, I enjoyed the book, it just isn’t as interesting part of the story arc as before they got an army to lead. It still has some important story elements and implications for Raz & Syrah. Dont go in thinking there aren't some great scenes of character development. The characters are still amazing to read. All round good, but not great part of the series in my opinion.