Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers (review)

Grave Mercy (BCCB 4/12) introduced readers to the strange convent of St. Mortain and to Ismae, an apprentice to nun assassins, servant of Death, and tireless worker for the sovereignty of fifteenth-century Brittany. Here LaFevers shifts the focus to Sybella, a fellow daughter of Death, trained by the sisters in the arts of murder and seduction ever since she appeared at the convent as a child. Now Sybella has been sent on her first assignment, to perform reconnaissance work at the household of her lecherous father, Count d’Albret, who plans military action to take control from Brittany’s young duchess, Anne, unless Anne agrees to marry him. Sybella has a lot to handle: she must fend off the advances of her amorous brother, feed information back to Anne’s other supporters, and come to terms with the horrific secret of her past, all while attempting to free one of Anne’s most fearsome warriors from d’Albret’s dungeons. Personal where Grave Mercy was political and comprehensive, this story focuses tightly on Sybella as she seeks vengeance upon the many men who have wronged her. Interestingly, this raises the stakes of the larger conflict even higher: in the previous book d’Albret was merely an unscrupulous lech, but here the true extent of his cruelty is revealed; as only one of the many girls who have suffered at his hands, Sybella personalizes the fate of her nation. Her combination of anger and vulnerability makes her sympathetic, and she’s admirable in her fight to put aside her own emotions to work for a greater cause. Her romantic relationship with the imprisoned warrior unfolds with a sweet tenderness that romance fans will relish. This title takes a closer look at troubling themes just hinted at in its predecessor, but the darkness Sybella must endure makes the story’s ultimately happy resolution all the more rewarding.