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The Knight and the Necromancer #2
The Border
Roland thought necromancers were inhuman monsters. Until he met Sairis.
Roland and Sairis have escaped from a traumatic assassination attempt, solved the mystery of their attacker, and enjoyed plenty of heavy petting along the way. Roland knows that it’s too soon for love, but he feels like he’s falling head over heels.
However, in the final moments when their attacker is revealed, Sairis does something unthinkable. He transfers a brutal spell to Roland, nearly killing him, and disappears.
Roland is left reeling, struggling to cope with his injuries, and wondering whether everything Sairis said and did was a lie. Did Sairis seduce Roland only to use him as a hostage? And if not, what has happened to Sairis?
Roland and Sairis have escaped from a traumatic assassination attempt, solved the mystery of their attacker, and enjoyed plenty of heavy petting along the way. Roland knows that it’s too soon for love, but he feels like he’s falling head over heels.
However, in the final moments when their attacker is revealed, Sairis does something unthinkable. He transfers a brutal spell to Roland, nearly killing him, and disappears.
Roland is left reeling, struggling to cope with his injuries, and wondering whether everything Sairis said and did was a lie. Did Sairis seduce Roland only to use him as a hostage? And if not, what has happened to Sairis?
228 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 23, 2020
290 people are currently reading
478 people want to read
About the author
A.H. Lee
13books197followersA.H. Lee writes fantasy under several names. These are her steamier books.
(Source: Amazon.com)
Main ŷ Author profile: Abigail Hilton
(Source: Amazon.com)
Main ŷ Author profile: Abigail Hilton
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 195 reviews
January 21, 2025
Book two picks up right where book one left off. I’m really enjoying the unexpected connection between Roland, a knight with strong convictions, and Sairis, a mysterious necromancer.
Gay fantasy
Age gap
Size difference
Morally complex
Excellent side characters
Dual POV
Violent battles
Cliffhanger ending!
The sweet romance between Roland and Sairis is both tender and tumultuous.
The weight of moral choices are woven throughout this series and feel authentic for the characters. These are not cookie cutter situations or characters, and I find that so refreshing when reading a fantasy.
Gay fantasy
Age gap
Size difference
Morally complex
Excellent side characters
Dual POV
Violent battles
Cliffhanger ending!
The sweet romance between Roland and Sairis is both tender and tumultuous.
The weight of moral choices are woven throughout this series and feel authentic for the characters. These are not cookie cutter situations or characters, and I find that so refreshing when reading a fantasy.
June 8, 2020
A very satisfying second installment in the story. (I say "story" rather than "series," because this is not a series, but a single book published in three separate chunks. If you know that going in, you won't be enraged when the first two installments stop mid-story.)
I loved the moral ambiguity and the lack of simple-minded good vs evil worldbuilding. The varied cast of characters learn from each other that their view of the world is � at best � incomplete. And at worse, blinkered and stunted and self-serving. Who's good? Who's bad? Depends on who's asking, of course. People want a home, they want to belong to a community, they want food security, and safety, and to be valued as human beings. People want those things� but who does and does not get to be counted as “people�? This is good stuff, woven seamlessly into a storyline with plenty of action and magic and surprises. On to the next and final installment!
I loved the moral ambiguity and the lack of simple-minded good vs evil worldbuilding. The varied cast of characters learn from each other that their view of the world is � at best � incomplete. And at worse, blinkered and stunted and self-serving. Who's good? Who's bad? Depends on who's asking, of course. People want a home, they want to belong to a community, they want food security, and safety, and to be valued as human beings. People want those things� but who does and does not get to be counted as “people�? This is good stuff, woven seamlessly into a storyline with plenty of action and magic and surprises. On to the next and final installment!
March 8, 2021
Things, Magicky things, are on the rise!
I liked this better than the 1st...
starts with BANG!
Things are building up
new secrets revealed.
Obvious villains introduced
Odd road trip
More
Dialogue than the first
Cliffhanger
Forgive the short review, it’s late.
My rec? This is part 2 of one story. Cliffy! Now I gotta move on
Great narration by Kirt Graves.
I liked this better than the 1st...
starts with BANG!
Things are building up
new secrets revealed.
Obvious villains introduced
Odd road trip
More
Dialogue than the first
Cliffhanger
Forgive the short review, it’s late.
My rec? This is part 2 of one story. Cliffy! Now I gotta move on
Great narration by Kirt Graves.
April 21, 2020
5 stars!
I have no words. Very intriguing story but slightly slower paced in this book. I have no idea how the author plans to finish this. Very very interesting!
I have no words. Very intriguing story but slightly slower paced in this book. I have no idea how the author plans to finish this. Very very interesting!
August 18, 2024
Volume 2 of Roland and Sair being a cute couple while saving the world!! 😍😍
I must add... Marsden is by far the best trans character I've read. I love him so much after reading this book.
Onwards to the last book of the trilogy I go!
I must add... Marsden is by far the best trans character I've read. I love him so much after reading this book.
Onwards to the last book of the trilogy I go!
June 10, 2020
This is not a complete book but is the second of three parts of a single book. However, since the author decided to release these parts separately, I will review each one accordingly. (There is a three-in-one "bundle" available, so you can get that rather than wasting your money buying them individually.)
This was a vast improvement over the first "part" and starts to answer a lot of questions that were left hanging there, as well as open up the world view of not only the readers but of the characters as well, Roland in particular. He discovered he had a lot to learn about his own family and kingdom and how others see them, and what we see of their enemies make them more well-rounded and relatable as well. I wasn't expecting this amount of world building after the fairly lackluster first part, but I'm impressed here. I hope it continues to build on what we got here in the final part.
Also much better done is the relationship between Roland and Sairis. They actually have some conflict here that makes them both have to work to connect with and understand each other. I found their connection much more believable here.
There are some unanswered questions still, naturally. Whereas the first part ended on what seemed like a natural cliffhanger, this part just ends in the middle of a scene.
This was a vast improvement over the first "part" and starts to answer a lot of questions that were left hanging there, as well as open up the world view of not only the readers but of the characters as well, Roland in particular. He discovered he had a lot to learn about his own family and kingdom and how others see them, and what we see of their enemies make them more well-rounded and relatable as well. I wasn't expecting this amount of world building after the fairly lackluster first part, but I'm impressed here. I hope it continues to build on what we got here in the final part.
Also much better done is the relationship between Roland and Sairis. They actually have some conflict here that makes them both have to work to connect with and understand each other. I found their connection much more believable here.
There are some unanswered questions still, naturally. Whereas the first part ended on what seemed like a natural cliffhanger, this part just ends in the middle of a scene.
May 24, 2020
I’m going to review the entire trilogy as one book, because that’s the way I read it.
I could’ve reviewed each book as I finished it, but the way the story was cut into three volumes was such that it didn’t make much sense to stop and try to formulate thoughts on the single book. Especially in the jump from the second to the third book, it would’ve been like stopping at the end of a random chapter to review half a book only to immediately resume reading the remaining chapters until the end.
So, no spoilers about the plot, just general considerations.
Perhaps the most impressive thing about this story by a new-to-me author was the characters. Sairis and Roland surprised me at every turn, they were so not what I would’ve expected and that’s not something I take lightly. Reading so many books every year, some aspects of the genre start to feel a little ‘been there, done that.� I don’t want to say much about how they surprised me, because part of the fun reading their story was getting to know them, their past, their strengths and weaknesses, little by little.
I can say that I loved how well rounded and real they felt, their personalities distinct and consistent. I loved the humor that permeates the story and how the romance was a big part of it, but not the main focus. The world bulding was really good, the plot interesting and well paced, with some rather surprising turns, and the perfect setting for what for me was the main appeal: the character growth of...well, basically everybody.
Sairis and Roland, of course. Sairis’s character arc was, or at least felt to me, more prominent and evident, more powerful, in a way, maybe because he seemed less well put-together than Roland at the beginning. Roland’s journey was more subtle, the changes weren’t as obvious throughout the series, or maybe I was the one who overlooked the signals distracted as I was by other things, but they certainly became evident at the end.
The MCs weren’t the only ones to change and grow during the series. A truly remarkable aspect of this trilogy, and a clear sign of very competent writing, was the attention and care poured into outlining basically every character, even the minor ones. They all felt like actual people, their lives and personalities painted vividly, sometimes with just a few sentences. Even the relationships between secondary characters were nuanced in a way rarely reserved for characters with so little page time.
If that wasn’t enough, mention of honor for
My first experience with this author and it definitely won’t be the last!
----------------------------------------------
Thank you to Rosa and Teal for another amazing BR and, in Teal’s case, also for pointing me to another awesome read. My TBR isn’t grateful, but I am.
I could’ve reviewed each book as I finished it, but the way the story was cut into three volumes was such that it didn’t make much sense to stop and try to formulate thoughts on the single book. Especially in the jump from the second to the third book, it would’ve been like stopping at the end of a random chapter to review half a book only to immediately resume reading the remaining chapters until the end.
So, no spoilers about the plot, just general considerations.
Perhaps the most impressive thing about this story by a new-to-me author was the characters. Sairis and Roland surprised me at every turn, they were so not what I would’ve expected and that’s not something I take lightly. Reading so many books every year, some aspects of the genre start to feel a little ‘been there, done that.� I don’t want to say much about how they surprised me, because part of the fun reading their story was getting to know them, their past, their strengths and weaknesses, little by little.
I can say that I loved how well rounded and real they felt, their personalities distinct and consistent. I loved the humor that permeates the story and how the romance was a big part of it, but not the main focus. The world bulding was really good, the plot interesting and well paced, with some rather surprising turns, and the perfect setting for what for me was the main appeal: the character growth of...well, basically everybody.
Sairis and Roland, of course. Sairis’s character arc was, or at least felt to me, more prominent and evident, more powerful, in a way, maybe because he seemed less well put-together than Roland at the beginning. Roland’s journey was more subtle, the changes weren’t as obvious throughout the series, or maybe I was the one who overlooked the signals distracted as I was by other things, but they certainly became evident at the end.
The MCs weren’t the only ones to change and grow during the series. A truly remarkable aspect of this trilogy, and a clear sign of very competent writing, was the attention and care poured into outlining basically every character, even the minor ones. They all felt like actual people, their lives and personalities painted vividly, sometimes with just a few sentences. Even the relationships between secondary characters were nuanced in a way rarely reserved for characters with so little page time.
If that wasn’t enough, mention of honor for
My first experience with this author and it definitely won’t be the last!
----------------------------------------------
Thank you to Rosa and Teal for another amazing BR and, in Teal’s case, also for pointing me to another awesome read. My TBR isn’t grateful, but I am.
January 19, 2022
So good! Immediately onto the next. Review later.
“Roland shut his eyes. He could feel Sairis’s heartbeat against his chest—such a fragile thing. ‘It feels like other people’s choices are going to tear us apart.�
‘I’m right here,� whispered Sairis.�
“Roland shut his eyes. He could feel Sairis’s heartbeat against his chest—such a fragile thing. ‘It feels like other people’s choices are going to tear us apart.�
‘I’m right here,� whispered Sairis.�
April 10, 2020
This middle book of the trilogy moves the story forward, including some interesting twists on secondary characters. Roland and Sairis are getting more time together and more communication, adding some depth to their immediate attraction. They remain engaging main characters. There are some additional pieces of the magic puzzle that keep things imaginative and enough action to move the story quickly. One piece of plotting made me roll my eyes a bit, but once past that, I was pleased that I couldn't anticipate all the twists. The ending is again a cliffhanger, so on to book 3.
May 13, 2020
Excellent follow up
Loved it just as much as the first book. I love getting to know more about the characters especially the secondary cast. I love the depth, and complexity this book added to the story, and how things aren't black and white, and people aren't exactly who they seem to be. No stock villains here, and I appreciate that. Can't wait to read the next one.
Loved it just as much as the first book. I love getting to know more about the characters especially the secondary cast. I love the depth, and complexity this book added to the story, and how things aren't black and white, and people aren't exactly who they seem to be. No stock villains here, and I appreciate that. Can't wait to read the next one.
September 30, 2021
Good. Start with part 1. Buy them all in a lump.
September 5, 2024
3.25�3.45 stars??
March 13, 2021
Strong Second Book
E-book and audiobook review.
There many wonderful things about The Knight and the Necromancer , The Border , book 2.
*It's brilliantly and smartly written.
*A world-building that is layered , detailed and fascinating.
*Strong and engaging main and secondary characters with full background story, believable reactions and growth within the arc of story.
*Unique and thrilling plotline.
Kirt Graves narration is splendid
E-book and audiobook review.
There many wonderful things about The Knight and the Necromancer , The Border , book 2.
*It's brilliantly and smartly written.
*A world-building that is layered , detailed and fascinating.
*Strong and engaging main and secondary characters with full background story, believable reactions and growth within the arc of story.
*Unique and thrilling plotline.
Kirt Graves narration is splendid
February 20, 2021
“I never swallowed any of your blood.� Sairis could feel the color rising in his cheeks. “No, you swallowed...something else.�
October 5, 2021
The first half was all right but the second half boring. Most annoying was, after finishing the trilogy, nothing we learn in het second half has any influence on the plot or ending. It is just magic and worldbuilding for the fun of it.
March 17, 2022
This is the BEST series. I can't stop listening.
May 11, 2020
4.5 stars for the trilogy
The Knight and the Necromancer trilogy includes The Capital, The Border, and The Sea. In my opinion they are one story split into three books. There is also a 17-page prequel (Putting the Romance in Necromancy) and a 33-page "second epilogue" (Spring in the Haunted Forest), which I have yet to read. A.H. Lee is a pen name for Abigail Hilton who writes primarily mainstream fantasy and one or two YA titles. The pen name AH Lee is reserved for, in her words, "where I publish my more explicit romances" including "gay romance". You'll laugh, you might cry, you might throw your hand up over your mouth. A truly exceptional story.
So, in a word... outstanding. I am thrilled to be able to add this series to my Best of 2020 list. It's one of the best high fantasy stories I've read in recent memory. As my fellow GR reviewer Teal said in their review: "Fresh, original, full of surprises, and extremely well written and edited". In addition, deftly drawn characters with whom I fell in love, stellar world building, and atmosphere one could cut with a knife. We get to watch the effects of different kinds of magic and a new envisaging of necromancy. I vastly enjoyed the alternating points of view that offered a more complete picture of the relationship between the Knight of the Realm and a young necromancer, and the extraordinary challenges they faced. And can I just say... the action scenes were phenomenal, a rare thing in MM high fantasy. Highly recommended to fans of MM fantasy.
Critique:
1) I hope the author considers unique covers if and when she releases second editions.
2) There are a tiny number of misspellings that need to be fixed, i.e., a structure holding back water is a dam, not a damn.
3) My only disappointment was discovering that a fascinating demonic character in this series, Mal, is the “star� in Lee’s MMF series entitled Incubus Caged. Sadly, I have an aversion to MMF.
The Knight and the Necromancer trilogy includes The Capital, The Border, and The Sea. In my opinion they are one story split into three books. There is also a 17-page prequel (Putting the Romance in Necromancy) and a 33-page "second epilogue" (Spring in the Haunted Forest), which I have yet to read. A.H. Lee is a pen name for Abigail Hilton who writes primarily mainstream fantasy and one or two YA titles. The pen name AH Lee is reserved for, in her words, "where I publish my more explicit romances" including "gay romance". You'll laugh, you might cry, you might throw your hand up over your mouth. A truly exceptional story.
So, in a word... outstanding. I am thrilled to be able to add this series to my Best of 2020 list. It's one of the best high fantasy stories I've read in recent memory. As my fellow GR reviewer Teal said in their review: "Fresh, original, full of surprises, and extremely well written and edited". In addition, deftly drawn characters with whom I fell in love, stellar world building, and atmosphere one could cut with a knife. We get to watch the effects of different kinds of magic and a new envisaging of necromancy. I vastly enjoyed the alternating points of view that offered a more complete picture of the relationship between the Knight of the Realm and a young necromancer, and the extraordinary challenges they faced. And can I just say... the action scenes were phenomenal, a rare thing in MM high fantasy. Highly recommended to fans of MM fantasy.
Critique:
1) I hope the author considers unique covers if and when she releases second editions.
2) There are a tiny number of misspellings that need to be fixed, i.e., a structure holding back water is a dam, not a damn.
3) My only disappointment was discovering that a fascinating demonic character in this series, Mal, is the “star� in Lee’s MMF series entitled Incubus Caged. Sadly, I have an aversion to MMF.
October 9, 2020
**grm**
If we take into consideration these books, one at a time, each one of them is lacking in something. I firmly believe that the author should have published just one bigger book, and not divided this story in a trilogy. If they wanted to get more out of their work, they could have raised the price and not split this into a series. Just my honest opinion, and I think they would have gotten also higher rating like that.
I still liked the story, Sairis is cute as always, but I wanted more romance and more action. Almost for all the book they were raiding somewhere and something happened only in the last chapters. I rated this 3.5 stars, bcs I liked the chars, but the book ended way too abrubtly and again, in a cliffhanger. Really annoying.
If we take into consideration these books, one at a time, each one of them is lacking in something. I firmly believe that the author should have published just one bigger book, and not divided this story in a trilogy. If they wanted to get more out of their work, they could have raised the price and not split this into a series. Just my honest opinion, and I think they would have gotten also higher rating like that.
I still liked the story, Sairis is cute as always, but I wanted more romance and more action. Almost for all the book they were raiding somewhere and something happened only in the last chapters. I rated this 3.5 stars, bcs I liked the chars, but the book ended way too abrubtly and again, in a cliffhanger. Really annoying.
May 25, 2020
Sairis had the desperate notion that no matter how hurt or angry he felt, he would never have the willpower to pull his hand away from Roland Malconwy.
Definitely a better book than the first. Or maybe I just feel that way because I've had more time to gel with the world-building and the plot. Turns out that when it's not confusing, it's pretty well thought out and interesting! I feel like the author has a tendency to slip into modern-ish language, but I noticed that a lot less in this book as compared to the first. I really liked the pace of this one too; it was a roller coaster of different feelings, and it lingered long enough in certain places, but not too long. (I hate, for example, when the super angsty 'oh no we're separated' bits of books drags too long, with nothing in the midst to thin it out make it more palatable or bearable. That didn't happen here!) We get introduced to a few new characters and delve deeper into a couple more, and I love everything about this cast. I want to hug Candice and Mal!!
There were a few great scenes with Roland and Sairis coming to terms with the fact that they care about each other. A lot of intense emotions that I ate up. Roland in general is just the kind of dude I always tend to like: kind, brave, a bit stupid, very loyal. I also really hope the questions of morality that came up are going to continue, or play some part in the third book. Like, I want to see what becomes everyone who doesn't practice "good" magic.
I can't really call this slow-burn, but I do like following the same relationship through multiple books. Looking forward to a HEA for them!
Definitely a better book than the first. Or maybe I just feel that way because I've had more time to gel with the world-building and the plot. Turns out that when it's not confusing, it's pretty well thought out and interesting! I feel like the author has a tendency to slip into modern-ish language, but I noticed that a lot less in this book as compared to the first. I really liked the pace of this one too; it was a roller coaster of different feelings, and it lingered long enough in certain places, but not too long. (I hate, for example, when the super angsty 'oh no we're separated' bits of books drags too long, with nothing in the midst to thin it out make it more palatable or bearable. That didn't happen here!) We get introduced to a few new characters and delve deeper into a couple more, and I love everything about this cast. I want to hug Candice and Mal!!
There were a few great scenes with Roland and Sairis coming to terms with the fact that they care about each other. A lot of intense emotions that I ate up. Roland in general is just the kind of dude I always tend to like: kind, brave, a bit stupid, very loyal. I also really hope the questions of morality that came up are going to continue, or play some part in the third book. Like, I want to see what becomes everyone who doesn't practice "good" magic.
I can't really call this slow-burn, but I do like following the same relationship through multiple books. Looking forward to a HEA for them!
April 11, 2020
4.5 stars
September 7, 2022
I read this one and the third in the series right after each other and can barely remember where one started and the other ended. The romance is so sweet here. Roland is just so devoted and careful and I love it.
September 19, 2020
Once again, like book one, this ended abruptly. Not so much of a cliffhanger, just in the middle of something.
5 stars because there was so much action and the story just flowed. I’m looking forward to the third and final book, The Sea.
5 stars because there was so much action and the story just flowed. I’m looking forward to the third and final book, The Sea.
January 4, 2021
4.5 rounded up
Excellent sequel! Continuing to really love Sairis and Roland's relationship, and the plot and tension is really great! Also very much enjoying the side characters and world building overall!
Excellent sequel! Continuing to really love Sairis and Roland's relationship, and the plot and tension is really great! Also very much enjoying the side characters and world building overall!
April 22, 2020
This was interesting for the history from the losers� side perspective and its impact on character‘s understanding of the world.
November 17, 2020
Highly readable and well-written but not as strong as the first. There are some cool twists, but the plot here is a lot more meandering and punctuated buy looooooong expository monologues filling in the history of various characters. It creates an unbalanced effect in an otherwise action-filled story full of risky escapes, sword play, magic and the like.
Picky point: the identical covers are a giveaway that the story's three volumes comprise a single book--volumes end in cliffhangers that are immediately picked up in the next volume. I don't have a big problem with publishing it as three volumes--it's justified by the length--but generally separate volumes accompany more self-contained stories, which end with some sort of temporary resolution that would allow you to put down the series and pick it up at a later date. Here you will feel like you're stopping mid-scene.
Picky point: the identical covers are a giveaway that the story's three volumes comprise a single book--volumes end in cliffhangers that are immediately picked up in the next volume. I don't have a big problem with publishing it as three volumes--it's justified by the length--but generally separate volumes accompany more self-contained stories, which end with some sort of temporary resolution that would allow you to put down the series and pick it up at a later date. Here you will feel like you're stopping mid-scene.
April 14, 2020
�4.5 Stars�
💗
March 9, 2021
Review at book 3
September 13, 2020
🎆 Read for the 2020 KU Shitathon� challenge - [Mini Edition #3: July-September] - over at Maraya's Cave Of Freaking Wonders 🎆
� Plan A - Book: #5 of 7 �
� Plan A - Book: #5 of 7 �
August 20, 2020
I liked how much faith Roland had. I will say that after what Mardsen did to Sairis I have hard time trusting him. And what he did to other necromancers.
May 30, 2022
After having this “paused� at 52% for over a year because I got bored�.lol bye
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