Always Walk Forward

Always Walk Forward, Billy Wong, Amazon Digital Services, 2016

This fantasy novel is about Vincent and Sam (female) and Drea. They are part of a theater troupe in the city of Belimia. Drea is an obvious fighting expert who tries to make their fight scenes look as real as possible. There is a late night knock on the door. The Paladins have come for Eli, another member of the troupe. Think of them as the secret police; they have kidnapped many people in the past. Vincent and Sam are determined to save Eli, despite their lack of fighting ability. Drea agrees to go with them.

For many years, humans have lived in domed cities. This is because of the ongoing war between daimons and anjeli (demons vs angels). In their travels, Drea tries to teach Sam and Vincent some basic fighting skills. They also meet daimons of various sizes. Some are easy to kill; others, not so much. After one such battle, Drea is seriously injured, but she shrugs it off like it's only a scratch. She suddenly decides to head back to Belimia, but points Sam and Vincent to a nearby city. There they meet Lady Cordelia, who would love to take down the Paladins, permanently. She is also very skilled with a sword. The trio also picks up Giorg, an anjeli with an injured wing.

After much traveling, they find Eli in an underground compound. He says that he is there voluntarily. It seems that he has considerable magic talent, and the Paladins are helping him to develop it. Sam decides to stay and make sure that it is the truth, while the others leave. What follows is a long time in a jail cell for Sam, manacled to a bed. Eventually, Sam breaks out of the compound, and goes back to Vincent and Lady Cordelia. Eli is taken to the capital. There, they learn that he has been taken somewhere else. They also learn that the ultimate plan of the Paladins for Eli is a lot more nefarious than first thought. Who survives the final battle? Does the Paladin organization collapse, once and for all?

The author loves heroic fantasy stories, especially with strong female characters, and it shows. There is lots of good writing, and the (many) fight scenes are well done. Yes, this one is very much worth the reader's time.