The Arm of The Sphinx (The Books of Babel #2)

I had this in my hands within days of finishing the first book and shortly after that I was done and bitching about the lack of a third book.

Now not to insult the first book but Bancroft somehow makes the extraordinary events and revelations of Senlin Ascends seem almost mundane in comparison to the incredible goings on within The Arm of The Sphinx. If you’ve only read the first book you’ll no doubt think this impossible and I have gone completely mad.

Thomas Senlin has grown and changed but still maintains the integrity and intelligence that has drawn his crew to him like a magnet. His wild but thoughtful plans for pirating have kept the Stone Cloud afloat and he has even developed a reputation among other sailors….as the guy that only takes a tenth of your cargo. I honestly burst out laughing at this revelation as for me it just summed up the enigmatic qualities of our protagonist and why his journey up the tower was worth watching above all others. There is also a sense that other characters, not just his crew, but those that know and realise the inner workings of the Tower, also see something unique in Senlin’s approach to his quest. He has become the guy you let into the exclusive club, not due to intimidation, but because you sense he is bigger than the world outside and will makes yours more interesting should he grace it with his presence.

Some other POVS are introduced and we get to learn much more about the crew and their own motivations and desires for serving on the Stone Cloud. They are all interesting paths and watching the relationship between Adam and Voleta grown and change was particularly satisfying. We discover more about Iren and her past and spend many hours worrying about Edith and her future. It’s all brilliant stuff.

Readers are also treated to the appearance of the Sphinx, more mystery than man and the one figure capable of imbuing normal people with inhuman mechanical additions. Everything scene between the Sphinx and Voleta was great fun and magical in every sense of the word.

I always found myself looking forward to the coming of every chapter because of the small excerpts at the top of the page. In the first book they were mostly from the Everyman’s Guidebook and as we discovered Marya’s fate they shifted to pieces from Senlin’s own writings Every Mans Tower as the safety net of the for that false reality was no longer needed. If the first book was about discovery this second one seems more related to duty and the desire to crush any sense of creativity or burgeoning sense of self, perhaps anything that may threaten the status quo.. With The Wifely Way telling us “Take stock of your virtues. Aspire within your means. No one admires the bird who sings over the orchestra” and Folkways and Right of Ways in The Silk Garden expressing “Should you every be tempted to dip your toes in the Garden’s aquifiers, just remember where the water flows. One man’s broth becomes another man’s brew” there is definitely an attempt to beat down the readers and put them in their place.

This is a ridiculously well written second book and simply one of the best and most unique fantasy series I’ve picked up. It drew me further into this amazing world whilst making me painfully aware the journey had only just begun. I enjoyed every second of reading and was suitably gobsmacked on the final page that a silent ‘fuck me’ and ‘well done’ were uttered to an empty room.

Oh the places you’ll go.