Reaper at the Gates

Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir, 458 pages.

In the previous volume of this series there was a big shift away from the magic-tinged, but ordinary battle. The battle, fought by people with modest, but helpful powers, shifted from the one being fought on behalf of the downtrodden, the scholars, and others, and against the emperor and against his commandant to one against some more powerful, mythical creatures.
The third (and obviously not the final) volume continues the battle against the Nightbringer and the djinn and the Commandant, who is fighting on their side for her own particular reasons. We're given information to show that the Commandant's motives are maybe not quite purely evil and self-serving, and we're shown that maybe Elias Venturius maybe stuck as the Soul Catcher for a good part of eternity (or maybe not). All-in-all, a fast-paced and engaging middle volume. I'm looking forward to the fourth (and maybe the subsequent) volume(s).