Drumindor

A disgruntled craftsman with a grudge sounds like small stakes — until you learn his name is Berling and his target is Drumindor, a fortress so legendary it exists more as myth than military installation. What begins as an easy, well-paid assignment for the roguish duo known as Riyria unravels into something far larger, far darker, and far more personal than either man bargained for. Sullivan has always understood that the best fantasy adventures aren't really about saving the world — they're about two people who would rather not save it but do anyway, because of who they are to each other.

What sets this installment apart is how confidently Sullivan rewards long-term readers while keeping the pages turning for newcomers. His prose is clean and purposeful, never showy, which gives the banter between Royce and Hadrian room to breathe and the tension room to bite. The pacing feels deceptively effortless — scenes that seem like detours turn out to be load-bearing walls. After five books, the friendship at the heart of Riyria has deepened into something genuinely earned, and that emotional weight makes the final act land harder than it has any right to.