Grey Sister is a big improvement over its predecessor

Grey Sister ups the stakes for Nona Grey’s world, but Mark Lawrence also goes beyond her to spend time with other, sometimes more interesting, characters.

Red Sister debuted a year ago, introducing readers to Nona Grey. If you’ll recall, I found the story interesting but still had a few problems with the book. Enter Grey Sister, sent to me by Ace a year later, and it seems as though author Mark Lawrence has stepped up his game a little bit when it comes to making sure Nona Grey and her fellow nuns leave a mark on those who read their stories.

Grey Sister picks up quite some time — two years — after Red Sister closes, and it’s hard not to make the inevitable comparison to The Empire Strikes Back in terms of where we find Nona: stronger, in danger, eventually separated from her friends and about to make some big discoveries when it comes to how her world works and has been shaped in the past.

Much like Empire, Grey Sister jumps between a few perspectives, mainly those of Sister Kettle, a Grey Sister (read: assassin); Abbess Glass, leader of the Convent of Sweet Mercy; and Nona herself, now that much closer to becoming a full sister. This doesn’t detract from the book. Rather, it makes it feel stronger, because Kettle, Glass and Nona are in three very different stages of their lives.

That also means that Lawrence has a lot to handle with these three women. While Nona and Kettle end up more tied than you might imagine (no spoilers, of course), it’s really Glass’ sections that serve as the most interesting. Caught in conflict with other aspects of the Church, Glass has a clarity about her, pun intended, of course. This makes it really easy to enjoy the machinations going on in her sections.

But Nona, of course, is still the main character and still has the most growing to do. Most of her sections involve the presence of Keot. In the preceding author’s note, something Lawrence retains from Red Sister, he tells readers not to worry about him. But it’s hard not to worry about Keot’s presence (and who he is). It is a testament to how relatable Nona is. This book does better in exploring her anger in particular.

At the same time, though, it’s still hard to keep all of the different terms straight. The author’s note does a far better job than it probably should have to in order to clarify things for readers, since it lays things out in particularly plain terms. Yes, this is fantasy. A few arcana here and there are not just expected, but required.

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Still, Grey Sister should reward those who may have had some struggles getting through Red Sister. It’s my hope that the next book improves still further.