My time at Sci-Fi Magazine before it folded was a great opportunity to discover books and series I would never have picked up on my own otherwise. One of those was The Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu. The first book of The War Arts Saga, it was a sprawling action-adventure with deep and tangled lore and—as strange as it is to say about a book—exceptional fight choreography.

Finding out that a book is the first in a series generally summons up one of two feelings: despair or excitement. And that all depends on how the book presents itself. The Art of Prophecy told enough of a story that one could walk away satisfied. Yes, there was a cliffhanger, but not one that gave the impression that you'd inadvertently overcommitted and gotten no payoff in the first few hundred pages. Each book is robust, full of story and worldbuilding, and yet somehow leaves you craving more.

The Art of Destiny continues in a similar vein. While there's enough exposition scattered throughout the book to get new readers up to speed, they'll miss out on quite a bit—especially when it comes to our hero's journey. To refresh, our hero is Jian: prophesied to save the world from the evil of the Eternal Khan, he was raised in luxury and trained by the kingdom's finest masters. But while he was busy being soft, spoiled, and coddled, a random soldier killed the Khan. Throughout the first book, Jian goes on the run with Taishi, the only master who truly believed in him. As she tries to protect him from the people who want him dead, the world around them rumbles with magic and political turmoil.

Now in the second book of the series, we spread our gaze across three groups of people. Jian continues his training—still an affable meathead under Taishi's watchful eye, but clearly growing by leaps and bounds. Time is growing short, as Taishi is ailing and wishes to pass her abilities on to her heir so he can chase down his destiny, whatever it may be. Meanwhile Salminde, a former ally of the deceased Khan, seeks to save her own life by freeing herself of the portion of his soul that still resides within her. And the assassin Qisami goes on an undercover mission that places her right in the middle of a twisted political conflict. Before the book concludes, these three stories will cross, once again twisting fate.

One thing I particularly love about Wesley Chu's writing is that he's not afraid to have characters get a bit silly. There are legitimate laugh-out-loud moments peppered through the drama, death, and deception. Most of all, though, I love his fight scenes. The combat all throughout the War Arts Saga is masterfully written, detailed and exciting. It's like a martial arts movie jumping right off the page. Writing combat in prose is hard; Chu makes it look as effortless as his own war artists in action.

I can't recommend The Art of Destiny enough... but I also highly recommend picking up and reading The Art of Prophecy first. It's a saga that deserves to be experienced in full.

The Art of Destiny goes on sale October 10.