What happens when the good guy does his very best, but is still unable to reach a happy ending? Coen of Laslea is what happens. Heavy spoilers for Blood of the Dawnwalker ahead, you have been warned. Even the “good” ending of Blood of the Dawnwalker leaves Coen’s future marked by loss. He saves his family, but the life he was fighting to preserve is no longer waiting for him at the end of the journey. Anca, while alive, is lost to him through circumstance. Coen must leave the

There’s no question that stories can shape us. From the moment human beings gained the ability to communicate, we have found ways to tell stories, to preserve warnings, pass down wisdom, and teach lessons. Fiction can be especially effective because the distance from our own reality allows us to recognize certain truths more clearly, without feeling as personally confronted by them. Sometimes, stories give us something we are missing. The good ones offer something we didn’t k