The previous book, The Book of Koli, was solely in our young protagonist’s head, and the major difference here is that we also learn of what befalls the small community that exiled Koli, as we are also in the first-person viewpoint of Spinner. She featured largely in Koli’s life before he went on the run, so it was interesting to see her take on what happened. I would just mention that there are series where you can crash midway into them without too much trouble – this isn’t one of them. Essentially this is an overarching narrative that has been chopped into book-sized segments and if you try picking up what is going on, while you’ll probably get gist, there is far too much of importance that you’ll have missed.

Once again, we have the broken, ungrammatical language that helps define the worldbuilding, partly to give an indication of the length of time that has elapsed and partly to show rather than tell of the lack of education and erosion of knowledge. It’s an issue that is bound to divide readers – some tolerate, some loathe, and others absolutely love it. I’m in the latter category and find it really helps me get immersed in the world. Koli isn’t travelling alone. He’s accompanied by a grumpy older woman who is a travelling healer and has come to a grim conclusion about the viability of humankind – hence the journey to try and locate a more organised settlement with a large population.

I really enjoyed this second slice of the adventure. We see and learn more about Koli’s companions, as well as also discovering more about the capabilities of the technology they are using. I particularly enjoyed seeing how another community, living near the sea, manages to exist. And it was refreshing to also realise that not every settlement in this dystopian view of the future is innately hostile or aggressive. This second book is well paced, with plenty going on, as well increasing what is at stake and how important it is that Koli and his companions succeed. If I have a concern, it’s how Carey is going to combine the two strands of his story – that of Mythen Rood and Koli’s fortunes – in the final book, The Fall of Koli, which is due to come out in March next year. I don’t want to have to wait too much longer to discover what happens next. While I obtained an arc of The Trials of Koli from the publishers via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
9/10

Loved the first part of the Rampart Trilogy so I was keen to read the second part. I wasn’t disappointed as we join Koli on his journey in this mysterious world with strange beasts, shunned men and choker trees whose deadly seeds can prove fatal. He travels with his companions Cup and Ursula hoping to save what’s left of humanity. The story is told in alternating sections by the semi-literate Koli and Spinner who uses more intelligent language. Koli also has a piece of technology which is an extremely advanced portable music player with artificial intelligence called Monomo who takes a major part in this extremely imaginative story.
If you haven’t read the first book you could jump in here but I’d recommend reading the first part of the Rampart Trilogy - The Book of Koli as you will find it much more rewarding.
The book leaves you on a cliff edge waiting for the third and final part. A fascinating book with great original ideas.

Koli is back, telling the story of this dystopian world in his own unique way. It’s not the fastest paced read, but it has a rhythm of its own, it’s full of clever details and fantastic, well developed characters.

It’s really building the background of this world with a bit more detail than Book 1, more about The Ramparts, Spinner and this world they live in.

Can Koli keep his charming innocence?......roll on Book 3.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an eARC of The Trials Of Koli. This is my honest and unbiased review

The Trials of Koli is the second book in the Rampart trilogy and follows on from the events in the first book, as you'd expect. What you'd perhaps not expect is that, despite it being a first person narrative written by Koli, half of this book is a first person narrative written by Spinner. At no point does it give an explanation as to why Spinner is writing in a book supposedly written by Koli (I'm assuming the author doesn't want to give away a spoiler that the two characters will eventually meet back up ... but just by virtue of them sharing the page space equally he kind of implies that).

Spinner was the character that I didn't think I necessarily needed. As it turns out, she was the character we all absolutely needed. To start with, I found her quite hard to like what with how her character is, but I soon found myself loving her sections. It answers so many questions that Koli can only dream at. What did Spinner truly think of him? What happened in Mythen Rood after he had been cast out? Will the Ramparts' stranglehold on power continue unchallenged?

Spinner's parts add great depth to The Trials of Koli, depth that, were it not there, would kind of make the naming of the trilogy sort of pointless. With her being there, though, we are given a pretty complete look at the world and the happenings within it. The people of Mythen Rood continue to be vibrant characters rather than just footnotes in Koli's memory. It really helps to give a sense that the rest of the world is truly moving with Koli rather than just being a series of events that had happened to him.

Other characters such as Cup, Ursala and, even Koli have been fleshed out in far greater detail. Although it's first person, Koli tells it more from the viewpoint of a chronicler rather than from his being the focal point of everything that is happening. Due to this we get so much more depth and discovery where other characters are concerned. In that way, it's truly unlike most first person narratives I have read.

I love the world that Carey has created. It's a unique blend of deadly flora, resilient fauna and populated by a people who have only very recently seemingly crawled out of the most recent Dark Age. Everything from intelligence to basic understandings of technologies we take for granted have been hampered. The people of this new world are a people whose only goal is to survive in a land that wants nothing more than for them to die.

Carey's style of writing reflects that, told as it is in the distinctive, almost uneducated way that his characters talk. On occasion certain correct pronunciations mentioned by other characters make it into to Koli's narrative which, like in the first book, begs the question as to why he can't either get it right all the time or simply write it how he would normally ... but I digress. That's only a minor drawback and not one that really impacts on my enjoyment. It is, however, one failing of the first person approach.

The first book in the series was an enjoyable read that had me wanting more the moment I put it down. This book is by far the better book of the two and has me absolutely devastated that the third book will be the final one. 

If things continue in this trend of the current book being great where the previous book was good, I can't imagine how wonderful book three could be.

I didn't think that the second book in the series could be better than the first, but M.R. Carey did it! Bringing in Spinner's point of view into the story was a genius idea. It gives us a new perspective onto the whole situation and helps us understand what happened to the other characters and how they behaved while Koli was away.

As for Koli himsel, he's still growing up and becoming more mature, discovering more of the world and learning how to deal with hopes and disappointments. The trio he forms with Cup and Ursala - 4 if you include Monono, of course - is funny and dysfunctional, and yet they grow closer to each other every day and they manage to survive while trying to save the world.

I can't wait to see how they do it!

Ah!!! I loved the first book and this one is just as good. We pick the story straight up again (as if it was just the next chapter, no messing), with Koli, Ursula and Cup en route to London to find the signal.

We also keep in touch with Koli’s village, and find out what happened after he left. Secrets and told...

So, Koli certainly (and the rest certainly do have some trials)...no spoilers...but that ending!!!! You can’t leave us hanging like that!!!!!! Noooo!!!!

Wonderful wonderful wonderful!

My thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK

Picking up immediately after the events of The Book of Koli, this second part of the Rampart trilogy begins with Koli heading South, desperately seeking a way to halt the decline of the human race. He is, of course, still accompanied by Monono, the AI resident of an entertainment console, changed considerably since he first met her by this point. But it’s not just Koli’s story this time round.

The first thing you’ll notice upon opening The Trials of Koli is that the contents is divided into sections - some for Koli and some for Spinner, his best friend and one-time lover. Koli narrates his journey to find the mysterious Sword of Albion, whilst Spinner tells us of events in Mythen Rood. These two narrators differ greatly from one another, with Spinner not only coming across as better educated than Koli - her grammar being considerably more advanced than his - but also distinct from him in personality, with some of her values and ideals not only differing from his but also differing from what he thought they were himself. Koli’s banishment is given a different slant in Spinner’s version of events, and it’s interesting to see this story from another perspective, as well as seeing the ramifications of it.

Spinner’s account doesn’t just cover Koli’s flight though, taking us some way past it and letting us see how the Ramparts and the village they rule have fared since his discoveries. There is more exploration of one of the major themes of The Book of Koli in this storyline, specifically, power: how it is won (or seized), how it is retained (sometimes unjustifiably) and how it is used (or exploited). Carey stops short of obvious pointing of fingers or overt satire here, showing us that there isn’t necessarily an easy answer for everything, and what’s right for some might be antithetical to others. It’s one of numerous complex issues raised, and it’s handled with as much skill and lightness of touch as we’ve come to expect at this point, inviting us to draw our own conclusions on some of the decisions taken.

Elsewhere, other issues raised tend to be the ones Koli finds himself embroiled in, and they range from debates around gender and sexuality, to environmentalism, to artificial intelligence and the nature of being. Relayed in Koli’s unique voice, it’s almost as if these huge, hot button issues are boiled down to their barest fundamentals, any counterpoint that might be raised against his reasoning falling flat in the face of Koli’s guileless sense of right and wrong. Just as his descriptions of something mundane from our world that he’s trying to make sense of encourage us to look at it anew, his assessment of these hotly debated issues invites fresh thinking. Carey’s unerring ability to empathetically see things from Koli’s perspective, capturing his sense of fear and wonder at the sight of things we take for granted, is just as powerful as in the previous instalment, imbuing the narrative with the same distinctive fable-like quality.

But what of the more overt hazards in Koli’s world? Well, anyone who was hoping for more run-ins with the deadly flora and fauna than the first book had is in luck here, as Koli’s journey forces him to cross paths with a number of deadly critters, as well as those altered, carnivorous trees. In particular, the horrific choker seeds are described in gruesome detail; you might well flinch away from sycamore pods after reading. Additionally, we’re given more insight into how different pockets of humanity are eking out a living in this harsh and unforgiving landscape. At times, it borders on some kind of anthropological study, with settlements having different languages, traditions and beliefs, and adapting to their surroundings in different ways. Sometimes this might be through repurposing parts of the old world, whilst in others it’s a case of living off the land. Just as in The Book of Koli, reading about humanity’s tenacious survival is always relentlessly interesting.

The Trials of Koli does so much more than just continue the story of the first book, managing to be even more ambitious and emotionally impactful. Where The Book of Koli took root, The Trials of Koli bears strange and wondrous fruit, tackling big ideas in an engaging way and with a deft touch. It expands upon both the wider world of Ingland and the much smaller one of Mythen Rood, splitting the narration between two different, distinct voices to do so. Both storylines are also perfectly paced, building to climactic moments in turn and promising huge payoffs to come. Payoffs which I can’t wait to see.

Koli has managed to pull me into a genre that rarely draws my attention, I have to admit that I am not typically a YA fiction fan. There are also so many tropes that I would normally find off putting. A dystopian future! A dialect language! Sentient AI! Shifting perspectives! Somehow, the author continues to just get it right. Ingland is familiar (of course) and so too is the idea of our own narcissistic destruction. I am constantly presented with questions that I want the answer to, and never find myself bored. These are characters that I want to continue to get to know, including Monono, a digital Pinnochio. I'm two books in and I don't have a clue where this is going, I just wish I could say that about more trilogy series. Can't wait for the final installment.

In this dystopian world, Koli's voice brings some comfort and compassion to the harsh realities that he lives in. Following directly on from the events of 'The Book of Koli' (which you do need to read first) this second instalment in the trilogy opens up in ways I hadn't foreseen.

Koli (and his delightful phonetic way of talking) is still centre of the book and it was fantastic to catch up with him and observe his growing confidence, his relationship with Monono as well as Ursula and Cup, and his sensitive side, despite being hard as nails. On their journey to London, they encounter other groups of people who have different ways of coping with their reality. They are attacked by a Half Ax group who use brutality and aggression to try and retain power, but experience a kinder society in the village of Many Fishes. On their journey Koli learns more about how the world has come to be, the true horrors of what has been and still maintains his hope that he can do something to try and secure a better future for humanity.

Adding new depth to the story is the voice of Spinner. She stayed in Mythen Rood and has learned the secrets of the Vennastin family. She sees that the world has been ruled by those who use secrecy and nepotism to remain powerful and secure their dominant position may be detrimental to their village in more ways than one, and following an attack from Half Ax starts to understand how precarious their way of life is unless things change.

It is a cracking read and ends on a suitable cliffhanger whetting my appetite for the final instalment in the trilogy.

My thanks go to the publishers and Net Galley for the advance copy in return for an honest review.

‘This Savage Land’

Why everyone isn’t reading Mike Carey’s ‘The Rampart Trilogy’ I don’t know. I simply cannot wait until the next instalment of this story hits my reading lists, it is simply brilliant and everyone should read it.

The Trials of Koli is the second book in ‘The Ramparts Trilogy’ and follows our hero Koli and the rest of the crew as they travel in search of the ‘Sword of Albion’. Their quest takes them through the savage land of England and what it has become following catastrophic environmental disaster and the subsequent devastating wars that have led the world to become a place that is full of cannibalistic tribes, ecological predators and a dark force that is exerting its will to take over the known world.

This second instalment moves the story of Koli, Ursula, Monono and Cup through a wider world as they travel through the devastated lands of England (or Ingland as it it referred to in the story) closer to ‘The Sword of Albion’ that is coming from the mythical city of London.

Whilst Mike Carey’s story is set in a dystopian future of England, its feet are firmly planted in epic fantasy and has all the tropes of that genre that has hooked a diehard fantasy reader like me. For instance, it has the mythical quest for ‘The Sword of Albion’ which is not entirely what you might expect, it has the party that comprises of a wizard (Ursala), the Fighter (Cup) and the quester (Koli) all with an end goal to save the world.

In the first book, the main protagonist is Koli, with the story being narrated from his perspective and focussing on how he came to be ‘shunned’ and subsequently thrown out of his warm blanket of a life in the village of Mythen Rood and his survival following his expulsion. However, this book introduces another point of view and we spend time with Koli’s former love, Spinner. The points of view move between these two points of view and simultaneously expands Koli’s Story whilst showing what happens in the village of Mythen Rood following Koli’s expulsion through Spinner’s eyes, and also develops a separate character and another storyline. So effectively setting up two separate stories that share an equal billing.

Now one of the things that I find particularly brilliant is the language that Carey uses. However, I know that some people might find it a bit problematic because the narration is written in a mix of pigeon english and broad yorkshire colloquialisms that some people may find it difficult to get along with, for instance Koli will often say that he has ‘et’ his food, which transcribes as he ate his food. And in another, when Spinner describes her meeting with ‘Rampart Remember’ who is a member of the ruling elite in Mythen Rood who is tasked with getting information from an ancient piece of technology from the world before the one that exists now, she describes hat she ‘done him a courtesy’ meaning she gave him a curtsy. However, I strongly urge you to keep going with it and you soon lose your preconception that this may be difficult to read and thoroughly get swept away in the story .

All in all, this is a fantastic story that left me wanting more and cannot wait until the conclusion comes in 2021.

I loved "The Book of Koli", the first book in the "Rampart Trilogy"... and I loved "The Trials of Koli" even more. From the first sentence, I was back in Koli's world and feeling like I'd never left. Now I've finished, I want to go back. Koli & Co. are definitely my people. This second book moves the story on perfectly, starting and ending at excellent points. I said in my review for book 1 that the writing, plot, and characters were perfect. Book 2 shines brighter. I'm in love with this series!

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advance copy to review. This review is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

The Trials of Koli is the second book in MR Carey’s Koli trilogy. The series is based in a post-apocalyptic Britain where small communities eke out an existence using old pieces of technology to protect themselves against a dangerous world. This is a world in which not only new a vicious creatures but trees themselves will kill you if you are not careful. As the first book revealed, having small communities almost cut off from each other is shrinking the gene pool, making long term survival in this world increasingly less tenable. Being the second book of a trilogy, this review will necessarily contain spoilers for book one.

The Trials of Koli opens not long after the end of The Book of Koli. Koli and his companion Ursala are heading south to find London, which is also the source of a mysterious signal identifying itself as the Sword of Albion. With them as a prisoner is Cup, acolyte of the crazy messianic cult that Koli and Ursala burnt to the ground, and the artificial intelligence Monono who speaks to Koli from a music player. As well as Koli’s story, this volume has a second narration, that of Spinner, the woman who Koli lusted after but who married his best friend. Spinner’s tale, besides going over some old ground from a different perspective, brings the reader back to Koli’s village and the tribulations it experiences after his departure. The two narrative strands have a few common elements (in particular the aggressive forces of Half-Ax), but do not in any way come together in this volume.

The Book of Koli was standard post-apocalyptic origin story, with the main character learning that his world is bigger than he thought and leaving to see the world. The Trials of Koli is, if anything, more of the same, on a slightly bigger canvas. Koli and his crew visit the ruins of Birmingham and then spend most of the book with a welcoming coastal community with whom they have to make a deal in order to continue their journey on water. Along the way the four – Koli, Ursala, Cup and even the AI – become a de facto family. The world feels slightly larger by the end of the book but not by much (although a cliffhanger ending again hints at more). Meanwhile Spinner’s story comes across as Koli’s story retold in a not too different voice and if he had found a modicum of acceptance in the community for his crimes. The beats are the same, the revelations are the same, although the outcome for Spinner is different.

There is plenty of post-apocalyptic fiction out there, particularly set in the greening ruins of Britain. Besides a few strange animals and some deadly plants, the Koli series does not do much to set itself apart from these. That coupled with the idiosyncratic, simplified narration style and a distinct lack of forward movement make this one of the least engaging of the bunch. As noted, there is a bit of cliffhanger and some promise of some more interesting developments to come in book three, it is just a shame that it felt like such a long slog to get there and that those revelations are still to be made.

The second book in the Rampart Trilogy follows Koli and his friends as they continue their journey to find the long lost city of London in an attempt to save humankind.

Let me start by saying that this book shouldn't be read without having first read the Book of Koli. The story picks up smoothly from where it left off. I really enjoyed watching the relationship between Monono, Ursula and Cup evolving. I loved the new addition of Spinner's point of view, and I truly enjoyed learning of the things that happened in Mythen Rood since Koli left. I hope that Koli's and Spinner's paths will cross in the future.
The narration is strange, but since I was used to it already, it took me no time to get into the story.
It was a good and entertaining read full of adventures, but if you don't like cliffhangers then better hold off reading it before the last book is released. I'm looking forward to the final book in this trilogy.

The Trials of Koli is book 2 of the Rampart Trilogy. BOOK TWO. Do not pass without reading book one! Some series are forgiving of you jumping in without catching up first - this one isn't.

The main character, Koli, has an unusual voice - talking in a sort of dialect that comes from decades of man going without reading or writing. Jump in here and he'll probably just get on your nerves. Start from the
beginning and he's kind of endearing.

He lives in some sort of post-apocalyptic England where old tech is rare and even less often understood. He takes a long journey to London in this book, looking for a mysterious signal with his healer friend Ursula, prisoner Cup and a virtual girl.

In this book there's a new POV - Spinner, the girl Koli was in love with in the previous title. She's still in his home village, coming of age and making her way in the world. She moves in with the family that holds all the tech in the village and gets a lot more than she expects in the process...

She's a welcome addition for me - I enjoyed her perspective and her story. In some ways it felt more engaging than Koli's at times (perhaps I was just missing Mythen Rood). By the end of the book I was desperate to find out what was happening next (and if/how/when the two stories might combine), only to be met by the final page. Argh!

I have a long wait until the next one, sigh!

So in short, this is a strong post-apocalyptic epic adventure and I'm really looking forward to the reveals on the horizon in book three.

spoiler alert ** 3.5 stars

It only took a few sentences before I could hear Koli narrating his part of the story.. the joy of a second book,you know the character.
He's a lot more to put up with in this part of his tale,travelling not just with two females with attitude,but tech with attitude too.
With that attitude often comes humour.

Spinner back home seems to be doing a good job of getting herself into all manner of scrapes too.

This book works perfectly for getting everyone where they should be,for when the hardest part of the journey comes. So far it's been an enjoyable ride.