The Slog continues.

Our Second Apocalypse reread moves into The Warrior Prophet by R. Scott Bakker, and it doesn’t take long before we’re questioning everything we thought we understood.

In this episode, we discuss the opening section of the novel, including Kellhus’s surprising limitations, Achamian’s struggle with what Kellhus might be, the continuing march of the Holy War, and the haunting connections to the First Apocalypse.

We also dig into some of Bakker’s biggest mysteries: the Heron Spear, the Nail of Heaven, the Inchoroi, and what ancient technology might be hiding beneath the fantasy world of Eärwa.

And then there’s the battle itself: an enormous, chaotic sequence that leads to plenty of disagreement about Bakker’s approach to warfare and raises even more questions about the history buried beneath the Holy War’s path.

As always with this reread, we’re looking at these early chapters knowing where the entire seven-book journey eventually leads and finding connections we never noticed the first time.

⚠️ Full-series spoilers: This discussion contains spoilers for all seven books of The Second Apocalypse.

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