Parno's Gift: The Black Sheep of Soulan, Book 5

I love the concept of this series, the characters are deep, we get to watch them evolve, root for them, cheer when they win, be sad when they don’t. There’s a lot of “military maneuvering” after the first book, and a LOT of characters. Honestly I got a little lost trying to keep them all straight and whose side they were on. There were a lot of things happening in different locations so a lot of characters were needed. The series is well written and it meshes it all together superbly. And I was able to keep up or catch up as it were. There are a number of typos but it doesn’t affect my opinion. Great job NC Reed.

I loved this series. It reached out and grabbed my attention, sucked me straight in and I can't tell what exactly did it.Parno just got to me and I loved the character of Cho Feng, as well as many of the Black Sheep. The women kind of grated at times, but that happens a lot, so maybe it's just me.Relationships were portrayed pretty realistically. Good and bad. Sadly, Parno had a lot of bad, but it forged him into the good, strong man needed to protect his country.It's rare to find a person who has led an idyllic life, yet somehow developed into the kind of person Parno became. I've not ever seen it, IRL or in books. Some angst is required, I think.Parno was forged in fires of hate and pain, yet he became a humble, strong, loyal, decisive leader of men (and women, but primarily men in the Army).His men and their families love him long before his family sees and loves him for who he truly is. A man tested at every turn, who rises to every challenge and perseveres. A man who has a tender heart that he guards brutally, due to a lifetime of necessity.Yet, he learns that not everyone is a danger and there have always been some who cared for him. He loves deeply and is endlessly loyal and generous. Until or unless he is crossed. That's where that brutal guarding of his heart comes into play. He protects Soulan just as brutally.I was fascinated by the amount of research that went into the telling of training and battles. Particularly, calvary battles and deployment were incredibly well drawn. I learned a tremendous amount and it wasn't boring in the least. Sometimes, getting necessary information to the reader can be painfully dry and boring. Not so with this series, thankfully.The author did a great job in how he developed Parno and the Black Sheep. As Parno was constantly shown to be learning, we were constantly learning about Parno. It worked wonderfully well.The whole concept of the Black Sheep was tremendous. Can law breakers be reformed or are they "bad" forever? Is the problem of incarceration in part because of a corrupt system that over punishes and wrongly convicts? Do nepotism and bureaucracy have a part to play in creating a system of haves and have nots that leads to law breaking? Is it just to break an unjust law? What do you do with the criminals if and when they are released? Is there any system that can see them reformed into hard working, law abiding, respectable citizens? Must criminals be forever branded and stripped of essential rights (like bearing arms)? Can they be trusted? Are law breakers only law breakers because they choose to be?There were a lot of characters, on both sides of the war. Incredibly, NC Reed was able to develop most, if not all of them, individually. Even just in passing, you learned enough about the characters to be interested in them and develop like/dislike towards them, to become invested in their growth and long term story.I liked that the author humanized Soulan's enemies, foreign and domestic. You learn motives, beliefs, internal struggles, etc.All of the traitors to the Soulan Crown didn't just decide on a whim, in advance, to betray their Sovereign, their country and their oath to country. However, when they realized what they had done or allowed to happen, they chose to continue on. In particular, the commander of Therron's Prince's Own Regiment, Callens. Also, the Captain of the Soulan Navy ship that "rescued" Therron from his exile in Key Horn.Not all Nor were Godless heathens bent on destruction, without mercy. For instance, Col. Baxter of Norland calvary and nephew of the Emperor. He tried very hard to take care of his men and command. He also refused orders to burn civilian buildings like schools, libraries and hospitals. This has an impact on Parno at the very end of the war. Did Baxter make it back to his pretty girl of good family and warn the emperor off his suicidal idea of conquering Soulan, as Parno told him? Did he lay down his sword forever, as he promised himself, if only he made it back to his girl?Does what's left of the decimated Norland army overthrow their Emperor and establish a more free society?Conclusion: Give us the prequel of Tyree!! It'll be epic.A lot of people who read my reviews know I'm a stickler for proper grammar and editing, (please, God, save the English language!). This series does, like the majority of all e-books these days, suffer from typos and lackluster editing. However, the storytelling overcomes that and I gave one of my very few 5 star reviews for a book/series with many, many instances of poor editing/typos. It occurs throughout all 5 books, but the storytelling is superb and overcomes the natural irritation and hostility I have for people whose whole (paid) job is to proofread and correct mistakes in books and edit them for improved readability, yet fail time and again. Books teach language and botched editing teaches butchered language.

5 book series each one more exciting than the others, I foundmyself galloping through the series along side Parno and thoroughly enjoyed the adventure. The only regret was coming to the end. I really believe this is one of N. C. Reeds best works although I haven't read all of his works yet.

Fingers crossed, everything crossed, that this isn't the last we'd seen of Parno McLeod, crown prince and Lord Marshal of the Soulan Army but before that a feckless, carousing royal, by all accounts. But if this is the capper to the series, maybe I'm okay with it. Things certainly get resolved in PARNO'S GIFT, except, in a way, this book also acts as one extended coda. This fifth installment covers the aftermath of the Soulan army's resounding defeat of the invading Nor forces. Still, the Nor presence in the Soulan kingdom may now only comprise 100,000 beaten men, but they are still 100,000 men, and that's not nothing. And since Parno had yet to rescind flying the black flag - meaning, still no quarter given - what's a cornered enemy got to lose?It's been a minute since I'd read the last book in this series, so it took a chapter or two for me to reconnect with the characters. So, not long at all. N.C. Reed writes memorable characters. In short order, I got reacquainted with Parno and his royal physician Stephanie, and the inscrutable Cho Feng, and with King Memmnon and that uncouth archer phenom, Winnie, who would soon be Queen of Soulan. If she doesn't get herself killed first. Day's young.Maybe some plot spoilers.Winnie's still on her tour of humanitarian aid, if that's what you call it when you go town to town assessing their defenses and teaching archery to their women (and men). At present Winnie and her sizable escort of royal bodyguards are at the town of Jason, a town that Parno McLeod, coincidentally, is getting a nagging feeling about.If the previous novel chronicled the Soulan army's whopping beatdown of the Nor army, this one breaks down what happens when the remaining Tribal raiders just had to sack one last town before they skiddoo. Should we play a game of Guess that Town?It's another unputdownable read for me. I ate it up, the one huge battle and last stand, the character moments that even the minor characters get, and even the bit of morality play as Parno wrestles between showing his enemy clemency and wiping them out to the last man to serve as a cautionary teaching moment for the Nor Empire. This book wraps up all the dangling storylines while leaving open the possibility for a sequel, if the author so wills it, if his readers keep on badgering him.And now the nitpicking. Sucks to say but this book has its share of typos. Most were piddling stuff, but I did randomly highlight two sentences that I had to eyeball twice to understand:- "A wives committed assigns applicants for every job in the Canton." (Chapter 15, "committed" = "committee")- "He's also one of the most vicious fighters I've even seen." (Chapter 18, "even" = "ever")

Excellent,engrossing,uplifting piece of work. I don't *do * reviews, ever. I read the entire series in a matter of days, I forgot to eat, bathe, well maybe that is an exageration, but well done and thank you!

Good series, please don't start here but find the first book and start reading.Good conclusion, with great closure but an open window to continue with Parno's story. Hope it continues some day.

This is the fifth and last in the Parno saga. I liked them all. This one wrapped everything up in a satisfactory way. Good series. If we ever send a Southland army up north to smite the northerners, I'll buy a copy.

The wait seems like forever, at last, the return of Parno.This five book series is like no other I have read.I will not spoil any future readers enjoyment with any plot details.Buy them, read and enjoy them, I can give no other advice.Five stars, nowhere near enough.Thank you Mr Reed.

really enjoyed this and hope the author continues this series onwards into the enemy lands ;)one of the best such series I have read in a long time and heartily recommend it!

Thank you so much for this series. I really enjoyed the depth of the characters’ personalities and I found that I read all the books in the entire series in 1 week! To say I couldn’t put them down is an understatement.

I have read N C Reeds other series Fire and did not think it could be topped...I was wrong. This was a true page Turner. I couldn't put all five down. I would strongly recommend this series for people who are looking for a great read.

Many thanks to the author. I’d love to give the Parno series 6 stars, and I truly hope Parno’s Gift is not the last. C’mon, Mr Reed, there has to be more to this story! How about a long chat with Netflix?