When I read book 1, Three Parts Dead, I got a story that completely blew apart my expectations. So, when it came to book 2, I was a little more prepared for the world that awaited me. I still was surprised and enchanted by not only how different this series is, but how much it completely works for me. 
 Take your everyday corporate structure - contract law, risk management, acquisitions, and chuck it into a maelstrom of a world where gods and human mages battled, and the humans won. It is a world still in recovery and still out of balance. 
 Caleb Altemoc is a risk manager for one of the Deathless Kings, a very powerful mage who slew gods in the war and is now head of a ginormous corporation. He is called in when demons are found in the water supply. His search for answers brings him into contact with the crafty cliff runner Mal and points fingers at his father, one of the last of the gods warriors and a known terrorist. Personal and professional tumble together as danger rises. 
 I enjoyed the characters and the relationships. It gives a different view of the world than the one we see in book 1 and expands on more of the issues affecting this world out of balance. In no way was life perfect under the old gods. However, it's not perfect under the mages either. There is a lot of room for growth or further despair. 
 I'm really looking forward to where Gladstone takes us in the next book.