Unlike the first book, Armageddon's Children (also reviewed on this site), which was all about a post-apocalyptic world, this one has one foot in this SF setting, and the other firmly in the fantasy world of the elves, far more reminiscent of the Shannara books. We are given a better look, too, at the past lives of some of the Ghosts, something which would have been even better in the first book, as it might have made them seem less shadowy. But making the book a split of two styles from opposite ends of the fantasy / SF spectrum is a neat idea, and might well serve to tempt fans of one style into trying the other. It is also the sort of book where pages turn like magic, due to Brooks' enviable storyteller style which holds the reader's interest even when nothing much is happening. Parts of it do tread water in a book two manner, but the introduction of the elves saves the tale from being a rehash of the first book. As ever, Brooks spins the straw of standard fantasy / SF fare into the gold of a bestseller. It's the way he tells them!