Vigor Mortis: Volume 2

More Light-hearted Existential Terror

Review by: The Audiobook ReviewSince it had been a little while since listening to the first book, I revisited that one before diving into Volume 2 to reacquaint myself with what was going on. Our main character, Vita, continues to go from strength to strength as she becomes more in tune with her soul control. We're also treated to an intertwined storyline as told by a particularly vicious monster. They're both separate and intertwined at the same time, with (I'm guessing) more to come of this in future books.

Natalie Maher, the author, continues their exploration of the human psyche and what makes humans human. Vita continues to question existence. Meanwhile, the monster in the side story learns much about what it is to be human. Both struggle to fit into a world that isn't designed for them.

Penelope, Vita's teammate biomancer (healer), grows quite interestingly as a character in her own right. While there was obviously something bubbling below the surface, we get a real idea of just what drives Penelope... and it's rather interesting to behold. No spoilers, though, so you'll need to listen to find out for yourself.

Narration by Jessica Almasy was again fantastic; however, much like the first one, the post-production side let her down. Some strange pacing and pauses here and there, background noises, and one particularly noticeable where the voice was mismatched. Enough again to make a note of, but nothing that would stop me from listening again or picking up the next one when it's available.


So another enjoyable foray into the light-hearted existential terror created by Maher. At a full eight hours longer than the first, there's masses of story here with some of the long-game hinted at, which has me intrigued at what comes next. Bring on volume three!