The Lessons Never Learned
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- Create Date：2021-05-09 10:54:51
- Update Date：2025-09-13
- Status：finish
- Author：Rob J. Hayes
- ISBN：0957666853
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
I am the weapon。
Eskara is free of the Pit， but far from safe。 She is beset by the ghosts of those she has killed， and plagued by the ancient horror that possesses her。 Enemies dog her heels， determined to see the last Orran Sourcerer dead。 Worse still， there is new player in the game， one far more dangerous than anything she has faced before。
But there is one place that might offer her both the safety she needs to survive， and the power she needs to strike back; Ro'shan， the flying home of a God。
Eska will soon learn that all power comes with a cost， and some prices are too high。
An emotional roller coaster in this unique coming of age story。 Perfect for fans of Patrick Rothfuss and Mark Lawrence， be one of the first dive into Award-Winning Author Rob J。 Hayes' new epic fantasy world。
What Reviewers are saying:
"One of Self Publishing's rising stars。" - Mark Lawrence， author of Red Sister
"The best example of foreshadowing I've come across since Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun。" - BookNest
"This book is going to make you mad。 And that's a good thing。" - Fantasy Book Review
Buy The Lessons Never Learned and continue Eska's journey of vengeance and discovery in a world full of magic， monsters， and adventure。
Eskara is free of the Pit， but far from safe。 She is beset by the ghosts of those she has killed， and plagued by the ancient horror that possesses her。 Enemies dog her heels， determined to see the last Orran Sourcerer dead。 Worse still， there is new player in the game， one far more dangerous than anything she has faced before。
But there is one place that might offer her both the safety she needs to survive， and the power she needs to strike back; Ro'shan， the flying home of a God。
Eska will soon learn that all power comes with a cost， and some prices are too high。
An emotional roller coaster in this unique coming of age story。 Perfect for fans of Patrick Rothfuss and Mark Lawrence， be one of the first dive into Award-Winning Author Rob J。 Hayes' new epic fantasy world。
What Reviewers are saying:
"One of Self Publishing's rising stars。" - Mark Lawrence， author of Red Sister
"The best example of foreshadowing I've come across since Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun。" - BookNest
"This book is going to make you mad。 And that's a good thing。" - Fantasy Book Review
Buy The Lessons Never Learned and continue Eska's journey of vengeance and discovery in a world full of magic， monsters， and adventure。
Reviews
Licia Pannucci
，
StunnedI am enchanted。 The writing is equal to anything I have read。 I am amazed that I have never read anything by Hayes before。 Just flat out awesome。
Will Anson
，
3。75
Phillip Murrell
，
A drastic shift in the wrong directionWhat was that？ Everything cool from the first book was ruined in this one。 Josef's story was ruined。 Eska is still a pile of crap rolled in stale bread crumbs， yet everyone willingly follows and ignored her numerous flaws， up until she gets them killed， of course。 Don't worry， there is plot armor galore for most named characters。 About the only thing I did like was Josef's letters。 Everything else grates:There is still way too much telling and very little sh A drastic shift in the wrong directionWhat was that？ Everything cool from the first book was ruined in this one。 Josef's story was ruined。 Eska is still a pile of crap rolled in stale bread crumbs， yet everyone willingly follows and ignored her numerous flaws， up until she gets them killed， of course。 Don't worry， there is plot armor galore for most named characters。 About the only thing I did like was Josef's letters。 Everything else grates:There is still way too much telling and very little showing。 Worse yet， we are trapped in Eska's head with her redundant thoughts。 We get it， you "are the weapon！" We keep getting told about cool events in the future which steal any suspense from the present。Apparently， one person can be fatigued from climbing a greasy chain for miles and not fall when two grown men slip and hang off her。 The jerk alone would have sent them to their deaths。 If Ssserkis have her strength， then why does Eska lose wrestling matches？I guess being pregnant doesn't stop her from getting drunk after an injury。 Shouldn't Eska's love for her daughter and her often mentioned stubbornness mean she can take the pain？ She is selfish。Despite these numerous flaws （and many more） somehow I still want to see how the trilogy ends。 I guess， like Eska's minions （she doesn't really have friends）， I'm just a glutton for more of her punishment。 It doesn't mean my expectations aren't set to a one-year level。 。。。more
Peggy Lee
，
Pretty good book
B
，
Took me a while， but it delivered in the end。A strong 3。5 （*） effort by Rob J Hayes， Book 2 of The War Eternal， improved on its predecessor in nearly every way。 Gone were the locked references of the Pit and isolated interactions of someone （the protagonist） reminiscing of their path to greatness。In its stead， actions that place Eska with a believable trajectory to the ends she frequently references。 She interacts with both the Rand *and* the DJinn and continues to explore/grow her powers as a " Took me a while， but it delivered in the end。A strong 3。5 （*） effort by Rob J Hayes， Book 2 of The War Eternal， improved on its predecessor in nearly every way。 Gone were the locked references of the Pit and isolated interactions of someone （the protagonist） reminiscing of their path to greatness。In its stead， actions that place Eska with a believable trajectory to the ends she frequently references。 She interacts with both the Rand *and* the DJinn and continues to explore/grow her powers as a "sourcerer"。 Without divulging the plot， her interactions with Silva were the most poignant- though SSserakis' origin 'story' made him a close second。If anything， I'd have perhaps enjoyed more 'dialogue' （vs。 introspection） as the author executed the limited snippets within the story with aplomb。I look forward to the concluding volume。 。。。more
Deryk Allan
，
Another fantastic read， this is an exceptionally good book， i'd recommend it for all fantasy lovers， superb。 Another fantastic read， this is an exceptionally good book， i'd recommend it for all fantasy lovers， superb。 。。。more
Cal
，
A bit too fanciful。
FanFiAddict
，
Going to write up a full trilogy review， so stay tuned。
Maria Monteiro
，
"When the destination seems so far away， instead pay attention to each step。 Step。 Step。 Step。""Will it make the journey seem shorter？ Easier？"Tamura laughed。 "No。 But at least you'll be moving。" "When the destination seems so far away， instead pay attention to each step。 Step。 Step。 Step。""Will it make the journey seem shorter？ Easier？"Tamura laughed。 "No。 But at least you'll be moving。" 。。。more
Beau
，
My dislike for Eskara has waned; getting to know her better via interactions with the other characters combined with her mental dialogue （especially with Ssserakis） has me rooting for her。 This is the RJH that I immediately fell in love with when I picked up "The Heresy Within" back in 2013。 The War Eternal kicks ass。 I love it when a series grabs me and derails my to-be-read plans。 On to the third book！ My dislike for Eskara has waned; getting to know her better via interactions with the other characters combined with her mental dialogue （especially with Ssserakis） has me rooting for her。 This is the RJH that I immediately fell in love with when I picked up "The Heresy Within" back in 2013。 The War Eternal kicks ass。 I love it when a series grabs me and derails my to-be-read plans。 On to the third book！ 。。。more
Lisa Maughan
，
Wow， a great continuation of Eska's story。 Always quick to react and think later， never one to back down。 Her journey will uncover secrets that will challenge her。 The magic system is intriguing， the world building solid， the characters growing in their own way some immensely。 Exciting， bloody， grim， fierce and sometimes brutal。 Wow， a great continuation of Eska's story。 Always quick to react and think later， never one to back down。 Her journey will uncover secrets that will challenge her。 The magic system is intriguing， the world building solid， the characters growing in their own way some immensely。 Exciting， bloody， grim， fierce and sometimes brutal。 。。。more
Dejvo
，
DNF 20%I tried， I really tried but what the fuck？ Has the author ever been outside？ The quick fix of totally unplanned escape is they get in the forest， where naturally one of them brings them food somehow， because 3 people can eat just what the forest offers。。。。 in winter。 Did I mention that the main hero si barefoot and there is snow mentioned？ Guess frostbite isn't a thing in this world。 Then they are about to climb out to flying city - which is on an anchor， which has chain with hundrets of DNF 20%I tried， I really tried but what the fuck？ Has the author ever been outside？ The quick fix of totally unplanned escape is they get in the forest， where naturally one of them brings them food somehow， because 3 people can eat just what the forest offers。。。。 in winter。 Did I mention that the main hero si barefoot and there is snow mentioned？ Guess frostbite isn't a thing in this world。 Then they are about to climb out to flying city - which is on an anchor， which has chain with hundrets of links， each link high as three men。 So if that's 200 links multiplied by 5 metres， they are going to at least 1km vertical climb。 And this seems ok， because why not。The top of the cherry is one of the inmates showing up and trying to kill main hero - because he was sent from prison to get her back。 WTF？ Why would he even go back， it was said in the 1st book that the king of the prison is still an inmate who will never see the light， and now he has possibility to send one of his captains outside to catch escapees？ Author forgets what he said in B1 - they found a source stone， but she wasn't sure what it is， because only way to know， is to swallow it。 Now she said they have memorized the size and shapes of source stones to know what they are。 hm？Also deus ex machina continues - to use sourcery you need to swallow source， only to throw up it later， cause it will kill you。 So she doesn't use the stone， cause she hasn't the thing for throwing up。 But when they are attacked， she swallows the stone and throws up when she kills the last enemy。 But that's the first time and ever she throws up without that thing。 Just couldn't believe what I was readinghere's some wisdom from the author though:"Age is odd like that。 The more years you have， the less you have left。" yep， this sums it up。 。。。more
Stephanie
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4。5 *'s 4。5 *'s 。。。more
Jen
，
Takes the story to the next level， delving deeper into the world and the main character。 I am totally hooked。 Love the way it is written。Read and enjoy。
Karen
，
Great story！
Juliano Dutra
，
DNF 15%。"Age is odd like that。 The more years you have， the less you have left。"REALLY！！？？？？？？And i`m not nickpicky about modern expressions in medieval settings - especially since English is not my first language - but i can`t read "I have always had determination in spades" and wonder if they invented Bridge early in that world。。。 DNF 15%。"Age is odd like that。 The more years you have， the less you have left。"REALLY！！？？？？？？And i`m not nickpicky about modern expressions in medieval settings - especially since English is not my first language - but i can`t read "I have always had determination in spades" and wonder if they invented Bridge early in that world。。。 。。。more
The Shayne-Train
，
I love grimdark fantasy。 I love bad-ass women。 I love revenge stories。 I love f/f romance。 I love possessions by horrors。 I love stories told from the POV of the "villain。"This book has every one of those things in spades。 A wonderful follow-up to a wonderful first book， this is a blood-drenched masterpiece。 I love grimdark fantasy。 I love bad-ass women。 I love revenge stories。 I love f/f romance。 I love possessions by horrors。 I love stories told from the POV of the "villain。"This book has every one of those things in spades。 A wonderful follow-up to a wonderful first book， this is a blood-drenched masterpiece。 。。。more
Mkittysamom
，
Again I loved it！I felt some deja vu in this book。。 like I’ve read it before or， dreamed reading it， or it was repeated from first book？ Maybe not sure！ Not along review because I couldn’t wait to get to the 3rd book which was awesome for 3/4 and then the ending I choose to ignore， so sad。。 so much potential for this story！
Dan
，
This series popped up as a recommendation because I enjoyed pretty much every Sarah J。 Maas book， and dozens of others in a similar vein。I've persevered through two in the series， but it has ended up being a bit of a slog， and I'm not really inclined to read any others。 There are some great bits， but there's too much that doesn't appeal to me。 I find the protagnoist generally unlikeable， which doesn't really help， because I don't particularly care what happens to her。 And the writing style， whil This series popped up as a recommendation because I enjoyed pretty much every Sarah J。 Maas book， and dozens of others in a similar vein。I've persevered through two in the series， but it has ended up being a bit of a slog， and I'm not really inclined to read any others。 There are some great bits， but there's too much that doesn't appeal to me。 I find the protagnoist generally unlikeable， which doesn't really help， because I don't particularly care what happens to her。 And the writing style， while appearing to be in the present most of the time， _continually_ switches to a future perspective referring to events that haven't happened yet and， to my mind， presenting spoilers about the future。 I've no doubt that's just a personal preference， but I find it grating。 。。。more
Rusty
，
Review coming soon 。。。
Tom Sims
，
The continued adventures of Eska。Having escaped the pit， a chance to escape， take stock and plot revenge against the Emperor begins， quickly overtaken by circumstance but building a home and striking a deal with a god-like entity to build power。A good story is hiding in the background with some interesting revelations along the way。A big issue is that near-death drama of the lead and supporting characters is difficult when the book is written as if an autobiography and some of the characters lat The continued adventures of Eska。Having escaped the pit， a chance to escape， take stock and plot revenge against the Emperor begins， quickly overtaken by circumstance but building a home and striking a deal with a god-like entity to build power。A good story is hiding in the background with some interesting revelations along the way。A big issue is that near-death drama of the lead and supporting characters is difficult when the book is written as if an autobiography and some of the characters later adventures are already mentioned。 Takes away the drama of the situation。 Still， ends on a good cliffhanger so hopefully the conclusion is good。 。。。more
Lila
，
3，5*I mentioned in my review of Along the Razor's Edge， first book in The War Eternal series， that I felt like we barely scratched the surface of the world and magic system in this series。 Boy， was I right。The story continues right where we stopped in previous， with Eska， Hardt and Tamura out of the Pit。 Promising revenge upon Tamerlane emperor makes for a dramatic ending， but right on the start of the second book we see how ridiculous that statement from Eska is。They are on the run with no mone 3，5*I mentioned in my review of Along the Razor's Edge， first book in The War Eternal series， that I felt like we barely scratched the surface of the world and magic system in this series。 Boy， was I right。The story continues right where we stopped in previous， with Eska， Hardt and Tamura out of the Pit。 Promising revenge upon Tamerlane emperor makes for a dramatic ending， but right on the start of the second book we see how ridiculous that statement from Eska is。They are on the run with no money， no horses and no connections。So， where do you run from the wrath of emperor of Tamarlene and his most fierce warrior？On the flying city of Ro’shan， right in the middle of neverending war between gods。Much larger in scope and more complex in every way， The Lessons Never Learned had so much going on it makes a dramatic shift from book #1。 The first book had a one clear goal- getting out of pit- and if we got something from the world， it was focused on Eska's memories of her studies and final battle where Orran empire lost that opened the book。 In this one we are not just following Eska and her friends' further journey， we are finally finding out why the series is called The War Eternal， how the magic works， where do Sourcerers and sources come from and about the homeworld of Ssserakis。 Just like in previous novel， Hayes also sprinkles this story with some interesting things that're not of importance for the book， but I hope he'll revisit later on （Demonships！）。 Because we are getting so much information， some parts tend to be info-dumpy， with scenes with people standing around one character who explains some piece of lore or magic system。 There is not a lot of them， but they are there。 It's definitely a book that carries the brunt of the setting on its shoulders。-There are some nice twists and surprises， some I did see coming and some I didn't in the story。 I like where it's headed though， so final showdown promises to be epic and hopefully， Hayes will give some tlc to one particular character whose entire arc is determined by actions of others。-Side characters are still great and there are some returning ones I hoped to see。 We are introduced to some new characters as well。 We finally meet mysterious Silva。 There is a badass catlady drunkard。 There is another female character added to the group and she acts like a little sister to Eska。 It's an interesting dynamic I wish was further explored， but Hayes had his arms full with Eska already， so I get it。。。。Which comes to my strongest impression of this book: I wanted to smack Eska right from the edge of Ro'shan several times， because she is， to no one's surprise， still as subtle as an ox， as complying as a rattlesnake and rash to make decisions she regrets later on。 She was never really meant to be likeable， but this is a cruel world Hayes imagines， so consequences of her actions are always devastating （Joseff， anyone？） and for the most part they hurt not just Eska， but people around her。 She realizes she didn't think some things through， so if the first step in overcoming the problem is acknowledging you have one， then I guess we'll hopefully see some development in more mature fashion for our Eska。 （not likely）。Eska is。。。 the reason to love and reason to be frustrated in this novel。Basically， this is Hardt， Ssserakis and majority of others in this novel when Eska decides/does something:Except for Tamura。 Tamura is :On to #3。 。。。more
Davy
，
"The rain is wonderful when you are thirsty， but a nuisance when you wish to cook dinner。" "The rain is wonderful when you are thirsty， but a nuisance when you wish to cook dinner。" 。。。more
XR
，
Eska just can't catch a break！！I'm so annoyed but I need to know what happens next。Also， THANK YOU， Hayes！ I truly appreciate Eska finding love。。。 lady love。 Nice work， sir！ Eska just can't catch a break！！I'm so annoyed but I need to know what happens next。Also， THANK YOU， Hayes！ I truly appreciate Eska finding love。。。 lady love。 Nice work， sir！ 。。。more
Gabriel d'Matos
，
Um livro de 383 paginas que pareceu ter 900。 Existem somente dois fatores dessa trilogia que eu não consigo não detestar， pacing e personagens。 Ao terminar todo capitulo eu não tenho vontade de continuar pro próximo， é simplesmente arrastado mesmo sendo um livro com bastante ação。 Muitas escolhas narrativas eu simplesmente não entendi a razão， as vezes é muito apressado e em outros momentos extremamente lento。 E os personagens eu tenho o pior sentimento possível， indiferença。 Eu não consigo me i Um livro de 383 paginas que pareceu ter 900。 Existem somente dois fatores dessa trilogia que eu não consigo não detestar， pacing e personagens。 Ao terminar todo capitulo eu não tenho vontade de continuar pro próximo， é simplesmente arrastado mesmo sendo um livro com bastante ação。 Muitas escolhas narrativas eu simplesmente não entendi a razão， as vezes é muito apressado e em outros momentos extremamente lento。 E os personagens eu tenho o pior sentimento possível， indiferença。 Eu não consigo me importar com a vida de ninguém， （por mim a protagonista morria logo no começo） personagens morrem e eu não consigo me simpatizar com a perda e mesmo com traições não existe peso algum， apesar disso ser algo bem especifico meu。 O universo criado tem coisas bem interessante mas isso não consegue compensar os problemas que eu tenho com a trilogia， vou terminar o 3 livro somente pela minha obsessão por conclusão， se houvesse mais de um livro， eu pararia por aqui。 。。。more
Mert
，
I like how the main character is irritating and makes poor choices all while commenting on her character flaws。
Yuri
，
This isn't a review， I lked it， though I've been restless and longing to read something familliar this pulled me in， especially the last 25%。 This isn't a review， I lked it， though I've been restless and longing to read something familliar this pulled me in， especially the last 25%。 。。。more
Matt McAbee
，
The Lessons Never Learned， the second volume in Rob Hayes War Eternal series blew me away。 I was expecting a lull in the action but was sadly disappointed。 This book was just as intense and fast paced as the previous one but added a new depth with revelations into the world。 I so enjoyed being back with Eska and crew after the escaped the Pit and got back to the surface。 Eska leads her friends to the one place she can find that will grant her the power that she so desperately wants so that she The Lessons Never Learned， the second volume in Rob Hayes War Eternal series blew me away。 I was expecting a lull in the action but was sadly disappointed。 This book was just as intense and fast paced as the previous one but added a new depth with revelations into the world。 I so enjoyed being back with Eska and crew after the escaped the Pit and got back to the surface。 Eska leads her friends to the one place she can find that will grant her the power that she so desperately wants so that she can have her revenge on the Pit and Terrelan Empire that imprisoned her there after they took away everything she had ever known。 Ro’Shan， the floating home of the Rand the ancient enemy of the evil Djinn。 As she stays on Ro’Shan she learns that the way she was trained in magic barley scratches the surface of what is possible to be done with magic。 What worked for me in this book was the character growth and the magically exploration。 Eska still being young has a lot of growing up to do and accomplishes some of that in Ro’Shan。 She is starting to learn from her actions but still not caring enough to change yet。 When it comes to magic she is learning things that she never thought were possible with magic。 She doesnt care who teaches her just a long as she develops new powers that she can use in her quest for revenge。 This is the fourth book I have read from Rob Hayes and have yet to be disappointed in anything he has written， this series has been wonderful so far and I cant wait to read the final book in the series。 。。。more
Carl Phillips
，
The broader scope of this book adds pleasant depth to the universe while lead character also starts getting darker and darker。 Great read。
Chris
，