In the fall of 2020, New York Times bestselling author David Annandale brought his nightmarish vision of Marvel’s Doctor Doom to the page in his first entry in the Marvel Untold prose universe with The Harrowing of Doom, which saw Latveria’s supreme leader unleash Hell — literally — in an effort to rescue his mother’s soul. Though Doom and his subjects contained the damage caused by his obsession, the encounter cost Doom a portion of his memories. Now, he wants them back.
Reign of the Devourer finds Doom’s fierce will turned toward regaining not only his own lost memories, but obtaining omnipotence by gaining all the memories of Latveria. Something ancient lies deep under the soil of Latveria, something that consumes the identities and memories — the souls — of the dead. Doom employs his subjects in the effort to find and control the Devourer, including a fallen priest and geomancer torn between his faith and his abilities, a doctor with a dubious family history, and the doctor’s wife and loyal general.
However, the memories of Latveria’s dead are not the only remnants of the past coming to the surface. Those deposed and displaced when Doom seized control of Latveria have had enough. While most of the remnants of Latveria’s past flee, the cruel Maleva Krogh is determined to reclaim what was once hers… and she’s no stranger to the Devourer herself.
In Reign of the Devourer, Annandale weaves a tapestry that contains horror, love, honor, loyalty, and a conflict of wills between a supernatural force as old as time and Marvel’s will incarnate in Doctor Doom. Doom is pressed like never before in the character’s 60-year history, driven to decide whether to try and harness the darkness ravaging his subjects or destroying the Devourer and saving his people but losing what was stolen from him forever.
As a longtime Doom fan, I jumped at the chance to review Reign of the Devourer. Annandale perfectly captures the soul of the character, who believes himself the benevolent ruler even as his personal choices creates chaos and death for his subjects. Not only do we get a feel for what it’s like under the hood and behind the mask for the enigmatic Doom, but Annandale shows how Doom’s decisions impact and empower those around him, who have no choice but to obey the will of Doom. The events of Reign of the Devourer shakes Doom’s most gifted and loyal subjects out of their despair and who they thought they were supposed to be and empowers them to become who they are at their core, if they’re strong enough to follow their leader into the unknown. Reign of the Devourer is a worthy sequel to The Harrowing of Doom and I hope that Annandale continues to tell stories of Doom in the Marvel Untold universe.
Pick up your copy of 2020’s The Harrowing of Doom and today’s release Reign of the Devourer on Amazon or wherever books are sold.
Disclaimer: A copy of Reign of the Devourer was provided for review purposes. All opinions are my own.
