Fantasy series with a female leader and a river of souls

Question

Okay so I honestly don't remember a lot of the details because I read this book about 23 years ago. I have no idea whether it was a new series at the time or not. I do distinctly remember it was a fantasy series and was sad I couldn't finish when my family moved. I do remember there was some kind of war going on, I believe there was a female leader on one side, and I very distinctly remember there was something akin to a river of souls. (I have no idea how it was described or called in the books but that's definitely what I took away from it).

I apologize that I didn't remember more details, and I honestly don't expect anyone to know it from the very little information I provided, but I am hoping anyway.

Answer 1

You might be thinking of the War of Souls trilogy, starting with Dragons of a Fallen Sun which was published in 2000.

This series takes place after the gods have left Krynn to its own devices (I think from the events of Dragons of Summer Flame), and things basically fall apart. Then a young woman shows up with divine magic again and builds an army to rescue the land from its dragon overlords.

The Knights of Neraka (formerly known as the Dark Knights) have been overtaken by the mysterious power of a seventeen-year-old girl Mina, who has come to lead them to the victory of the world by the one true God, from which Mina obtains all her power.

It's been a very long time since I've read these books, but one of the main plot points revealed in the later books was that the River of Souls, which is normally where someone goes when they die, had been blocked, trapping all the souls and causing all kinds of trouble.

Answer 2

This sounds like Garth Nix’s Sabriel (1995)

This is the first in the Old Kingdom series of books, and came out at the right time. The world of the Old Kingdom includes “Death” as a distinct realm which plays a significant role in the first book. Death takes the form of a river in which souls pass through multiple gates, each section with its own peculiarities and kinds of “Dead”, the term for creatures that exist in Death and seek to cross over to Life.

There’s not technically a war, but military forces (from a non-magical country, who have guns and vehicles) are involved in some key moments and parts of it do feel like a war story. The protagonist is the titular Sabriel, a young woman who does end up the leader of the primary conflict, even if she’s not a formal commander.