Genre: Fantasy Age Range: Adult Star Rating: 4 stars Series: yes - final book in series
*SPOILER ALERT: contains SPOILERS for PAWN OF PROPHECY, QUEEN OF SORCERY, MAGICIAN’S GAMBIT and CASTLE OF WIZARDRY*
Synopsis:
The quest was over. The Orb of Aldur was restored. And once again, with the crowning of Garion, there was a descendant of Riva Iron-grip to rule as Overlord of the West.
But the Prophecy was unfulfilled. In the east, the evil God Torak was about to awaken and seek dominion. Somehow, Garion had to face the God, to kill or be killed. On the outcome of that dread duel rested the destiny of the world. Now, accompanied by his grandfather, the ancient sorcerer Belgarath, Garion headed toward the City of Endless Night, where Torak awaited him.
To the south, his fiancée, the princess Ce’Nedra, led the armies of the West in a desperate effort to divert the forces of Torak’s followers from the man she loved.
The Prophecy drove Garion on. But it gave no answer to the question that haunted him: How does a man kill an immortal God?
Synopsis taken from Goodreads. Add to your shelves here.
Review:
The epic finale to this quest fantasy has both the final, big confrontation between Garion and the evil god and a big, ranging war with the army Ce’Nedra’s raised as a distraction. I do like that both these elements are here, and that the focus of the war isn’t the final victory. The fact that it’s a distraction pulls the cost of the war into stark relief as all the bodies piled up – including some more personal ones to the characters.
All the hints and foreshadowing comes full circle in this book, the remaining bits and pieces finally paid off. This is really what you expect from the end of a long, epic fantasy series. Danger for all, and very specific jobs that everyone has to complete before it’s over. A struggle between good and evil that goes deeper than simply hacking at each other with swords (though there’s a LOT of that.)
The previous two books were dual POV, with Garion as the main and Ce’Nedra with bits and bobs. This book is multi-POV. Garion and Ce’Nedra dominate the narration, but the various monarchs get chapters here and there. The war takes the kings away, so the Queens have countries to run and the war has quite a few moving parts to be shown.
And that’s the end of this series. There is a sequel series – another five book series – but I’m not sure if I’m going to head into it now or not. I am starting to come to the end of this audio urge (but I’m in a burnout slump at the time of writing and audio is a good way to absorb books at this stage.) I would like to know at which point in the writing/editing cycle the next series was acquired, because there are some hints laid in this book (and possibly earlier) – and the next series was begun within a year of this book.
Read my reviews of other books by David Eddings:
The Belgariad (this series:)
- PAWN OF PROPHECY (#1)
- QUEEN OF SORCERY (#2)
- MAGICIAN’S GAMBIT (#3)
- CASTLE OF WIZARDRY (#4)
The Malloreon (chronologically after this series):
- GUARDIANS OF THE WEST (#1)
- KING OF THE MURGOS (#2)
- DEMON LORD OF KARANDA (#3)
- SORCERESS OF DARSHIVA (#4)
- SEERESS OF KELL (#5)
Companions to the Belgariad and the Malloreon:
The Elenium:
- THE DIAMOND THRONE (#1)
- THE RUBY KNIGHT (#2)
- THE SAPPHIRE ROSE (#3)
The Tamuli (chronologically after the Elenium):
- DOME OF FIRE (#1)
- THE SHINING ONES (#2)
- THE HIDDEN CITY (#3)
Sifa Elizabeth Reads 