The Riftwar saga is the introduciton to Feist's worlds of imagination, but until this book really is laboring under its heritage as his homebrew DND world.

In this book, Feist finally throws the doors to his cosmology wide open as an author, and it is a banger. I find Prince Arutha and Jimmy the Hand less than inspiring, but Pug and Macros the Black and the final answer to what Tomas is was worth the wait. As was the answer to the Chaos Wars and the Great Enemy. Well worth the series to get to this ending. ( )

Enjoyed it. Its still not great writing, and it’s more something I’d recommend as a lighter read to someone who is already a fan of fantasy and has read the classics. For those people, it’s an enjoyable conclusion to what, apparently, is the first of many series in this universe.

The biggest issue with the series is that the writing is limited by the fact that the author likes his characters too much. Everyone is saved from certain doom (except undeveloped characters - they basically always die or disappear within half a book of being introduced), every relationship works out just the way it “should,” every old enemy turns out to be either totally evil (and is vanquished) or just misunderstood (and becomes a great friend), and the main characters always have enough money and titles to reward everyone for their help at the end of the book.

That said, it takes some confidence to write a fantasy book that features characters watching the big bang happen, so kudos for that. ( )

A solid book to finish off the Riftwar Saga.

Loose ends from the previous books, especially Silverthorn were tied off, and most of the characters received continued development, which was good to see. The set piece battle of Armengar was the highlight for me (as it appears to be for many others), and the reveal of the Enemy was thematically satisfying and made for a good twist. There were definitely moments where it felt like Feist was really coming into his own, and who doesn't love some dragons?

Unfortunately some of my issues from the earlier books continue to affect my judgement of this one. The magic system is still completely obscure, and is further complicated by the different kinds of magics that different characters can wield, none of which are properly elucidated. The addition of a time manipulation sequence, though well written, seemed to extend this fantasy element to a whole new level of surreal. And speaking of time, arbitrary amounts of days and weeks continue to abound in this book, though admittedly they are nowhere near the level of Magician.

I've also noticed Feist's penchant for starting chapters or sections with one liners. Often they do work to create the tone or atmosphere that he's after, but they also lose their effectiveness with overuse. Sadly, now that I've seen it, I cannot unsee.

This concluding book has given me enough incentive to give the other Riftwar novels a chance, which I was honestly expecting not to feel after Magician. However, I'll probably be going to something else first. ( )

So fun. Through the first series already on the re-read. ( )

Dit derde deel heb ik nu ook uit. Een waardige afsluiting van deze deelserie. De plot is duisterder dan in de eerste twee boeken maar wat Feist echt goed maakt zijn toch de karakters. Puc, Robbie, Joolstein en Arutha zijn daarbij wel mijn favorieten. ( )