Tag Archives: Quest

Review: The Seeress of Kell (The Mallorean 5)

The Seeress of Kell (The Mallorean 5)

by David Eddings

Reviewed by JMD Reid

Garion and his companions have entered the final stage of their quest to rescue his son from the clutches of Zandramas and foil the Dark Prophecy’s designs to keep the world in stasis. All they need to do is to find out where the High Places of Korim are. A location lost 5000 years ago when Torak cracked the world.

Only the Seeress of Kell, the enigmatic Cyradis, can guide them to the final pieces of their quest. Zandramas desperation only mounts. But she has her last weapons ready to delay Garion and Ce’Nedra from reuniting with their son.

Knights, dragons, curses, and demons await in the conclusion to the Mallorean series.

The philosophy that underpins Eddings’s world comes to the forefront. What does it mean to live in a universe where everything should happen for a reason and then something doesn’t. What are the consequences to causality being violated and how do you fix it. What is better for the world: stasis and order, or change and chaos?

In the finale, all of this comes out as Eddings builds on what the previous nine books (yes, I’m counting the Belgariad) have laid out before him. In the High Places of Korim, all choices are finale, including the fate of the universe.

Eddings ends his two series wonderfully. Everything flows from that confrontation then burst out into the denouement. He doesn’t rush the conclusion to his series. He lets us have one last chance to say goodbye to all his characters while giving us one last chance to expound on the theme of this entire series.

Change is good. We can’t grow if we don’t change. Getting stuck in a loop, repeating bad decisions again and again, doesn’t do the world any good. We need to look to history and learn from the mistakes of those who came before us instead of allowing stasis to hold us in place while the world passes us by. It is a great theme for a fantasy series and a satisfying conclusion to this epic series.

If you’ve never read these two series, then you need to go and buy Pawn of Prophecy. This series has great characters, fun adventure, and even interesting philosophy. From the witty one lines to the exciting action, you will find something to love in Eddings work.

You can buy Seeress of Kell from Amazon!

Review: The Sorceress of Darshiva (The Mallorean 4)

The Sorceress of Darshiva (The Mallorean 4)

by David Eddings

Reviewed by JMD Reid

The fourth book of the Mallorean brings Garion, CeNedra, and their companions closer to stopping Zandramas from sacrificing their infant son to cause the rebirth of the Dark God of Angerak. Their journey has taken them across the vast continent of Mallorea to the ancient, island nation of Melecene. Here they may finally lean some clues to aid them on their quest.

Because not only do they have to track down Zandramas, but they have to find out where she is going and beat her there. They have to follow a trail scattered through prophecies and esoteric tales. Once they have their trail, they will have to plunge into war-torn Darshiva.

The home of Zandramas herself.

The penultimate novel of the Mallorean continues the journey through the lands of Mallorea. No longer are they truly hunting Zandramas any more. Destiny is ensuring that both groups will arrive at the fateful meeting. It’s just a matter of which of Garion’s friends and companions will survive the encounter now. Things only grow more complicated as all the story-lines Eddings has been spinning—Zandramas’s bid to power, Emperor Zakath seeking to restore order, and Urvon’s alliance with the demons—are colliding together in Darshiva.

The stakes are high as they companions creep across Darshiva.

While I enjoy the Sorceress of Darshiva, it is my least favorite of the ten books of the Belgariad/Mallorean saga. While the characters are great, and there are some great writing and events, the pacing is a little wonky. While the first series had a sense of immediacy about it, with this series it’s clear that they won’t get the upper hand on Zandramas until they get to “The Place Which is No More.” Putting Destiny, which has always played such a big role in the series, so much in control is really showing the lack of agency on our heroes as they come to accept this reality. Not even CeNedra is getting frustrated any longer.

Still, it is a great book, and it leads us into the final volume in the Saga! Next up, The Seeres of Kell and the end of Garion’s story!

You can purchase Sorceress of Darshiva from Amazon!

Review: King of the Murgos (The Mallorean 2)

King of the Murgos (The Mallorean 2)

by David Eddings

Reviewed by JMD Reid

The infant son of Garion and Ce’Nedra has been kidnapped by Zandramas, the new Child of Dark, to be used as a sacrifce to awaken a new God of Angerak. With Polgara, Belgarath, Durnik, Silk, Errnd, and the mute Toth, Garion and his wife set off on a new quest at the behest of prophecy to stop Zandramas’s plan and to rescue their son.

But the trail will take them far from their homes. They travel south to find it once more in the land of the snake people and from their, into the land of the Murgos. Out of all the four Angerak races, the Murgos were the most ferverant in their devotion to Torak and the most under the control of the Grolim priests. Steeped in barbarism and sacrifice, Garion and his companions find themselves in the court of the beseiged Murgo King.

They are in for one interesting revelation. Prejudices must be adjusted and old enmities put aside for Garion, Ce’Nedra, and their companions, including those new allies they pick up along their way south, to have any hompe of saving the infant Geran before it is too late. Can Garion and his companions escape the machinations of the Grolim priesthood, dark assassins, and petty grievances?

After spending the last series characterizing the Murgos as this despicable race, Eddings peels back the onions to reveal that, in fact, they are just people. Flawed and varied as any other only suffering beneath terrible despotism of mad kings and power-hungry priests. Loosing a war, King Urgit is desperate for any aid, and Garion might prove his salvation or his undoing.

The second book is a great read, building on the first book. It covers most of the original book 2’s contents (traveling through Arendia, Tol Nedra, and Nyissa) within the first third, meeting old characters, encountering new threats, and exposing the existence of the three powers all vying to awaken the new Agerak God. New characters join the party to add a nice counterbalance to the core ones (it’s no coincidence that the group with the most screen time from the last series made it into the party in this one). Velvet, in particular, is a great addition.

Eddings is clearly having fun writing this series, and it shows in the fun diologue, exciting situations, and tense showdowns. He has an entire world to play in and is mixing and matching the threats, combining old foes with new while foreshadowing things to come. Garion and Ce’Nedra are the most changed from the last quest, both grown up and both dealing with the kidnapping of their son in different ways. The vibrant and even aggressive Ce’Nedra is shrunken and withdrawn, verging on depression, while the normally friendly Garion has an anger brewing inside of him that explodes out of him, fueled by frustration and fear.

All in all, the Mallorean continues to be excellent and leaves you wanting to find out what happens next! Luckilly, these books came out in the 80s, so you don’t have to wait long at all!

You can purchase King of the Murgos from Amazon!

Review: Guardians of the West (The Mallorean 1)

Guardians of the West (The Mallorean 1)

by David Eddings

Reviewed by JMD Reid

The Guardians of the West picks up almost immediately after the end of the Belgariad. It’s been a few months since Garion and Ce’Nedra’s wedding, and the young boy Errand find himself moving to the vale with his new adopted parents Durnik and Polgara the Sorceress. The group is accompanied by the vagabond sorcerer, Belgarath. After he and Polgara spent thousands of years working to see Torak and the Dark Prophecy defeated, they think they can rest. But hints and rumors begin to stir of a new force awakening in the east while the Angeraks struggle to come to grips with the death of their god.

Over the next five or so years, Garion and Ce’Nedra settle into their married. With a few bumps along they way, they grow to find a balance in their relationship. A balance that is disrupted when Ce’Nedra’s lack of pregnancy begins to worry the other monarchs of the world. Stability is needed for the world after the trauma it’s endured, and there are those who seek to take advantage of it.

Once again, Garion and his companions have to defend the West as new threats arise and hints that there is still more to come in the fight between the two halves of the original Purpose of the Universe. That though Torak was defeated, the Dark Prophecy still moves pieces on the board and a new threat boils beneath the surface.

Guardians of the West is a great follow up to Eddings outstanding Belgariad. He returns to his world and spends an entire book on the buildup to the new threat. He’s subtle, showing us our characters as they fit into their new roles in life, growing into full adulthood (like Garion and Ce’Nedra) while shifting many of Garion’s story role onto Errand’s shoulders. For fans of the Belgariad, it’s a great reunion with old friends.

The build up is handled well. It’s a mystery that has you, thinking you already know everything about the world, wondering what is going on. That moment of realization that there is more to “Boundless Mallorea” than that little slice we saw in Enchanters End Game. The misdirects and the plot twists are great. Guardians of the West is like the first few chapters of Pawn of Prophecy stretched into nearly a whole book.

And it works.

This is a great start to a new series with our old character. Eddings has to do little retconning to make it work, just tweaking the expectation that the final battle wasn’t as final as everyone (our characters included) believed. It follows on those dangling plot threads left over from the last series while setting the stage for the new adventure to come. If you enjoyed the Belgariad, then you have to read the Mallorean!

You can purchase Guardians of the West from Amazon!

Review: Magician’s Gambit (The Belgariad 3)

Magician’s Gambit (The Belgariad 3)

by David Eddings

Reviewed by JMD Reid

As ash falls on Nyssa, Garion grapples with his sorcerous powers. Wracked with guilt for what he did to the man who killed his parents, Garion needs to understand his new abilities. How he can live with the consequences.

As Garion deals with what type of man he will become, Ce’Nedra can’t help the burgeoning attraction swelling in her heart for the young man. She knows nothing can come of it, as a Tolnedran Princess, she’ll marry a man to enhance the empire and her family’s goals. How can she love a peasant? What future can they have?

As the company heads north into the haunted lands of Maragor, Garion and Ce’Nedra must both come to terms with adult responsibilities. All while dealing with mad gods, dangerous assassins, and bloodthirsty monsters.

The Magician’s Gambit continues the growth of Garion. Adult responsibilities, represented by sorcery, are thrust upon him. And now he has to figure out what to do with them. The decisions he makes will shape the sort of man he’ll become. Eddings weaves these themes into his story with skill, tying the coming of age plots into the fantasy quest adventure narrative he is weaving.

The characters continue to be delightful. As always, Eddings can straddle that line between the humors and the serious, between the dark and the bright. The Belgariad series is one that both young people can read and enjoy but has more mature themes for us older folks to enjoy.

This is a fantasy series for all ages to enjoy, but it will especially resonate with young boys!

You can purchase Magician’s Gambit from Amazon!