Book Review: A Darkness at Sethanon by Raymond Feist (Riftwar Saga #3)

A Darkness at Sethanon is the final book to Raymond Feist's epic fantasy trilogy, Riftwar Saga, which was launched with the phenomenal success of its first book, Magician. The general consensus among readers is that Magician is the best book in this trilogy, where its sequel, Silverthorn, while being a good book, is a much weaker book in comparison. A Darkness at Sethanon continued the story that started in Silverthorn, bringing a conclusion to this trilogy. After reading A Darkness at Sethanon, I think this is a really good book, and it concluded Riftwar Saga in a most spectacular fashion. Today, I would like to provide a review for this book.

Synopsis:

Kingdom of Isles has enjoyed one year of peace following Prince Arutha's quest for Silverthorn. A conspiracy shattered this peace, when a mysterious assassin appeared at the royal court during the celebration for the birth of Arutha's two sons. The death cult known as Nighthawk, has returned!

The climax for Riftwar Saga approaches, as Arutha journeys north with his friends, to confront Murmandamus for one last time. Battles would be waged, cities and lives would be destroyed. Sagas and songs will remember the deeds of bravery and courage in the river of history. However, Arutha and his friends have yet to realize, that they are fighting a war where a victory cannot be secured by the might of mortal man.

Meanwhile, Pug and Tomas are engaged in a perilous quest, crossing the barrier of space and time, to search for Macro the Black, who happens to be the only person with the knowledge about Murmandamu's master. Should they fail this quest, not only will Arutha loose the war against Murmandamus, but every life on Midkemia, will surely perish.

What I think about this book:

I think A Darkness at Sethanon provided a fitting conclusion to Riftwar Saga. This book and Silverthorn, are essentially one book. Raymond Feist stepped up a notch in his storytelling, packing it with more actions and dramas in this book than in Silverthorn. A Darkness at Sethanon is split into two storyline; Arutha's final showdown against Murmadamus, and Pug and Tomas' quest to search for Macro the Black. These two, seemingly separate plots are packed with dramas, epic in scope, crescendoed to a final converging point at the climax of the story. Although this book is not as long as Magician, but it is almost an equal to Magician in terms of scope and contents. In other words, A Darkness at Sethanon almost reciprocated the epic feel in Magician.

Riftwar Saga is often marked by its memorable characters. A Darkness at Sethanon, is no exception to this hallmark. This book is supported by a cast of impressive characters. Readers will reunite with past favorites such as Arutha, Pug, Tomas, Amos Trask, Jimmy the Hand, Martin Longbow, Baru etc.. while also meeting a somewhat new, superbly crafted character, Guy du Bas-Tyra. Guy made a very brief appearance in Magician as an antagonist, but this character was never explored in depth. In A Darkness at Sethanon, readers would meet Guy, as the story finally explained his motivations and his past. From here, Guy became one of the pivotal characters in the story. Without spoiling the plot, let me just say, I think many readers will like Feist's portrayal of Guy, and the role he played in this book.

Pug and Tomas also returned as central characters in this book. Half of the book revolves around their quest to search for Macro the Black. I think this part of the book is very interesting, because Pug and Tomas' quest involved traveling across both space and time, giving off a vibe of science-fiction which is atypical in the fantasy genre. I think Feist managed to capture the mind blowing strangeness of space/time travel from science-fiction, and masterfully grafted it onto a medieval themed, fantasy novel. With grand narratives and vivid portrayals, Feist depicted several breathtaking scenes about the grandeur of the universe.

Furthermore, I also like how Tomas, as a central character, was finally given something important to do in the story. Allow me to explain, in Magician, the story detailed the journeys of how Pug and Tomas became the most powerful entities in the world of Midkemia, i.e. while Pug became a powerful wizard through training on another world, Tomas became a mighty warrior who inherited the strength of a long vanished, ancient race known as Valheru. Afterward, in the ensuing story, Pug was designated to face obstacles that challenged the limit of his power in several pivotal moments. Meanwhile, the same cannot be said about the treatment for Tomas. Instead of setting up real challenges for Tomas, Feist used Tomas as a deus-ex machina solution in Silverthorn. As a result, inevitably, one will feel that even though Feist spent a great deal of time building the character and story of Tomas in Magician, but he didn't do much with it afterward, and it is a waste of potentials. Thankfully, in A Darkness at Sethanon, Tomas is finally given difficult, and important obstacles to overcome, pushing his strength to the limit, while pitting him against powerful foes.

I enjoyed reading A Darkness at Sethanon. This book is packed with all elements that made the fantasy genre great. In my opinion, this book brought Riftwar Saga to a satisfying conclusion. All mysteries, plots, and sub-plots are neatly tied up. I did not find a dull moment in this book (and this series in general), from page one to the last, I was constantly immersed in the story, savoring every moment of it as the story unfolded at the turn of every page. If you are a fan of fantasy fictions, but have not read Riftwar Saga, then I would highly recommend this series to you, and I envy you, because you are about to discover its charm for the first time.