It seems like every single installment of The Wandering Inn wants to break my heart into tiny pieces and succeeds every time.
The General of Izril mosIt seems like every single installment of The Wandering Inn wants to break my heart into tiny pieces and succeeds every time.
The General of Izril mostly follows the general goings-on of Erin/Liscor, with a few detours to return to the group on Rhir for the first time in three books (literally about 4,700 pages); visit with Laken and his rapidly expanding empire of villages as people flee to his protection under threat of goblin attack; tell us more about the Antinium Wars that define the current geopolitics of Izril; and to follow General Zel and Lady Magnolia's attempt to defeat Az'kerash's Goblin Lord.
Judging by the state of the GoodReads reviews, I was not alone in enjoying the Rhir storyline the least out of everything this volume, though it was there for a reason I don't think most readers caught. Mentioned at the end by the [Fool], as the reason he betrayed the Blighted King, was the possible reason why people have been/are being pulled into this world from Earth: in desperation for prophesied [Heroes], the Blighted King preformed a ritual meant to speed up the arrival of [Heroes] by pulling them to...presumably Rhir, and - to his knowledge - the large group of about sixty ended up in the palace would seem to support that (although many were distinctly less heroic than he probably would have wanted; that's what he gets with a spell that grabs a bunch of random people and then expects to turn the tide of a losing war against demons, which he knows about, and semi-sleeping god, which he doesn't). Unfortunately for the population of Rhir and any other random people grabbed by the ritual, the Blighted King is planning to do the ritual again, sinking more life energy into the spell in hopes of a bigger pool of potential [Heroes] that will have little choice but to fight his war. So that leads to this thought: readers know from the various storylines that there are more Earthers not on Rhir than on Rhir, and until now there wasn't even an inkling of explanation as to how and why this was happening. Now, mentioned in passing, is a potential explanation, a possible limit to how many the magic will grab and forcibly transport, and a potential way to stop another wave of abductions fueled by sacrifices.
In more emotional news,
* SKIP IF YOU DO NOT WANT SPOILERS! *
(view spoiler)[General Zel Shivertail dies in the last chapters of this volume. *resumes crying* Zel has spent the last several books going in and out of the story and I didn't realize just how attached I'd gotten until this. He survives so much in the concerted battlefield assassination attempt by literally all five of Az'kerash's specially made undead 'children' - including one made specifically to combat Zel's skills/tactics and kill him - and Az'kerash himself, though isn't until the last couple pages that it really becomes clear that no, he's not just in serious trouble; he isn't going to make it out. And the last conversation - if you can really call it that, because Zel was actively dying and only semicoherent - between Zel and the Goblin King, where Zel gave him a name, just shattered my heart into a million pieces. Then Goblin King Reiss's defiance of Az'kerash's direct orders - ordering none of the goblins to touch Zel's body, allowing it to be claimed by Lady Magnolia's army and making it much more difficult for the [Necromancer] to raise Zel as one of his specially made 'children' - out of respect and admiration for Zel... *bawls*
In less emotional terms: I bet Magnolia severely regrets putting off dealing with the [Necromancer] now. Not only has she now lost someone she considered an ally and possibly a friend, but a beloved cultural and military hero of the drakes is now dead...on the human half of the continent, fighting a war that should have been the human's problem, with an entirely human army that should have been at his back and wasn't. That is a massive blow to any potential for ceasefire - let alone cooperation and understanding - between the drake and human species, especially as Zel leading this human army was supposed to be the first of many strides toward forging an interspecies peace pact across Izril. Needless to say, those plans are now trashed. Even worse, with the Shield of the Drakes - the person everyone assumed would take up leadership of a coalition army in the event of another major war - now dead, the Grand Queen of the Antinium speaks covertly with the other hives about potential war. It's Magnolia and Zel's worst nightmare. Zel's death tipped the balance of power in ways that will be felt for books to come. (And possibly not just for his military power or cultural significance, either. Zel gave Reiss a name when all Reiss had was his identity as the Goblin Lord, which he got because of Az'kerash, and his status as sort of apprentice, sort of slave to the [Necromancer]. We know from Erin naming Rags that interspecies naming is...emotionally significant. It's not everything, but it might be enough to tip behavior in unpredictable ways at some point in the future.) (hide spoiler)]
* OKAY NO MORE SPOILERS *
All in all, this was an excellent volume. I always look forward to The Wandering Inn and I highly recommend it as an amazing series....more
I always look forward to The Wandering Inn books when they are released and The Last Light was worth waiting for! This volume went back and visited wiI always look forward to The Wandering Inn books when they are released and The Last Light was worth waiting for! This volume went back and visited with Geneva as she tries to find her place as a neutral party of the continent dominated by constant warfare among mercenary companies, the twins as they navigate the King of Destruction's court, Laken as he tries to rebuild Riverfarm and fend off part of the goblin army, and we finally see things come to a head with Az'kerash's pursuit of Ryoka. Also a rare treat, this book spent a while with Niers Astoragon - the famed Titan - as he contemplates retiring to search for his mysterious chess partner. Overall it was a great read, and I'm particularly pleased with the four chapters spent with Geneva and other humans now stranded on Baleros. The two chapters where she was introduced in The Flowers of Esthelm are my favorite in the entire series thus far. They broke my heart into tiny pieces and I was overjoyed when I saw there were Doctor chapters in this book. I can't wait to see what will happen in The General of Izril....more
Winter Solstice is another another excellent Installment in the Wandering Inn series! I always look forward to anythingAnother Excellent Installment!
Winter Solstice is another another excellent Installment in the Wandering Inn series! I always look forward to anything part of this series; the premise is interesting, the characters are great, and I'm happy we got to revisit with Laken again so soon! I look forward to volume five coming out! ...more
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