Clan Lasombra Trilogy: Sacrifices

Rating:
Summary: Exquisite Journey of the Spirit...
Review: I first came across Lucita on a website providing signature characters from each WoD Masquerade clan. After that I fell across her in the Lasombra Clan Novel from the Clan Series. She was cool then, but this Lasombra Trilogy really gave her more dimension and Bruce Baugh really unfolded a wonderful story that could be used as a template for any character from any particular genre of literature. I liked the seemingly inside look into the machinations of the Lasombra clan and their Amici Noctis / Les amis noir / Brether Nokw / Friends of the Night
and the inclusion of Lasombra of note, such as Gratiano, Montano, and Zarathustra - the Cainite ruler of Antioch. If you're into Abyssal Mysticism, the Fallacy of Gratiano's daublerie of the Lasombra Antediluvian, or a keener understanding of the sociology of Sabbat packs and the power struggles that crown or depose an Archbishop ... you'll truly find this 3rd and final installment of the trilogy a satisfying final bite of a delicious dessert. I found it much more fitting an end to the protagonist's "journey" then what was presented in the Tremere trilogy .. with Antigone Baines. But then I may have simply missed the point.

I highly recommend you read all three books in this trilogy and even go on to acquire more resource material on the Lasombra.

Rating:
Summary: A poor ending
Review: The first two books in the trilogy were good. The third one is not. It seems like the author either ran out of ideas or grew bored, and so plots are either cut off abruptly or forgotten. Examples:

--We learned in the earlier books that Niccolo in the hunting pack has a secret, and the last scene he is in has him trying to spy on a Lasombra elder. Why? Well, we never get to know why, because he is killed and that is that.

--Simon Peter obviously has a spiritual development going, and he interacts with the pack priest on friendly terms in the earlier books. Here, however, he is all of the sudden the pack priest's enemy, and he is abruptly killed off.

--The elder Roxana, who wanted to follow in Lucita's footsteps as a Lasombra renegade, is hardly mentioned at all, even though her torment is explored extensively in the earlier books. Does she resign herself to her fate as one of the Sabbat again? Does she still plan to flee? We never know.

--Who, I ask, manipulated the minds of the Lasombra Methuselahs so they forgot the truth about Lasombra's diablerie? When the manipulation is revealed it frightens the Lasombra elders immensely, and even in the third book, after the destruction of the nine mystics, do they ask this question. I was expecting this to be the focus for the rest of the book, but it is simply forgotten.

There are also smaller threads abrubtly cut. In the second book the Lasombra leader Timofiew asks Andrew a question, which he must answer when he is absolutely sure he has the right answer. But we never get to hear that answer. I suppose the author couldn't make up an answer that was interesting enough. Also, the spy Colin plans to ditch his contract to destroy Lucita by making it only appear as if he is trying to fulfill it; we learn this the moment he gets the contract forced on him. However, nothing is made of this. He is simply destroyed -- and his name has changed! Amazing! And very sloppy.

The Abyssal mystics are killed very quickly, and the whole point of the trilogy comes to a halt. Then Lucita tries her hand at being archbishop of Madrid, and I have to say -- what? What does this have to do with anything? What about the manipulation of the Methuselahs? Sure, following the workings of archbishops can be interesting, but it has no place in this story. How disappointing that the author apparently didn't know what to do with the last 17 percent of the trilogy.

All in all, a poor ending to an otherwise good story.