The High Lord (The Black Magician Trilogy, Book 3)

Rating:
Summary: A questionable ending for a great trilogy
Review: ***Don't read this if you haven't read the book yet***


I think Ms. Canavan could have done better with the ending, although this book definitely blew the first 2 out of the water. Some things just didn't make sense. How come Akkarin never used Sonea's blood ring? Why didn't Akkarin and Sonea use the power of the Arena to win the battle? Dorrien and Rothen said they would be close by to use their healing powers during the final battle, but they didn't show up. And Savara's role in the novel contributed nothing to the plot, it merely provided Cery a reason not to be jealous of Sonea's relationship. The loose ends were tied up too quickly and rather sloppily in the final pages, and made for a sad, anti-climactic end to a great trilogy. And for me, happy endings are what make a trilogy worth reading...more than once.
I hate it when the hero dies, but it's supposed to be okay because Sonea's pregnant? And Akkarin was way too smart a character to do something stupid like give Sonea too much power (he taught her black magic to begin with!), especially when the Arena is a few steps away. He didn't need to be a martyr and sacrifice himself so Sonea could kill the Ichani, when the Arena was at their fingertips and they could live happily ever after. I wish I could rewrite the ending.
As a side note, it is interesting to see how much Ms.Canavan's writing improves through these 3 novels. I might read her next novel.

Rating:
Summary: blah!
Review: ***If you didn't read the book yet DON'T READ THIS***

Ok I like the first two books. The main character was strong and cool, but this book was the awful. It gets annoyingly boring around the middle so the author thought to liven things up with a relationship...big mistake. Now that she has a boyfriend forget being strong and smart, he does all the work.

The ending was the worst disappointment, I'm not angry he died but its how he died. And at the very end she's so happy like "oh its ok he's dead, I'm pregnant with his child." That quote is not from the book in case you didn't notice but that's the general feeling. That's messed up!


Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: After reading the third book in the Magician Trilogy, all I can say is that it leaves you pinting for more. If you havn't yet started to read 'The Apprentice', do yourself a favor and do so now. An excellent read.

Rating:
Summary: Horrid ending - don't kill off the hero!!
Review: I loved this book up until the ending chapters, and then when the hero was killed, I hated it. What a disappointment, and so unnecessary if the author had used a bit more writing skill. What a pathetic conclusion to a promising trilogy. I will never read any other books by this author again.

Rating:
Summary: Delightful, but could use improvement
Review: The conclusion to the Black Magician Trilogy finally explains High Lord Akkarin's motivations and some of his past. It leaves plenty of openings for possible sequels, and I would gladly read any of Ms. Canavan's books in the future. It would have been better if Ms. Canavan had written from Akkarin's viewpoint, as she did with Sonea, Rothen, Dannyl and Lorlen. Her description of the practice of magic in her fantasy world is terrifcally detailed, but not overly so.

There were some things I felt that prevented this book from being 5 stars. Sonea, being new to using black magic, may be understandably affected by the Guild's aversion to using it, but the impression I got of her character is that she is very practical, and she should not have fussed so much about using black magic to save her people. Also, Akkarin has been using black magic for years. Quite unrealisically, it seems they turned away from using the magic stored in the Arena to fight their enemies. The part where Rothen is going to Sachaka seemed to be pointless. Nothing appeared to result from that at all.

Flaws aside, I quite recommend fantasy lovers to try this trilogy. 3.5 stars

Rating:
Summary: It's Sonea vs. Regine!
Review: The Novice continues The Black Magician Trilogy in the same fluid, fast-paced style that I liked about the opening volume, The Magician's Guild.

In the first book, the action took place mainly in the Guild and the colourful world of the slums. In The Novice, though we still see a great deal of the Guild where Sonea begins her formal education as a magician, the slums and the intriguing characters that inhabit them take a back seat. There is a brief appearance from Cery and Sonea pays her aunt and uncle a brief visit, but those who were fascinated by the thieves and their enthralling activities in the first book will be disappointed.

Instead, Trudi Canavan takes us further afield and introduces us to the different cultures and peoples outside of Imardin. We accompany Dannyl, the newly promoted assistant ambassador, in his travels around Kyralia as he performs his official duties as well as a secret task set by Lorien and Rothen to learn more of the High Lord's past.

As in the previous book, Canavan does not attempt to dazzle readers by populating her fantasy world with monstrous creatures. Neither does she bore us with endless battles and impossible escapades that are vital ingredients in other fantasy series. What Canavan gives us in abundance is great human drama as her likeable characters find themselves in "real" dilemmas that readers will find familiar. We feel for Dannyl as he tries comes to terms with his sexuality and we sympathise with Sonea as she is forced to keep up a façade to protect those that she loves.

There were just two things that (slightly) marred my enjoyment of this book. First, the previous book painted Sonea as a worldly character, one used to the harsh realities of life having grown up in relative poverty. In The Novice, however, she transforms into a wimp as she lets Regine, the book's primary antagonist, bully her constantly. She is hesitant to fight back- surely her training from the thieves would have taught her to defend herself more readily?

My second moan is less a criticism and more of a sign of my impatience. We hardly learn anything new about Akkarin, the High Lord. Canavan gives a few hints here and there but Akkarin remains very much an enigma by the end of the book. I guess all will be revealed in the third and final book in the series. I've already pre-ordered my copy - and so should you!



Rating:
Summary: Thrilling
Review: The third book of this series was by far my favorite. The 2 previous books were amazing as well, but this one did it for me. This book starts out with Sonea once again and all the problems she is having in school and with Akkarin. As the story progressed i became fed up with Akkarin and all he was doing, but just when i though i couldn't hate him anymore he completly transformed for me. He became my favorite character along with Sonea. I loved to see their relationship and how it changed when Sonea learned the truth. There are many love stories in this book which makes it all the better in my eyes...although not the central idea of the book which will ease some people's fears. All in all it was a fantastic book that made me laugh, cry, feel fear and compasion for all.

Rating:
Summary: A promising trilogy
Review: Trudi Canavan culminates her stunning trilogy with `The High Lord', a book nearly twice as long as the opener and twice as impressive in writing style, plot and characterisation. The series has blasted Canavan onto the fantasy scene in a manner that is refreshingly exhilarating in its simple tenacity to adhere to well-oiled tenets that are the mark of a good fantasy novel. This is not to say that there is not room for future improvements, one striking example being Akkarin's and Sonea's own attempt to wander the wilderness which, quite frankly, is utterly pointless and a section in which I found that handy notion of speed-reading coming into effective play.
So, the end of the trilogy and extremely fluent to boot. We find Sonea in Year Three (and it still calls for a vision of Hogwarth) learning Black Magic (or Higher Magic, depending on your need to justify it), killing a female Ichani and promptly getting exiled with Akkarin by the Guild. In the meantime Canavan keeps us in touch with the thief-lord Cery who's having his own swashbuckling affair with Savara whilst cleaning up after Akkarin.
We finally expand on the plot as we learn of an attempt to invade Kyralia by the Ichani led by Kuriko who nurses a personal grudge against Akkardin and a fervent desire to avenge himself on a battle lost ages ago. A little thin, but never mind. Meanwhile the befuddled Rothen and the still undecided Dannyl leap around ineffectively after their star pupil and enigmatic ex-master in a vague attempt to prevent Akkarin's enormous `I told you so'. Battle after battle rages with the Guild on the losing end as Canavan culls her cast and the Ichani move through the ghost city like the Forsaken slowly being whittled down by less magical methods until the explosive finale at the Guild. It is post-scripted neatly with multiple loose ends tied off but allowing sufficient effort for the next generation.
Canavan's opening trilogy has been delightful. At times it is lacking substance, notably the action outside of Imarddin seems directionless at times and the author retreats frequently to the strong prose and plot of the city and there is the occasional loss of reality (even in a fantasy novel you need reality of action) such as the undiscussed evacuation of the city which conveniently happens instantly. Nevertheless, it bodes well for Canavan's future penship. I'd like more novels set in this world as it does offer immense scope and the main characters have a bigger story to tell. Whether or not Canavan returns to this world I will certainly look for her next effort to hit the shelves.

Rating:
Summary: Is it really over?
Review: What an end to a great series! Sonea has really grown up in this book, acting more like an adult than a child. Out of all of the three books, this one has the most action. I got the feeling of an emotional rolercoaster when reading this book, but in a good way. I was totally involved, devouring one page after another.

Sonea has to face her greatest fears, and she soon learns things aren't exactly what they seem. One thing this book has that the others don't- good old fahioned romance (always a favorite of mine). Now Sonea must face the problem outside of the Guild, and all the pain, death, and suffering that goes along with it. All of the other main characters have their own troubles to go through as well, from their own point of view. Everything culminates at the very end, and although all the issues are addressed and nothing is left hanging, I found myself yearning for more. So if I had a problem with this book, it is that I grew way too attached to the characters (plus a fair bit of crying at the end- damn you Trudi!).

So if you're thinking about reading this series and want to make sure the quailty is sustained throughout the series, I assure you it is. I'd recommend this book to those who have already read the first two, but I'm sure most of you don't need the recommendation. Definetly a fabulous and engrossing read. Pick it up!

Rating:
Summary: almost a perfect ending
Review: when i picked this book up, the question "how was Canavan going to close the series with little to no loose ends?" was floating arround in my head.
Canavan used very intesting ways to tie together the major plot lines so that they could be solved in the relativaly same pages and events. not to give anything away, but there are @ least three twists that you most likely won't see coming.
one thing though. THE TRUE ANTAGONIST SHOWS UP AND REVELS LOADS OF WEAKNESSES IN THE GUILD. sorry I love to get chewed out for giving away some parts of the story. oh yeah, major players do die in here.