Agnes was not my favorite character with inconsistent adolescent behavior (crying, horny, angry, petulant, vindictive) but she was at times, entertaining to wade through.
The series lacked the immersive depth that instead, was plied in expedient waters. The author has huge talent that might be best served in lengthier story lines.
Perhaps this world may be further explored in quest fashion to reclaim the heart of magic before Belu and the sword come to terms…….without Agnes.
Review: This was a pretty long haul made even longer with a story line languishing in the shade of reason.
Fitz is an enjoyable character whom is transformed from an early age into a somewhat lame assassin. Yeah, he poisons a few and hacks away at the Forged like any other soldier but he never becomes immersed in that aspect of his life even though he is trained for years. A somewhat weak transition follows where he moves to train in the ‘Skill’ and here the intrigue is off like a spent horse.
Most of this novels story line is revolves around the ruminations within Fitz’s head or pondering the interactions of supporting characters in a daily ebb and flow of emotion. This process builds each character, laboriously. More expedient means enjoin movement to deepen a characters personality. Not to say that this series did not have it’s fair share of movement, only that it seemed more like separate occurrences. When the movement was shared and a character was enhanced, the trait was quickly abandoned or drove the character in an opposite direction. For instance when Fitz is in battle he becomes bezerker boy with an ax. Later the ax (which was a pretty cool character enhancement) is abandoned and Fitz no longer bezerks but mewls around and laments his current state of fear/uncertainty.
Fitz was a character that constantly devolved in almost every instance to the point where you wondered how he became a man that people might respect and follow. He grows to manhood yet still exhibits petty emotions that really don’t align with his character. Yeah you can have times where things don’t go your way (aggravation) but petty jealousy and petulant recrimination are not the hallmarks of a hero. We all love a flawed hero, only in the right way.
Burrich and Molly were a sad ending to an interesting story line as was the Fools. The series feels incomplete in that the expectation is that Fitz becomes the Skill Master, yet no such thing transpires.
Despite some hiccups I enjoyed the series entire. The world building draws you in and keeps you there. An engrossing novel of hope and betrayal.
Viking Jam 