欧宝娱乐

I almost entirely loved it. Overall I liked the Merlin saga even better than Corwin's stories. There was a much tighter and faster pace. Corwin's had more "magic" for me as a newly-discovered concept, but this series was more developed and exciting. I many ways it felt like book one and book two of a series, rather than the two sets of five books each, where the first book introduced a new concept and story and the second took it further, developing additional layers and ideas.

That said, there were quite a few moments where I just didn't know what was going on. It felt like the author could picture things so clearly that he was assuming we could as well. I'm pretty bright generally, and I've read a lot of fantasy, plus this was the tenth book in a series, so these "what the heck was that?" moments did take away from my overall enjoyment.

Also, there were a few items in this book that just didn't make sense. There is a sudden reconciliation and partnership with someone who's shown a pathological hatred for Merlin throughout the series. Even with a magical transformation, it just did feel right. Also, there is an item of magic which defies every aspect of the magical rules previously established, but it's origin and ability to function as it does is totally unexplained. Merlin accepts it because it works, but that didn't make me accept at. Perhaps this is something that was intended to be explained in further stories. I know that the author did complete a few before his death, but I haven't been able to track them down yet. Nevertheless, I would have preferred a method of resolving the major plot that didn't involve inventing a new kind of magic item that isn't consistent with any other part of the stories.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed the book and the series. I'd highly recommend it for any fan of traditional fantasy.