Bruno
As the third and final book in the trilogy, The High Lord was, in my view, the strongest in terms of writing quality and overall story flow. There’s a clear progression across the serie and an improvement from the first book to the second, and again in this final one.
In terms of the story itself, I thought it delivered a solid conclusion to the main arc that had been built throughout the trilogy. The way everything comes together near the end was satisfying, and I enjoyed seeing the different groups converge.
That said, I had a major frustration. One that I’ve seen mentioned in other reviews. A lot of tension and focus is placed on one character’s storyline, only for it to end in a way that felt disappointing after so much buildup. Related to that, I also found the central relationship poorly written. It often felt like filler rather than something that meaningfully shaped the plot. Whether it happened or not didn’t seem to change much, and I couldn’t help thinking there were other, more compelling characters who deserved more spotlight and action.
Even with those issues, Canavan created a world I genuinely enjoyed, and I’d be interested in reading more stories set in it. I also wanted more depth around the magic system: how it’s learned, how it develops, and how the world responds to it. There are moments where the book touches on this in engaging ways, but too often the descriptions felt rushed or simplified, which made some scenes less captivating than they could have been.
Overall, I’d rate The High Lord, and the trilogy as a whole: 3/5.
As the third and final book in the trilogy, The High Lord was, in my view, the strongest in terms of writing quality and overall story flow. There’s a clear progression across the serie and an improvement from the first book to the second, and again in this final one.
In terms of the story itself, I thought it delivered a solid conclusion to the main arc that had been built throughout the trilogy. The way everything comes together near the end was satisfying, and I enjoyed seeing the different groups converge.
That said, I had a major frustration. One that I’ve seen mentioned in other reviews. A lot of tension and focus is placed on one character’s storyline, only for it to end in a way that felt disappointing after so much buildup. Related to that, I also found the central relationship poorly written. It often felt like filler rather than something that meaningfully shaped the plot. Whether it happened or not didn’t seem to change much, and I couldn’t help thinking there were other, more compelling characters who deserved more spotlight and action.
Even with those issues, Canavan created a world I genuinely enjoyed, and I’d be interested in reading more stories set in it. I also wanted more depth around the magic system: how it’s learned, how it develops, and how the world responds to it. There are moments where the book touches on this in engaging ways, but too often the descriptions felt rushed or simplified, which made some scenes less captivating than they could have been.
Overall, I’d rate The High Lord, and the trilogy as a whole: 3/5.