Hammer of God

A satisfactory ending to a memorable trilogy. While I enjoyed it, I couldn't quite reach that “amazing” feeling. The great thing is that it resolves pretty much most of the loose ends. The epilogue even makes it a little open-ended enough for a book 4 or more (but... leaving it at that would be better).

The pacing was somewhat uneven. It starts off at a good pace, and then it sort of slows down and drags in the middle, when all the politics was going on. And then that sort of ends abruptly and the pace picks up again until the end.

There are two things I dislike about the book. One is Rhian's reflections and two is Alasdair. Rhian is... whiny. That's how she comes across. Sure, she's written to be strong and wilful and all, but she just comes across as irritating, the way she complains about people again and again. Zandakar this, Han that, Helfred this, Alasdair that (and that name is mentioned so many times, that once I rolled my eyes). For Alasdair, he's described as plain. And since he's not loved for his looks, I fail to see any redeeming qualities about him. He's stubborn, jealous, and over-protective. I really wouldn't want him as my king. Too bad thing didn't turn out as I hoped with regards to how the not-very-well-executed love triangle.

But aside from these two things, I enjoyed the rest of it - even that slow bit of politicking with the ambassadors. I loved how the plot was twined around faith, trust, and perseverance. I really enjoyed the whole story from Hekat's beginnings in the savage north of Mijak into the tragic end. It was a brilliant bit of storytelling.