Honored Enemy (Legends of the Riftwar #1)

I find myself rating books by several measures. Was it a good story, did the author develop its characters, was there enough detail for me to imagine being in the pages of the story? But perhaps the most important factor when I rate a book is, did it keep my attention.

I purchased Honored Enemy: Legends of the Riftwar, Book 1 on November 30 at 5 PM. It is now just a little before noon on December 1. Needless to say, I couldn’t out this book down. I’m currently making my way through all of Feist’s world and having read 9 of his other books I can say I’m going to spending more of my hard-earned money for the rest of this series.

A good read, and a must read for fans of the riftwar series. This book provides context to riftwar and the events leading up to the battle of sethanon. I highly recommend.

This was a fun read, but it is also a story of how bitter enemies can join together when both are faced with an enemy common to both of them. Of course, I don’t know that this would actually happen in real life – but?? I do recall a story of the 1st World War where both German and Allied troops facing each other spontaneously ceased fighting on Christmas Eve, stood up in their trenches and all sang “Silent Night”. I do believe that was a true story. Sadly, next day they were again shooting at each other.

However, this is a different story, Japanese type invaders come through a “rift” to the world of Midkemia and attack the inhabitants. This is a world similar to medevial Earth, with Earls, Dukes, Barons, etc., all at odds with each other. The Tsurani are the invaders from another earthlike world which has a very stratified society. Both the Tsurani and the Midkemia forces are human, but both are hunted and must do battle with “the Dark Ones”, elves who hate all humans and whose goal in life is to eradicate them. A force of Tsurani and one from the Midkemia forces, both in desperate straights from the cold weather and worn from a previous battle, find themselves reluctantly joining together when they are attacked by the Dark Elves, purely a matter of the survival of both the Tsurani and Midkemians. The story goes on from there to a happy ending.

This book was quite enjoyable, had a nice plot and gives one something to think about concerning wars.

In this novel readers will experience a wide range of emotions from the perspectives of two unique individuals, both commanders of their respective military units that are currently at war with one another. Dennis Hartraft has “demons” in his past that have haunted him since the beginning of the Riftwar on Midkemia. He is at war with a Tsurani company under Commander Asyaga, a member of a minor noble house in the Empire of Tsuranuanni on the world of Kelewan. While they are at war they must put their differences and hatred aside to face an enemy that would destroy both units if given the opportunity. Those looking to understand more about what went on behind the lines of the war on Midkemia will find this a very enjoyable book.

When I saw that William Forstchen was a co-author of this book, I just had to read it, and I’m glad I did. I so love his “Lost Regiment” series, and was sad to see that series end (always hoping for more, sigh).

Not being at all familiar with Raymond Feist’s works, I was a bit dubious, as I am not too interested in fantasy, magic, wizards, etc. However, this book had little of that and instead was a very insightful treatise on how two deadly enemy forces can join to battle a force even more deadly than they, just to survive.

This was a “hard to put down” book and I highly recommend it to readers of military genre books. Good stuff!

I was a bit disappointed in the ending, though, as it seemed as if the authors were tired of the book and just wanted to end it quickly, jumping to an era obviously years later and quickly sketching the lives of the all the main protaganists.

I must admit I was a little concerned about this book, since it was “co-written” by William R. Forstchen. I had to wonder just how different this book would be from the “regular” books. Well, not too much. The story was crisp and moved along at a nice pace. The authors killed off characters with the usual alomb, and it kept me interested until the end.

My only criticisms are that the story was a little too predictable, and I thought they tried too hard to tie this story in with MAGICIAN. It seemed like every once in a while they would throw in a few pages harking back to the classic, just to prove they were still in Midkemia; the story would have been better without. However, it was a mere annoyance, and overall I enjoyed the book and can’t wait for the rest of the series!

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