Silverthorn (The Riftwar Saga #3)

I originally read this series back when it first came out, and I’ve been (not so) patiently been waiting for the Kindle version. The story is great; always has been, always will be. The characters come to life and the action is almost non-stop. When I’m reading the series (which I’ve done about 25 times since it’s release) I can’t put it down. It draws me in and holds my attention. Thankfully I can now carry the whole series with me anytime I go somewhere.

And yes, this is the same review I gave to the second book, and everything still applies!

Picking up a few years after the close of

Magician

, this book is best described as the first part of the second half of the Riftwar Saga. Together with

A Darkness at Sethanon

, this book presents a semi-autonomous epic in Feist’s popular fantasy realm that he has taken so far. With so many people loving MAGICIAN so much, to the point of considering it as some of the all-time best fantasy, SILVERTHORN has always attracted highly-critical scrutiny, and has mostly been praised as a worthy follow-up. I remember being somewhat disappointed in this book the first time I read it as a kid (probably because I had expected it to have more of my favorite character, Tomas), but was happy to find that I really enjoyed it very much this time around.

SILVERTHORN is different from MAGICIAN in quite a few ways. Covering a much smaller time span, this book is shorter and less epic in feel. The characters and the setting are for the most part already fairly well-developed, so you don’t get the excitement of being introduced to a whole new thing, but you do get the advantage of more story telling and less descriptive writing. Where MAGICIAN was so focused on the development and growth of the two young heroes Pug and Tomas, SILVERTHORN is really more of a classic fantasy quest where the characters are essentially the same at the end as they were at the beginning. Also, the nature of the conflict was much more clear in MAGICIAN than it is here, where the sense of coming danger is certainly real, but remains a real mystery throughout the book. And finally, this is the book where Feist starts to drag out smaller tales into whole books, as the storyline of Arutha’s quest to find the Silverthorn is really a self-contained story that doesn’t in itself lend much progression to the overall story-arc.

Regardless of the inevitable comparison, judged by its own merits, this book is excellent. Very highly recommended to any fan of fantasy!

Although I am not quite done as yet, I do like the continued story of this “Fantasy”. By now one has been used to so many figures in this plot and I am enjoying the continuation. I do like this Author and his Imagination! Good Job!

Wow, this is only my third Feist novel and the plot just keeps getting better. You’ve got a good slow beginning, action build up with twist mixed in. Then more interesting secrets in an amazing ending. The plot is outstanding, characters are very developed and the writing is exceptional. Can’t go wrong with the Riftwar Saga.

The third in a wonderful series. It is old but great. The beginning of the first book is a bit slow, but well worth the read. You can see elements borrowed by later authors. Well worth the read.

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