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The Redemption of Althalus
The Redemption of Althalus is the first stand-alone, single-volume high fantasy saga written by the bestselling husband and wife team of David and Leigh Eddings. Their previous beloved series include the Belgariad, the Malloreon, and the Elenium, and although Althalus is bursting with all the daring escapades their multitude of fans expect, it is also an engaging departure for the authors. Althalus is a grand adventure that is bound to enthrall readers of the authors' previous, multivolume epics, but it features a precision of plot and language that can be achieved only by having an actual resolution.
Althalus is a young thief and occasional killer known for his skill and incredible luck. A number of capers end without much monetary reward for him, until he stumbles into a shrine built to the fertility goddess Dweia. Soon afterward he meets with the wizard Ghend, who hires him to steal the Book, a magical tome that can be found in the bizarre House at the End of the World. There, Althalus discovers Dweia in the form of a black cat and learns that she has chosen him to aid her in a war against Ghend and her evil brother, the destroyer god Daeva. Together Althalus and Dweia use the power of the Book and gather together a small team of questionable heroes who must battle Ghend's supernatural forces and armies. The thief Althalus can only hope his luck holds out for this one last task, since the very fate of humanity is at stake.
A stand-alone epic fantasy is a rarity in the modern-day publishing world and a concept that should be embraced more often. The Redemption of Althalus gives us all the action, sorcery, humor, and soaring imagination of a grand series but doesn't leave any loose threads, fractured subplots, or loss of momentum. A great deal of fun action and generally good-natured exploits are punctuated by the authors' usual satire on religion and high society. In one clever turn, Althalus enters a city where the wealthy are forced to hide their riches and live even worse than the poor in order to avoid taxation. Althalus is well-polished and smoothly constructed, with real storytelling muscle and a gratifying finale. The Eddingses should be praised for their willingness to put a cap on this particular story in an effort to offer other wonderfully developed worlds to their readers.
791 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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5801 people want to read
About the author
David Eddings
220 books5,560 followersDavid Eddings was an American author who wrote several best-selling series of epic fantasy novels. David Eddings' wife,
Leigh Eddings
, was an uncredited co-author on many of his early books, but he had later acknowledged that she contributed to them all.
They adopted one boy in 1966, Scott David, then two months old. They adopted a younger girl between 1966 and 1969. In 1970 the couple lost custody of both children and were each sentenced to a year in jail in separate trials after pleading guilty to 11 counts of physical child abuse. Though the nature of the abuse, the trial, and the sentencing were all extensively reported in South Dakota newspapers at the time, these details did not resurface in media coverage of the couple during their successful joint career as authors, only returning to public attention several years after both had died.
After both served their sentences, David and Leigh Eddings moved to Denver in 1971, where David found work in a grocery store.
David Eddings' first books (which were general fiction) sold moderately well. He later switched to writing epic fantasy, a field in which he achieved great success. In a recent interview with sffworld.com, he said: "I don't take orders from readers."
On January 26, 2007 it was reported that Eddings accidentally burned about a quarter of his office, next door to his house, along with his Excalibur sports car, and the original manuscripts for most of his novels. He was flushing the fuel tank of the car with water when he lit a piece of paper and threw into the puddle to test if it was still flammable.
On February 28, 2007, David Eddings' wife, Leigh Eddings (born Judith Leigh Schall), died following a series of strokes. She was 69.
David Eddings died on June 2, 2009 at the age of 77.
They adopted one boy in 1966, Scott David, then two months old. They adopted a younger girl between 1966 and 1969. In 1970 the couple lost custody of both children and were each sentenced to a year in jail in separate trials after pleading guilty to 11 counts of physical child abuse. Though the nature of the abuse, the trial, and the sentencing were all extensively reported in South Dakota newspapers at the time, these details did not resurface in media coverage of the couple during their successful joint career as authors, only returning to public attention several years after both had died.
After both served their sentences, David and Leigh Eddings moved to Denver in 1971, where David found work in a grocery store.
David Eddings' first books (which were general fiction) sold moderately well. He later switched to writing epic fantasy, a field in which he achieved great success. In a recent interview with sffworld.com, he said: "I don't take orders from readers."
On January 26, 2007 it was reported that Eddings accidentally burned about a quarter of his office, next door to his house, along with his Excalibur sports car, and the original manuscripts for most of his novels. He was flushing the fuel tank of the car with water when he lit a piece of paper and threw into the puddle to test if it was still flammable.
On February 28, 2007, David Eddings' wife, Leigh Eddings (born Judith Leigh Schall), died following a series of strokes. She was 69.
David Eddings died on June 2, 2009 at the age of 77.
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June 2, 2025
Nothing can rescue this one from use as a doorstopper!
We all know that most reviews begin with a brief synopsis of the basis of the plot and, of course, attempt to avoid completely spilling the beans for potential readers that are supposed to react to the review somehow. For the sake of convention, I'll play the game - sigh!
THE REDEMPTION OF ALTHALUS begins by introducing the hero - a very lucky, sarcastic, acerbic, witty and quite hilarious joke telling ne'er do well who's an accomplished thief and highwayman that will stoop to the odd murder or two, if it's necessary. Naturally, he survives by his wits and does as little work as is humanly possible to produce his daily bread. Does this sound to you like a chilling evil protagonist in need of lifelong redemption that can only be achieved through the direct intervention of God and his sister, Dweia, the fertility goddess? Naah - I didn't think so either!
In an extraordinarily weak, almost cartoonish imitation of THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, a group of good guys is rounded up to do battle with Daeva, God's evil brother who is trying to undo all of God's good stuff by changing the past. This ragtag little band, led by Althalus and Dweia, includes Andine, a spoiled little princess with a shriek that will break glass and annoy anybody; Bheid, a pious astrologer-priest; Gher, an apprentice thief who would love to follow in his mentor's footsteps (so much for redemption!); Eliar, a young mercenary warrior who slaughters Andine's father in a battle and then promptly begins to follow his hormones into love with her; and, finally, Leitha, a "witch" who can read minds.
Other than actually saying this novel contains many of the standard elements of a fantasy - battles, characters, good, bad, magic, quest, and so on - there is little that can be said to rescue this novel from use as a doorstopper. Dialogue is stilted and repetitive. I lost count of how many times the plot is actually re-told within the novel by having the characters repeat events to one another. Enough already! The writing is pitched at such a childish level as to be insulting and patronizing. Dialogue is stilted and repetitive. The religious elements of the novel are so heavy-handed as to amount to preaching. Opportunities for fleshing out the story line with descriptive passages of scenery, history, mythology, battles, customs, whatever, are ignored. Oh, did I say that the dialogue was stilted and repetitive?
This would be a poor enough effort if it were Eddings' only book. But it suffers doubly by comparison with past successes like THE BELGARIAD and THE MALLOREON.
On a more positive note, this novel would probably be a pretty decent screenplay to adapt to a teen's role-playing fantasy video game.
Paul Weiss
We all know that most reviews begin with a brief synopsis of the basis of the plot and, of course, attempt to avoid completely spilling the beans for potential readers that are supposed to react to the review somehow. For the sake of convention, I'll play the game - sigh!
THE REDEMPTION OF ALTHALUS begins by introducing the hero - a very lucky, sarcastic, acerbic, witty and quite hilarious joke telling ne'er do well who's an accomplished thief and highwayman that will stoop to the odd murder or two, if it's necessary. Naturally, he survives by his wits and does as little work as is humanly possible to produce his daily bread. Does this sound to you like a chilling evil protagonist in need of lifelong redemption that can only be achieved through the direct intervention of God and his sister, Dweia, the fertility goddess? Naah - I didn't think so either!
In an extraordinarily weak, almost cartoonish imitation of THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, a group of good guys is rounded up to do battle with Daeva, God's evil brother who is trying to undo all of God's good stuff by changing the past. This ragtag little band, led by Althalus and Dweia, includes Andine, a spoiled little princess with a shriek that will break glass and annoy anybody; Bheid, a pious astrologer-priest; Gher, an apprentice thief who would love to follow in his mentor's footsteps (so much for redemption!); Eliar, a young mercenary warrior who slaughters Andine's father in a battle and then promptly begins to follow his hormones into love with her; and, finally, Leitha, a "witch" who can read minds.
Other than actually saying this novel contains many of the standard elements of a fantasy - battles, characters, good, bad, magic, quest, and so on - there is little that can be said to rescue this novel from use as a doorstopper. Dialogue is stilted and repetitive. I lost count of how many times the plot is actually re-told within the novel by having the characters repeat events to one another. Enough already! The writing is pitched at such a childish level as to be insulting and patronizing. Dialogue is stilted and repetitive. The religious elements of the novel are so heavy-handed as to amount to preaching. Opportunities for fleshing out the story line with descriptive passages of scenery, history, mythology, battles, customs, whatever, are ignored. Oh, did I say that the dialogue was stilted and repetitive?
This would be a poor enough effort if it were Eddings' only book. But it suffers doubly by comparison with past successes like THE BELGARIAD and THE MALLOREON.
On a more positive note, this novel would probably be a pretty decent screenplay to adapt to a teen's role-playing fantasy video game.
Paul Weiss
July 11, 2013
Let me start by saying I am a huge David Eddings fan. His Belgariad series is one of my favorite fantasy series -- in some ways more so than even the holy The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
That being said, I couldn't stand this book. He reused, recycled and regurgitated his characters and story-lines from his more successful works and threw them slapdash into this altogether uninspired and uninspiring book.
If you want to read something good -- no, fantastic -- from Eddings, read the Belgariad, a five-book fantasy series that begins with Pawn of Prophecy.
That being said, I couldn't stand this book. He reused, recycled and regurgitated his characters and story-lines from his more successful works and threw them slapdash into this altogether uninspired and uninspiring book.
If you want to read something good -- no, fantastic -- from Eddings, read the Belgariad, a five-book fantasy series that begins with Pawn of Prophecy.
March 30, 2016
I read fantasy stories because I like to see epic stories of love and evil played out. I like to think that evil may win, and that good sometimes doesn't have a chance against overwhelming odds. I like to read grand battles where things...you know...happen. I like the evil side to be just as intelligent as the good side; an even match so you question the ending.
If you like these things, don't read this book.
It's predictable from start to finish. The "bad guys" as they so often refer to them are, well, stupid. They're incompetent bumbling fools held together by an evil god who never makes an appearance. If they had some substance to them, if you knew their personal motives, if they had some kind of complexity to them that made them interesting or cool, then we would have something!
The conflict is boring, the battles are boring, the characters are boring. I suffered through 726 pages of boredom in the hopes that the Eddings' would pull something out that would at least salvage this train wreck.
And the ENDLESS amount of exposition was incredibly tedious. How bad of a writer do you need to be to spell out the story two or three times for your readers? How stupid do you think we are? I don't care to read the entire Althalas and the Wolf Tunic story all over again, dragging it out for a good five pages or so.
Some have said that this was intended for a younger audience. Can someone point out to me where it says that on the dust cover? Did I miss something? I didn't find it in the young adult section... And even if I had, I'd be disappointed.
People remark on the characters falling in love, which I'm fine with if there were reasons! Just because two kids are teenagers won't make them fall in love! And a sexy woman and a priest...well, they apparently fall in love because he has pent up lust and she has a challenge. Wow.
It could have been really cool had it not been so shallow. No one grows. Nothing changes. No surprises. Don't waste your time.
If you like these things, don't read this book.
It's predictable from start to finish. The "bad guys" as they so often refer to them are, well, stupid. They're incompetent bumbling fools held together by an evil god who never makes an appearance. If they had some substance to them, if you knew their personal motives, if they had some kind of complexity to them that made them interesting or cool, then we would have something!
The conflict is boring, the battles are boring, the characters are boring. I suffered through 726 pages of boredom in the hopes that the Eddings' would pull something out that would at least salvage this train wreck.
And the ENDLESS amount of exposition was incredibly tedious. How bad of a writer do you need to be to spell out the story two or three times for your readers? How stupid do you think we are? I don't care to read the entire Althalas and the Wolf Tunic story all over again, dragging it out for a good five pages or so.
Some have said that this was intended for a younger audience. Can someone point out to me where it says that on the dust cover? Did I miss something? I didn't find it in the young adult section... And even if I had, I'd be disappointed.
People remark on the characters falling in love, which I'm fine with if there were reasons! Just because two kids are teenagers won't make them fall in love! And a sexy woman and a priest...well, they apparently fall in love because he has pent up lust and she has a challenge. Wow.
It could have been really cool had it not been so shallow. No one grows. Nothing changes. No surprises. Don't waste your time.
December 20, 2012
Cheesy, but fantastic.
The Redemption of Althalus is, to me, David Eddings summed up in a single book. His characters are witty and lovable, the plot is engaging and epic in scale whilst still being simple and easygoing. This book was one of a few that got me into fantasy when I was younger, and while it's probably not the greatest book of all time- it's still a good story well told, if slightly lacking in depth.
As a standalone novel, it's perfect for the job- everything is all tidied up and resolved by the extremely cheesy finale and the decent length means you're not left with a gaping hole in your chest that begs for more of the book. My copy's been through a lot now, and has suffered the abuse of years of rereading and being carried about in bags that were far less waterproof than anticipated, but every time I pick it back up to read it's like spending time with an old friend whose company I can still enjoy years later.
The Redemption of Althalus is, to me, David Eddings summed up in a single book. His characters are witty and lovable, the plot is engaging and epic in scale whilst still being simple and easygoing. This book was one of a few that got me into fantasy when I was younger, and while it's probably not the greatest book of all time- it's still a good story well told, if slightly lacking in depth.
As a standalone novel, it's perfect for the job- everything is all tidied up and resolved by the extremely cheesy finale and the decent length means you're not left with a gaping hole in your chest that begs for more of the book. My copy's been through a lot now, and has suffered the abuse of years of rereading and being carried about in bags that were far less waterproof than anticipated, but every time I pick it back up to read it's like spending time with an old friend whose company I can still enjoy years later.
February 18, 2008
Redemption of Althalus is all of Eddings' worst tendencies condescend into one novel. I wouldn't go so far as to say that the book is horrible, but there's no spark to the story, and no life to the characters.
One of the big problems with The Redemption of Althalus--and with Eddings' novels in general--is how convenient everything is for the heroes. The heroes just happen to stumble across the very person they need to recruit; the heroes just happen to overhear the villains discussing vital military matters' everything "just happens." Althalus tells the reader how cunning and violent the villains are, but in practice, they're inept morons. There's no sense of urgency or desperation; we *know* whose going to win from the get-go.
The reader is also subjected to frequent exposition dumps; having the same information repeated to a different character every several chapters isn't especially exciting. While there are some clever lines of dialogue, the characters aren't as witty as they--and the author--believe them to be. The banter feels forced and tired, and echoes the jokes from previous series.
There's something subtly off-putting about the way the female characters are written. I dislike how they are frequently "arch" or "sly;" the women come across as smugly superior when dealing with emotionally/romantically inept men. I dislike the idea that all men are morons when it comes to women, and that all women are schemers out to snare men. I hate how the lone female villain's appearance is her main characteristic; she is repeatedly referred to as a "cow" and a "hag" by the characters and within the narration itself.
One of the big problems with The Redemption of Althalus--and with Eddings' novels in general--is how convenient everything is for the heroes. The heroes just happen to stumble across the very person they need to recruit; the heroes just happen to overhear the villains discussing vital military matters' everything "just happens." Althalus tells the reader how cunning and violent the villains are, but in practice, they're inept morons. There's no sense of urgency or desperation; we *know* whose going to win from the get-go.
The reader is also subjected to frequent exposition dumps; having the same information repeated to a different character every several chapters isn't especially exciting. While there are some clever lines of dialogue, the characters aren't as witty as they--and the author--believe them to be. The banter feels forced and tired, and echoes the jokes from previous series.
There's something subtly off-putting about the way the female characters are written. I dislike how they are frequently "arch" or "sly;" the women come across as smugly superior when dealing with emotionally/romantically inept men. I dislike the idea that all men are morons when it comes to women, and that all women are schemers out to snare men. I hate how the lone female villain's appearance is her main characteristic; she is repeatedly referred to as a "cow" and a "hag" by the characters and within the narration itself.
August 30, 2012
I wasn't really that impressed with this book, which is a shame because I love the other series that I've read by David and Leigh Eddings. This is 800 pages of everybody congratulating each other on how clever they've been. They defeat the enemy at every turn with very little effort, almost like a kid killing ants with a magnifying glass. The lack of real conflict in this book makes it feel sort of like a historical account rather than a fantasy novel. The greatest tragedy to me are the characters. There was absolutely no character progression, growth, anything. They are completely flat. I call this a tragedy because they had such potential! A thief/murderer turned father figure and savior, a mind-reader who was nearly burned at the stake by people who accused her of being a witch, a priest struggling with his faith (who falls for the "witch"), a boy genius, and a teenage queen who falls in love with the soldier who killed her father in war all gathered together to save the universe. That to me sounds like a group of characters to get excited about! But no. Nothing. They are each individually used for their abilities and then basically forgotten (except to be clever or congratulate someone else on how clever they've been...ugh). What's worse is that I know the Eddings' know how to create compelling characters. The Belgariad and The Malloreon are full of them! I honestly don't know what went wrong with this one, but I'm just going to chalk it up as a loss and try not to let it tarnish my opinion of these authors as I begin The Elenium.
July 20, 2013
This is easily my favorite book of all time. I love David Eddings, because his characters are always so sarcastic and funny, but Althalus tops them all. After all, what's not to love about an assassin and thief who spends his time arguing with goddesses? Or a princess who just might be knife happy? This book is clever, funny, complicated, and just plain fun to read.
This is the book I tell everyone to get for themselves, because even though I want the world to read it, I'm much too possessive of my own copy to lend it out.
This is the book I tell everyone to get for themselves, because even though I want the world to read it, I'm much too possessive of my own copy to lend it out.
November 6, 2016
Have you ever wanted to see what it’s like for someone to go insane from listening to an audiobook? I invite you to stick around and find out.
First and foremost: fuck this book. It is astounding in its awfulness. I consider it a crash course on how not to write a fantasy epic. Secondly, I’d like to suggest an alternate title: "The Gary Stus, the Cardboard Villain, and the Story of How the Former Repeatedly and Unerringly Curbstomped the Later at Every Turn – Hence Ruining Any Sense of Narrative Heft or Conflict in the Story." It's a little bulky and I’m Looking to trim it down some, but honestly I think the current working version is already good enough to send to the Eddings estate for whenever they reach into the depths of hell for a new print run.
I wanted to put this book behind me. I wanted to pretend that it never happened; to repress the memory of it and move on with my life, but even half a year later, I can't. The overwhelming awfulness of this 'novel' weighs on my mind, and I don't think I can move past it without doing the GLOBAL public service of leaving a review for this monstrosity.
What follows is an editorialized collection of the rants and messages I typed out for a friend whilst I was reading this... thing. Hence, it might lack coherence at some points, flitting from criticism to criticism without any overarching thread, but I assure you that it will still provide much the same horrific entertainment as watching a train crash in slow motion. If you give a flying fuck about spoilers, you are welcome to stop right here, and expose yourself to this infohazardous piece of shit without any further warning from me - and if this is so, then you are welcome to the brain cancer that awaits within its pages.
I loved David Eddings' Belgariad as a younger reader. You wouldn't think that would be at all relevant, but I also loved The Redemption of Althalus too. I mean, why wouldn't I have? It was a single-tome fantasy epic! It was like the Belgariad condensed into a single, sprawling novel! The issue, of course, was that it wasn't like the Belgariad, it basically was the Belgariad. The same character archetypes that I remember, following the same story arc I remember.
As an adult reader, I hate this book so much that I refuse to read the Belgariad again, for fear that I will find that I hate it just as much. I really can’t stress enough just how much I despise The Redemption of Althalus. Let’s just get started with the rant-view
At first, I was resistant to recognizing the shittiness of this book due to the sheer power of my nostalgia goggles, but even at the outset I had bones to pick. Just watch as my critique starts soft, and slowly degrades into full-blown rage-induced insanity.
It's got over-explain-and-repeat-so-younger-readers-don't-get-lost syndrome so bad that one would be forgiven for thinking it was an English translation of a manga novelization or something (I activate my pot of greed card!). And it broadcasts the character relationships so hard I'm worried a lighthouse might dive out of my earbuds and skewer my brain.
The characters are very trope reliant. Not two dimensional, but definitely less than three dimensional – except for one character, who is definitely 2D. All his dialogue in the story consists of either [say something priestly] or [say "that's impossible" when the character who is LITERALLY A GODDESS offhandedly mentions something that conflicts with his faith that he's pretty much turned away from anyway].
Oh, and the narrator kinda bugs me. He voices one female character who I always imagined to have a kinda sultry voice with a... crone-ish voice instead. Every other woman in the story is voiced like a caricature of an overdramatic housewife
Well, the weird thing is that I'm still enjoying it, for the bare most-part, but I wonder if I would hate it if I wasn't wearing nostalgia goggles.
For the next few chapters, that was the extent of my dislike for the novel, but oh, just watch how it changed. Watch how mere words managed to reduce a man to a subhuman beast.
bTW the nostalgia vision has worn off for Redemption of Althalus - or should I say: "The Unchanging Characterization of Gary Stu" - and I fucking hate it now. I'm like 3/4 through, and I'll be able to power through to the end with my shift tomorrow. I Consider it the audiobook equivalent of hate fucking. It's horrible and it'll end up leaving your day exponentially worse, but you're gonna do it anyway.
Every plot point in this book (EVERY FUCKING ONE) can be condensed to either "A thing happened, and then it turned out not to be a big deal" or "A thing happened, and then it kinda just resolved itself."
"Oh no! We burnt all of the cropfields to gimp the arm we were fighting, but now that we've totally curbstomped them for the second time - without the absence of crops playing into it at all - out subjects are all going to starve when winter comes in a few weeks! We'll have to bankrupt ourselves importing grain!"
-three chapters later-
"Well, it turns out that the southerners had the best harvest they've had in years, so the grain is going very cheap! I also buy in unconnected bulk purchases so that nobody realizes how dire things are and skin me for it. (This part's a literal quote up next:) I've moved forty tonnes of grain, but I've only paid for 30!" What’s even more ridiculous is that the time of year and price of gold means literally nothing anyway, because one character constantly manipulates time and can organize time travel freely, while another has an effectively limitless supply of gold for no real reason. Hence, there was no reason to contrive grain being senselessly cheap at all, except to assure the reader that "LOOK EVERYTHING IS FINE AND ALWAYS WILL BE" Oh, and nevermind how fucking illogical it is that the harvest was somehow perfect that year, when the inciting incident for the plot involves growing glaciers locking up the world's water and causing global droughts.
"Oh no, the illusion million-strong army outside we were pretending to surrender to in an elaborate ruse to draw the enemy leaders close to us has suddenly been replaced by a REAL million-strong army because FANTASY MAGIC. Looks like things are actually not going to go perfectly our way for once and this is actually a real surrender. Oh, wait. One of the bad guys just got stabbed and died, which made the entire army disappear and instantly turned it into another hero-wins curbstomp. YAY.” Seriously, fuck this book.
By the end, I hated every fucking character and wanted to physically wrench them from the book and Make them understand just how much pain they were causing me. I'm honest to Christ not kidding. Every piece of dialogue involved over-explaining something and repeating it at least once, if not twice, for no fucking reason at all – normally capped off by a round of multiple "are you sure this is a good idea?"
Laytha was the worst for this. Throughout the entire book, she existed to basically support ANY IDEA that was uttered. Almost every time, with a simple "it's an interesting idea" or "sounds like it's worth a try". That was all she ever contributed to anything at all, unless the scene was focusing on her
And then there’s Gher. Motherfucking Gher. That little fuck. I hate him the most. I despise him as Satan despises God. Every fibre of my being is dedicated to loathing him. Part of it was helped by the FUCKING AIGOUABEGAIBGAEG BECAUSE THERE IS NO WORD TO DESCRIBE IT voice the narrator gave him, but the rest of it is just because of how he exists in the story. He shits out literally every idea for the middle two quarters of the story, bar one. Over explains it, of course, and then everyone spends ten lines musing over it the exact same way every fucking time and then congratulating him on how clever he is.
There is so much more wrong with Gher but I literally lack the capacity to articulate it. It's like a giant mush of hatred balled up in my head, with individual details bubbling to the surface and then diving back to the core before I can render the concept as words. I hate Gher so fucking much that I’m actually going to just stop talking about him because it pains me to think of him.
But on the note of characters praising one-another: half the dialogue in the story is everyone congratulating each other on how fucking clever they are. The other 50% is divided roughly as so:
10% Althalus retelling the same stories multiple times throughout the story with sometimes no changes.
10% Althalus convincing everyone ever to do everything he says within seconds
10% Dweia revealing something offhandedly about the details of their seemingly limitless magical capabilities, and either Bheid or Gher immediately telling her with absolute certainty what the "truth" is even though she is LITERALLY AN OMNISCIENT GOD AND YOU HAVE AN EXCHANGE LIKE THIS EVERY FUCKING CHAPTER.
10% inexplicably repeated jokes and lines that are either really shitty callbacks or really shitty attempts at running jokes. (You wouldn't think this is worth mentioning, but part of what broke me while reading this book was how, with this point combined with all the other things I've written, it felt like I was reading the same general thing OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER)
And finally, 10% conveniently or magically overheard enemy planning, always discussed in breadth, and detail by two people who both already know the full details, and hence would never, EVER have reason to talk about the entirety of their immediate plans in excruciating detail to each other – especially as if they are both explaining it to each other for the first time
And it’s about here that I petered out. Even half a year later, I can't bring myself to elaborate any further. Hopefully, I’ve managed to impress on you how fundamentally bad this book is. If I develop cancer in my life time, I don’t care if it’s because I just went swimming in a pool of nuclear waste; I will attribute it singularly to having read this book.
David and Leigh Eddings: what the fuck happened?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 27, 2023
This book was a solid 3.5/5.
The book was too long and too repetitive for my liking but the biggest issue that I had was the tone of the story. The story felt too whimsical and snarky which ruined any tension or sense of urgency.
On the plus side, the characters were pretty likable and the story itself reminded me of the film "Clash of the Titans 1981" & "Jason and the Argonauts 1963".
A good but not great read.
The book was too long and too repetitive for my liking but the biggest issue that I had was the tone of the story. The story felt too whimsical and snarky which ruined any tension or sense of urgency.
On the plus side, the characters were pretty likable and the story itself reminded me of the film "Clash of the Titans 1981" & "Jason and the Argonauts 1963".
A good but not great read.
August 27, 2016
Consider this a lesson in Not Revisiting The Problematic Faves Of Our Youth; I hadn't read this since high school, and remembered it vaguely as falling in the heist/con genre (which, vaguely, it does). It's about a thief who gets seduced into the service of a goddess and goes around collecting a ragtag bunch of misfits, you know the drill, so that they can defeat another inexplicable bunch of misfits who are SUPER EVIL and working for EVIL and they're all ugly and 'primitive' and 'insane' and sometimes coded as posh British (??) and did I mention EVIL. Fairly standard late-90s fantasy quest stuff.
THINGS I HAD NOT, UNFORTUNATELY, REMEMBERED ABOUT EDDINGS:
- heterocentrism and weird, coy gender essentialism to a truly risible degree
- epithets up the wazoo
- every single possible variant of the word 'said'. sometimes used all on the same page. I have never felt so fond of 'said' as after a chapter's worth of exclaiming, objecting, replying, asking, agreeing, chuckling, demanding, protesting, noting, hissing and explaining.
- sometimes they even had MULTIPLE ADVERBS ATTACHED
- oh god so many adverbs
- so. much. unnecessary. banter. it's not even bad! it's just repetitive! and, not unlike a Joss Whedon show, every single character has the exact same Banter Voice.
This is a 900 page book and a good editor could probably have shaved 1/3 of the word count off, easy.
Anyway. I reread it. I felt fondly nostalgic, and I enjoyed many parts of the plot. I will now be donating the book to a charity fair without much regret, and I will probably be even more ruthless than usual with adverbs and dialogue tags in my own current projects, because OH MY GOD. I think I now have an allergy.
THINGS I HAD NOT, UNFORTUNATELY, REMEMBERED ABOUT EDDINGS:
- heterocentrism and weird, coy gender essentialism to a truly risible degree
- epithets up the wazoo
- every single possible variant of the word 'said'. sometimes used all on the same page. I have never felt so fond of 'said' as after a chapter's worth of exclaiming, objecting, replying, asking, agreeing, chuckling, demanding, protesting, noting, hissing and explaining.
- sometimes they even had MULTIPLE ADVERBS ATTACHED
- oh god so many adverbs
- so. much. unnecessary. banter. it's not even bad! it's just repetitive! and, not unlike a Joss Whedon show, every single character has the exact same Banter Voice.
This is a 900 page book and a good editor could probably have shaved 1/3 of the word count off, easy.
Anyway. I reread it. I felt fondly nostalgic, and I enjoyed many parts of the plot. I will now be donating the book to a charity fair without much regret, and I will probably be even more ruthless than usual with adverbs and dialogue tags in my own current projects, because OH MY GOD. I think I now have an allergy.
April 20, 2014
I love this book, I find it a refreshing read in which cinematic battles are not the method of fixing the problem.
I do however acknowledge the complaints of those who have given this book one and two stars. It is the same tropes Eddings used in all of his series, simply condensed down into one book.
Personally I enjoy the characters, the setting and the reality of their situation. I also enjoyed the fact that their conflict is one of many in the universe, and it would only be important for the time they were living it. Once their conflict was done, it was no longer important, a refreshing take on the importance of a hero.
Althalus is simply one of my all time favorite characters in existence and will continue to be so, his habit of looking at everything through the lens of humor is one that I find interesting, when many modern hero's are rather intense. He is more laid back and relaxed about things, though even he has his limits.
This may be my favorite book, but that doesn't mean that it is perfect, yes it does have it's flaws. Still, for the unconventional read, the character growth and multitudes of likable characters, it is hard to trump. I would have to say nearly all of it's flaws come into play because it is one book, but with enough ideas to last for two or three. Personally I think that would have ruined the pacing, but that is just me.
I highly recommend this book, I highly recommend Eddings, and I personally feel that if one has never read Eddings material, this would make for a great entry piece if they do not want to manage a six or twelve book series respectively.
I do however acknowledge the complaints of those who have given this book one and two stars. It is the same tropes Eddings used in all of his series, simply condensed down into one book.
Personally I enjoy the characters, the setting and the reality of their situation. I also enjoyed the fact that their conflict is one of many in the universe, and it would only be important for the time they were living it. Once their conflict was done, it was no longer important, a refreshing take on the importance of a hero.
Althalus is simply one of my all time favorite characters in existence and will continue to be so, his habit of looking at everything through the lens of humor is one that I find interesting, when many modern hero's are rather intense. He is more laid back and relaxed about things, though even he has his limits.
This may be my favorite book, but that doesn't mean that it is perfect, yes it does have it's flaws. Still, for the unconventional read, the character growth and multitudes of likable characters, it is hard to trump. I would have to say nearly all of it's flaws come into play because it is one book, but with enough ideas to last for two or three. Personally I think that would have ruined the pacing, but that is just me.
I highly recommend this book, I highly recommend Eddings, and I personally feel that if one has never read Eddings material, this would make for a great entry piece if they do not want to manage a six or twelve book series respectively.
April 7, 2020
Eddings was once my favorite author (though The Redemption of Althalus was never a favorite), but I think I've grown apart from his writing. This book has several problems, but I'll focus on the two main reasons I did not like this book:
First: there is no tension in the entire book. Or maybe there's one at page 630 and that gets resolved within two pages. I like when it goes well for the good guys, but the bad guys in this book is so stupid you never feel like anything is at stake.
Second: even though the female characters in this book has agency (somewhat, at least), they're stereotypical written and does a lot of talking of clothes (alas "of screen", otherwise it might have been more okay) and scolding and doting over the male characters. Additional to this the world described in this book is sexist. It gets really tiresome after a while.
But apparently I read all 913 pages, so it was not totally bad: some of the characters are fun and sometimes the interaction between them is fun to read.
(But mostly I got through it because I'm stubborn and this is probably the last time I read a book by Eddings)
First: there is no tension in the entire book. Or maybe there's one at page 630 and that gets resolved within two pages. I like when it goes well for the good guys, but the bad guys in this book is so stupid you never feel like anything is at stake.
Second: even though the female characters in this book has agency (somewhat, at least), they're stereotypical written and does a lot of talking of clothes (alas "of screen", otherwise it might have been more okay) and scolding and doting over the male characters. Additional to this the world described in this book is sexist. It gets really tiresome after a while.
But apparently I read all 913 pages, so it was not totally bad: some of the characters are fun and sometimes the interaction between them is fun to read.
(But mostly I got through it because I'm stubborn and this is probably the last time I read a book by Eddings)
November 26, 2018
Ah, well. Somewhere in some private dimension, a sad twelve-year-old that was once me is content. It was worth it for that, I guess.
February 21, 2017
Whenever anyone asks me who my favourite author is, I'll normally trot out the answer David Eddings without a second thought. Sure, the Lord of the Rings is my favourite book but David, and his lesser acknowledged wife Leigh, wrote almost twenty books that I happily count among my favourites. This includes the five book series The Belgariad and its sequel series The Malloreon, trilogy The Elenium and its companion series The Tamuli, as well as a bunch of prequel and stand-alone novels. Of course, they also wrote the high-concept but slightly ropey The Dreamers series, the cliched but weirdly enjoyable Regina's Song and two non-genre novels that we'll forgive because almost everyone's first few novels are a bit shitey. And then we get to the subject of my review, 2000's stand alone fantasy novel The Redemption of Althalus, which has literally no excuses for being badly written, riddled with poorly executed tropes and in so many ways an inferior copy of Eddings' previous stories that I've started to wonder if he was really just a two-trick pony.
There are two basic types of fantasy series, that is they tend to be either character driven or plot driven. Of course, there are plenty of examples where an author has managed to do both, although these often tend to be enormous, rambling, unwieldy and, in George R R Martin's case, unfinished.
Sorry George.
Eddings' books normally stick firmly on the side of the characters, with his plots being mostly arbitrary quests to save the universe from one evil god or another, with a couple of prophecies, enchanted crystals and chosen ones thrown in for good measure. Redemption is no different. Here the evil God Daeva wants to rule the world and revert it back to a pre-historic state, which has interesting archaeological implications but probably wouldn't do much good in the long run. His sister Dweia is out to stop him. They have a brother as well, Deiwos, but he basically does sweet fuck all. Naturally both Daeva and Dweia have a selection of prophesied chosen ones at hand to help them out, and this is where things turn sour. See, even though the plots in The Belgariad and The Elenium are fairly tropey and flimsy, they have both have fantastic casts of characters that make the books worth reading. What Redemption has is a bunch of expies. In other words, they're just recycled characters from Eddings' previous novels.
Dweia is the beautiful, whimsical goddess, equal parts Polgara and Aphrael. Sadly she lacks the former's character development and maternal strength and unlike the latter without childhood to explain some of her more irritating tendencies, she comes across across as bland, infallible and annoying. She's too perfect, and no-one likes a perfect character. She also has "limbs rounded with such perfection it made his (Althalus') heart ache." I'm not sure why having rounded limbs is that important, but Eddings goes on about it a hell of a lot so it must be. She also spends a good deal of the time as a cat called Emerald which is...okay I guess, but it makes her relationship with Althalus downright creepy. In The Belgariad, Belgarath and Poledra spent time as wolves as well but they were either wolf lovers, or people lovers. In Redemption we just have scenes of a bloke flirting with a talking cat. It's weird.
Althalus is equally problematic. He's clearly supposed to be a lovable rogue of the sort Eddings normally does so well but again he feels like he's been cobbled together from spare parts. He has none of Belgarath's likability or charm, none of Silk's vulnerability or quick wit and none of Stragen's complexity or back story. He's just sort of...there! He's far too keen on murdering to be in any way sympathetic and several of the traits ascribed to him in the story's opening are never shown in the actual novel. Eddings completely ignores the rule of "show, don't tell," instead having numerous characters remind us that Althalus likes to act in a certain way, but never actually shows him doing it. Case in point: when Leitha points out that "trust me," is Althalus' favourite phrase despite the fact that he has never once used it in the novel. Except...that's Silk's favourite phrase. The only phrases that Althalus seems to enjoy using are calling people, "old boy," and "neighbour." Which are Martel and Sparhawk's favourite phrases respectively. Getting the picture? Oh, and the redemption of the novel's title? It never really happens. Sure, Althalus gives up his life as a thief to live with Dweia, but his last act in the book is too criticise her for getting fat because her abdomen was ever so slightly rounded. Sheesh, what a jerk. It's okay though, because she's actually pregnant. Not fat. The very thought... Still, he feels slight remorse at having to trick a man he respects, not enough remorse not to trick him but still. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.
The secondary characters don't fare much better either. Ghend is an expy of Talen, a cute kid with a penchant for theft, but with none of the sass. It probably din't help that I pictured him looking exactly like Jake Lloyd in The Phantom Menance, for some reason. Leitha is just Xanetia, the pale beauty with a gift that's more of a curse, only with added rape as a back story, because who doesn't love that? She's also supposed to have a "twisted sense of humour," although once again this is only ever talked about and not shown, and she has a bizarre habit of calling Althalus "Daddy," which was blamed on the rape for some reason, either way it's just kind of odd. Eliar is Kalten, the dumb blonde muscle with a big appetite, which leads onto a very peculiar feeder/feedee relationship, in other words, he has a lady who feeds him all the time, but this is okay because Eliar miraculously isn't a fatty. That wouldn't be okay. I'll get on to that in a minute if it feels like I'm labouring the point. Which I am. Anyway. Eliar's *cough* feeder *cough* is Andine, only she's really just a less adorable version of Ce'Nedra, a tiny, beautiful princess, sorry "Arya" (Game of Thrones was first published in 1998 by the way, I'll let you work that one out for yourself) with a flair for dramatics and a loud voice. She also spends a ridiculous amount of time away from her kingdom but unh...no-one seems particularly bothered by this. It's almost like we don't even need a monarchy... So far, so similar. The only really original character in there is Bheid, although he's a monk and you loose serious imagination points if you have a monk and you just call him Bheid.
The bad guys are a little better, but only because they're bland, rather than copied. In fact, looking back over their names again I can't even remember which was which, except for Khnom and Gelta. I felt sorry for Khnom because he didn't really do anything that evil but he still got sucked into oblivion. Gelta sticks out because she's a chunky, acne scarred lady and as a chunky, acne scarred lady myself I obviously thought hurrah, at last someone I can cosplay as!
Except...she's never called a woman. She's a bitch, or a cow, or a whore or any other derogatory female slur you care to come up with. This is due in part to the fact she's evil, but note that none of the male baddies ever come in for this sort of language, and in part because she's a warrior and women can't possibly be warriors. Way to break down the barriers there, Eddings. Actually, way to backtrack on all the female warrior characters in your previous four series. Mirtai would be spinning in her grave. Furthermore an extraordinary amount of time is given over to discussing how hideously ugly Gelta is. Notice how I mentioned how attractive all the nice ladies are? You can't be ugly and good in the Redemption universe. I know that's pretty much a fantasy staple but do they really have to go on about Gelta's pock-marked face every time she appears on the fricking page? There's only one other character that comes under this much scrutiny for their appearance and his name is Gosti. Gosti Big-Belly.
Gosti is the secondary antagonist of the novel, a clan chief with a reputation for being rich but actually has very little to his name. He gets swindled by Althalus, once in the past and once in an alternate time-line because Eddings, much like Stephen Moffat, tries to get away with being cleverer than he is by going timey-wimey-wibbly-wobbly. Gosti has two defining attributes, one is obviously his enormous fatness and the other is his stupidity; the two naturally go hand-in-hand. In all honesty the bad guys and the good guys could start a little club together called the No Fatties where they all go to bitch about gross fat guys are because this is essentially what happens every time Gosti appears. And, get this, Gosti is actually proud and happy to be fat! The name Big-Belly is self ascribed. And everyone thinks this is pretty much the worst thing to have ever happened. I mean, sure, Althalus killed a man because he liked the look of his jacket but Gosti is fat and happy what a terrible fucking example of humanity.
So that's the characters dealt with. The plot? Well, like the rest of Eddings' novels, it's fairly nothingy. There's a long drawn out war in which a lovable, but minor, character dies, all of the bad guys get obliterated and then all the adults pair up nicely together at the end because women love marriage, men love sex, but won't do it outside of marriage, and absolutely no-one is gay. Duh. This might sound harsh and to be fair similar criticisms could be levelled at the amount of neat, hetero couples in The Tamuli but at least in that they hung a lampshade on it! Redemption is just a limp war/space-time travel/prophecy yarn with a bunch of expies milling around waiting to be injected with character. It never happens. The whole thing reads like Eddings' fan-fiction. It's over-long, glacially paced and predictable and it's the one damn thing that makes me think twice about listing David Eddings as my favourite author. Now, if anyone needs me, I'll be in down at Faldor's Farm. Trust me.
There are two basic types of fantasy series, that is they tend to be either character driven or plot driven. Of course, there are plenty of examples where an author has managed to do both, although these often tend to be enormous, rambling, unwieldy and, in George R R Martin's case, unfinished.
Sorry George.
Eddings' books normally stick firmly on the side of the characters, with his plots being mostly arbitrary quests to save the universe from one evil god or another, with a couple of prophecies, enchanted crystals and chosen ones thrown in for good measure. Redemption is no different. Here the evil God Daeva wants to rule the world and revert it back to a pre-historic state, which has interesting archaeological implications but probably wouldn't do much good in the long run. His sister Dweia is out to stop him. They have a brother as well, Deiwos, but he basically does sweet fuck all. Naturally both Daeva and Dweia have a selection of prophesied chosen ones at hand to help them out, and this is where things turn sour. See, even though the plots in The Belgariad and The Elenium are fairly tropey and flimsy, they have both have fantastic casts of characters that make the books worth reading. What Redemption has is a bunch of expies. In other words, they're just recycled characters from Eddings' previous novels.
Dweia is the beautiful, whimsical goddess, equal parts Polgara and Aphrael. Sadly she lacks the former's character development and maternal strength and unlike the latter without childhood to explain some of her more irritating tendencies, she comes across across as bland, infallible and annoying. She's too perfect, and no-one likes a perfect character. She also has "limbs rounded with such perfection it made his (Althalus') heart ache." I'm not sure why having rounded limbs is that important, but Eddings goes on about it a hell of a lot so it must be. She also spends a good deal of the time as a cat called Emerald which is...okay I guess, but it makes her relationship with Althalus downright creepy. In The Belgariad, Belgarath and Poledra spent time as wolves as well but they were either wolf lovers, or people lovers. In Redemption we just have scenes of a bloke flirting with a talking cat. It's weird.
Althalus is equally problematic. He's clearly supposed to be a lovable rogue of the sort Eddings normally does so well but again he feels like he's been cobbled together from spare parts. He has none of Belgarath's likability or charm, none of Silk's vulnerability or quick wit and none of Stragen's complexity or back story. He's just sort of...there! He's far too keen on murdering to be in any way sympathetic and several of the traits ascribed to him in the story's opening are never shown in the actual novel. Eddings completely ignores the rule of "show, don't tell," instead having numerous characters remind us that Althalus likes to act in a certain way, but never actually shows him doing it. Case in point: when Leitha points out that "trust me," is Althalus' favourite phrase despite the fact that he has never once used it in the novel. Except...that's Silk's favourite phrase. The only phrases that Althalus seems to enjoy using are calling people, "old boy," and "neighbour." Which are Martel and Sparhawk's favourite phrases respectively. Getting the picture? Oh, and the redemption of the novel's title? It never really happens. Sure, Althalus gives up his life as a thief to live with Dweia, but his last act in the book is too criticise her for getting fat because her abdomen was ever so slightly rounded. Sheesh, what a jerk. It's okay though, because she's actually pregnant. Not fat. The very thought... Still, he feels slight remorse at having to trick a man he respects, not enough remorse not to trick him but still. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.
The secondary characters don't fare much better either. Ghend is an expy of Talen, a cute kid with a penchant for theft, but with none of the sass. It probably din't help that I pictured him looking exactly like Jake Lloyd in The Phantom Menance, for some reason. Leitha is just Xanetia, the pale beauty with a gift that's more of a curse, only with added rape as a back story, because who doesn't love that? She's also supposed to have a "twisted sense of humour," although once again this is only ever talked about and not shown, and she has a bizarre habit of calling Althalus "Daddy," which was blamed on the rape for some reason, either way it's just kind of odd. Eliar is Kalten, the dumb blonde muscle with a big appetite, which leads onto a very peculiar feeder/feedee relationship, in other words, he has a lady who feeds him all the time, but this is okay because Eliar miraculously isn't a fatty. That wouldn't be okay. I'll get on to that in a minute if it feels like I'm labouring the point. Which I am. Anyway. Eliar's *cough* feeder *cough* is Andine, only she's really just a less adorable version of Ce'Nedra, a tiny, beautiful princess, sorry "Arya" (Game of Thrones was first published in 1998 by the way, I'll let you work that one out for yourself) with a flair for dramatics and a loud voice. She also spends a ridiculous amount of time away from her kingdom but unh...no-one seems particularly bothered by this. It's almost like we don't even need a monarchy... So far, so similar. The only really original character in there is Bheid, although he's a monk and you loose serious imagination points if you have a monk and you just call him Bheid.
The bad guys are a little better, but only because they're bland, rather than copied. In fact, looking back over their names again I can't even remember which was which, except for Khnom and Gelta. I felt sorry for Khnom because he didn't really do anything that evil but he still got sucked into oblivion. Gelta sticks out because she's a chunky, acne scarred lady and as a chunky, acne scarred lady myself I obviously thought hurrah, at last someone I can cosplay as!
Except...she's never called a woman. She's a bitch, or a cow, or a whore or any other derogatory female slur you care to come up with. This is due in part to the fact she's evil, but note that none of the male baddies ever come in for this sort of language, and in part because she's a warrior and women can't possibly be warriors. Way to break down the barriers there, Eddings. Actually, way to backtrack on all the female warrior characters in your previous four series. Mirtai would be spinning in her grave. Furthermore an extraordinary amount of time is given over to discussing how hideously ugly Gelta is. Notice how I mentioned how attractive all the nice ladies are? You can't be ugly and good in the Redemption universe. I know that's pretty much a fantasy staple but do they really have to go on about Gelta's pock-marked face every time she appears on the fricking page? There's only one other character that comes under this much scrutiny for their appearance and his name is Gosti. Gosti Big-Belly.
Gosti is the secondary antagonist of the novel, a clan chief with a reputation for being rich but actually has very little to his name. He gets swindled by Althalus, once in the past and once in an alternate time-line because Eddings, much like Stephen Moffat, tries to get away with being cleverer than he is by going timey-wimey-wibbly-wobbly. Gosti has two defining attributes, one is obviously his enormous fatness and the other is his stupidity; the two naturally go hand-in-hand. In all honesty the bad guys and the good guys could start a little club together called the No Fatties where they all go to bitch about gross fat guys are because this is essentially what happens every time Gosti appears. And, get this, Gosti is actually proud and happy to be fat! The name Big-Belly is self ascribed. And everyone thinks this is pretty much the worst thing to have ever happened. I mean, sure, Althalus killed a man because he liked the look of his jacket but Gosti is fat and happy what a terrible fucking example of humanity.
So that's the characters dealt with. The plot? Well, like the rest of Eddings' novels, it's fairly nothingy. There's a long drawn out war in which a lovable, but minor, character dies, all of the bad guys get obliterated and then all the adults pair up nicely together at the end because women love marriage, men love sex, but won't do it outside of marriage, and absolutely no-one is gay. Duh. This might sound harsh and to be fair similar criticisms could be levelled at the amount of neat, hetero couples in The Tamuli but at least in that they hung a lampshade on it! Redemption is just a limp war/space-time travel/prophecy yarn with a bunch of expies milling around waiting to be injected with character. It never happens. The whole thing reads like Eddings' fan-fiction. It's over-long, glacially paced and predictable and it's the one damn thing that makes me think twice about listing David Eddings as my favourite author. Now, if anyone needs me, I'll be in down at Faldor's Farm. Trust me.
March 31, 2016
Ridondante.
Sarebbe potuto durare la metà delle pagine, e gli avrei dato una stella in più.
Così è noioso, noioso, noioso.
Il problema più grande è che i personaggi continuano a ripetere gli stessi dialoghi più volte, raccontando un mucchio di volte le stesse cose.
Questo all'inizio non si nota molto, ma dopo la metà questo difetto assume proporzioni gigantesche.
Gli stessi personaggi poi, sono caratterizzati veramente poco, sia psicologicamente sia fisicamente: quelli principali avrebbero delle potenzialità, ma le loro azioni spesso sono guidate in modo illogico; in più non hanno particolari approfondimenti psicologici. Quelli secondari si dividono in militari tutti uguali fra loro, anche nei nomi, e "nemici al servizio del Dio del Male", senza qualità particolari se non il fatto di essere brutti, sporchi & cattivi.
Ah, tra l'altro il Dio del Male, che viene chiamato in causa ogni cinque pagine, non si vede nemmeno.
La trama è di una banalità allucinante: piatta, lineare, prevedibile... nessun sussulto, nessun colpo di scena. L'unica trovata decente, e cioè le porte magiche che dal quartier generale dei buoni permettono di raggiungere qualsiasi punto dello spazio e del tempo per fregare i nemici, viene usata a sproposito. Invece di dosare bene questa idea, gli autori ne abusano, rendendo virtualmente invincibili ed onnipotenti i buoni, e facendo fare ai cattivi la figura dei fessi, sempre.
Sarebbe potuto durare la metà delle pagine, e gli avrei dato una stella in più.
Così è noioso, noioso, noioso.
Il problema più grande è che i personaggi continuano a ripetere gli stessi dialoghi più volte, raccontando un mucchio di volte le stesse cose.
Questo all'inizio non si nota molto, ma dopo la metà questo difetto assume proporzioni gigantesche.
Gli stessi personaggi poi, sono caratterizzati veramente poco, sia psicologicamente sia fisicamente: quelli principali avrebbero delle potenzialità, ma le loro azioni spesso sono guidate in modo illogico; in più non hanno particolari approfondimenti psicologici. Quelli secondari si dividono in militari tutti uguali fra loro, anche nei nomi, e "nemici al servizio del Dio del Male", senza qualità particolari se non il fatto di essere brutti, sporchi & cattivi.
Ah, tra l'altro il Dio del Male, che viene chiamato in causa ogni cinque pagine, non si vede nemmeno.
La trama è di una banalità allucinante: piatta, lineare, prevedibile... nessun sussulto, nessun colpo di scena. L'unica trovata decente, e cioè le porte magiche che dal quartier generale dei buoni permettono di raggiungere qualsiasi punto dello spazio e del tempo per fregare i nemici, viene usata a sproposito. Invece di dosare bene questa idea, gli autori ne abusano, rendendo virtualmente invincibili ed onnipotenti i buoni, e facendo fare ai cattivi la figura dei fessi, sempre.
September 29, 2024
I have an elderly 84 year old neighbour, who I have known my whole life. We are both fantasy nuts and very often talk about books, we seem to have the same taste... until this.
I HAD to read it for him, he said it was his favourite book, even held it lovingly against his chest as he told me the basic outline, he just knew I'd love it too.
Once I'd started he asked me for regular updates, which made it even worse, but his enthusiasm meant I just couldnt tell him I absolutely hated it, he's not long for this earth, he's lonely and just wanted to share something cool with me. So I lied.
He thinks i love it. I didn't.
It took me forever to read, i avoided it somedays, I had to force myself in the end. It started off with potential but literally repeated itself over and over again.
Halfway through the book, the main character actually even "retells" his story to other characters and then they all actually repeat the story and off we go through the same bollox again. Banging my head off the wall I was!
A real labour of love, but it made a little old man so happy when I gave it back to him, told him it was great and was able to recount the story for discussion with him, so it was worth the pain in the end.
I HAD to read it for him, he said it was his favourite book, even held it lovingly against his chest as he told me the basic outline, he just knew I'd love it too.
Once I'd started he asked me for regular updates, which made it even worse, but his enthusiasm meant I just couldnt tell him I absolutely hated it, he's not long for this earth, he's lonely and just wanted to share something cool with me. So I lied.
He thinks i love it. I didn't.
It took me forever to read, i avoided it somedays, I had to force myself in the end. It started off with potential but literally repeated itself over and over again.
Halfway through the book, the main character actually even "retells" his story to other characters and then they all actually repeat the story and off we go through the same bollox again. Banging my head off the wall I was!
A real labour of love, but it made a little old man so happy when I gave it back to him, told him it was great and was able to recount the story for discussion with him, so it was worth the pain in the end.
December 24, 2008
Probably my favorite book from David and Leigh Eddings. It is a one book epic about a thief. Althalus has been having a run of bad luck when he is hired to steal a book (whatever that is) from the House at the End of the World. He thinks he has died or gone mad when he enters a room, hears a cat speak to him and notices the door no longer exists.
I don't really know what to say other than I really love this book.
I don't really know what to say other than I really love this book.
January 7, 2023
It's a little awkward when a book is recommended to you and you find yourself coming out of it seething. Eddings has some wit and fun with his world, which is more than I can say for many fantasy authors who are so hell-bent on mimicking Tolkien that any sort of levity is a sin. Unfortunately, that's about where my positives for the book end.
May 15, 2022
The book was good, it wasn't what I expected from Eddings. It was a light hearted read but with some great characters. There was thievery, cunning, war, and the one thing that might be the switch for a lot of people. It deals with gods, and time leaps, and space jumps.
November 3, 2023
April 2023
Kindle edition
This one is actually a re-read for me and my most memorable book. I don't remember the first book I ever read or the first book into teenage reading, but I do remember this one. The Belgariad got me hooked on this author and I really wanted to continue, so I crossed from the colourful bean bags into the adult section. It was a hardback and the biggest book I'd read so far. From then it was the Dark tower series and any other big book I could get my hands on, along with the pains of reserves and tracking the sequential books down by venturing to the much bigger library. Good times.
It wasn't so much the story than the characters that stuck. Emmy and Althalus. A talking cat that was really a goddess and a thief, murderer and seasoned liar. They were memorable and crop up every now and then prompting a need for a re-read. This was purely a nostalgia read and they can be hit and miss for me.
On this one it hit hard that I no longer have the attention span to indulge in long fantasy books. Its either multitasking or stop and start which gets irritating. It was also the kindle edition so it didn't have that lost in a physical feel that I remembered or the achievement of one side getting bigger and one side getting smaller. Add in the grammar errors and the eye strain, this wasn't as enjoyable as when I was a kid. It was a reminder of just how much my interests have changed over the years.
Onto the book. Emmy and Althalus were still my favorite characters. I loved how the romance was just there, not insta-love but more like fated lovers. They were pretty much an already married couple and it was adorably sweet. Rather than gathering warriors, it felt like they were building a family, whilst taking into account making sure they each had someone when it was all over.
Eliar, Gher, Bheid, Leitha and Andine each brought something new to the family. I'm on the fence about Andine. I liked when she fed Eliar and the soft moments with Dhakan. Leitha got more entertaining after she'd broken free of her problems. Calling Althalus daddy a running theme. There were quite a few nicknames thrown around and whereas that's usually one of my pet peeves, it was just sweet how close this makeshift family was.
There were a few names that stuck out to me, Khalor being one of them, but with the war and the chiefs a lot of the names just passed over my head. There were a lot of names and places and yeah, think I need to stick to the smaller books or try the audio, we'll see.
Apart from Althalus, my favourite has to be Gher who will likely grow to be another Althalus. I'm curious about his future. They left him sort of unsupervised. I hope he got a childhood with Khalor and his wife. I liked that Althalus got a surprise ending but it was a little sad Emmy didn't get to reconcile with her brothers.
I kind of maybe a little felt sorry for Ghend. He picked his opponent and that was his downfall. He did get what he deserved. At the same time he was stuck with a god that didn't trust and companions that didn't listen and were all ready to stab in the back. Perhaps if they were more organised they wouldn't have gotten their butts kicked quite as badly as they did. The way he got swindled so badly was embarrassing.
The thing I didn't like was the formal speech, that just made my head hurt. Apart from that it was straight forward fantasy ride with the characters already leveled, no betrayal and building a family. One of the most memorable bits was Althalus trying to talk to the god and it not working the same. It was a fun read.
Kindle edition
This one is actually a re-read for me and my most memorable book. I don't remember the first book I ever read or the first book into teenage reading, but I do remember this one. The Belgariad got me hooked on this author and I really wanted to continue, so I crossed from the colourful bean bags into the adult section. It was a hardback and the biggest book I'd read so far. From then it was the Dark tower series and any other big book I could get my hands on, along with the pains of reserves and tracking the sequential books down by venturing to the much bigger library. Good times.
It wasn't so much the story than the characters that stuck. Emmy and Althalus. A talking cat that was really a goddess and a thief, murderer and seasoned liar. They were memorable and crop up every now and then prompting a need for a re-read. This was purely a nostalgia read and they can be hit and miss for me.
On this one it hit hard that I no longer have the attention span to indulge in long fantasy books. Its either multitasking or stop and start which gets irritating. It was also the kindle edition so it didn't have that lost in a physical feel that I remembered or the achievement of one side getting bigger and one side getting smaller. Add in the grammar errors and the eye strain, this wasn't as enjoyable as when I was a kid. It was a reminder of just how much my interests have changed over the years.
Onto the book. Emmy and Althalus were still my favorite characters. I loved how the romance was just there, not insta-love but more like fated lovers. They were pretty much an already married couple and it was adorably sweet. Rather than gathering warriors, it felt like they were building a family, whilst taking into account making sure they each had someone when it was all over.
Eliar, Gher, Bheid, Leitha and Andine each brought something new to the family. I'm on the fence about Andine. I liked when she fed Eliar and the soft moments with Dhakan. Leitha got more entertaining after she'd broken free of her problems. Calling Althalus daddy a running theme. There were quite a few nicknames thrown around and whereas that's usually one of my pet peeves, it was just sweet how close this makeshift family was.
There were a few names that stuck out to me, Khalor being one of them, but with the war and the chiefs a lot of the names just passed over my head. There were a lot of names and places and yeah, think I need to stick to the smaller books or try the audio, we'll see.
Apart from Althalus, my favourite has to be Gher who will likely grow to be another Althalus. I'm curious about his future. They left him sort of unsupervised. I hope he got a childhood with Khalor and his wife. I liked that Althalus got a surprise ending but it was a little sad Emmy didn't get to reconcile with her brothers.
I kind of maybe a little felt sorry for Ghend. He picked his opponent and that was his downfall. He did get what he deserved. At the same time he was stuck with a god that didn't trust and companions that didn't listen and were all ready to stab in the back. Perhaps if they were more organised they wouldn't have gotten their butts kicked quite as badly as they did. The way he got swindled so badly was embarrassing.
The thing I didn't like was the formal speech, that just made my head hurt. Apart from that it was straight forward fantasy ride with the characters already leveled, no betrayal and building a family. One of the most memorable bits was Althalus trying to talk to the god and it not working the same. It was a fun read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 10, 2019
Eddings was always a comfort-read for me in my teens. It was something about the epic scope, the moral pragmatism and the supportive, close-knit team of friends and family -- the recurring tropes of his books are just easy, familiar tones. Althalus is the one-book Eddings experience, which I pick up again now after having several times used it as the poster for Eddings' other work. Enough time has passed that I've forgotten most of the plot detail, so it's about as close to a fresh read as I can get.
It's strange what you don't notice. The plot is of the calibre I expected, with the many different locations, the high-level magic-infused war-planning and the varied (but somewhat passive) supporting cast. The younger me apparently got caught by this and couldn't see the sometimes painfully simple writing, or the very troublesome morality of the `good guys'. According to this last, all means are justified, all harm permissible, all prior desires or beliefs must be cast aside, because a mind-altering deity tells you so after having abducted you against your will. There is a lot of objectively bad behaviour that gets okayed in here on very flimsy grounds. In a way, this is realistic -- we are good because we are Us and not Them -- but I'm not sure Eddings or his readers take the story in those bleak terms.
Still readable, but probably less so than it was for the younger me. Sometimes soppy, sometimes annoying (those dream sequences), often a little too twee. But there are some fun uses of magic, and some nice military campaigns, and if you can quiet the critical voice pointing out what is wrong with it, there's a sense of purpose and belonging on offer.
It's strange what you don't notice. The plot is of the calibre I expected, with the many different locations, the high-level magic-infused war-planning and the varied (but somewhat passive) supporting cast. The younger me apparently got caught by this and couldn't see the sometimes painfully simple writing, or the very troublesome morality of the `good guys'. According to this last, all means are justified, all harm permissible, all prior desires or beliefs must be cast aside, because a mind-altering deity tells you so after having abducted you against your will. There is a lot of objectively bad behaviour that gets okayed in here on very flimsy grounds. In a way, this is realistic -- we are good because we are Us and not Them -- but I'm not sure Eddings or his readers take the story in those bleak terms.
Still readable, but probably less so than it was for the younger me. Sometimes soppy, sometimes annoying (those dream sequences), often a little too twee. But there are some fun uses of magic, and some nice military campaigns, and if you can quiet the critical voice pointing out what is wrong with it, there's a sense of purpose and belonging on offer.
August 8, 2010
Redemption of Althalus is not something I can compare to other fantasy books. This is because, generally speaking, I don't read these kind of books. The epic fantasies.
For the pure and simple reason that I have nothing to compare it to, I'm going to say that Redemption of Althalus is a good, clean, fun book. There are a sea of characters for readers to choose from, including the self-proclaimed best thief in the world, Althalus, and Gher, the eight-year-old with the brightest ideas on the planet.
Many don't seem to realise this, but this book was written by David and his wife, who as well as having a slightly darker sense of humour brings in a whole host of kickass female characters to enjoy.
As I have read in other reviews, this book's plot leaves much to be desired. I understand. It is hardly thrilling from a tactics point of view. The villains are notorious, but idiotic. I get it. But if you are the kind of person who doesn't usually read epic fantasies and enjoys to chuckle at the small pieces of dialogue that make books like these fun, then this is for you.
The books intimidating size daunts them, but I believe this book would be a fantastic read for 10-12 year olds.
From a girl who can't read Tolkien (the shame of it!), I think that Redemption of Althalus is epic enough and fantasical enough for me.
For the pure and simple reason that I have nothing to compare it to, I'm going to say that Redemption of Althalus is a good, clean, fun book. There are a sea of characters for readers to choose from, including the self-proclaimed best thief in the world, Althalus, and Gher, the eight-year-old with the brightest ideas on the planet.
Many don't seem to realise this, but this book was written by David and his wife, who as well as having a slightly darker sense of humour brings in a whole host of kickass female characters to enjoy.
As I have read in other reviews, this book's plot leaves much to be desired. I understand. It is hardly thrilling from a tactics point of view. The villains are notorious, but idiotic. I get it. But if you are the kind of person who doesn't usually read epic fantasies and enjoys to chuckle at the small pieces of dialogue that make books like these fun, then this is for you.
The books intimidating size daunts them, but I believe this book would be a fantastic read for 10-12 year olds.
From a girl who can't read Tolkien (the shame of it!), I think that Redemption of Althalus is epic enough and fantasical enough for me.
May 29, 2019
“I don’t want to contaminate a good story with truth. That’d be a violation of my artistic integrity.”
A fun read. Sort of a tongue-in-cheek parody of epic fantasy. World’s great thief (he thinks), competitive divine siblings, threats to end reality. Faint echoes of Star Wars. Didn’t notice much redemption of Althalus, but who cares?
“It’s not the writing that changes, pet. It’s the reading.” “Wait a minute. Doesn’t the writing mean the same to everybody?” “Of course it doesn’t. Everybody reads any writing gets a different meaning from it.”
Reads like a first draft—wordy and repetitious, but fun. Many modern writers would have published this as three (at least) books.
“Can you pretend to be stupid?” “Ma’am, I’m a country boy from the highlands of Arum. We invented stupid.”
Laced with colloquialisms: “I’m getting a little too old for this.” “Am I starting to hear rumblings of mutiny here?” “Rumble-rumble-rumble. Satisfied?” “You have a nice war now, you hear?” “You’ve got that right.” “Trying to bamboozle me.” “It’s sending them right up the wall.” “Let’s get cracking.” “Moving right along here.” “Have a nice day, hear?”
“Powerful men can command the actions of weaker men, but not their thoughts or beliefs.”
Enjoy.
“Do men ever grow up?” “Not if we can avoid it, no.”
A fun read. Sort of a tongue-in-cheek parody of epic fantasy. World’s great thief (he thinks), competitive divine siblings, threats to end reality. Faint echoes of Star Wars. Didn’t notice much redemption of Althalus, but who cares?
“It’s not the writing that changes, pet. It’s the reading.” “Wait a minute. Doesn’t the writing mean the same to everybody?” “Of course it doesn’t. Everybody reads any writing gets a different meaning from it.”
Reads like a first draft—wordy and repetitious, but fun. Many modern writers would have published this as three (at least) books.
“Can you pretend to be stupid?” “Ma’am, I’m a country boy from the highlands of Arum. We invented stupid.”
Laced with colloquialisms: “I’m getting a little too old for this.” “Am I starting to hear rumblings of mutiny here?” “Rumble-rumble-rumble. Satisfied?” “You have a nice war now, you hear?” “You’ve got that right.” “Trying to bamboozle me.” “It’s sending them right up the wall.” “Let’s get cracking.” “Moving right along here.” “Have a nice day, hear?”
“Powerful men can command the actions of weaker men, but not their thoughts or beliefs.”
Enjoy.
“Do men ever grow up?” “Not if we can avoid it, no.”
February 17, 2018
This was such a strange little traipse through a world in which 3 Gods fought (or passively sat by) over the future of reality. Characters were quirky and original and the story itself was a good one.
To be fair - I don't know why it didn't appeal to me more.
Maybe it was because Althalus himself went from being such a rogue to being an extension of Dweia - even while trying to have his own voice, or maybe it was the neat pairings off that was a little too...well - neat. Or it could be that evil was too clearly evil and I don't feel like that's ever really the case.
It was a good read and I would recommend it for a nice rainy evening - but it won't be one of those books that I re-read when I have that 'want to visit with all friends' feeling, if you know what I mean?
To be fair - I don't know why it didn't appeal to me more.
Maybe it was because Althalus himself went from being such a rogue to being an extension of Dweia - even while trying to have his own voice, or maybe it was the neat pairings off that was a little too...well - neat. Or it could be that evil was too clearly evil and I don't feel like that's ever really the case.
It was a good read and I would recommend it for a nice rainy evening - but it won't be one of those books that I re-read when I have that 'want to visit with all friends' feeling, if you know what I mean?
March 16, 2011
A really good book! I like the "doors" and I loved every follower of Althalus and "Emmy". I liked the dream concept, the the old english was getting on my nerves sometime... especially when it lasted long!
Very good book though, I'm going to look for other books by these authors when I'm out of reading material.
If you want to read a refreshing fantasy novel, pick this one!
Very good book though, I'm going to look for other books by these authors when I'm out of reading material.
If you want to read a refreshing fantasy novel, pick this one!
March 28, 2017
I dunno. This story was great the first two times I read it in the Belgariad and the Mallorean. But somehow, I didn't like it as much with the third set of the same but renamed characters.
December 14, 2025
Althalus’un Dönüşümü; zengin ve renkli fantastik unsurlarla örülmüş kurgusu, eğlenceli, muzip ve etkileyici karakterleri, her zamana ve her yere açılan kapılarıyla ihtişamlı bir ev, iyilik ve kötülüğün savaşında Tanrılar, Tanrıçalar ve üstün yeteneklere sahip insan takipçileri, üzerinde yazan yazıların okuyan kişiye göre değiştiği olağanüstü güçlere sahip bir bıçak, isimlerin geçtiği ve kullanana büyülü yetiler kazandıran bir kitap, geçmiş ve gelecek zamanda yapılan müdahaleler, güçlü kadın karakterler, dostluk ve arkadaşlığın ön planda olduğu kişilerarası ilişkiler gibi pek çok unsuru bir araya getiren; su gibi akan hikâyesi ve mizahi diyaloglarla çerçevelenen iç ısıtan atmosferi sayesinde tekrar tekrar okumaktan büyük keyif aldığım ve çok beğendiğim bir kitaptır.
Her şeyi yaratan Tanrı Deiwos, her zamana ve her yere açılan Ev’ini inşa eder ve insanları kendi hür iradeleriyle baş başa bırakır. Kardeşi Daeva ise bu durumdan hoşnut değildir; değişime karşıdır ve her şeyin başlangıçtaki haline dönmesini arzu etmektedir. Kız kardeşleri Tanrıça Dweia, bu yaratımda koruyucu rolünü üstlenmiş olsa da henüz aktif bir müdahalede bulunmaz. Çünkü onun etki edeceği zaman daha gelmemiştir; ancak her şey, planları doğrultusunda ilerlemektedir.
Ahlak kurallarını hiçe sayan, kendi ilkeleriyle hareket eden usta bir hırsız olan Althalus, aynı zamanda onu her defasında tehlikelerden koruyan ve zenginliklerle buluşturan olağanüstü bir şansa sahiptir. Şansına fazlasıyla güvenen Althalus, yeni servetler bulma umuduyla alışık olduğu toprakları terk ederek medeni şehirleri hedef alır. Ancak bu yolculuk, peş peşe gelen talihsiz girişimler sonucunda büyük bir hayal kırıklığına neden olur. Çok güvendiği şansı onu terk etmiş, zengin olmak için çıktığı bu yolda canını zor kurtarmıştır.
Usta bir hikâye anlatıcısı da olan Althalus, başına gelenleri aktarırken; gözleri alev alev yanan tuhaf bir adamdan geri çeviremeyeceği bir iş teklifi alır. Görevi, Dünyanın Sonundaki Ev’e gitmek ve oradan bir kitap çalmaktır. Böylece Althalus, gökyüzünde ateşlerin görüldüğü ve hiçbir insanın gitmediği dünyanın kenarından geçerek gizemli Ev’e ulaşır. Bu evde, Tanrısal güçlerin merkezinde yer alan büyük bir maceranın parçası olacak; kendini üstün gören bir kraliçe, güçlü ama toy bir savaşçı, inancını yitirmiş bir rahip, zihin okuyan genç bir kadın ve küçük yaşına rağmen el çabukluğu ve zekâsıyla dikkat çeken bir çocuktan oluşan, özenle seçilmiş yol arkadaşlarıyla birlikte önemli görevlerin tamamlanmasına öncülük edecektir.
Sıcak atmosferi ve çok yönlü, iç ısıtan hikâyesiyle gönül rahatlığıyla önerimdir.
Her şeyi yaratan Tanrı Deiwos, her zamana ve her yere açılan Ev’ini inşa eder ve insanları kendi hür iradeleriyle baş başa bırakır. Kardeşi Daeva ise bu durumdan hoşnut değildir; değişime karşıdır ve her şeyin başlangıçtaki haline dönmesini arzu etmektedir. Kız kardeşleri Tanrıça Dweia, bu yaratımda koruyucu rolünü üstlenmiş olsa da henüz aktif bir müdahalede bulunmaz. Çünkü onun etki edeceği zaman daha gelmemiştir; ancak her şey, planları doğrultusunda ilerlemektedir.
Ahlak kurallarını hiçe sayan, kendi ilkeleriyle hareket eden usta bir hırsız olan Althalus, aynı zamanda onu her defasında tehlikelerden koruyan ve zenginliklerle buluşturan olağanüstü bir şansa sahiptir. Şansına fazlasıyla güvenen Althalus, yeni servetler bulma umuduyla alışık olduğu toprakları terk ederek medeni şehirleri hedef alır. Ancak bu yolculuk, peş peşe gelen talihsiz girişimler sonucunda büyük bir hayal kırıklığına neden olur. Çok güvendiği şansı onu terk etmiş, zengin olmak için çıktığı bu yolda canını zor kurtarmıştır.
Usta bir hikâye anlatıcısı da olan Althalus, başına gelenleri aktarırken; gözleri alev alev yanan tuhaf bir adamdan geri çeviremeyeceği bir iş teklifi alır. Görevi, Dünyanın Sonundaki Ev’e gitmek ve oradan bir kitap çalmaktır. Böylece Althalus, gökyüzünde ateşlerin görüldüğü ve hiçbir insanın gitmediği dünyanın kenarından geçerek gizemli Ev’e ulaşır. Bu evde, Tanrısal güçlerin merkezinde yer alan büyük bir maceranın parçası olacak; kendini üstün gören bir kraliçe, güçlü ama toy bir savaşçı, inancını yitirmiş bir rahip, zihin okuyan genç bir kadın ve küçük yaşına rağmen el çabukluğu ve zekâsıyla dikkat çeken bir çocuktan oluşan, özenle seçilmiş yol arkadaşlarıyla birlikte önemli görevlerin tamamlanmasına öncülük edecektir.
Sıcak atmosferi ve çok yönlü, iç ısıtan hikâyesiyle gönül rahatlığıyla önerimdir.
October 30, 2024
It's definitely not 1 star as some other reviews are saying, and where are the Lord of the Rings similarities? It's pure, typical Eddings if you've read Belgariad and Elenium.
If you haven't read Eddings, read only Belgariad and Malloreon. When you're tired rereading them, read the other books (Polgara etc). When those run out, read the Elenium and Tamuli. Only if you're through with those at least twice and you just want Eddings you don't know by heart already, read this.
It's breezy and heavy-handed, and that's all right. Now I can go reread the Belgariad…
If you haven't read Eddings, read only Belgariad and Malloreon. When you're tired rereading them, read the other books (Polgara etc). When those run out, read the Elenium and Tamuli. Only if you're through with those at least twice and you just want Eddings you don't know by heart already, read this.
It's breezy and heavy-handed, and that's all right. Now I can go reread the Belgariad…
January 17, 2022
2.5/5. My uncle gave this to me to read, not typically something I would choose for myself. It started off interesting, but it was a long build up for not a big enough ending.
August 24, 2025
3.5 stars.
Patrick Rothfuss isn’t the first fantasy writer to tackle picaresque fantasy (though he’s probably the best.) David and Leigh Eddings did it in 2001 with The Redemption of Althalus, a novel that blends epic and picaresque fantasy elements to tell the story of a likable thief who becomes. . . quite a bit more. Along the way, there are companions to gather; evil counterparts to, er, counter; battles to fight; schemes and deceptions to perpetrate or guard against; and hearts to win.
The Redemption of Althalus is a little bit of a misnomer, not because it’s inaccurate but because it’s not the primary focus of the book. While Althalus is “redeemed” (in a sense), the main plot revolves not around his redemption arc but around the typical “save the world from utter destruction and darkest evil” trope. Althalus is necessary, indeed central, to that objective, and his redemption (if you can call it that) is critical to it, but much of that redemption is glossed over in the first section of the book. By the time the action really gets going, Althalus is already at least partially redeemed—well, to the point of, say, “chaotic good,” which is about as far as he goes. He’s still willing to lie, cheat, steal and even kill, but now it’s in a good cause.
What makes the book work for me isn’t so much the plot, which is long, episodic, and involved, and could definitely have benefited from some tightening here and there. The main characters carry the story from the start—mainly Althalus and Emmy/Dweia—helped along by the Eddings’ straightforward, almost conversational prose. Anyone familiar with the authors’ Belgariad or Mallorean series will recognize their narrative voice, which employs simple, direct sentences leavened by occasional deadpan humor. Make that “more than occasional”; despite the fact that Dweia, Althalus, and their companions are trying to prevent the destruction of the universe, there’s enough humor in the book to keep me chuckling and sometimes even laughing out loud. It’s not a funny book, but there are a lot of funny moments.
Though the book is told in third person, Althalus is the POV character; we only see into other characters’ minds and hearts through him. Given the complexity of the plot, that provides a welcome point of stability and cohesion that, along with the direct prose, makes it easier to follow the story through the various twists and turns.
In the second section of the book, Althalus gathers companions, all of them young: the soldier Eliar; Andine, a princess; Bheid, a priest of the god Deiwos; the telepath Leitha; and Gher, a boy thief with a philosopher’s mind. The six of them, plus Emmy/Dweia, make up the main characters, but there are a slew of secondary characters to keep track of as well, from the six henchmen of Daeva (their chief opponents) to numerous political and military leaders in various countries. Again, the straightforward narrative style helps to avoid confusion, but if you have trouble with names, it wouldn’t hurt to write up a cast of characters as you read.
I read The Redemption of Althalus when it first came out, and felt that it didn’t quite measure up to the Belgariad series, which remains my favorite of David Eddings’s works. My recent rereading hasn’t changed that opinion. I do enjoy the book, or I wouldn’t have bothered rereading it. It’s entertaining; Althalus is a wonderful character, and I’m rather fond of some of the others as well, particularly Emmy and Gher. But as I mentioned earlier, the plot wanders a bit and could definitely have used some tightening, and the story never completely draws me in the way the Belgariad and even the (highly imitative) Mallorean series do… hence the 3.5 rating.
In a nutshell: Entertaining if overly-long picaresque/epic fantasy, but not the authors’ finest work.
Review originally published in 2017 on my blog, The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
Patrick Rothfuss isn’t the first fantasy writer to tackle picaresque fantasy (though he’s probably the best.) David and Leigh Eddings did it in 2001 with The Redemption of Althalus, a novel that blends epic and picaresque fantasy elements to tell the story of a likable thief who becomes. . . quite a bit more. Along the way, there are companions to gather; evil counterparts to, er, counter; battles to fight; schemes and deceptions to perpetrate or guard against; and hearts to win.
The Redemption of Althalus is a little bit of a misnomer, not because it’s inaccurate but because it’s not the primary focus of the book. While Althalus is “redeemed” (in a sense), the main plot revolves not around his redemption arc but around the typical “save the world from utter destruction and darkest evil” trope. Althalus is necessary, indeed central, to that objective, and his redemption (if you can call it that) is critical to it, but much of that redemption is glossed over in the first section of the book. By the time the action really gets going, Althalus is already at least partially redeemed—well, to the point of, say, “chaotic good,” which is about as far as he goes. He’s still willing to lie, cheat, steal and even kill, but now it’s in a good cause.
What makes the book work for me isn’t so much the plot, which is long, episodic, and involved, and could definitely have benefited from some tightening here and there. The main characters carry the story from the start—mainly Althalus and Emmy/Dweia—helped along by the Eddings’ straightforward, almost conversational prose. Anyone familiar with the authors’ Belgariad or Mallorean series will recognize their narrative voice, which employs simple, direct sentences leavened by occasional deadpan humor. Make that “more than occasional”; despite the fact that Dweia, Althalus, and their companions are trying to prevent the destruction of the universe, there’s enough humor in the book to keep me chuckling and sometimes even laughing out loud. It’s not a funny book, but there are a lot of funny moments.
Though the book is told in third person, Althalus is the POV character; we only see into other characters’ minds and hearts through him. Given the complexity of the plot, that provides a welcome point of stability and cohesion that, along with the direct prose, makes it easier to follow the story through the various twists and turns.
In the second section of the book, Althalus gathers companions, all of them young: the soldier Eliar; Andine, a princess; Bheid, a priest of the god Deiwos; the telepath Leitha; and Gher, a boy thief with a philosopher’s mind. The six of them, plus Emmy/Dweia, make up the main characters, but there are a slew of secondary characters to keep track of as well, from the six henchmen of Daeva (their chief opponents) to numerous political and military leaders in various countries. Again, the straightforward narrative style helps to avoid confusion, but if you have trouble with names, it wouldn’t hurt to write up a cast of characters as you read.
I read The Redemption of Althalus when it first came out, and felt that it didn’t quite measure up to the Belgariad series, which remains my favorite of David Eddings’s works. My recent rereading hasn’t changed that opinion. I do enjoy the book, or I wouldn’t have bothered rereading it. It’s entertaining; Althalus is a wonderful character, and I’m rather fond of some of the others as well, particularly Emmy and Gher. But as I mentioned earlier, the plot wanders a bit and could definitely have used some tightening, and the story never completely draws me in the way the Belgariad and even the (highly imitative) Mallorean series do… hence the 3.5 rating.
In a nutshell: Entertaining if overly-long picaresque/epic fantasy, but not the authors’ finest work.
Review originally published in 2017 on my blog, The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
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